Extending 999 response times will risk lives

A PARISH councillor has claimed lives will be put at risk due to plans to alter fire service 999 response times.

Ken Hulme says proposals to extend response times for Mossley Fire Station from seven minutes to 17 minutes would affect Saddleworth.

Councillor Hulme said: “I am appalled at the proposals to more than double the time.

“Waiting that extra 10 minutes will seem like an eternity if it’s your home burning down, perhaps with someone trapped inside, or a serious road accident needing urgent attendance. Let’s be clear about this — lives are being put at risk in Saddleworth.

“In Greater Manchester, 200 firefighters are set to lose their jobs in the next four years and frontline services to the public are at serious risk. This is simply not acceptable.”

He spoke out after the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority (GMFRA) approved its corporate plan for 2012-15.

Fire chiefs are facing potential budget cuts of up to £23million over four years — and are asking Oldhamers to have their say by joining in the consultation.

The plan sets out how Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) intends to provide fire cover across 41 station areas, including details of the proposed firefighters’ cuts, equipment available and emergency response times.

Authority chairman David Acton said there were no plans to shut any fire stations, but to look at ways of being more flexible with resources.

He said: “I wouldn’t have chosen to have cut our budget by £23million but it’s a reality that I have to, as chairman, set a budget and it has to be legal and balanced.”