Jamie Reed (Copeland, Labour)

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will require local authorities to ensure that (a) there will be no compulsory redundancies as a result of the FiReControl project and (b) (i) the Fire Brigades Union will be fully recognised within the workplace and (ii) the Fire Service Grey Book pay, terms and conditions will apply to the service after implementation of the project.

Shahid Malik (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Communities and Local Government; Dewsbury, Labour)

Decisions on staffing levels, terms and conditions and union recognition are for the employers—currently the fire and rescue authorities and then the local authority controlled companies and the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority once the regional control centres are up-and-running.

Under TUPE legislation, transferring staff's current terms and conditions will transfer with them to the regional control centre. Union recognition is a matter for the employers but if a sufficient percentage of staff are members of a union then recognition is automatic.

Redundancies should be a last resort. The Department has provided guidance to the employers to encourage them to explore all possible avenues including, for example, redeployment and retraining.