SAVAGE cuts to fire service funding are delaying arrivals at emergencies and putting lives at risk, including those of firefighters themselves, inspectors have found.

HM Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services investigated 15 fire services and found many in “need of urgent improvement” and that “far more is needed to be done to reduce risks to public safety.”

The inspectors reported a “toxic” culture in some fire services and was particularly critical of Gloucestershire’s, which was put into special measures this month, saying that it needed to “urgently improve” amid serious concerns about its ability to keep people safe.