§ The Deputy Prime Minister (Mr. John Prescott):I am pleased to announce that the Armed Forces personnel deployed on firefighting duties have been given the extended break over Christmas they richly deserve. This does not imply any reduction in our commitment to the provision of emergency fire cover during any further industrial action.
However, the FBU have called off the nine-day strike it had planned to start on 16 December and have not announced any plans to strike again until 28 January. The FBU would be required to give seven days notice of any further strike.