Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Yes. An absolutely critical part of effective emergency services is having the fire services properly equipped. I have received shocking representations in the past ten days or so from firefighters who told me that the Dublin Fire Brigade fleet is substandard and the vehicles are way too old and would not be put on the road by fire services anywhere else in Europe, where there are very strict standards as to how old fire appliances can be. The standard in most of Europe is that a fire appliance should be on front-line service for five or six years and then in reserve for another five or six years, after which time it should not be used. I understand, however, that many of our vehicles, possibly half of the fleet in Dublin, are older than that. Firefighters told me alarming stories and showed me shocking video footage of leaks from pipes near electrics at the back of fire trucks; of lights, including side lights and strobe lights, not working - apparently, these vehicles are still on the road; and of compartments at the sides of the vehicles with broken locks springing out. In one instance, the firefighters told me how these broken locks could have killed a cyclist. They told me that drivers who raise these issues and refuse to drive these trucks, because they are personally liable if there are any accidents, are being disciplined, intimidated and so on and essentially told to shut up and drive defective trucks. I do not know whether this coincides with a Deloitte report that came out earlier this year, which stated there were major criticisms of the procurement policies of the Dublin Fire Brigade in terms of money being spent on second-hand vehicles in England. Apparently, quite a few of the vehicles we have in the Dublin fleet were bought second-hand in England, rather than new and are not up to scratch. Deloitte was very critical of the procurement policies of Dublin Fire Brigade in its report.

Is Mr. Hogan aware of any of these concerns and problems? Does he have any comment to make on them? If our fire equipment and fire appliances are seriously substandard and defective, the best laid plans for emergency responses and emergency co-ordination could come badly unstuck. I am interested in hearing any comments Mr. Hogan may have on this.