FBU Region 6

DeHavilland Report – Fire Brigades Union

Monday, 1st March 2010

Mentions

House of Commons

Early Day Motions and Petitions

• EDM 419 - Firecontrol Project (updated)

Political Party Press Releases

• McDonnell, John (Martin) - Unions Come together to Plan Resistance

Fire Services

Central Government and Agencies

• DCLG - celebs pledge to test their Smoke Alarms every week

Westminster Debates and Legislation

• Lords Committee Stage - Building Regulations (Amendment) Bill
• (No. 428) Welsh Ministers (Transfer of Fire and Rescue Service Equipment) Order 2010 laid before Parliament
• (No. 471) Fire Safety (Employees' Capabilities) (England) Regulations 2010 laid before Parliament

House of Commons

House of Commons Questions

• Jackson - Fire Services: Industrial Disputes
• Cunningham, Jim - Schools (fire prevention measures)
• Cunningham, Jim - Schools (fire sprinklers)
• Jackson - Fire Prevention: Hotels
• Jackson - Firefighters jobs
• McDonnell - Fire Service rescues
• Grayling - Fire service callouts

Regions

• No relevant items

Mentions

House of Commons

Early Day Motions and Petitions

EDM 419 - Firecontrol Project (updated)

Wed, 6 January 2010 | House of Commons - Early Day Motion

Summary

The following EDM was tabled on 9th December 2009

Contents

New EDM 419 was first put down on 9th December 2009 by Andrew Dismore
It has been signed by 49 people.

That this House notes the continued concerns of the Fire Brigades Union that the FiReControl Project should have been completed by the end of 2007; further notes that the Government claimed it would make considerable savings, paying for itself within five years and improve on the current system; further notes that the project is considerably over budget and will make no savings, continues to face considerable technical challenges and is now facing further delays which means the full national network may not be in place and rigorously tested in time for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games; further notes that the Chief Fire Officers' Association is not assured that the project will not face further delays and that in September the Local Government Association echoed the concerns of the Fire Brigades Union, stating that fire and rescue authorities have expressed deep concerns; and therefore calls for the project to be stopped and for existing control rooms swiftly to be upgraded as necessary to ensure the communications benefits sought by Government are delivered by local fire brigade control rooms as they will be in Scotland and are in Wales without the need for regionalisation.

Mr Austin Mitchell

Lembit Opik

On 6/1/10 it was signed by:

Norman Baker
Joan Walley
Chris McCafferty
David Heyes

On 16/12/09 it was signed by:

Harry Cohen
Dr Doug Naysmith
Charlotte Atkins
Mr Greg Pope
Mr David Anderson
Greg Mulholland

On 15/12/09 it was signed by:

Mr Martin Caton
John Battle
Kelvin Hopkins
Mr Neil Gerrard
Sandra Gidley
Roger Berry
John Cummings
Paul Holmes
Mike Hancock
Mr Denis Murphy
Frank Cook
Ms Katy Clark
Mr Robert Walter
Mark Durkan
Mr Dai Havard

On 14/12/09 it was signed by:

Mr Colin Breed
Glenda Jackson
Mr Robert N. Wareing
Philip Davies
Mrs Ann Cryer
Mr Bob Laxton
Nick Harvey
Bob Spink
Mr David S. Borrow

On 10/12/09 it was signed by:

Mr Andrew Pelling
Mr Brian Jenkins
Mrs Joan Humble
Mr Eric Illsley
Dr Rudi Vis
Mr Edward O'Hara

On 9/12/09 it was signed by:

Mr Andrew Dismore
John McDonnell
Mr Michael Clapham
David Taylor
Mrs Linda Riordan
Mr David Drew
Peter Bottomley
Andrew George
Mr Alan Meale
Mr Lindsay Hoyle

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Political Party Press Releases

McDonnell, John (Martin) - Unions Come together to Plan Resistance

Fri, 5 March 2010 | Political Party Press Release

Contents

PRESS NOTICE....................PRESS NOTICE.............PRESS NOTICE…………PRESS NOTICE…………

Embargo: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

UNIONS UNITE TO PLAN COORDINATED ACTION

Eight National Unions are coming together in an Emergency Conference in London on Saturday to plan a united response to the cuts which all of the main political parties are proposing. The Conference will be the first ever delegate conference where the Executives of the eight unions will come together to focus upon building a programme of resistance and coordinated action to defend their members.

Bob Crow, RMT General Secretary, said: “As we head towards the election all the main parties are talking the language of cuts and privatisation and it falls to trade unionists and socialists to make the case for the alternative agenda outlined in the People’s Charter.”

“The TUCG has a crucial role to play in mobilising effective and high profile opposition to the attacks on jobs and services that are already hammering the transport sector, the civil service, the NHS and other key areas.”

