Firefighters (Remote and Rural Areas)
The final item of business today is a members' business debate on motion S2M-3162, in the name of David Davidson, on the role of firefighters in remote and rural areas. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.
Motion debated,
That the Parliament applauds the excellent work and invaluable role carried out by those firefighters in remote and rural parts of north east Scotland on the retained duty system but acknowledges the chronic shortage of such firefighters in some Scottish towns; notes that figures published by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Fire Services in Scotland in 2003-04 show levels of retained staff in Scotland running at some 30% below the authorised establishment; considers that these staffing shortages place considerable strain on existing retained staff to support their local communities, and believes that the Scottish Executive should consider innovative ways in which businesses could support recruitment into the retained sector and undertake to examine new mechanisms to encourage businesses and the self-employed to understand the benefits of releasing staff to perform the role of retained firefighters in their communities.
I am delighted to have an opportunity to call on the Parliament to recognise the invaluable role of, and the excellent work that is carried out by, retained duty firefighters in remote and rural parts of Scotland. I express my gratitude to the many members who have supported the motion despite the fact that, due to local inconveniences and elections, they could not attend the debate today.
Very few members of the public understand just who it is that runs their local fire station or answers an emergency call to attend a fire, deal with a road accident or even rescue a cat. The retained firefighters look the same as their full-time colleagues. They wear the same uniforms and are trained to use the same equipment, even though they may work in the local bank, in the local school, or even on a local farm.
What is clear is that without them the Scottish fire service as we know it would not exist, and great parts of rural Scotland would be deprived of emergency fire and rescue cover. Those firefighters commit themselves to be on call day and night for more than 100 hours a week, and they do it for a retention fee of about £2,500 a year, plus pay for the hours that they actually attend and work.
In Scotland, there are 182 retained fire stations alongside the 75 whole-time and 132 volunteer stations. Many members will have heard on the radio this morning about the threatened closure of the Melrose retained station, which the Lothian and Borders fire service feels is no longer necessary to provide cover in that area.
However, the report of Her Majesty's chief inspector of fire services for Scotland in 2003-04 showed that levels of retained staff in Scotland are some 30 per cent below the authorised establishment, putting considerable strain on existing retained staff to continue to support their communities. In other words, there is a shortage in the retained workforce, which, if not addressed, could lead to further closures of fire stations in rural Scotland. The time that it takes to get an appliance to an incident is crucial. By reducing the cover, that time will get longer.
The retained service as we know it was created after the second world war. The men and women on the retained duty system carry out exactly the same duties as whole-time firefighters. The system is flexible and offers tremendous value for money. For chief officers they are an important and integral part of many brigades. On that point, I welcome to the public gallery the chief fire officer of Grampian and his colleagues.
Apart from dealing with fires and road accidents, retained firefighters are involved in animal rescue, chemical incidents and special service call-outs. The Bain report, "The Future of the Fire Service: Reducing Risk, Saving Lives", called for new roles, such as community fire safety education, to be created for the retained fire service. There are about 2,800 of these special people in Scotland, but numbers are falling and recruitment and retention are creating major concern.
The general lack of awareness of the retained duty system among the public and employers and the increasing reluctance of employers to release employees to attend incidents because of economic pressures on their business all affect recruitment and retention. That, coupled with changing patterns of employment involving increased travel to workplaces far from the local fire station, exacerbates the problem. For economic reasons, fewer self-employed people seem to be available, and there is a need to make the duty system more family friendly.
In 2002, a report by Her Majesty's fire service inspectorate for Scotland called for a more proactive approach to local employers, including the public sector, and suggested that rebates on business rates or payment for time lost could be considered. I put it to the chamber that Government has a major role in attracting and retaining new retained duty firefighters. Rewards for those carrying out such duties should be regularly updated. I look forward to hearing the minister's response to the idea of a national scheme of financial rewards for business. The service is far too important for an ad hoc, localised response.
If we are to ensure public safety in our remote and rural communities—and that is the responsibility of the Scottish Executive and of everyone in this Parliament—prompt action must be taken. Brigades should be given resources to hold employer open days and have public exercises so that we all understand better the important role of the retained fire service.
