Star comment: Cheaper, but will it be better?
You dial 999 for the fire service, and a big red fire engine turns up, with firefighters on board, and operating within the command and control structure of Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service.
But what difference would it make in practical terms if the ultimate control lay with West Mercia’s Police and Crime Commissioner, John Campion?
The question is not pie in the sky. Mr Campion wants to take on the role of commissioner of Shropshire and Hereford & Worcester Fire Authorities.
When you hear about plans like this, the justification is almost always that they will prove more cost effective and save money, and will make no difference to service delivery.
However in this case, there could be a very significant difference, and one with which many Salopians will feel uncomfortable. Instead of having a dedicated fire control centre in Shrewsbury, it could move to Hindlip, near Worcester, which is said would save money.
Shropshire’s firefighters would then be controlled more remotely by people in the control room who would be unlikely to have the local knowledge enjoyed by those who currently work at the control room in Shrewsbury.
It is not simply a matter of knowing where, say, Babbinswood is. Local knowledge might also give valuable insights into particular difficulties through topography, or whatever, in getting to the site, which are not apparent through looking at a map or on a computer.
Then there is a factor which probably sounds very old fashioned now. It is Shropshire pride. Shropshire no longer has its own bespoke ambulance service. Shropshire no longer has its own bespoke police constabulary. Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service still serves the county, as a county, and you rarely hear anything said about it, which suggests that it is not doing an excellent job.
How, then, would it be transformed into an even better service under Mr Campion’s plans, which would be a move away from localism and towards remote centralism?
This is the case that will need to be made if Salopians are to be convinced. Saying it will save money may make a lot of sense in the climate of straitened public finances, but when your life and your property depend on an efficient fire service, the virtues of cutting costs have to be balanced against the confidence the public has in the way things are now.
It is that old saying, ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’.
If Mr Campion is to carry Salopians with him, he will need to give them the reassurance that he is offering something better, rather than just something cheaper.
