Having spent many years at the political front line in west Belfast, I have the most profound admiration for the courage and professionalism of the Fire Service in Belfast and beyond.

The Committee for Health, Social Services and Public Safety has a direct interest in the motion because of the Health Minister's responsibility for public safety and the Northern Ireland Fire Service. The motion is an opportunity for everyone to acknowledge the outstanding work of firefighters. The Committee has always recognised their valuable and courageous service, and we all agree that the Fire Service is a vital asset to the community.

The events of 11 September last year, and the sacrifices made by the Fire Department of New York, emphasise that firefighters everywhere put their lives in danger daily to save the lives of ordinary people. We can be proud that our Fire Service is manned by some of the most professional and dedicated firefighters, officers and staff to be found anywhere. The Committee visited the Fire Control Centre in Lisburn and saw how the Fire Service responds to the needs of ordinary people 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. We talked to the men and women who man the fire appliances about the skills and expertise they need to do their jobs properly. We have also heard from the Fire Brigades Union about the personal dangers that firefighters face daily when responding to emergency calls.

Members of the Health Committee raised the issue of the firefighters' pay dispute in a Committee meeting last week, and it was agreed that firefighters' pay should adequately reflect the skills and expertise needed to carry out their jobs effectively. As with other essential public service workers, firefighters should receive a level of pay that reflects the nature of their job. If they are currently underpaid and require a substantial pay increase to bring pay into line with the proper rate for doing a difficult job, that is what should happen - and they are grossly underpaid.

Pay constitutes the biggest cost to the Health Service and consumes 70% of its budget, which is already overstretched. Some of my Colleagues may be sympathetic to the call for a review of the pay and conditions of firefighters to establish what they should be paid. However, as other Members have pointed out, I understand why firefighters are opposed to the general review called for by the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister.

It is a national dispute, and we have limited influence over its outcome. However, in supporting the call for a substantial increase, the public needs to know that it is justified, and I am sure that the Minister can make that point strongly.

Nick Raynsford has appointed Sir George Bain to conduct the review, a man for whom we all have great respect. However, I appreciate the points made by the Fire Brigades Union. The Health Committee will keep a close watch on the situation in the days and weeks to come, and I have sought an urgent briefing from the Department about the current position and the progress of the national pay negotiations.

I appreciate Sinn Féin's withdrawal of its amendment. I understand the point David Ervine is making in his amendment and the reason for a professional wage of £30,000. However, it is not for the Assembly to name a figure in negotiations other than to say that they deserve a substantial rise, and I am pleased that Mr Paisley Jnr has accepted Mr Coulter's amendment.

I support the motion. I am glad that the proposers have accepted the Ulster Unionist amendment, which I also support. I support Mr Ervine's amendment; however, Alliance will abstain from the vote for two reasons. The Fire Brigades Union has proposed a sum of £30,000, but the Government and the Prime Minister have not listened, and I doubt whether they will listen to us at this stage.

Unfortunately, I missed the start of the debate. However, I believe the proposer of the motion said that there might be a problem in putting down an amount. By creating a ceiling of £30,000, we may prejudice any future pay formula that would recommend a higher salary. I applaud the withdrawal of the Sinn Féin amendment. Members should stand up to speak for the firefighters, and only for the firefighters.

Last year, the Assembly presented Northern Ireland's firefighters with an award and a plaque in recognition of their bravery over the years, from the Blitz until the present day. I was shocked to learn that the salaries of those brave men and women have not been negotiated since 1977. An unacceptable number of firefighters with young families have to apply for income support or "do the double". I know someone who has been a firefighter for 22 years. His 27-year-old son earns much more than he. That is also unacceptable. As Rev Robert Coulter said, the whole structure must be examined.

Firefighters have saved countless lives, have prevented many incidents from becoming more serious and have put their lives on the line every time that they "go out on a shout". Television programmes do not convey the tension and fear that have been described to me by firefighters and which are present every time they go out. Members are aware of the recent upsurge in attacks on firefighters reporting to fires or other incidents.

