Firefighter control staff are calling for the public to back them as a meeting of councillors decides whether to close the entire fire control service in Cornwall.

Firefighter control staff handle calls from the public, provide safety guidance and deploy resources during incidents.

On Thursday, October 6 Cornwall Council Neighbourhoods Overview and Scrutiny Committee will decide on proposals to close and outsource fire control to other emergency services, despite fire control being a highly specialised activity.

According to the Fire Brigades Union (FBU), the latter aspect of the proposal has not been properly costed.

The FBU has now announced it will be lobbying outside the meeting and is looking for as much public support as it can get. 

FBU members, and people from communities all over Cornwall, will be outside Lys Kernow (New County Hall) from 09.00 am. 

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The move, if accepted, would result in the entire workforce of control staff and officials being made redundant or redeployed.

Guy Herrington, FBU regional secretary, said: "Firefighter control staff use specialist skills and knowledge to save the lives of the public.

"Now they’re calling on the public to back them as the fire service looks to shut their service down completely.

"Their highly specialised skills and knowledge are irreplaceable.

"Simply bundling in these calls with another emergency service would result in a far worse service.

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"It would likely result in lives lost, and it would certainly result in longer attendance times, a greater risk to the public, and a greater risk to firefighters.

“This is a purely financial decision – it’s simply about cost-cutting, but it hasn’t even been properly costed.

"There is an alternative option: proper investment in local fire control, and a formal partnership contract to provide future resilience during large scale incidents and extremely busy periods, such as the heat wave in August."

According to the FBU, virtually every fire and rescue service in the UK has a control operation and handles its own calls.

The lobby of the councillors’ meeting will take place on Thursday 6 October, 9.00 am, at Lys Kernow/New County Hall, Treyew Road, Truro, TR1 3AY

The Packet has contacted Cornwall Council and portfolio holder for neighbourhoods, Carol Mould, for comment.