The number of firefighters in Merseyside has fallen since the Grenfell Tower disaster, according to Home Office figures - though the Fire Service and local unions have questioned the numbers.
Merseyside is one of more than 20 areas across England to see the number of firefighters or control room staff drop since the tragic fire at the London tower block five years ago, which claimed the lives of 72 people.
There was a combined total of 951 full-time firefighters, on-call firefighters and control staff at Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service (MFRS) at the end of March 2021, the latest available Home Office figures show. That was down by 51 (5.1%) from 1,002 four years earlier, which was the last workforce count before the Grenfell fire on June 14, 2017.
The fire service said they had seen an increase in firefighters since 2017/18.
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The fall in the Home Office numbers was driven by the declining number of firefighter roles, while the number of control staff, who handle 999 calls, rose slightly.
Fire Brigades Union executive council member Les Skarratts said in his view, Merseyside could not tackle a Grenfell style fire without outside help.
Mr Skarratts said: "The situation is now dire and it's safe to say that Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service could not tackle a Grenfell-style fire on its own.
"The job cuts are stark, more than half the numbers of firefighter jobs have been slashed in Merseyside in the last 20 years, 17 since 2017 the year of Grenfell and almost 20 vital control staff lost since 2002.
"This is shocking and the figure quoted as being 951 firefighters is misleading as 281 of those firefighters are required to work two firefighter jobs, working as a full-time firefighter and also required to work as a part time firefighter when they should be off duty and so getting counted as two firefighters.
"To compound matters, the response time it takes us to get to a fire is the worst since records began with Government records showing that it was taking us 5 minutes and 4 seconds to get to a house fire 20 years ago sadly now it takes us 7 minutes and 4 seconds to get to the same house fire and in a situation where literally every second counts this is a very worrying trend.
"The Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority should immediately work with the Fire Brigades Union to rapidly improve our fire service for the communities we serve."
Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service says it has 'moved to a more efficient way of operating'
A spokesperson said: "MFRS is one of the highest performing services in the UK, with its response to major incidents described as ‘Outstanding’ by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate in 2021/22 so we would want to reassure the public that the situation is far from dire.
"That said at its height, the Grenfell tower fire required over 40 fire appliances and numerous support vehicles in attendance – no English Service outside of London would have the resources to fight a fire of this magnitude on its own. However, the public of Merseyside should be assured that Merseyside has robust mutual aid arrangements with neighbouring services for any such eventuality, this is normal and has been the case for many years.
"With regards to the numbers [used in this report], like the Fire Brigades Union, we also do not recognise the figures being quoted by the Home Office as we have seen a 7% increase in the number of firefighters and a 19% increase in the number of fire appliances across Merseyside since 2017/18.
"Our average response to life risk incidents is currently 5 minutes 37 seconds, which is 27 seconds quicker than in 2018 following reinvestment back into the frontline by the Authority, investment achieved despite austerity - with further improvements expected as we move to our superstation in Aintree in 2024. Accidental dwelling fires have seen a 10% reduction over the same period (928 to 839).
"Like most public services, Merseyside has suffered large budget cuts over the last 20 years, which has unfortunately resulted in the reduction of the number of firefighters. However rather than sit back and accept those cuts we have seen the service move to a more efficient way of operating, matching resources to demand and focusing on preventing fires. Whilst investing in up skilling our firefighters."
CFO Phil Garrigan, Chief Fire Officer of Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service, added: "The period of austerity has been tough for our Fire & Rescue Service but in recent years, we have bucked the trend, increasing the number of firefighters and fire engines, we have available to protect the public. We are now more resilient, more effective and quicker to respond than we were in 2018 and remain steadfast in our ambitions for the future."
England records falls in firefighter roles, but in London the figure rose
Across England, the total of firefighter roles stood at 36,448 at the end of March last year, 176 fewer than the 36,624 recorded in March 2017. However, London Fire Brigade saw the figure rise by 45, from 4,799 to 4,844.
The national drop was driven entirely by the shrinking number of full-time roles, which fell by 335 over the period.
That was partially offset by an increase of 109 on-call firefighters, and 50 control staff. This came after large cuts to fire and rescue services in the run-up to Grenfell, said the Fire Brigades Union (FBU), which added that the UK had already lost more than 11,000 firefighter roles between 2010 and 2017 – nearly one in five positions.
Matt Wrack, the FBU’s general secretary, said: “Despite the worst UK domestic fire in living memory the Government is still failing to change direction, and take fire safety and the fire service seriously. It is an insult to the people who lost their lives and it is an insult to the Grenfell community. Unfortunately none of this is a surprise.
“Central government let Grenfell be turned into a fire trap and has done nothing to fix the building safety crisis that has come to light since. But nonetheless, we should not take our eye off just how heartless you have to be to see an incident like Grenfell and then continue on a path like this. They are gambling with lives.”
