Cash saving plan to share fire chief is thrown out

A PLAN for two fire services to share a chief fire officer has been vetoed, despite offering potential savings of tens of thousands of pounds.

The idea, which would have been seen as a first step towards merging, was suggested by Fife after it's most senior firefighter, Jimmy Campbell, left to take the top job at Lothian and Borders in April.

However, Mike Bridgman, the SNP convener or the Lothian and Borders fire board, made it clear to Fife that he would be opposed to the idea, without discussing it with other board members. Fife then took the decision to promote former depute Neil McFarlane.

Yesterday, two Lothian and Borders board members, who knew nothing of the proposals until called by The Scotsman, said they were angry not to have been consulted.

Lesley Hinds, a former Lord Provost of Edinburgh, said: "If we are talking about the public sector having to come up with savings, boards should have considered whether this was a good opportunity.

"We want to protect frontline services and we have to look at the top of the organisation to see if savings can be made."

Jason Rust, who stood for the Conservatives in Edinburgh South-West in the recent general elections, added: "I find it very concerning that such a substantive matter was not put before the Lothian & Borders fire board, was ruled out of hand by the convener, and not communicated at all to board members."

Mr Bridgman, who is also chairman of Scottish fire conveners, defended his decision.

He said: "The size of Lothian & Borders, that kind of role demands a full-time chief. My opinion was that we went through a rigorous recruitment process and advertised for a chief officer on a full-time basis."

Although merging the two services was never discussed, having a joint chief fire officer would have made it easier to share such support departments as administration, payroll, procurement, and the control centre.

It would also have produced immediate savings, The salary for Lothian & Borders is 122,000, with the position in Fife paying slighly less.

Ronnie Hinds, chief executive of Fife Council, said: "Fife Council considered a range of options in relation to the filling of its chief fire officer post.

"This included discussions with Lothian & Borders Fire Authority, with the inclusion of the Scottish Government.

"Having taken all factors and circumstances into account, it was decided to proceed with the appointment of a chief fire officer for Fife and to continue with ongoing collaboration with neighbouring fire services on a range of initiatives for shared services."

Pat Watters, president of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, said: "Nothing is off the table, given the fact we will be under extreme financial pressure for foreseeable future.

"We are in the process of looking at sharing services across the whole of the public sector, so we can minimise the effects of budget reductions."

A spokeswoman for Lothian & Borders Fire and Rescue Service said: "We recognise the need to examine how we currently provide our services and what changes can be made to ensure savings whilst at the same time continuing to provide a robust emergency service.

"A full review is on-going. It will examine a range of areas including pay freeze, voluntary redundancy and early retirement. We have also looked at the feasibility of shared control rooms and the development of procurement arrangements and shared facilities across the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service as well as a range of detailed work plans."

A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: "The appointment of chief fire officers is a matter for local fire and rescue service authorities."

"Recently both Fife and Lothian & Borders explored all options around leadership during this challenging time for public services before reaching individual decisions to appoint new chief officers."