I turn to an issue that is reserved to Westminster, but which is none the less cited as a barrier to retained recruitment: unemployed firefighters who are working in the retained duty system and who are claiming jobseekers allowance have their earnings deducted from their allowance. That is a travesty. Government is failing to recognise properly the valuable community role that firefighters play.
There is little doubt that there needs to be a national recruitment campaign and that the role of retained firefighters needs to be given rightful recognition by all our communities. There is actually an advantage to the larger employer in having retained service people in their workforce because of their skills in emergency procedures, including first aid.
My guest at the opening of the Scottish Parliament was a retained firefighter, John Anderson from Fraserburgh. He works in the building industry and is a volunteer member of International Rescue. My wife and I took him and his wife out for dinner. During the meal, the wife of another MSP became unwell. Forward stepped the retained officer to provide an immediate assessment of the situation, much to the amazement of the restaurant's staff and customers. I am pleased to say that the lady recovered.
Retained firefighters spend part of their time in training and in the maintenance of equipment. I recommend to all members a visit to their local retained fire station, as that will help them to understand the magnificent role that such firefighters play within our communities. All retained firefighters live and work within minutes of their station and live in a constant state of readiness. Due to staff shortages, they willingly take on more than their fair share of duties.
Scotland's roads are dangerous. With increasing traffic, more and more accidents are taking place. In the north-east at least, accidents on trunk roads place greater than ever demands on the service. However, the older vehicles that can be seen outside fire stations are, it should be stressed, for training purposes rather than for the local yobs to smash up. The removal of glass from vehicles that have been involved in an accident is an essential part of the fire and rescue service's capability. Firefighters do not cut up cars just for fun.
I stress that my motion is not merely another call for yet more public spending. The motion calls for investment to ensure the sustainability of a life-saving service and the continuation of the emergency cover that those who live in remote and rural areas have a right to expect, as well as a major national effort in the recruitment and retention of retained firefighters. Without such efforts, Scotland's fire services will contract, with disastrous consequences.
In conclusion, I ask that all members recognise these special people in our communities. I encourage members to go out and spread the word. I also ask the minister to look into the situation and to inform the Parliament of what actions the Scottish Executive will take. I will certainly approach the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, the Confederation of British Industry Scotland and the Federation of Small Businesses in Scotland to highlight the potential role of employers of retained firefighters.
I congratulate David Davidson on securing the debate. I know that the relatively sparse attendance in the chamber signifies not any lack of interest but merely that by-elections are taking place today.
We in Scotland are fortunate in having an immensely professional body of firefighters, so I was pleased to vote for the bill that gave them further legal protection. Firefighters have been subjected to quite outrageous assaults by a handful of individuals while on duty. Few things can be more repellent than to hear about episodes of projectiles being thrown at firefighters or fire engines being set on fire. I very much hope that anyone who is now convicted of such an offence is sentenced to the most severe period of imprisonment.
I personally have cause to thank the firefighters because my father died in a fire. That experience let me see at first hand just how professional the service is.
We heard on the radio this morning that nine out of 10 fires in Scotland are caused by cigarettes. The same news item mentioned the possibility of having self-extinguishing cigarettes, which is surely a proposal that should be considered. Will the minister, who I imagine is more familiar with the matter than me, confirm whether the Executive is looking into that? If lives could be saved on a massive scale simply by requiring that cigarettes be self-extinguishing, I would have thought that the cigarette industry itself would want to take that on board. However, if the industry will not do so—I see a wry look pass across the minister's face—perhaps it could be encouraged or forced to do so.
As David Davidson said, we must also consider other measures such as community education. In the remote and rural areas that are the topic of this debate, some habitations will always be a long distance away from the nearest fire service. Therefore, consideration must be given, as I know it has been, to the fitting of sprinklers in such areas.
On 8 October 2003, I also led a debate on the role of firefighters in remote and rural areas. That debate focused not on the excellent work that is done by retained firefighters but on auxiliary firefighters. In whatever time I have remaining—the clock is not working—I want to turn to that issue.
