UNDER radical new plans being spearheaded by the government, police, paramedics and firefighters will work much more closely together to deal with emergencies.
The government has already invested more than £70 million to drive blue light collaboration projects forward in a bid to “improve taxpayer value for money”.
Former Essex police and crime commissioner Nick Alston proposed mixed teams with police, firefighters and paramedics in one vehicle attending road traffic crashes, abolishing the Essex Fire Authority and giving its powers to the police and crime commissioner.
He also proposed shared stations for police officers, firefighters and paramedics rather than separate bases. And Essex could be one of the first regions to replace its fire authority, after it was criticised for presiding over a “corrosive and toxic” culture among staff in an independent report published last year.
Discussions are under way about the possibility of basing ambulances at eight Essex fire stations and creating “fire ambulances” where firefighters take patients to hospital.
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