Fire chief defends plans to cut appliances from Fife fire stations

Niall Miller, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SRFS) station commander for Fife, Stirling and Clackmannanshire defended national fire service budget cuts at the Levenmouth Area Committee meeting on Wednesday. It was previously reported that the SRFS has to find savings of £11m this year. As a result, the service has proposed temporarily removing fire appliances from 10 fire stations across Scotland, including four in Fife.

Glenrothes, Methil and Dunfermline Fire Stations will all lose a full time fire engine from September. Kirkcaldy will also lose its high reach appliance.

Councillor Tom Adams (Buckhaven, Methil and Wemyss villages, Labour) called it a “scandalous” decision.

Earlier this month, the former nightclub in Methil was gutted in a deliberate blaze. Several other Levenmouth buildings have been destroyed by fire over the last year, and deliberate fire-setting is at a regional four-year high. There were 258 incidents in 2022-23, according to an annual performance report.

“Given the nature of some of the fires we’ve had over the last three to six months in the Levenmouth area, how are we going to properly serve it when they’re taking fire appliances away?” Cllr Adams said. He pointed out that approximately 1,200 houses are planned for the region in the near future as well, which will only add to the need.

Mr Miller could not cite or discuss details, but he said “deep-dive data” conducted by SRFS over the past four years informed all of the decisions taken. The data has not been released for scrutiny, but he assured councillors that communities and firefighters will not be at an increased risk of harm.

“The decisions are based on a number of layers of deep data diving which looks at community risk and demand. The safety of our staff and communities has been paramount and central to the decision making process,” he said.

The decisions, he said, were made to have the “least possible impact on response times within the area.”

“We don’t currently use our full fleet. Our appliances are frequently unstaffed at this time due to staffing issues. These are all considerations,” he said.

Mr Miller clarified that the appliances would be removed “temporarily” for a period of 12 months.

However, Councillor Adams believes stations will be next on the chopping block: “We all know what temporary means – it’s not coming back,” he said. “The next stage will be looking at stations. We have to really look at this now and stop it before it goes any further.”

Mr Miller said that at the end of 12 months, SRFS will look at how to continue efficiency work beyond that point.

“Whether that’s the reintroduction of these appliances, different duty systems, whether it’s looking at how we best serve each individual community, that work is ongoing,” he said.

Any permanent changes to appliances or stations would be subject to public consultation.