Concern over cuts to firefighters and stations

The community safety minister has said S cotland’ s fire service needs to be transformed after it emerged staffing issues mean up to 100 fire engines can be unavailable ever y day.

Annabelle Ewing said no decisions had been made amid reports the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service ( SFRS) is to cut both the number of firefighters and stations it has.

BBC Scotland reported a leaked document as stating the SFRS was looking to “re- balance” staff numbers and review its “station footprint”.

Ms Ewing told MS P Sat Holy rood“no decisions” have been made about how the service would operate in the future – but stressed transformation “requires to be done”.

Conservative justice spokesman Li am Kerr said :“The minister may call this transformation, but we know that is code for cuts. How can the minister re assure the public that our fire services performance will not suffer further as a result of cuts to firefighters and stations?”

Labour’s Claire Baker had tabled an urgent Holyrood question, telling ministers that 700 fire fighters and £ 53 million had been cut from the S FRS since the single service was created in 2013.

Ms Baker said promises to protect frontline services had been broken since the reorganisation.