Statement
My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Sadiq Khan) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement.
I wish to inform the House about the latest development on the FiReControl project, which will establish a resilient network of nine regional fire control centres across England.
I have today published the consolidated FiReControl business case, which sets out the detailed, evidence-based rationale for investing public money in the FiReControl project. It is particularly important in the current economic climate that we are confident that any investment is justified and will bring about real beneficial change. Copies will be placed in the Library of the House.
The business case considers the strategic, economic, financial, commercial and project management cases for this investment in resilience and confirms value for money. It also sets out key information at the regional level, with nine regional annexes, each covering one of the English regions.
This business case has been subject to considerable consultation with a range of interested stakeholders. We received responses from all English regions and we have considered, in detail, these formal consultation responses. This feedback identified a number of areas which required further development, which we have addressed through further professional analysis and direct engagement with the fire and rescue service community, the Chief Fire Officers Association and the Local Government Association.
The headline messages from this analysis demonstrate that: the total project costs, which will be met by central government, have stabilised at £380 million; the project will deliver greatly enhanced capability to the fire and rescue service at no additional cost to fire and rescue authorities; and national government will support the fire and rescue service directly through annual FiReControl payments totalling £8.2 million once the network is up and running, which will be subject to a three-year review.
Taken together with the other elements of the fire and resilience programme—the Firelink radio communications system and the New Dimension equipment—we believe that this provides a powerful platform for the modernisation of the fire and rescue service. We are committed to supporting the fire and rescue service to meet the challenges it faces, now and in the future, to enable it to continue providing a world-class service.