Conservatives Will Fight to Take Control of Fire Service
Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead
Conservative Group
News Release
Date: 24th March 2009
Release: Immediate
Conservatives in the Royal Borough have today announced that they will seek powers under the Sustainable Communities Act to take greater control of the Fire Service. A new committee will be established to assess the viability of a new service, professionally advised by Richard Coates: a former Chief Fire Officer who lives in the borough.
The Sustainable Communities Act allows Councils to provide services locally, and take the budgets required to do it. The move comes after the Royal Borough failed in its bid to keep Windsor Fire Station open at night. They had taken Berkshire Fire Service to the High Court, arguing the consultation was flawed.
Under the Act authorities are able to make proposals, and those deemed reasonable by the Secretary of State will be approved. There are no hard and fast rules about what can and cannot be suggested but the Royal Borough have established this committee to ensure that their proposal is as strong as possible.
Cllr Christine Bateson, Lead Member for Communities, who resigned as Deputy Chairman of the Fire Authority yesterday said:
“We’re determined to ensure that our community gets the Fire Service it deserves. This is a radical step and we will be the first authority in the country to attempt this, but we believe that in these circumstances this is the right thing to do.
We have invited Richard Coates to advise this Committee because he has experience of running a Fire Service, and is therefore well placed to work out the exact details.”