Firefighters take to the picket lines

Firefighters in Northern Ireland left for the picket lines this morning after hopes of resolving the bitter dispute over pay collapsed yesterday.

Members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) across the UK are striking for 48 hours over the continuing deadlock in their long-running pay dispute with local employers. Today marked the first of two 48-hour strikes – the second of which begin on Saturday morning.

The FBU has been demanding a 40% rise in annual salaries in order to bring the service from £21,500 to £30,000 per annum. But fire service employers have stood firm on the Bain recommendations which call for a 4% pay offer, rising to 11% over two years, linked to modernisation.

Last-ditch talks in London between the FBU and employers were called off on Monday afternoon with no conciliatory noises coming from either side.

“We said we would enter negotiations free of preconditions; it is now clear our employers’ are not prepared to negotiate,” Andy Gilchrist, FBU General Secretary said.

“They are still offering us 4% with complete decimation of the UK Fire Service with any increase above 4% being paid for with the loss of jobs.”

Employers later attacked the decision and said two days of talks pencilled in for today and Wednesday at the conciliation service would not go ahead.

The Deputy Prime Minister, John Prescott, has attacked the union for costing deprived communities millions of pounds as a result of the strikes. He said the dispute had so far cost his department £70 million which could have been spent on urban regeneration projects.

On the back of this Mr Prescott told MPs today he is planning to use new legal powers to impose a pay settlement on striking firefighters.

“As a matter of priority, I will introduce legislation in the public interest to take new powers of direction over the Fire Service,” he said.

“These powers will hopefully bring a new and much-needed sense of reality into future negotiations.”

Andy Gilchrist described the announcement as a “desperate act by desperate people”.

“The FBU wants peace, it wants to talk and prepared to do so as long there is a real prospect of a negotiated settlement. Bullyboy tactics won’t work. They will only harden attitudes. Prescott should think again and help kick-start talks.”

He also went on to defend strike action this week saying firefighters had no alternative.

“As long as the government and national fire service employers’ hold to this position, the current dispute will continue,” he said.

According to police figures, from 9am until midday today, the army received eight 999 calls – none of which were hoaxes. No yellow goddesses were deployed and there were no genuine calls.

(AMcE)