Westminster Fire Station earmarked for closure

Today, we learned that Boris Johnson will close 12 fire stations across London. The list of closures was revealed by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA). The stations are spread across London and include Westminster fire station in SW1 as well as Knightsbridge fire station in SW3.  The London Fire Brigade’s budget will be cut by the Mayor and government by £45 million over the next two years. Even after the 12 stations, 18 fire appliances and 520 fire-fighters have been cut, the Mayor and LFEPA will still have to find over £5 million of cuts.  On average it costs £1.4 million to run a one fire engine station.

The fire stations listed for closure are:

• Belsize in Camden
• Bow in Tower Hamlets
• Clapham in Lambeth
• Clerkenwell in Islington
• Downham in Lewisham
• Kingsland in Hackney
• Knightsbridge in Kensington & Chelsea
• New Cross in Lewisham
• Silvertown in Newham
• Southwark
• Westminster
• Woolwich in Greenwich

In addition the following stations will lose one of their two fire engines: Chelsea, Chingford, Hayes, Leyton, Leytonstone, Peckham and Whitechapel.

London’s fire brigade is facing a crisis, today we found out we will lose Westminster and Knightsbridge fire stations, as well as the closure of a further 10 fire stations across the whole of London, 18 fire engines and 520 fire-fighters. This will undoubdedly reduce fire cover in London, putting the safety and security of Londoners at risk.   The London Fire Brigade and their dedicated staff do a fantastic job keeping us safe and helping us when we need it most. These cuts are hitting front-line services and putting public safety at risk.