TORY cuts have left firefighters taking a record nine minutes and 12 seconds to arrive at the scene across England, Home Office data has revealed.

The Fire Brigades Union said yesterday that a rise in average response times of more than a minute over the past 10 years must be a “wake-up call” for government and fire chiefs.

General secretary Matt Wrack said: “Firefighters have been raising the alarm about the impact of losing one in five firefighter jobs for years. Now we’ve reached a dangerous point where fire response times are increasing dramatically. These latest figures must be a wake-up call for the government and chief fire officers. 

“We’re seeing firefighters pushed beyond acceptable and safe limits, responding to incidents across increasingly large areas. Meanwhile, the climate emergency is resulting in more frequent and extreme weather events and wildfires.”

The figures showed that the number of firefighters has dropped by more than 9,000 since 2010 to about 35,000 last year, with 49 fewer staffed fire stations in England from 2010 to 2021. 

It comes as last year’s summer heatwave saw the number of fire incidents rise by more than 25,000 to 178,737 in the year ending March — the highest since 2019.

Rural response times have been increasing at a faster rate than those in urban areas, according to BBC analysis, with times going up by nearly two minutes in significantly rural areas, but less than half a minute in metropolitan areas.

Mr Wrack added: “The London Fire Brigade recently admitted that while wildfires destroyed homes across London last summer, 39 of the city’s fire engines sat empty without enough firefighters to crew them. This slowed the response down at a time when every second counted.

“In several rural areas, chief fire officers are putting lives at risk by sending reduced crews out, below the numbers needed to fight a fire. Even if they arrive quickly, firefighters then have to stand by and wait for another fire engine to arrive.”

Kent Fire and Rescue Service saw the highest rise of three minutes and five seconds from the financial year of 2012-13 to March 2023.

North Yorkshire had the slowest average response time at 13 minutes and nine seconds.

The Home Office said the government was “committed” to ensuring fire services have the resources they need.