Shropshire Star

Report to be presented into Shropshire fire plans

A report into plans by the Police and Crime Commissioner to take over the fire service will be revealed at a meeting next week.

Published

The report by Ameo Alendi Consulting, hired to analyse the plans by PCC John Campion, will be presented to fire chiefs at a meeting of Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service on Tuesday.

At the meeting, members will be asked to decide whether to endorse the report for submission to the leaders of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin Councils to help with their decisions in replying to the plans and whether the new report should form the basis of the Fire Authority’s response to the initial business case.

The commissioner has said that his taking over of the fire service would deliver the “best results” for the people of Shropshire, adding that it could save the taxpayer £4m each year.

But members of the Fire Authority have called it a "hostile takeover."

A consultation, which will run until September, has been launched on the scheme.

The fire service said it commissioned the report in order to find out where the savings will come from and whether it is feasible with the costs of transition, the impact on staff and the potential impact on democratic and political representation across the West Mercia region, which includes Shropshire, Hereford and Worcestershire.

Mr Campion previously said he was concerned about the amount of time given to the independent firm to check over his business plans.

He has said that three weeks is not enough time to thoroughly check over his business plans, and that members of the public could not be convinced it isn't just "a hatchet job, produced to reinforce opinions that have already been formed".

Currently fire and rescue services are overseen by authorities made up of councillors from across the region.

The government has said it wants to see a more joined-up approach in the way police and fire services work together.

On January 25, 2016, the government announced it would bring forward legislation to enable police and crime commissioners to take over fire and rescue services.

It means PCCs could potentially create a single employer for both police and fire personnel if they are able to demonstrate a clear business case for doing so.