Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

For the past two weeks, Cork city’s firefighters have taken limited industrial action and protested outside the city’s fire brigade headquarters for half an hour each day. They are highlighting the fact that since the city’s boundary extension in 2019, they are required to serve an area five times the size with double the population, with the same number of full-time staff and fewer fire trucks – three instead of four.

I believe that this is a health and safety issue for every man, woman and child in Cork city. It may not have led to loss of life yet but it certainly has led to terrible situations. For example, on 28 February, the stretched fire services were attending a fire in Glanmire when a call came through about a house fire in Ballincollig. It took the brigade more than 20 minutes to reach the Ballincollig fire. The house was totally gutted, yet three minutes away from the gutted house was an empty fire station. Ballincollig fire station has been empty for several years because Cork City Council has failed to staff it. The council has advertised for retained firefighters to staff Ballincollig for two and a half years but in this time it has not filled a single position. It may be possible to recruit retained firefighters in small rural communities, though clearly the wages will need to be raised. However, in urban areas the requirement to be able to report for duty within three to five minutes is not realistic and there are no takers. Cork city firefighters have volunteered to staff Ballincollig and bring the fourth fire truck into play while the council recruits more staff, be they full time or retained, but for more than two years now their offer has been spurned.

This is not just a local issue; it is an extreme example of what is happening in other areas too. The opening of the Stardust inquest underlines the devastation that can be caused by fire. The State has a responsibility to protect life. I do not know whether the Cork city fire chief has sent a new section 26 plan to the Minister. Perhaps the Taoiseach will clarify but he should not stand idly by while a tragedy is waiting to happen in the second-largest city in the State.

I have two questions. Does he accept there is a crisis around the recruitment and retention of retained firefighters and the State needs to step up recruitment of full-time staff? Last but not least, does the fact that firefighters feel the need to protest publicly in uniform give the Taoiseach any sense of concern about the unfolding situation in Cork city?

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