Matt Wrack, FBU General Secretary, said: “The Fire Brigades Union is very pleased to be taking part in the first conference of the TUCG.”

“Working people have seen tens of thousands of jobs destroyed and a return to the terrible blight of mass youth unemployment. The response of too many politicians is to make cuts in services and throw even more people onto the scrapheap while making the rest pay higher taxes for worse public services.”

“The challenge facing trade unions is to present an alternative to this agenda which offers hope and a way forward to working people.”

John McDonnell MP, TUCG Parliamentary Convenor, said: "This is a critically important event for the unions to plan their response to the attacks that are coming on public services and their members' standard of living, jobs, pensions and quality of life."

"Political Parties need to be aware that the unions will not allow their members to be pushed around and will not put up with their members being forced to pay for this recession."

-Ends-

Notes to Editors:

The Trade Union Coordinating Group brings together eight National Unions (BFAWU, FBU, NAPO, NUJ, PCS, POA, RMT & URTU) representing over half a million members to coordinate their campaigning work both in Parliament and beyond.

TUCG DELGATE CONVENTION 2010 - "The Unions' Agenda for the Election and Beyond". Saturday 6th March. 10.30am – 4.15pm. PCS HQ, 160 Falcon Road, London SW11 (Beside Clapham Junction Station). Admittance for Accredited Delegates only - Registration from 10 am

For further comment or interview:

Office (9.30am - 5.30pm, M-F): 020 7219 1626

John McDonnell MP: 07956 292576

Simeon Andrews: 07984 401032

UK Parliament Disclaimer:

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Fire Services

Central Government and Agencies

DCLG - celebs pledge to test their Smoke Alarms every week

Tue, 2 March 2010 | Departmental Press Release

Contents

Sir Terry Wogan, Amir Khan and 'Corrie sisters' amongst celebs that pledge to promote fire safety.

Celebrities from across the music, showbiz and sporting worlds are backing the Government’s Fire Kills campaign with a "Push It Pledge", to urge people to test their smoke alarm every week.

Coronation Street on-screen sisters, Helen Flanagan and Brooke Vincent (aka Rosie and Sophie Webster), along with a host of other famous faces - including Amir Khan, Ainsley Harriet, Jill Halfpenny, Sir Terry Wogan, Darren Campbell, James Martin, Dave Spikey, Nihal and Bobby Friction - are all making a pledge to test their smoke alarm every week. This is a vital step in helping the nation to reduce the number of deaths and injuries caused by accidental house fires.

Eighty five per cent of people own a smoke alarm, 1 but worryingly less than a third test them every week.2 This is despite the fact that you are more than twice as likely to die in an accidental house fire if you don’t have a working smoke alarm.1 Just two to three breaths of toxic smoke can render you unconscious, your lungs fill up and you can’t breathe, just like drowning. It’s imperative that a smoke alarm is not only installed in your home, but that it actually works.

Helen Flanagan, who is supporting the campaign, said:

"At home, we’ve been guilty of not testing our smoke alarms as regularly as we should, but this campaign has made me realise how important it is to take just a few seconds every week to push the button and ensure our alarms are working. It’s scary how quickly a house fire can spread and in so many cases, it’s the smoke alarm that can make the difference between someone being able to escape in time, or not. We will be testing our smoke alarms every week from now on."

1The English House Condition Survey 2007

2 Fire Kills Survey conducted via Opinion Matters on behalf of the Fire Kills campaign amongst a nationally representative sample of 2433 UK Adults

Sir Terry Wogan, who suffered a house fire himself, says:

"I had a fire at home last year, and can vouch to the excellence of our local fire and rescue service, but if it hadn't been for the smoke alarm, even they might have been too late to help, and the consequences could have been fatal for me and my family. I’ll make sure that my smoke alarm is tested weekly."

Nihal from the BBC Asian Network, says: "I pledge to be fire safe – test my smoke alarm weekly and plan an escape route for my family - should the worst happen I want to be prepared!"

Sir Ken Knight, the Government’s Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser says: "A smoke alarm can buy valuable time to escape from a fire, but only if it’s working properly. It’s not enough to just install smoke alarms in your home – you must test them every week. The main reason that smoke alarms fail to activate is missing or flat batteries - if the battery needs replacing, do this immediately."

Installing a smoke alarm only takes a few minutes - just follow the manufacturer's instructions that come with it. The best place is on the ceiling, near or in the middle of the room or hall. The alarm should be at least 30cm (12inches) away from a wall or light.

The more alarms you have, the safer you'll be; Sir Ken Knight recommends you have one on each floor of your home to ensure the earliest detection of a fire.

If you have a TV or other large electrical appliance (such as a computer) in any of the bedrooms, you should fit a smoke alarm there too, but do not fit one in a kitchen or bathroom where smoke or steam may set them off accidentally.