You have one minute.
I welcome the fact that, since that debate, after much effort over a long time by many people, a measure of compromise has been reached. The Health and Safety Executive has recognised that breathing apparatus need not be introduced immediately and that, while training is taking place and new equipment is being supplied, those auxiliaries who are pursuing wild fires can continue to do their work. I put on record my appreciation for the work that Brian Murray, the firemaster, and Councillor Drew Slack and his colleagues on the Highlands and Islands fire board have done on the auxiliaries' behalf, in carrying out what we accept is a difficult task. Nonetheless, I think that there is still some work to do.
This is not a purely local matter or a question of micromanagement, because larger issues are involved. Just last week, in his speech on road accidents on the A9, John Swinney pointed out that that road has the highest number of fatalities in Scotland—82 people died on it between 2000 and 2004. Newtonmore has the most southerly auxiliary fire service. With a small population, it is difficult to ensure that more than four auxiliaries are available at any one time. To ensure their continued interest, there is a strong case for them to revert to the activity that they were previously permitted—helping to tackle road traffic incidents. I will quote from one auxiliary to illustrate the type of service that auxiliaries can provide. The auxiliary states:
"I attended a fatal road accident and helped shield a child from the sight of her parents who were fatally injured trapped in their car."
That may not be an obvious task, but, sadly, one could foresee it being necessary.
Newtonmore is the nearest station to the A86, the most dangerous stretch of road in Scotland. They say that there is a golden hour within which one must provide emergency first aid and get seriously injured people to hospital—in this case, to Raigmore. It is a close call to get from Newtonmore to Raigmore within one hour. I know that the minister cannot interfere in this case, but I hope that he will consider the general issue with fire boards. I have mentioned Newtonmore, but I could mention other areas.
The requirement that auxiliaries sign a contract may be acting as a deterrent to volunteers who feel that that is an infringement of the volunteer ethos. The contract also requires auxiliaries to work in areas outwith their own. Employers, who also have to sign a contract, may be deterred from allowing an employee not just to put out fires in their area, but to go much further afield. I am getting the eye from the Presiding Officer, so I will conclude.
I congratulate David Davidson on raising this important issue for debate. I give my whole-hearted support to the firefighters, especially our retained firefighters in remote and rural parts of the north-east of Scotland.
When visiting stations in my constituency, particularly at Stonehaven, I have been impressed by the training and enthusiasm of our firefighters. As Fergus Ewing pointed out, the term firefighter is a bit of a misnomer, because firefighters have many jobs and functions apart from—dare I say it?—just fighting fires. He mentioned the fact that they attend road accidents. Firefighters at Stonehaven, which is adjacent to the A90, the second most dangerous road in Scotland, with the second highest number of fatalities, are very focused on that role. They need to be supported by our raising the profile of the service that they provide, which this debate will help to do.
I know that many businesses support the retained fire service, in particular. That was impressed on me during my visit to Stonehaven. There is considerable co-operation between local small businesses and the retained fire service.
If David Davidson will forgive me, I will look at his motion with a slightly critical eye. He calls on the Scottish Executive to
"consider innovative ways in which businesses could support"
the retained fire service sector, as well as "new mechanisms" for doing that. I do not see in his motion what innovative ways or new mechanisms he suggests. I hoped that he might say so in his contribution, to which I listened carefully.
I simply referred in the motion to a report by HM chief inspector of fire services in Scotland and hoped that the minister would go off and look at what that report said. There is quite a lot of detail in the report and I know that the minister will have considered fully various other available reports because they are on the Scottish Executive website. I felt that in the short time available today, it was enough to leave it at that.
I accept that entirely, so I now look to the minister rather than David Davidson to suggest those innovative ways and new mechanisms.
David Davidson ended his contribution by saying that he was not calling for more money to be spent on public services; rather he was calling for more investment. I smiled when I heard him say that because I cannot see the difference between new investment in the service by the Scottish Executive and a greater amount of public spending. They are one and the same to me. I am not supposed to call for new spending from the Scottish Executive, so despite the partnership agreement and because this is a members' business debate with no vote, I say that that is a very good idea.
