To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the cost to Fire and Rescue Services of increasing the employer contribution to the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme in each of the next three fiscal years; and whether his Department has plans to fund the cost of the increased contribution in each of those years.

The 2016 valuation is the first full assessment of the firefighters’ pension schemes since the government introduced major pension reforms in 2015.

Our analysis shows that there will be an increase in the employers’ contribution cost due to proposed changes to the discount rate that is used to assess the current cost of future pensions liabilities. When these changes are confirmed, I will be able to confirm the increase in employer costs.

Treasury will be supporting departments with funding for most of the additional costs in 2019/20. Additional costs for future years will be included in the Spending Review discussions.