Maintaining your smoke alarm

To keep your smoke alarm in good working order, you should:

* Test it once a week, by pressing the test button until the alarm sounds * Change the battery once a year (unless it’s a ten-year alarm or a mains-connected alarm) * Replace the whole unit every ten years

Celebrities, who have pledged their support for the campaign and committed to testing their own smoke alarms every week, include:

* Broadcaster Sir Terry Wogan
* World Champion Boxer Amir Khan
* TV actress Jill Halfpenny
* Comedian and actor Dave Spikey
* Celebrity chef Ainsley Harriott
* Olympic Gold medallist Darren Campbell
* BBC Asian Network presenter, and DJ Nihal
* Journalist Nicholas Owen
* TV actress Debra Stevenson
* Celebrity chef James Martin
* Asian Film Director Gurinder Chada
* TV presenter and former star of The Apprentice Kate Walsh * Star of ‘How clean is your house?’ Aggie McKenzie * BBC Asian Network presenter Bobby Friction
* Television presenter Lizzie Cundy
* Comedian Barry Cryer
* Former star of Shipwrecked Adam Child
* Television celebrity Ingrid Tarrant

To pledge to test your smoke alarm every week and to see which celebrities will be "Pushing the Button" visit www.direct.gov.uk/firekills/pledge

To view the picture that accompany's this release, please follow the link below:

http://nds.coi.gov.uk/ImageLibrary/detail.aspx?MediaDetailsID=1547

The Fire Kills campaign is the national fire safety campaign delivered by Communities and Local Government. The campaign aims to reduce the number of deaths and injuries caused by accidental dwelling fires by actively encouraging people to change their behaviour and attitudes towards fire safety.

The celebrities who have pledged to support this initiative have done so in their own time and free of charge.

Case Study (including photos) available for interview – summary below

Tina, 24 lives in Derby with her husband and three children

A house fire destroyed Tina’s family home. In December 2008 Tina was woken at 3:15 am by her smoke alarm. Her husband was working a night shift so she went downstairs to check and when she opened her lounge door she was greeted with huge flames. She called 999 and was advised to get herself and her children out straight away. Tina managed to get her children out of the back door to safety.

Tina and her family lost all of their belongings and had to spend seven months in temporary accommodation, before retuning to their home.

It is unclear whether it was an overloaded power socket or a tea light that started the fire but what is certain is that the smoke alarm saved the lives of Tina and her family.

Information Sources:

Communities and Local Government Fire Statistics 2007

Fire Kills Survey conducted via Opinion Matters on behalf of the Fire Kills campaign amongst a nationally representative sample of 2433 UK Adul

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Westminster Debates and Legislation

Lords Committee Stage - Building Regulations (Amendment) Bill

Fri, 5 March 2010 | Committee Stage Debate

Summary

The Bill to ensure that all new residential premises are fitted with an automatic fire suppression system has been debated in the House of Lords today.

During the Committee Stage consideration of the Building Regulations (Amendment) Bill, an amendment to Clause 1 was discussed but was not added to the legislation. The Bill was unchanged by the day’s sitting.

Clause 1

Opening the debate on the Bill, Crossbench peer Lord Best tabled an amendment to Clause 1 of the Bill to ensure that a ‘comprehensive review’, in consultation with home buyers, tenants, housing associations, house builders and other interested parties, took place before the Secretary of State could require all homes to have new sprinkler systems installed.

Labour peer Lord Harrison, who had introduced the legislation as a private member’s bill, conceded that more needed to be done to improve the bill.

Communities and Local Government Minister Lord McKenzie of Luton asserted that the Government would only legislate on sprinklers if this was ‘proportionate to the risk’.

The amendment was withdrawn and clauses 1 and 2 were agreed to. The Bill now moves to Report Stage.

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(No. 428) Welsh Ministers (Transfer of Fire and Rescue Service Equipment) Order 2010 laid before Parliament

Wed, 3 March 2010 | Statutory Instrument Laid

Summary

The Welsh Ministers (Transfer of Fire and Rescue Service Equipment) Order 2010 (S.I., 2010, No. 428) has been laid before Parliament today, having been made on 24 February 2010.

This statutory instrument is subject to negative resolution and will be published at a later date.

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(No. 471) Fire Safety (Employees' Capabilities) (England) Regulations 2010 laid before Parliament

Thu, 4 March 2010 | Statutory Instrument Laid

Summary

The Fire Safety (Employees' Capabilities) (England) Regulations 2010 have been laid before Parliament today, having been made on 25 February 2010.

This statutory instrument is subject to negative resolution and will be published at a later date.

