Inspection Report On The Fire And Rescue Service Welcomed

Public Safety Minister Michael McGimpsey has praised the performance of the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS).

The report, which has been formally presented to the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service Board, found that NIFRS is "a highly-achieving Service" - the highest category of performance that can be awarded under the inspection process.



Welcoming the report, Mr McGimpsey said: "Over the last couple of years the Fire and Rescue service has undergone major changes as part of a national modernisation programme. In addition to taking on additional responsibilities, such as dealing with chemical hazards and high volume water pumping, it has also been heavily involved in a fire safety promotion campaign which is aimed at reducing the number of fires."

Referring to the inspection, the Minister said: "A team of inspectors from the Scottish Fire Inspectorate examined a number of key areas of the Service. The Fire and Rescue Service is to be congratulated on being given a 'highly achieving Service' rating."

Fire and Rescue Services are required to be independently reviewed through external inspection at the request of the Department.

While Northern Ireland does not have its own Inspectorate, the services of Her Majesty’s Fire Service Inspectorate (Scotland) were secured to carry out the inspection of the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service in April 2007.

(SB/SP)