Clause 27 - Inspectors
Fire and Rescue Services Bill
9:45 am
Mr Phil Hope (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister; Corby, Labour/Co-operative)
The clause re-enacts section 24 of the 1947 Act, as the hon. Gentleman said. It gives powers to appoint inspectors and assistant inspectors to obtain information about the way in which authorities are discharging their fire and rescue functions and about technical matters relating to the service. It provides that those appointed under the 1947 Act continue to be inspectors.
Let me clarify our intentions about the role of the inspectorate and its relationship with the Audit Commission. The hon. Gentleman raised two good points in those respects. The inspectorate provides a valued source of technical and professional advice to the Government, which is vital to maintain as we modernise the fire and rescue service. The White Paper ''Our Fire and Rescue Service'' made it clear that the work of the inspectorate would be refocused and redirected to support the process of quality assurance and service improvement. It would provide professional advice to Government on good practice, operational and technical issues, and bringing on future leaders of the fire service. It would also support the Audit Commission in its new inspection function.
The hon. Gentleman is right to suggest that the Audit Commission is to implement a performance assessment of fire and rescue authorities as a key tool in support of modernisation. That work will subsume the traditional inspection of brigades that accounted for about 25 per cent. of the inspectorate's business. It is expected that the commission will wish to draw on the inspectorate's professional expertise. The remaining business of the inspectorate, especially the purpose for which its inspectors are appointed—to obtain information—will continue to be important. The skill will be in interpreting the information, drawing conclusions and making recommendations, rather than in obtaining it per se.
The change in focus will result in a smaller and more efficient inspectorate with a different set of skills, as envisaged in the independent review of the fire service. Though the change in tasks and focus makes it difficult to compare the situations before and after change, the transfer to the Audit Commission will result in a reduction in staffing levels. In future, the smaller team will provide independent advice and guidance on professional, operational and technical matters and support the modernisation of the fire and rescue service.