A UNION has questioned why the cost of equipment used by fire brigades varies across the country.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service is responsible for negotiating its own deals for hoses, tunics, helmets and trousers, which has led to the Fire Brigade Union to call for either regional or country-wide prices to be put in place.

The figures released by the Home Office show how much every service spends on 25 pieces of equipment and are the first of their kind to make the fire service more accountable to the public.

The overview shows the county’s service spends £462.73 per fire fighter every year for a managed service on personal protective equipment.

It also revealed that it spent £221.35 each on 10 helmets without a torch, £250.79 each on 10 tunics and £186.67 each on 10 pairs of trousers.

Prices varied for equipment across the country and helmets were bought for £100 less in Merseyside.

Portable ladders were purchased at a cost of £4,189 in Humberside, compared with less than £1,500 in Hertfordshire.

York Press:

Steve Howley, head of the Fire Brigade Union in North Yorkshire, said: “We have been crying out for national procurement because when we are talking about saving money and being more efficient, the first thing is to cut fire fighters.

“If we are buying 30,000 uniforms we will have a much better bargaining power.

“The more units we order, the cheaper we get them, and it’s that perspective we haven’t quite grasped.”

Paul Hancock, president of the Chief Fire Officers Association (CFOA), said: “We recognise there are differences in costs of equipment across the sector and work is underway to address this.

“We have already identified categories of high expenditure which offer the greatest opportunities for savings from collaboration. These include: vehicle maintenance, operational equipment, ICT, clothing and training.”