Oral Answers to Questions

Julie Hilling Excerpts

Monday 30th April 2012 Commons Chamber

[Grahame M. Morris (Easington) (Lab)]

13. What assessment he has made of the potential effect of funding reductions on the operational activities of fire and rescue services.

[Julie Hilling (Bolton West) (Lab)]

17. What assessment he has made of the potential effect of funding reductions on the operational activities of fire and rescue services.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Robert Neill)]

Operational matters are best assessed at the local level. It is for each fire and rescue authority to determine the operational activities of its fire and rescue service through its integrated risk management plan, which is subject to consultation with the local community.

--- Later in debate ---

[Robert Neill]

With respect to the hon. Gentleman, he has not grasped the point that the risk assessment is dealt with at a local level by the integrated risk management plan, which is consulted upon with the local community and then approved by the fire authority. Durham’s funding per head has been maintained over two years at a steady level of £21 per head. It is worth saying that all metropolitan fire authorities have had increases in their capital grant of 50% to 80%, which is significantly more than under the previous Government.

[Julie Hilling]

Two hundred firefighter posts are being lost in Greater Manchester, but Cheshire and Essex are getting a 2% increase in their budgets. As there is a greater risk of fire, civil disturbances and industrial incidents—and in my constituency motorway incidents as well—in the metropolitan boroughs, how can the Minister possibly justify such a huge cut to the metropolitan authorities and an increase to the leafy counties?

[Robert Neill]

I was just looking at the figures that the hon. Lady gives me for her authority. It is worth observing that Greater Manchester is funded at the rate of £26 per head in formula grant. Cheshire, which was referred to, gets only £18 per head in formula grant, so I do not think she is giving a fair comparison.