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Fire and Rescue Service

Mr. Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what consultations he has held since January with Fire Service regional management boards. [176972]

Mr. Raynsford: The target date for Fire and Rescue Authorities to establish Regional Management Boards (RMBs) was 1 April 2004, after the most recent consultations—on Fire and Rescue Control Rooms and on Charging by Fire and Rescue Authorities—had already commenced.

However, as joint committees, Regional Management Boards do not directly account to the electorate for the performance of the fire and rescue service. This is the responsibility of their constituent Fire and Rescue Authorities, so the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will continue formally to consult the Authorities on Government proposals.

Mr. Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what the legal status is of the Fire Service regional management boards. [176973]

Mr. Raynsford: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister understands that, in accordance with the guidance issued by the Local Government Association in November 2003, Regional Management Boards have been established as joint committees under Sections 101 and 102 of the Local Government Act 1972.

Mr. Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make a statement on progress towards establishment of new negotiating machinery within the Fire and Rescue Service. [176974]

Mr. Raynsford: The Pay and Conditions Agreement June 2003 between the Fire Brigades Union and the Local Government Employers stated that

"By 30th November 2003 a working group representative of fire service stakeholders will propose revisions to the Constitution of the NJC."

The time-scale for the work was subsequently extended and a report from Rita Donaghy, chair of ACAS, recommending changes to the National Joint Council's constitution was published on 15 March. Negotiations on this are still continuing.

Mr. Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) if he will make a statement on the merits of (a) giving statutory effect to section IX, paragraph 13 of the Fire and Rescue Service's Grey Book and (b) indemnifying firefighters for loss due to insurance policy exclusions in respect of terrorist incidents following death or injury on duty as methods of resolving the problem faced by firefighters whose insurance contains exclusions relating to activities which they may be required to perform in the course of their duties; [176994]

(2) if he will indemnify members of fire brigades within defined limits against failure by life or disability insurers to pay out on policies held by firefighters following death or injury on duty on the grounds of policy exclusions in respect of terrorist incidents. [176941]

Mr. Raynsford: The Conditions of Service (Grey Book) agreed by the employing authorities and the Fire Brigades' Union provides in Section IX for compensation for death and serious injury on duty. This
 
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is no fault compensation and negligence does not have to be proved. It is not appropriate for this to remain as part of the Conditions of Service and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister intends to bring these, together with injury benefits from the firefighters' pension scheme, into a separate death and injury scheme which will be made under clause 33 of the Fire and Rescue Services Bill.

There are provisions within the Conditions of Service and the Firefighters' Pension Scheme that provide for awards in the event of injury or death either occurring in, or as a result of, the exercise of duty. Dependent on the circumstances of an individual, these can provide up to 85% of salary in the event of an injury curtailing earning capacity and up to seven times pensionable pay in the event of death. The latter is more generous than that available to any other public sector worker, including members of the Armed Forces.

Mr. Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what his latest estimate is of the total cost of implementing the strategy of regional fire control rooms, including procurements, relocation and redundancy costs. [177001]

Mr. Raynsford: The Mott MacDonald report on the "Future of Fire and Rescue Service Control Rooms in England and Wales", published on 11 December 2003, includes estimates of both the number of posts that will no longer be required and redundancy costs. Copies were made available in the Library of the House.

The estimated procurement cost is commercially sensitive information which cannot be released during the current procurement process. As sites for the regional control centres have not yet been chosen, relocation costs cannot yet be known.

Fire Safety

Mr. Amess: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what procedures are in place to consult stakeholders on the content of guidance proposed to support the implementation of the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order. [176564]

Mr. Raynsford: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister will be producing guidance documents aimed at different sectors. In each case we will be consulting with representatives of the fire industry and the enforcers and with business interests relevant to the sector covered by the guidance document. Consultation will take place as each guide is developed.

Mr. Amess: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister (1) if he will introduce into the Building Regulations limitations on the generation of smoke and toxicity from construction materials; [176565]

(2) whether he proposes to retain compartmentation as the basis of fire protection in non-domestic buildings when Approved Document B to the Building Regulations is next reviewed; [176566]

(3) what plans he has to change the requirements for compartmentation fire protection in large warehouses in the next review of Approved Document B to the Building Regulations. [176567]

 
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Phil Hope: The review of the fire safety aspects of the Building Regulations in England and Wales that is now under way is considering a broad range of issues, including those that the hon. Member has mentioned. Any decision in the future with regard to changes to Approved Document B would need to take account of a range of views, expert advice and of course a full Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA). The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister expects to be in a position to publish a detailed public consultation paper, including a supporting draft RIA, early in 2005.

Firelink Radio System

Mr. Hammond: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when he expects to announce a decision on the selection of a contractor for the Firelink radio system. [176971]

Mr. Raynsford: Contract award is expected in November 2004.

Former Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions

Mr. Cousins: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister which former officials of the former Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions asked for permission to join (a) Pricewaterhouse Coopers, (b) Deloitte and Touche, (c) Ernst and Young and (d) KMPG. [177505]

Yvette Cooper: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister does not have any record of any application covering the organisations listed above for those former Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions officials who subsequently became Office Deputy Prime Minister officials.

Gender Pay Gap

Mr. Denham: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what assessment he has made of the pay gap between men and women employed by his Department and its agencies in (a) Southampton, (b) Eastleigh, (c) Winchester and (d) Romsey. [171630]

Yvette Cooper: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and its agencies do not have offices in the areas referred to but my right hon. Friend the Deputy Prime Minister has ministerial responsibility for Ordnance Survey (OS) which is a non-ministerial Government Department based in Southampton.

Ordnance Survey undertook an Equal Pay Review in mid 2002 covering all aspects of the pay system. There were no significant issues to address but Ordnance Survey is continuing to monitor the situation.

High Hedges

Chris Grayling: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister when the new legal provisions on high hedges will come into force. [176957]

Yvette Cooper: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for South-East Cambridgeshire (Mr. Paice) on 18 May 2004, Official Report, column 843W.
 
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