Firefighters’ Pension Scheme (England)

Debate between Baroness Laing of Elderslie and Hilary Benn

Monday 15th December 2014 Commons Chamber

[Madam Deputy Speaker (Mrs Eleanor Laing)]

Order. There is a limited time for this debate and a lot of people wish to speak. We must have very brief interventions.

[Hilary Benn]

I agree with my right hon. Friend and I shall come back to that point later.

On the offers made in Scotland and Wales, those devolved Governments are subject to exactly the same cost ceiling, so they have adjusted their accrual rates to come up with a fairer scheme. Why does that matter? It matters because firefighting demands certain standards of physical fitness, yet some firefighters reaching the age of 55 will, after decades of service and through no fault of their own, find they are unable to continue because they cannot meet the fitness requirements.