Modern firefighters must tackle not only the flames but fumes from drugs and explosives; yet their salaries have not been examined for over 20 years. That is why my party feels that rather than start another review, talks on the introduction of a new pay formula and structure that reflects the arduous nature of the job should commence as soon as possible, despite what the Government and the Prime Minister say.

I have written to the Prime Minister about the pay dispute and have been told that the Government are considering a review. I am afraid that my reply may not be accepted; however, I asked what the point of another review would be and whether it was necessary when it is clear that firefighters' salary levels - apart from anything else - are outdated and do not in any way reflect the true nature of the job.

The firefighters of Northern Ireland have never willingly turned back from any situation, however dangerous. They deserve more than the plaque that the Assembly awarded them last year. They received it gratefully. However, we must give them more practical support. I would certainly endorse a review of the Fire Authority, which clearly does not hold the confidence of the fire crews, who feel that their interests are not being best served by that body.

We remember the brave deeds of the firefighters of New York who were killed or injured on 11 September 2001. Last December, I visited survivors and families of the deceased. Their stories were harrowing. However, as Dr Hendron said, even at that time they told us about the great practical support that Northern Ireland's firefighters gave them and said that firefighters could never be paid enough for the difficult task that they are asked to do. What price do the Government put on the salaries and conditions of people who daily save lives, protect businesses and work for every citizen in the community? Not a high price, obviously. It is up to the Assembly to ensure that they listen.

Can the Member draw her remarks to a close?

Members have a duty to send a clear message to the Government. The whole salary and management structure must be dealt with head-on. If that is done, the £30,000 figure, or above, will become a reality. There will then be no need for firefighters to consider strike action, which they will only do as a last resort.

The Northern Ireland Unionist Party supports the campaign for improved pay and conditions for the Fire Service. The party believes that firefighters carry out a vital and dangerous role in Northern Ireland, and it appreciates the fact that Fire Service personnel daily put their lives at risk to preserve lives and property.

The dangers faced by fire officers in Northern Ireland are well known. They continue to play a front-line role in the face of ongoing terrorist activity, despite the denials of some in the Assembly. Members of the Fire Service have to cope with the aftermath of appalling atrocities. They continually have to deal with disgraceful attacks on vehicles and staff by thugs engaged in street violence.

The formula by which firefighters' pay is determined is outdated and no longer appropriate to deliver adequate pay and conditions for them and other emergency fire control staff. Given the level of training, the operational duties of firefighters and the circumstances in which they must work, the present level of pay - typically around £280 per week - is inadequate.

There has been a vast and dramatic increase in the workload of the Fire Service in the past 30 years as regards calls received, incidents attended and fire safety duties. There has also been an increase in the range and specialist features of equipment, technology, skills and knowledge required. Therefore, firefighters' claim for a review of pay and conditions is wholly justified.

In 1981, 15,838 calls were made to the Fire Service. Twenty years later, in 2001, the service attended 39,055 calls.

There are four aspects to the Fire Brigades Union's pay claim: a pay increase to £30,000 for full-time professional firefighters; pay parity for emergency fire control staff; pay equality for professional firefighters working the retained duty system; and a new pay formula to reflect the professionalism of firefighters and emergency fire control staff.

The Northern Ireland Unionist Party believes that the Fire Service has a very strong case for an immediate review of pay and conditions to ensure that the professional role undertaken by highly skilled firefighters and fire control staff is adequately reflected. I am sympathetic to the firefighters' claim for a significant increase in salaries and better working conditions. It is therefore vital that their essential contribution to society be fully recognised and accordingly rewarded in order to maintain the Fire Service's high standards and professional service.

It is clear from what we have heard and the information that we received from the Fire Brigades Union that there has been an enormous wage drift. I was appalled to learn from the union, when it met me, that there has not been a review of firefighters' pay formula since 1977. How did that situation arise in the first place?