I congratulate David Davidson on securing this important debate. He referred in his speech to the announcement on the radio this morning of the threatened closure of Melrose fire station. It is rather ironic that he is calling for additional retained firefighters when it is retained firefighters who are threatened with the loss of their jobs; more important is the threatened loss of fire protection in that part of the Borders.
Although the Melrose crew are retained part-timers, they are not amateurs; they are fully professional, as has been said by others. In particular, they are on the front line for call-outs to the Borders general hospital, which is just over the road, the Huntlyburn psychiatric unit in the same area and Borders NHS Board headquarters at Newstead—all are within their catchment area.
The population is growing in that area, and there is the potential for 5,000 new homes in Galashiels and Melrose. The population may expand further when the railway comes in 2008, although, following yesterday's debate on the Waverley railway line, I am still waiting for the funding. With 10,000 new homes coming into the area during the next decade as well as the hope of new businesses, this is the wrong time to consider cutting fire protection in Melrose.
It is true that there is a fire station at Galashiels, but the majority of that crew's work is in the Galashiels area. As others have said, fighting fires is a minority part of a fire brigade's work. In the Scottish Borders, as elsewhere, their work has an awful lot to do with serious road traffic accidents as well as field fires, suicide attempts, wandering escaped cows—rather than lost cats—and mountain and river rescues.
The modern tender at Galashiels fire station is incredible—it is a bit like the TARDIS when one gets inside. It has climbing equipment and even inflatable rafts. However, that does not mean that Melrose fire station is not required. The fact that there would be a saving of only £120,000 to £150,000 per annum if Melrose fire station were closed makes the situation even worse.
Fergus Ewing and others have said that the proposed closure of the fire station will mean that it will take four and a half to six minutes longer for an appliance to get to an emergency in the Melrose catchment area—and that takes into account only the first appliance to get from Galashiels to Melrose. Those four and a half to six minutes are crucial when there is a house fire or a road traffic accident—they are the golden minutes after something horrendous has happened.
We can imagine the extra time that can be lost if we do not have people with local knowledge of back roads, locations of fire hydrants and remote local areas with funny wee names. The people who operate the computers elsewhere cannot even pronounce the place names and have no idea where they are. That is already happening: calls to the police are now centralised, and telephone operators cannot understand the accent—for example, "Hike" is Hawick. I am not making frivolous points. Local knowledge means that the Melrose crew have the edge on their own patch compared with the Galashiels crew, good though they are.
We support the innovative ways in which David Davidson's motion suggests that business could encourage people to participate in the retained sector. There is no doubt that if we have a vibrant economy and people who are happy and well paid, they are more likely to do those other jobs as well.
Reducing fire cover will also impact on businesses that might want to expand or to locate in an area. After all, who will try to build an extension to their hotel if the insurance company wants to know about the fire cover in the region? It is clear that taking away such fire cover for industrial and commercial premises has knock-on effects for the economy.
I have no idea what the time is, Presiding Officer, but I notice that you are not giving me fierce looks or wagging your finger at me. However, I will conclude now by saying that, a few years ago, I stood on the picket lines with the Borders fire crews at Hawick and Galashiels when they were having trouble with their salaries. The crews came through that period of destabilisation well; however, the closure of Melrose fire station is very bad news and creates more destabilisation at a time when the crews could do with our support. Closing Melrose fire station should not be an option. It is ill-timed and all wrong. In an economy that is stepping forward, such a move would be a step back.
I congratulate David Davidson on securing this debate. We all owe a huge debt of gratitude to our firefighters—indeed, as I will explain later, I owe a greater debt than most.
Firefighters not only tackle fires but provide a variety of other vital emergency services of inestimable value to us all. Other emergency services such mountain rescue teams and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution also deserve recognition and face many similar problems.
The Retained Firefighters Union comments that
"because we can't predict when you'll be called out, you have to be flexible in your work. The chances are that you'll be working for a sympathetic employer who's prepared to let you off from time to time, or you'll be working for yourself."
