AN AYRSHIRE MSP has warned of a "mass exodus" of retained firefighters across Scotland.
Labour's Katy Clark has demanded that the Scottish Government come up with an emergency plan to address the crisis.
In a motion to be considered for debate in the Scottish Parliament, Ms Clark, who is her party's community safety spokesperson, pointed to a vacancy rate of 29 per cent in the retained duty system.
She claimed budget cuts, job losses and low pay had resulted in around 150 retained crewed fire appliances a day being “off the run” and unable to emergency calls.
Ms Clark, who represents the West Scotland region, said £64 million had been cut from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) budget over the past decade, with more than 1,200 jobs lost in that time.
Last year, as part of a package of cuts, second or third appliances were withdrawn from a number of stations. The SFRS is also currently consulting on potential station closures.
Ms Clark said: “Retained firefighters play a vital role, placing themselves on call up to 120 hours a week to response to emergencies.
"But stagnant pay, budget cuts and recruitment challenges mean service levels are now being frequently reduced.
“The system is clearly in serious crisis: a tenth of retained duty system members are leaving every year and there is a vacancy level of 29 per cent.
"As a result, we are seeking appliances withdrawn from action, leaving the public less safe and piling more pressure on retained firefighters who usually work other jobs as their main employment."
According to the SFRS, the only fire stations in Ayrshire staffed entirely by whole-time firefighters are located in Kilmarnock and Kilwinning.
A further three, in Ardrossan, Dreghorn and Ayr, are staffed by a combination of retained and 'whole-time' personnel.
Nineteen more are staffed by retained on-call crews.
They are located in Beith, Brodick, Colmonell, Cumnock, Dalmellington, Dalry, Girvan, Kilbirnie, Lamlash, Largs, Mauchline, Maybole, Millport, Muirkirk, New Cumnock, Newmilns, Skelmorlie, Stewarton and Troon.
A further three, in Blackwaterfoot, Lochranza and Corriecravie on Arran, are covered by a volunteer duty system.
Ms Clark continued: “The Scottish Government has a responsibility to fully resource the retained duty system and prevent a wider exodus.
"As average response times worsen and cuts intensify, a failure to resolve these issues could be the difference between life and death in serious emergencies.
"Nothing less than an emergency response is needed to support a service on its knees.”
A Scottish Government spokeperson said: "The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is a vital service and on-call firefighters play a vital role in keeping our communities safe.
"That is why we are investing £393 million in SFRS this year, an increase of £29 million.
"Whilst recruitment is an operational matter for SFRS, we are maintaining front-line services, with a higher number of firefighters in Scotland than other parts of the UK.”
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