Firefighters' pay can be compared to that of police officers, ambulance staff and nurses. It is clear that police officers decided a few years ago to adopt a salary scheme that included an annual increment for young constables, who could then progress to the rank of sergeant and further up the career ladder. It seems, however, that firefighters do not have that prospect. The main problem seems to be that they cannot move beyond the £21,000 mark, making their career prospects pretty bleak unless they move on to restricted categories, where numbers are quite small. Many - indeed, the vast majority - reach a ceiling after 10 or 15 years.

Everyone agrees that a review is both necessary and urgent. The absence of a review to date makes one wonder what the Fire Authority of Northern Ireland was doing and, indeed, what happened to the negotiations with the National Joint Council and the employers' bodies.

The only other group that appears to have fallen so far behind are nurses. Strangely, nurses' salaries have always been explained on the basis that the profession suffered because the majority of staff were women who entered the profession for vocational reasons, motivated by a caring responsibility rather than salary. Those days are long gone, and people ought to be paid for the skills that they put in.

Student nurses from the Royal College of Nursing who visited Parliament Buildings today told me that they receive only £5,000 per annum during their three years' training and that for many years thereafter they can expect to receive only £15,000 at the most. Therefore, like the firefighters, they end up asking one part of Government to ask another part of the Government to top up their wages. In this case, the Minister of Health, Social Services and Public Safety is responsible for firefighters, and Nigel Dodds, the Minister for Social Development, is responsible for family credit, tax and other benefits.

As we have joined-up Government, it seems reasonable to examine how firefighters can avoid depending on benefits to top up their low pay. A review of the pay formula is long overdue and should be agreed urgently. Firefighters do not need to make any further case when we consider the comparisons between ambulance staff and firefighters. Firefighters have now moved on to professional grades, yet their salaries are still associated with that upper quartile of male manual workers. What antiquated language. I am glad that they were not equated with female manual workers - how much worse off they would have been then.

We fully support pay parity for the emergency fire control staff, most of whom are women. They in turn earn even less - 92% of qualified firefighters' wages - yet the firefighters and the union tell us that they could not do their jobs without that highly skilled, professional group of workers. I also argue for pay equality for the retained fire officers, of whom there seems to be an equivalent number in Northern Ireland.

It is good that the entire Assembly is throwing its weight behind this. My only difficulty with the PUP amendment is that a starting salary of £30,000 would put firefighters' salaries clearly beyond those of police officers, ambulance staff and nurses. We do not want to move in that direction. Given how shockingly poor their starting salary is, I agree that it was right to pitch so high, knowing that that pitch will not be successful. I understand the sentiments behind that. Nonetheless, I urge everyone to throw his or her weight behind the motion today. If the PUP amendment falls - and it appears that it will - the Assembly must send out a unanimous message that this matter should be given urgent attention.

As a member of the Committee for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, I congratulate my Colleagues on bringing this timely motion to the Floor of the House. Fire Service pay is determined by a formula that has kept industrial peace since 1977. That formula was agreed following the only national strike by the British Fire Service, but it has not maintained Fire Service wages in line with those of other workers.

A professional firefighters's job has changed dramatically since the 1970s. I shall highlight how their role and responsibilities have changed by comparing statistics from 1971 with some from 2001. Last year, Northern Ireland's firefighters were called out eight-and-a-half times more than they were 30 years ago. Actual fires have increased almost 10-fold, with false alarms up by a factor of 16 to almost 13,000 last year, which is a worrying trend. In 1971, special services, which deal with road accidents and chemical spillages, were called out 85 times. The corresponding figure for 2001 was 1,615. In 1977-78, there was a national strike by firefighters over pay demands. Everything possible must be done to prevent that happening again.