Larger businesses and public sector bodies often have greater capacity to be able to release staff at short notice, or a public service ethos that permits time off to perform emergency services to be written into the terms and conditions of employment. However, making such arrangements is very much harder for smaller businesses and the self-employed. We might need to consider giving those employers financial incentives.
Does the member agree that, in rural areas such as Aboyne, firefighters' prime motivation is public service and duty, not financial incentives?
The two aspects are linked. It is important to measure the value of the job that retained firefighters do because that would help to incentivise their capacity for volunteering.
Between 4 and 5 per cent of full-time firefighters in Tayside are women, which is far short of the Home Office target of 9 per cent by 2004. Instead of criticising the service, we should concentrate on that aspect as one means of tackling the shortfall in recruitment and retention. Although the percentage of women in the retained and volunteer categories is roughly double the percentage of full-time women firefighters, it is still low. In its 2002 review of the fire brigade, the Equal Opportunities Commission reported:
"We would like to see any shift system compatible with family-friendly flexible working practices … The role of the Fire Service is changing, with a greater emphasis on community participation … That should entail a change in the role of the individual firefighter, with a broadening of the skills base, e.g. a greater emphasis on interpersonal and communication skills."
Having experienced a major fire at our farm, I have a much greater awareness of firefighters' professionalism and dedication. For example, it requires real knowledge and skill to handle the highly flammable and volatile farm material. I was also interested to see how long the fire crew stayed at the farm to ensure that the fire had been put out; in fact, it flared up a couple of times. The crew even set up a portable canteen and rest room because it took so long to deal with that one incident. It was clear that, if other incidents had happened at the same time, they would have put real pressure on the service.
A fire in a steading is bad enough, but to have to stand and watch one's home burn down, which is what happened to our neighbours, is a real tragedy. Prevention must be the key and I urge the Executive to put far more resources into the service's fire prevention role, particularly in rural areas, where accessibility and even access to water are difficult.
In 2002, smoking caused 3,800 fires in the UK and accounted for one third of all accidental dwelling fire deaths. The April 2005 issue of "Firefighter", the Fire Brigades Union's newsletter, notes that
"the introduction of ‘firesafe' cigarettes which put themselves out would cut the numbers killed in accidental house fires by a third."
I signed a motion that was lodged this morning that encourages the Executive to ensure that all cigarettes sold in Scotland are fire safe. As well as helping the fire services directly, all of us must do all that we can to help to prevent fires from breaking out in the first place.
I take the opportunity to say a public thank you to all the fire brigades throughout Scotland. I hope that the debate will raise awareness of the issues; I will do my bit by going home and trying to persuade my three sons who work on the farm to consider volunteering for the retained fire service.
I will add a few comments to the many good points have been made by other speakers. I begin by congratulating my North East Scotland colleague David Davidson on securing the debate and by echoing the comments in which he paid tribute to the emergency services and the retained fire service in our rural communities.
Given that I first raised the issue of the challenges that the retained firefighting service faces soon after being elected in 1999, it is a matter of concern that, in 2005, we are back to repeat some of our anxieties. It is clear that there has not been a great deal of improvement in many areas of Scotland, including Grampian, which I represent. Forty per cent of fire incidents in Grampian are attended by the retained firefighting service and there are 33 retained stations throughout the region. When I phoned the fire brigage this morning, I discovered that there are 55 vacancies in the retained service, which represents about 12 per cent of the full complement. I am sure that the situation is the same in other parts of Scotland.
Retained firefighters face a particular problem in delivering cover during the day. That is when the main pressures arise because many members of the service are at work. If they are not working locally, they are unable to respond to calls. Aberdeenshire faces a problem that is replicated elsewhere in Scotland—it has an increasing number of dormitory towns. Although people live in those towns, they might well work in Aberdeen, Inverness or another part of the country. That situation means that it is enormously difficult to get an adequate number of retained firefighters to respond to calls.
