by our industrial reporter @TrinderMatt

FIRE and rescue services are “struggling to provide basic functions” after more than a decade of Tory austerity, firefighters warned today.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) spoke out after inspectors found that a number of services across England “required improvement” when it came to “effectively and efficiently keeping people safe and secure” from risk.

The FBU said the damning findings of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services were an inevitable consequence of years of cuts.