Despite its high-profile public campaign, there appears to have been little effort on the part of the National Joint Council for Local Authorities' Fire Brigades and its standing subcommittee to address seriously firefighters' demands. We must be responsible about pay demands. I want firefighters to be paid what they deserve, not to be given preferential treatment. I do not advocate overpaying firefighters but rather a pay structure that reflects the demands of a skilled and often hazardous job. We, as a society, must be careful not to allow ourselves to be put in a position where, on a whim, we can be held to ransom by strike threats because the role of some groups is so crucial to the health and safety of the public. Having said that, the Fire Brigades Union has exercised a great deal of restraint over the years. Many others, such as nurses and ambulance crews, are also underpaid; I do not want them to threaten strike action, but that does not diminish the fact that they too deserve salary increases. Firefighters do much more than put out fires. They are involved in water rescues and incidents which involve radiation, contamination and the spillage of chemicals. They cut victims free from road and train crashes, as well as doing what we all saw so graphically almost exactly a year ago. Furthermore, they assist bravely when buildings collapse or when people become trapped.

The duties of firefighters and the levels of skill demanded of them have increased. There is a greater range and specialisation of equipment and technology involved. Firefighters rightly believe that the salaries of emergency fire control staff should be raised to match their own. In addition, they want a better deal for part-time staff. Currently there are hundreds of part-time firefighters in the province. Without them, stations such as Newtownards, Carrickfergus and Portadown would not be able to function. They deserve more than the current meagre annual retainer and merit the same rate as full-time firefighters when they deal with calls.

Firefighters in Northern Ireland deal with the same dangers as their counterparts throughout Great Britain. They have the added fear of coming under attack when called out to a fire. Over the last 30 years in Northern Ireland we have never been short of mindless violence. However, the increasingly common attacks on firemen and paramedics in emergency situations here defy belief. How can it be explained to visitors to the province that emergency services, while risking their lives in order to save the lives of others, can come under attack from the very community they serve? No amount of money could adequately pay firefighters for enduring the risk of a brick coming through the windscreen, or worse.

On 4 September at the Committee for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, Members from all parties were supportive of the firefighters' demands for a pay increase. The firefighters have had my support throughout the campaign.

The Member will please draw her remarks to a close.

I have written to the Prime Minister, asking that he support a substantial increase in pay for firefighters throughout the country. I hope that that will be the case, despite his unhelpful comments on 3 September at his press conference.

Go raibh maith agat, a LeasCheann Comhairle. I too welcome the opportunity to discuss the serious issue of the pay of both firefighters and staff. Members have already highlighted the concerns. The Minister and Members recognise the commitment and acknowledge the courageous work of the firefighters, and there is an opportunity for the Assembly formally to highlight that and to thank them again.

Members have mentioned that the matter was discussed at the Committee for Health, Social Services and Public Safety, where it was agreed that the Chairperson should write to Tony Blair to outline our concerns and support the concerns and issues raised by the Fire Brigades Union. It will be interesting to see his response.

The Chairperson, Dr Hendron, highlighted the fact that pay is the single biggest cost to the Health Service. Something approaching 70% of the budget goes on pay. However, pay and associated costs are not negotiated locally, and that must be examined. I do not want to go over the flaws in the formula which has been in use for some 20 years. It is outdated, and there are flaws.

I agree with Ian Paisley Jnr who said that the Assembly should sing from the same hymn sheet. Perhaps he could influence his school friends and ask them to settle down, because in the interests of Assembly unity Sinn Féin agreed not to move an amendment to the motion.

Moreover, I agree with David Ervine that it is wrong that there has been political input into negotiations with senior management and the union.

Bob Coulter was absolutely right in his message to Tony Blair that the Fire Service's pay increase should be generous and not penny-pinching.

I point out again that, in the interests of Assembly unity, Members are agreed and show that they are united in support of the Fire Brigade. Our amendment was not moved for that reason.

We demand a first-class service from the Fire Service, and, therefore, it is only right that it should demand first-class salaries from us.

