SFRS "Shaping Our Future Service" Consultation

That the Parliament notes the launch of the "Shaping our Future Service" consultation by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS); understands that this is a pre-consultation exercise, and that a full public consultation will be held later in 2024; believes that this exercise is in response to the Firestorm report published by the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) in 2023, which exposed the multiple crises in the SFRS and made over 50 recommendations for reform; notes that the FBU has set out its six "red lines", namely no reduction in emergency fire cover, no reduction in the safe crewing model, no reduction in firefighter numbers, fully funded and negotiated role expansion, investment to end the crisis in the retained duty service and the building of DECON-compliant fire stations with dignified facilities, and calls on the Scottish Government and SFRS to ensure that these areas of the service are protected and fully funded to ensure that Scotland’s communities and the firefighters who protect them are safe, and that the service is fit to meet the demands of the 21st century.