Highlands 999 fire control room to be axed

Politicians in the Highlands have said they are deeply disappointed by confirmation from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service that the Inverness fire control is to close.

Labour MSPs David Stewart and Rhoda Grant were commenting after the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) Board meeting in Dundee today agreed the locations of the two remaining control rooms to be determined.

Board members agreed, by a vote of 9 to 3, that Edinburgh and Dundee will join Johnstone control as the three fire control rooms for Scotland.

This decision comes as the unified fire service reduces the present number of eight controls to the three facilities. The shake-up is expected to take three to five years.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) Board was presented with a paper detailing six potential options from a combination involving Edinburgh, Dundee, Aberdeen and Inverness.

Fire chiefs said a range of criteria were used including an assessment of risks, which highlighted the combination of Blackness Road, Dundee and Tollcross, Edinburgh as the most suitable solution to complement Johnstone.

The board had previously agreed to retain the latter - the largest fire control room in Scotland - which currently handles more than 50% of all fire calls in Scotland.

There was anger from Labour MSPs in the region who have been campaigning to retain the Highlands' fire control room.

There are fears that lives could be put at risk because of deals in getting firefighters to the scene of 999 call-outs.

Mrs Grant said "This decision seems to fit with the SNP’s centralisation agenda which is only ever going to be damaging to north and north east communities. It is a disappointing message that is being sent out to the Highlands and Islands."

Mr Stewart said "Having met with the staff involved, I am extremely disappointed by this decision. It is a real blow to the staff, their families and the wider community that emergency service jobs are being cut in this way."

After the meeting, SFRS Chief Officer Alasdair Hay, said: "I’m absolutely convinced that by moving from the model of eight to three controls means we will have an effective and efficient control room infrastructure.

"What it will do is it will improve the capacity and resilience of our control rooms and with that improvement it will ensure not only the safety of the communities in Scotland but also the safety of our firefighters and that is always at the heart of all the decisions we make."

He added: "I understand how disappointed staff in those controls that will not form part of the three control room model will be.

"They perform a fantastic role in keeping communities safe we intend to continue to support them and work with them. It should be noted that there are no compulsory redundancies and we will be engaging directly with staff.

"Changes won’t happen overnight but over a period of three to five years so that gives us opportunity to address concerns people have and also make sure that this is a carefully managed process."

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