I apologise for my absence earlier; I was at an important meeting.

During more than three decades of the most dangerous circumstances, often amid violence and difficulty, the Fire Service has given outstanding service to our community. Firefighters were often at the forefront of trouble, unsure whether a bomb would explode or a building would collapse on them as they went to fight a fire. The events in New York on 11 September last year highlight the great and imminent danger that firefighters face in their valiant work.

It is sad that, despite firefighters' admirable bravery in overcoming such danger, thugs in our community attack them when they attend fires during incidents of communal strife. As I read in a local daily newspaper, it is incredible that firefighters attended more than 500 civil disturbances between January and August 2002. Outrageously, 84 appliances were damaged and many firefighters were injured. What is wrong with people that they should attack firefighters, who provide our community with such an invaluable service? Do they not realise that when they injure a firefighter or damage an appliance, they increase the risk of death for someone's loved one and, if they have any, their own nearest and dearest?

The dedication and commitment of Fire Service personnel in peace and strife are admirable, and they deserve thanks and appreciation for their valued and unstinting service, often under the most undue danger and pressures. I am sure that all Members join me in commending them for their sterling work.

As I stated in July, I will support any improvement to the terms and conditions of Fire Service personnel, commensurate with their undoubted skills, value and service to our community. Over the years, the service rendered to this community has been so commendable, admirable and vital that we could not have done without it. We must be as considerate in our support for the Fire Service, as it, in recognition of its role, will be in its requirements. I fully support the motion as amended. The work of the Fire Service is outstanding, even amid such adversity. The bravery of Fire Service personnel must be rewarded and acknowledged.

At this stage of the debate, little remains to be said. Despite the little frissons between Sinn Féin and the DUP, there has been a remarkable degree of consensus. However, it is the first day back at school, so Members should make allowances for that. It is remarkable - [Interruption].

Would you like to join in the spirit of the first day back?

Pardon?

Order.

The consensus is impressive and reflects the respect that people have for the Fire Service. It is important that Members support firefighters, especially at such a crucial time in their discussions with the Government. The Government's review, which is under way, evades the central issue: firefighters should have a proper pay formula, as adumbrated in the amendment tabled by Rev Robert Coulter, and should receive a significant and immediate pay increase to reflect the increasing risks that they face. The risks to firefighters, especially to their health, and to firefighting equipment increase each year, and society owes the Fire Service a tremendous amount.

I am baffled by the Westminster Government's penny-pinching attitude, which has been seen in many other things that they have done here. One would think that a Labour Government in particular would support the firemen's just demands, especially when that Government are about to embark on an adventure in Iraq on which they will waste millions, if not billions, of pounds in armaments. I cannot understand for the life of me why the Government do not fairly address the firemen's just and reasonable demands, and that opinion is reflected in the House.

When the motion is inevitably passed as amended, it will be a morale booster to the firemen's trade union. I hope that it will help to strengthen its position, bring the Westminster Government to their senses and avoid the disaster for the community that a firemen's strike would be. That can be avoided through negotiation and through the Government's coming to the firemen's trade union with a reasonable proposition before any sort of industrial action is either proposed or taken. I hope that that will result in part from this united motion.

Furthermore, the SDLP fully supports the emergency fire control staff and the retained firemen in their quest for equality. The central point to which I return is that industrial peace, which has existed in the public sector for so long, is the result of the establishment of a just and modern pay formula, and that formula will properly reward firemen financially. The central issue is not a mere pay increase, but the implementation of the actual formula.

I ask the Member to draw his remarks to a close.

I support the motion proposed by Mr Paisley Jnr and Mr Shannon. I also support the amendment tabled in the name of the Rev Robert Coulter, and I welcome the debate.

