Agenda item
Proposed privatisation of London Fire Brigade
Minutes:
Councillor Long moved the motion circulated in her name by stating that in an emergency people were told to ring 999 which put them through to the control room which currently operated very efficiently in dealing with emergencies. The service had already made £1.5m savings and now the privatisation of the control room was threatened. She asked what level of training would be provided by a private company and felt that there would have to be close monitoring of the service, thereby undermining any savings made.
Councillor Kansagra acknowledged the importance of the issue and expressed concern over the limited time before the meeting that members had to consider such motions. He moved an amendment to delete the majority of the motion and express confidence in the future service delivery of the control centre.
Councillor Lorber stated that this matter had already been raised by Liberal Democrat Assembly members. He did not feel that the Council was qualified to deal with the issue and pointed out that all political parties had at some time considered privatisation of some public services. Members had justifiable concerns and it was important that adequate service standards were set.
Following a vote the amendment to the motion was declared LOST.
Following a vote the motion was declared CARRIED.
RESOLVED:-
(i) that Council notes that:
· the Conservative-controlled London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA), supported by Mayor Boris Johnson, is proposing to privatise the 999 Control Room function and hand over the running of this essential component of one of London’s major emergency services to a private contractor,
· a quarter of a million emergency calls are made to the London Fire Brigade Control Room each year requiring an immediate and considered response by the highly-trained professional Brigade staff,
· no consideration has been given to any other option to provide the service, including an in-house bid, or to the financial implications of taking this route,
(ii) that Council is concerned that such a privatisation will:
· put the safety of Brent’s residents at risk due to the lack of any risk assessment being carried out,
· outsource a vital service to a company whose primary focus, as a private enterprise, must be profit for its shareholders,
· have a detrimental effect on the speed of response from the Control Room and the quality of advice given to those at the scene of a fire,
· mean additional cost to Londoners in monitoring and ensuring the necessary high performance of the contractor,
· further demoralise staff who have not only realised savings of £1.5m but worked extended shifts during times of need, such as the recent riots in London,
(iii) that this privatisation was typical of the Conservative-led Government’s attack on cherished public services including schools, armed forces and the NHS; the outsourcing of major London Fire Brigade functions, including essential 999 services, meant that Conservative ideology was being put before the interests of ordinary Londoners; Londoners not shareholders needed to come first and Council therefore opposed the plan to privatise the London Fire Brigade’s 999 Control Room function and the Chief Executive be requested to write to Mayor Boris Johnson to use his powers of direction to stop LFEPA proceeding with the proposal and to seek support from local MPs, the London Assembly and council unions.