Bonfire night will stretch fire crews to the limit and there are fears they may not be able to cope due to massive cuts in the service's budget. The claims are made today by the Fire Brigades Union.
This weekend crews are expecting their busiest night of the year with a huge surge in callouts due to fireworks related incidents. But statistics collated by the Fire Brigades Union reveal further "real-terms cuts" to central funding for fire and rescue services in England.
In a statement the FBU says: "Funding for 2022-2023 has been boosted by just 1% on last year (2021-22). Inflation is currently running at around 10%. Funding stands at £882m compared to £1,240m in 2013-14 – meaning there has been a huge cut of 29%, or over 40% in real terms."