Of all the occupations that schoolchildren want to follow, that of a firefighter probably tops the list. Their uniforms, equipment and, indeed, the professionalism that they have displayed over the past 30 years or more give charisma in children's minds. However, regrettably, maturity brings a sobering appreciation of the hazardous nature of firefighting. Tragically, in Northern Ireland that job is more hazardous than elsewhere. Unlike in New York, where firefighters are looked upon as heroes, in this country they are stoned, and their equipment is destroyed. Too often fire engines are vandalised out of action. Last year alone, over 30 firefighters were injured - not from fighting fires, but as a result of civil disturbances, which is a polite way of saying that thugs deliberately targeted them. That is, of course, unsurprising, because we have an ethical system that applauds the pursuit of power through the barrel of a gun. It is only to be expected that the drip feed of that reaches the streets and makes stoning firefighters quite rational.

The firefighters' request for a pay increase is reasonable. I subscribe to the principle that the labourer is worthy of his hire. Few would reject the sensible case that the Fire Service puts before us, and the failure to agree a mutually acceptable level of remuneration is tragic.

This matter has been on the table since April 2002. It is acknowledged that the Fire Brigade provides an essential service and that the pay formula requires modernisation. Firefighters' workloads have increased dramatically, and the current rate of pay does not reflect the nature of the job. The course of action to be taken about a pay rise must be heard. Is an inquiry necessary? We do not need an inquiry that postpones facing up to the issue. Why was an inquiry not set up before now rather than waiting until the last minute? Will setting up an inquiry be an excuse to change conditions in order to avoid giving a decent pay rise? Those questions indicate the haphazard and lax nature of the treatment of the issue. If undertakings were given, why were they not kept? These and other issues appear to be clouding the negotiations and must be dealt with immediately. Will firefighters be told that they do a wonderful job and that the risks involved are appreciated but that they have to claim state benefit if they need more money? That is unfair and unreasonable. The firefighters are asking for £30,000 a year. If that is not considered realistic, they will have to be told so and why. If £25,000 a year is affordable, it should have already been paid out without all the friction. Nothing is gained by issuing misleading press releases and causing confusion.

There has been no strike, or threat of a strike, since 1978; that is a remarkable tribute to both the firefighters and the pay formula that was worked out at that time. Surely the same can be achieved again, without the need for a strike. Why can the issue not be dealt with without firefighters becoming so frustrated and disgruntled that they consider strike action to be their only recourse?

With many others, I support the motion wholeheartedly; I also support the firefighters in their call for a pay rise. We must commend the firefighters across Northern Ireland for their professional and skilled work on behalf of both sides of the community. I support the Fire Brigades Union, commend it for its lobbying and look forward to working with its members in the future. The motion will send a clear message to the Government that enough is enough and that more needs to be done for our male and female firefighters.

I congratulate Mr Paisley Jnr for proposing the motion and also my Colleagues for tabling an amendment that Mr Paisley Jnr has agreed has added substance to the motion. I am glad that we are united on this subject. Before the end of the debate I hope that Mr Ervine will withdraw his amendment, and then we will have total agreement.

In the aftermath of 11 September, society reflected on the dangerous but vital role of firefighters. It is terrible that it took that tragedy in the United States to bring home the value of the Fire Service to the Northern Ireland community. As a result of the troubles, Northern Ireland firefighters have had to operate in more dangerous circumstances than their counterparts in the rest of the UK. Over the past few years, we have all been sickened by attacks on the emergency services, including the Ambulance Service and the Fire Service. Instead of appreciating the dedication and commitment of those services, a minority has attacked these workers. The attacks on the Fire Service have been well documented in Belfast and Londonderry, and the Fire Service has advised that many of the attacks were pre-planned; that is worrying.

Nevertheless, it is probable that one day the same thugs will call upon the professional services of our emergency teams. More than 800 firefighters have been injured in the past five years, and nine of their colleagues lost their lives during the troubles. Two years ago in the Chamber I mentioned that one of the first to lose his life was my friend, Mr Wesley Orr, from Lisburn. The award that the House presented to the Northern Ireland Fire Service last July in recognition of its services to all members of the community was justly deserved.