As other members have said, one solution would be to get business on side. We should educate businesses about the advantages of having staff who are retained firefighters. It is an advantage to have staff who have additional skills, such as health and safety or first aid skills, that they have learned from the fire service and which they can use in their workplace.
The service in Grampian told me that each retained station deals with between one and four call-outs per week. Given that an average retained firefighter who works from 9 to 5 Monday to Friday can expect to be called out only twice a month, the commitment is not as great as some employers who are reluctant to let their employees take part in the service think that it is. We need to get that message across. A few call-outs a month does not represent a huge commitment. We must educate employers and get them on board.
As regards other solutions, the fire service tells me that the United Kingdom Government in London is publishing material to promote the service. The service does not yet know whether such material will be distributed in Scotland. I think that there is a good case for having a specifically Scottish public relations campaign, which would involve leaflets and other material being distributed throughout our rural communities and among employers.
As Shiona Baird and others have mentioned, there is a case for getting more females into the fire service. About 5 per cent of Grampian's retained firefighters are female. There are huge challenges in trying to attract more females into the service. The lack of child care provision is a big barrier to women volunteering, as is the lack of female facilities in stations. Adaptations would be necessary to address that.
I congratulate David Davidson on bringing an important issue back to the attention of ministers and Parliament. I urge the minister to ensure that we will not have to come back in another five years to discuss the same concerns and challenges by doing a lot more to protect the retained firefighting service in our rural areas.
Replying to a members' business debate so early in the afternoon is a slightly unusual experience, the circumstances of the by-election having affected the parliamentary timetable.
This has been a useful debate and I thank David Davidson for giving everyone who has stayed behind in the chamber the opportunity to put on record their appreciation of the work done by retained, volunteer and auxiliary firefighters. I add the thanks of the Scottish Executive, because we recognise the significant role that they play in protecting our communities.
A number of disparate points have been made on the back of a fairly specific motion. Not all of them have been entirely relevant to the central thrust of the argument David Davidson advanced, but I will attempt to address some of them. Fergus Ewing and Shiona Baird asked about self-extinguishing cigarettes. I am advised that product design standards are a reserved matter for Westminster, so it is for our colleagues there to determine that issue. If that is not the case, I am sure that information will be given when the motion to which Shiona Baird referred comes to be considered.
The contribution made by retained, volunteer and auxiliary firefighters has been recognised over the past couple of years. Their specific contribution was recognised in the June 2003 pay agreement, which provides for the pay of staff on the retained duty system to be equalised with that of whole-time staff. That was a significant move that at a stroke changed not just the rewards for those staff but the recognition of those staff. The pay agreement also allows for whole-time staff to act as retained firefighters in addition to their whole-time duties. I hope that those two measures in the agreement will attract recruits to the retained-duty system.
I am grateful to the minister for giving way because it gives me an opportunity to make a point that I was asked to put on record by an auxiliary, who pointed out that although auxiliary firefighters have signed a contract and are in some ways similar to retained firefighters, auxiliaries do not get paid retained money. That is a distinction between them. Is that the position, minister?
I am not sure of the detail, but a national agreement was reached and any payments and issues about status came about as a result of a very attractive agreement to support firefighters throughout the United Kingdom.
David Davidson mentioned the 30 per cent shortfall quoted in the chief inspector's report. I do not want to split hairs, but I should point out that that shortfall is largely due to the Highland and Islands fire board's programme to upgrade many of its volunteer firefighters to retained status. It is a sort of welcome problem: had it not been for that, the statistics would not look as bad as they do. I am not denying that in many parts of the country—the Borders have been mentioned—more effort should be made to recruit, but that programme has resulted in what would appear to be a temporary shortfall in retained staff for Highland and Islands and Scotland as a whole.
The minister may not know this—I certainly do not, which is why I am asking. Would he have a role if, against the wishes of the community, the Melrose fire station were to close? Is there a ministerial role there?
The decision in Melrose is about fire cover. That is a matter for locally elected politicians to determine. The future of Melrose fire station is primarily a matter for Lothian and Borders fire board, which is currently consulting communities throughout the Lothians and the Borders. What is happening at Melrose is a matter for local management and local elected representatives.
