North Yorkshire Fire Service needs to borrow £25 million
That amounts to 70 per cent of its budget.
Last updated 8th Feb 2022
North Yorkshire fire and rescue service is facing having to borrow at least £25m, equal to around 70% of its annual budget, to fund new equipment and other spending.
At a meeting of the county's Police, Fire and Crime Panel, director of finance at the commissioner’s office, Michael Porter, said that the fire precept can only be increased by 1.99% and there will be no capital grant from government, leaving North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service requiring £31.1m to fund its projects over the next five years.
Mr Porter said “almost the entirety of that £31 million would need to be borrowed. Borrowing would need to be around £25m to £26m to be able to fund that level of investment”.
The service requires funding to pay for vehicles, maintenance of property and fire kit.
Steve Howley, Fire Brigades Union North Yorkshire brigade secretary, said:
“The government has left North Yorkshire fire and rescue service in a horrendous position – it’s abolished the entirety of its funding for it. When coupled with the already desperate financial state of the service there will be serious implications. The fire and rescue service is now struggling to buy the basics needed for our firefighters to protect their communities, and struggling to invest in its dilapidated buildings, many of which are unfit for purpose in 2022. For example, we still have several stations which do not have adequate facilities for female members of staff.
“The Government needs to start taking fire and rescue seriously and fund it appropriately. The firefighters of North Yorkshire are staring down the barrel of a gun, either cut firefighter jobs to pay for basic provisions or fail to have adequate facilities or equipment. Neither option provides the public of North Yorkshire with the protection they deserve or require.
“The Chief Fire Officer and Police Fire and Crime Commissioner need to be open and honest with the public regarding just how dangerous the financial picture is. We must not forget that two North Yorkshire MPs are government ministers, one of them being the Chancellor. They should not be allowing this to happen, they should be protecting our firefighters and their constituents, the public of North Yorkshire.”
According to the North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner the annual fire budget is £36.3m.
The meeting in question took place on 13 January.
North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Zoë Metcalfe, said:
“First of all, I want to reassure everyone that the equipment our firefighters use meets safety standards and that no matter the challenges we face we will always ensure that the Service has what it needs to protect our communities. The public can remain confident in their Fire Service and the response they will get if they need them.
“There is no hiding the fact that the challenge we face is significant, however we have always been open and honest about North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s financial situation.
“When governance of the Service transferred to the Commissioner in 2018 we inherited a Financial Plan with a £2.6m imbalance across its 4 year life span. Since then, a significant amount of work has been undertaken and Financial Plans set out in February 2021 forecasted a balanced plan by 2023/24.
“Unfortunately, due to unexpected pay awards, the higher costs of utilities and insurance which we are all facing in our personal lives as well, and costs linked to our ageing buildings, our costs are increasing faster than our funding.
“To be clear, the Government has not abolished our funding, but North Yorkshire’s share of Fire and Rescue funding is lower than the national average making it hard to save to pay for capital projects and maintain current service levels.
“I have and am continuing to fight hard for fairer funding for North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service to improve our share of funding. I am working closely with our MPs, the Police, Fire and Crime Panel and the County and City Councils to make sure our voice is heard. It is disappointing that we did not succeed in getting precept flexibility, but I remain hopeful for future years.
“We have been speaking with communities across North Yorkshire and the City of York as part of our consultation to develop our Fire and Rescue Plan to understand your priorities for the Fire and Rescue Service. I am working with the Chief Fire Officer to look at all options to be more effective and efficient to ensure that we best match our resources to our risk and build a stable and balanced financial plan. I will be holding further consultations with the public this summer regarding those plans.”