Public safety fears as £5m cut from local fire service

Fears that the level of public safety will drop have been sparked by council plans to cut Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue’s (LBFRS) budget by £5 million.

It is thought that in order to make the savings the service will have to offer staff early retirement, voluntary redundancy and share services such as the fire control room with police or ambulance.

David Millar, director of corporate services said: "There is very little wriggle room, because we have made substantial savings already” adding that cutting costs would risk the service falling below government guidelines.

Speaking to The Journal, councillor Michael Bridgman, convener for LBFRS, defended the cuts: “We run a highly efficient service and we have made efficiency savings over the last couple of years.

“I therefore have great confidence in our officers to bring back to our scrutiny committee all the evidence needed for us, as board members to make decisions on any further savings that can be made whilst protecting frontline services as a priority.

“Public & Employee safety has and always will be a priority.”

However, online responses have expressed concern over the impact this will have on the service and the practicality of money saving resolutions such as sharing backroom services.

Members of the public questioned the escalating costs for the construction of Edinburgh’s tram networks which has had predicted costs of up £600 million.

Councillor Bridgman showed no defence for the budget allocation when asked about the trams responding: “Being a member of the SNP group we have never believed in the Tram project.”

Exact figures for the cuts will not be available until later this year but current preparations are being made to save £4.83 million between 2011 and 2013. This follows previous cuts being made over the last six years which have brought costs down by £6.2 million.

A review has been launched to investigate areas where savings can be made without compromising the service.