Government reveals plans for firefighters' pension scheme

The government has set out more detail of the cuts it wants to make to firefighters’ pension scheme.

The FBU union didn’t ballot to join strikes on 30 November. It said it was still in talks with the government, which had agreed to delay setting their specific scheme’s “cost ceiling”.

The government has now set an “indicative” cost ceiling at 27 percent. But this does not take into account the union’s key objection—the rise in firefighters’ retirement age.

The union said, “The currently proposed scheme design does not in any way address the concerns of the FBU.” It plans to issue a response with its own preferred “scheme design”.

The union’s executive council is to meet in the new year.

It is vital that the Tories see that firefighters are prepared to stand up and strike with the millions of other workers defending their pensions.