Has the minister any of the "innovative ways" or "new mechanisms" that David Davidson suggests in his motion he should have?
I will come to that in a second, but first I will return to the issue that I was developing.
I hope that David Davidson will take some comfort from the reported remarks of the chief fire officer of Grampian fire and rescue service. I understand that he has said that the shortfalls in his area are not serious.
I say to Mike Rumbles that we acknowledged in our 2002 document "The Scottish Fire Service of The Future" that the issue of fire cover in sparsely populated areas had not been fully addressed. More recently, in our "Fire and Rescue Framework for Scotland", we noted that Scotland has a higher proportion of part-time firefighters than other parts of the United Kingdom. The issues arising from that fact are being addressed in a number of ways.
I mentioned the June 2003 pay agreement. In recent years Her Majesty's chief inspector of fire services for Scotland commissioned a programme of research to investigate ways in which part-time firefighters could become more integrated within the Scottish fire and rescue service. The second of two reports was published in 2003 and it made a number of detailed recommendations.
Among the recommendations were some that were aimed at the recruitment of part-time firefighters. That issue is picked up in the "Fire and Rescue Framework for Scotland", where we gave an assurance that we would work with fire and rescue authorities to implement the report's recommendations.
In a minute, I will mention what could be done. However, in the framework we state that we expect part-time staff to be given the same opportunities as their whole-time counterparts to participate in the integrated personal development system and to undertake development programmes commensurate with the requirements of individual fire and rescue authorities. We will work with fire and rescue authorities, but a key issue will be to prepare information, advice and literature that is relevant to the local area. We should not construct a centralised recruitment campaign; the campaign should be different in the Borders, in the Highlands and Islands and in the north-east.
Will the minister take an intervention?
I will develop one point and then bring David Davidson in.
Shiona Baird said that prevention is the key and that more resources are required for that. Our whole focus in developing fire services has been to consider prevention and safety rather than just considering how to react to disasters and tragedies as they occur—although we will undoubtedly always have to do that. The introduction of integrated risk management plans means that fire and rescue authorities will have to match available resources to the risks identified in those plans.
But I say to Shiona Baird that politicians in this Parliament cannot have it both ways. If we attempted to dictate to local fire authorities—or to local authorities or to other local services—what they should do, Shiona Baird and others would be the first to criticise us for undue interference. So she cannot come to us and say that we should be doing more in the development of local responses. We have put more money into the fire services than ever before, but how those resources are used is for local management and local boards.
I suggested that resources be given to local authorities and fire boards to run their campaigns. The chief inspector's report suggested that some sort of incentives to businesses should be developed to allow the release of staff, or to allow the recovery of the loss of important staff time. Does the minister have anything to say on that subject? Rates relief and other methods have been suggested, but the report goes into much more detail.
I note David Davidson's encouragement of our developing further spending plans to encourage businesses to release staff. We will certainly consider that, but it is not our immediate intention to develop the type of proposal he suggests. We examine our budgets very carefully. The money that has gone out to fire and other services is at record levels.
We need to consider how we engage with local businesses. Even if chambers of commerce and other organisations can be engaged to give encouragement, that does not address local circumstances or, irrespective of what Scottish Chambers of Commerce says, what local businesses would have to do to implement proposals in a way that was commensurate with their needs. There are tensions and issues there that have to be addressed sensitively.
There is a perception that the general public has a low awareness of what is involved in being a part-time firefighter. We recognise the need to provide information to the general public in order to raise awareness and to promote the benefits of part-time firefighting. As a number of members have demonstrated in their speeches this afternoon, the security and safety of many communities in Scotland rely on part-time firefighters' dedication and expertise. I have mentioned the role that will be played by the integrated risk management plans in that.
I hope that the different roles that are now available in the fire and rescue service will prove more attractive than the previous ones. I am hugely encouraged by the advances that have been made by our fire and rescue services in recent years and I look forward to those advances continuing in the future.
Meeting closed at 14:01.