FIREFIGHTERS claimed victory against the Tory government today after an employment tribunal ordered a reversal to the “robbing” of their pensions.

As a result of the ruling, about 6,000 firefighters who had been moved onto a less generous pension scheme in 2015 will now be allowed to return to the previous scheme.

In 2015 the Tory-Lib Dem coalition government attempted to undercut pensions by moving younger firefighters to a new pension scheme, requiring them to work until they were 60 years old, while leaving the pensions of older workers untouched.

However, the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) took legal action, leading to a Court of Appeal hearing in December 2018 which ruled that the government’s action was age-based workplace discrimination.

A government appeal to the Supreme Court was denied in June 2019, despite the government spending £495,000 on the case.

The firefighters, who belonged to the 1992 and 2006 pension schemes, will now receive the same treatment as their colleagues on the original scheme, which includes a retirement age of 50 and 55.  

The ruling also has ramifications for millions of other workers, as the court confirmed it must be applied across the public sector.

FBU general secretary Matt Wrack said: “Last Christmas, we gave firefighters the gift of a victory in the courts.

“This year, firefighters can celebrate knowing that their union has secured their rightful retirement — a gift borne of solidarity that proves what unions can achieve.

“The law has now changed and our FBU claimants will be entitled to return to their previous pension schemes.

"Legislation will need to be amended, but there can be no delay in implementing this remedy. Firefighters were robbed, and they must now be repaid.

“To the new Tory government, let me be clear. We fought tooth and nail against your attacks on our pensions and won.

"If you dare to try to pay for these changes by raiding the pensions of current or future firefighters, we will come for you again — and we will win.”