I have pleasure in supporting the merits of the motion, and I urge all Members to support the amendment. There is no doubt that the present formula is out of date; after all, it was established at the end of the nine-week strike in 1977. The formula served the Fire Service well until recently. However, due to the acceleration of the labour markets and occupational change in the workforce in recent years, the pay formula is no longer effective in providing firefighters with a salary that they deserve. A pay structure linked to their skills and experience must be implemented. There should be a differential in pay, depending on the number of years of service and the skills of the individual. It is not simply a matter of awarding a universal pay increase, but of introducing a pay structure that is focused around a firefighter's career steps.

It is important that any agreement be implemented quickly, as the matter has been in the public domain for some time. It is not in the interest of firefighters' morale to prolong the process. I support the motion and the amendment.

I support the motion. I have the greatest admiration and respect for firefighters, whose highly dangerous and skilled work should command appropriate remuneration. Their work must be put in the context of their devotion to duty: they risk their lives to save others and others' property; and they respond to a variety of difficult situations, from civil strife and road accidents to saving the family pet. A firefighter's normal shift may incorporate more heroic deeds than many people achieve in a lifetime.

The Fire Service comprises several components. The first component is the whole-time firefighters who work an average 42-hour week for a take-home pay of £21,000 a year after four years of service. That equates to approximately £9·83 an hour. Training drills and practice are incorporated into the normal working week. The staffing level in the Fire Brigade, as of 31 March 2002, recorded the number of whole-time firefighters as 869. The establishment figure for the same date was 919.

The second component is the retained firefighters, who work when required. They are committed to two hours a week for drill purposes. A retained firefighter can expect remuneration at an hourly rate for attendance at fires and a Northern Ireland allowance. Their total pay before National Insurance and income tax ranges from one hour's work at £15·17 to nine hours' work at £64·77, which equates to £6·20 an hour. The job of a retained firefighter is classed as a part-time occupation. How long can we expect people to continue to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, particularly as they must often take time out from their main jobs, and, therefore, incur financial losses by fighting fires? There were 910 retained firefighters on 31 March 2002, but the establishment figure for the same date is 980. This is in addition to the whole-time service level of 869 firefighters, making this essential service totally dependent on both whole-time and retained firefighters.

The third component is the control room staff. On 31 March 2002, 55 such staff were recorded, while the establishment figure for the same date was 59. These workers are expected to operate up-to-date equipment for salary scales from yesteryear. The pay structure dates from 1977 and is linked to the old male manual workers' agreement, long since unacceptable for obvious reasons.

Today the Fire Service is linked to associated professional and armed technical groups of workers such as the police and armed forces: that is the right category for such an essential service. The problem is that their pay scales have not been brought into line. Something must be seriously wrong when a member of the Fire Service with 32 years' service has a weekly wage of £300.

There are eight volunteer firefighters for Rathlin Island: the establishment figure is 12.

At 31 March 2002 there were 128 fewer firefighters than the established figure for the Northern Ireland Fire Service. A further 283 members of the service were in temporary positions, and a hot fire training unit at Boucher Crescent, Belfast, built in July 2001 at a cost of £56,000, was used just 28 times before being closed by Belfast City Council. Surely such resources could have been better used in resolving the pay dispute and creating better working conditions.

In my opening remarks I also referred to civil unrest. Up to 31 August 2002 the Fire Brigade, given its current circumstances, attended 500 calls, resulting in 84 appliances being damaged and many firefighters being hurt. That is the working environment these people have to endure: it is part of their ongoing conditions and must not be allowed to go underestimated. The Fire Brigades Union has spent considerable time and effort in trying to resolve the dispute. I ask the House to support this essential service in its efforts to ensure that those who have served their communities so well get the remuneration to which they are totally justified.

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