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House of Commons

House of Commons Questions

Jackson - Fire Services: Industrial Disputes

Tue, 2 March 2010 | House of Commons - Written Answer

Contents

Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether any fire authorities beside London have entered into contracts to provide fire cover in the event of industrial action according to records held by (a) the Chief Fire Adviser, (b) Firebuy and (c) the Fire Service College. [319297]

Mr. Malik: The Office of the Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser, Firebuy and the Fire Service College have no record of any fire and rescue authorities, other than London, which have entered into contracts with third parties to provide fire cover during industrial action.

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Cunningham, Jim - Schools (fire prevention measures)

Tue, 2 March 2010 | House of Commons - Written Answer

Contents

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what his most recent estimate is of the number of new schools not required to fit sprinklers. [318628]

Mr. Coaker: It is good practice and our expectation that the majority of new schools will include sprinkler systems. Currently over 70 per cent. of new secondary schools and academies procured under Partnerships for Schools arrangements include sprinklers. It is not however a legal requirement for schools to be fitted with sprinkler systems and we do not hold information on the number of new schools not fitted with sprinklers.

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Cunningham, Jim - Schools (fire sprinklers)

Tue, 2 March 2010 | House of Commons - Written Answer

Contents

Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent representations his Department has received on mandatory installation of fire sprinklers in new schools. [318630]

Mr. Coaker: On 19 May 2009, my right hon. Friend the Member for Makerfield (Mr. McCartney) led an adjournment debate on fire safety in schools at which this issue was discussed. I subsequently met my hon. Friend and colleagues on 22 October. We have also received representations from the Chief Fire Officers Association and the National Fire Sprinkler Network; and parliamentary questions have been asked in the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

Our policy remains that introduced by my right hon. Friend the Member for South Dorset (Jim Knight), when he was Schools Minister. In March 2007 he announced the Government's policy on sprinklers and their value as a measure against arson by saying:

- "It is now our expectation that all new schools will have fire sprinklers installed. However, we do not intend to make this a compulsory measure. There may be a few cases where local authorities or other promoters of schools consider that sprinklers are not needed. If so, they will need to be able to demonstrate that such schools are low risk and that sprinklers would not represent good value for money."

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Jackson - Fire Prevention: Hotels

Wed, 3 March 2010 | House of Commons - Written Answer

Contents

Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance (a) his Department and (b) the chief fire officer has provided to fire authorities on consistency in the application of fire safety assessments to hotels and bed and breakfast accommodation. [319218]

Mr. Malik: We have not provided guidance to fire and rescue authorities on consistency of enforcement in any premises covered by the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005.

It is for individual FRAs to determine their own audit and enforcement priorities under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 (FSO), based on their assessment of risk within their communities.

The National Framework 2008-11 makes it clear that we expect fire and rescue authorities to be mindful of the need to take an open and proportionate approach to their audit and enforcement functions in accordance with the principles of good enforcement set out in the Enforcement Concordat and the Regulators' Compliance Code , to which FRAs are required to have regard.

The Department worked in partnership with representatives of small accommodation providers and the Chief Fire Officers Association to develop information for small accommodation providers on the compliance requirements of the FSO. "Do you have paying guests?" was published in November 2008 and provides practical information for the owners of these type of businesses and the fire and rescue services on what is likely to represent proportionate fire safety measures in these types of premises.

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Jackson - Firefighters jobs

Wed, 3 March 2010 | House of Commons - Written Answer

Contents

Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether retained firefighters are eligible to apply for positions above that of station officer. [319287]

Mr. Malik: National guidance does not preclude retained firefighters from applying for positions above that of station officer.

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McDonnell - Fire Service rescues

Wed, 3 March 2010 | House of Commons - Written Answer

Contents

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many people were rescued uninjured from fires by the fire service in each of the last three years. [319426]

Mr. Malik: The latest three years for which data are available are 2006 to 2008. These are from the superseded fire data report forms which were in place until March 2009. Under this system, the numbers of people rescued but uninjured were recorded, but for reasons of economy, entry sampling was used such that full details of incidents for only one in five of those incidents that did not involve injuries were input to central databases.

Examination of the estimates from this data base have shown that fluctuations in the estimates at fire and rescue service level, which occur as a result due the entry sampling, mean that only the following approximate national figure can be derived: the number of people rescued uninjured from fires by the fire and rescue service in each year between 2006 and 2008 is in the region of 1,500 to 2,000.

Details of incidents under the new incident recording system are entered electronically at source, thus CLG's databases of incidents from April 2009 will no longer be subject to entry sampling or the resulting limitations in estimates. Data for 2009-10 is scheduled for release in August.

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Grayling - Fire service callouts

Wed, 3 March 2010 | House of Commons - Written Answer

Contents

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what percentage of fire service call-outs were to fires which had been started deliberately in each local authority area in the last 12 months. [319778]

Mr. Malik: The latest statistics on the numbers and percentages of incidents attended by each Fire and Rescue Service which were fires that had been started deliberately are shown for each Fire Authority in the table.

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Regions

No relevant items