§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what efforts are being made by his Department to encourage a speedy conclusion to the pay dispute between the Fire Brigades Union and the National Joint Council for Local Authority Fire Brigades; and to what extent a deal will have to take account of the Best Value regime. [84383]
§ Mr. George HowarthThe current dispute between the local authority employers and the Fire Brigades Union is not over pay. It is over modest proposals by the employers for changes to firefighters' conditions of service. These negotiations are not directly a matter for the Government but are for resolution between the employers and the union in the National Joint Council for Local Authorities Fire Brigades.
The Audit Commission in its report in 1995, "In the Line of Fire", endorsed the need for changes in firefighters' conditions of service to remove provisions which were inflexible, outdated and unjustified. The Government fully support proposals for change which while protecting the legitimate interests of firefighters will, at the same time, deliver Best Value and lead to more modern and efficient public services.