Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has had discussions with the Fire Brigades Union on maternity pay in the fire and rescue services.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Setting fire pay and conditions, including setting a minimum national maternity entitlement, is the responsibility of employers and representative bodies, working through the National Joint Council.
The Government plays no role in setting firefighter pay.
I meet regularly with the Fire Brigades Union to discuss issues of mutual interest and concern.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of maternity pay in fire and rescue services.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Setting fire pay and conditions, including setting a minimum national maternity entitlement, is the responsibility of employers and representative bodies, working through the National Joint Council.
The Government plays no role in setting firefighter pay.
I meet regularly with the Fire Brigades Union to discuss issues of mutual interest and concern.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the FBU on funding for fire and rescue services.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
I meet regularly with the Fire Brigades Union to discuss issues of mutual interest and concern.
The Government recognises that the current fire funding formula was designed over a decade ago. In line with responses to the principles of reform consultation in December 2024, the Government updated the fire and rescue relative needs formula by using the most up-to-date data available. We will work with the fire sector on a comprehensive review of the formula ahead of the next Spending Review and are currently engaging with the sector on this.
The 2026-2027 Funding Settlement marks the first multi-year funding Settlement for local government in 10 years, making available almost £1.9 billion in core spending power (CSP) for fire and rescue authorities. Fire and Rescue Services have had an additional £15 million funding secured since the provisional settlement, which will provide a minimum 3.8% increase in CSP for all standalone services, with some services seeing increases of over 7% in CSP.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential impact in changes in the number of firefighters since 2010 on a) response times and b) risk to firefighters.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Decisions on how fire and rescue services are run, including the number and locations of fire stations and firefighter numbers, are for the local fire and rescue authority (FRA) and its Chief Fire Officer. FRAs are responsible for ensuring the needs and demands of their local community are met. They are responsible for directing their resources where they are needed most and in accordance with their Community Risk Management Plans (CRMPs).
The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) publishes statistics on fire and rescue service (FRS) workforce numbers, response times, and firefighter injuries. The full time equivalent (FTE) number of firefighters and the number of firefighter workplace injuries have both declined since 2010, whilst response times have increased. Correlations between statistics, either positive or negative, are not necessarily causal.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of firefighter numbers in (a) the UK and (b) Poole.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Decisions on how fire and rescue services are run, including the number and locations of fire stations and firefighter numbers, are for the local fire and rescue authority (FRA) and its Chief Fire Officer. FRAs are responsible for ensuring the needs and demands of their local community are met. They are responsible for directing their resources where they are needed most and in accordance with their Community Risk Management Plans (CRMPs).
The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) publishes statistics on fire and rescue service (FRS) workforce numbers, response times, and firefighter injuries. The full time equivalent (FTE) number of firefighters and the number of firefighter workplace injuries have both declined since 2010, whilst response times have increased. Correlations between statistics, either positive or negative, are not necessarily causal.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing a statutory duty for firefighters in England to respond to flooding events.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Protecting communities from flooding is a key priority for this Government. Fire and Rescue Authorities already have duties under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 to prepare for emergencies, including major flooding. We recognise the interest in creating a statutory duty for flood response and my officials are working with DEFRA, as lead government department for flooding, to consider this and any wider implications.
MHCLG supports Fire and Rescue Authorities in responding to flood incidents by providing the sector with national resilience High Volume Pump (HVP) capabilities. These are available to be used by Fire & Rescue Services across the country during major flood incidents. Additionally, DEFRA hold the Flood Rescue National Asset Register, a list of teams or assets that voluntarily join the register and maintain availability for national deployment in England.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that independent faith schools meet independent school standards.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
All private schools are required to comply with the Independent School Standards (ISS). Schools that fail to meet the ISS at inspection are subject to regulatory action as per the ‘Independent Schools: Regulatory and Enforcement Action’ policy statement.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of fire station closures on response times.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
It is the responsibility of each Fire and Rescue Authority (FRA) to decide how each authority’s resources, including staff, are best deployed to meet core functions, including appropriate targets for local response times. Decisions are based on analysis of risk and local circumstances within local Community Risk Management Plans.
When considering proposals for changes to station provision, including potential closures, FRAs should assess the impact on response times as part of their overall assessment of community risk.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimations his Department has made of the cost of integrating the social care sector into the Department and devolving it to local government level.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No estimation or assessment has been made. The Department currently has responsibility for social care policy. Under the Care Act 2014, local authorities have a duty to meet the eligible care and support needs of people in their local area.
Asked by: Neil Duncan-Jordan (Labour - Poole)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will hold discussions with the Fire Brigades Union on the implementation of health monitoring for firefighters.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
On 16 April 2026, the Department announced its intention to co-produce a Firefighters’ Concordat on Health and Wellbeing, to develop a bespoke health monitoring offer for firefighters, and to undertake new research to improve understanding of the long-term health risks firefighters face and the most effective forms of support. The Concordat will be jointly designed and developed with the sector, bringing together national and local Government, the National Health Service, fire chiefs, employers, the Fire Brigades Union and firefighters themselves. This work is being taken forward through the Ministerial Advisory Group (MAG) on Fire and Rescue Reform.
The health monitoring offer will be developed in partnership with the NHS, alongside the MAG, and with firefighters and their representatives, employers, clinicians, public health and occupational health experts, and relevant national bodies. The MAG will provide a mechanism to maintain shared oversight as the offer is designed, tested and refined.