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| Firefighters confirm four-hour strike in England and Wales | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Firefighters in England and Wales will go on strike on 25 September in a row over pensions, the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has confirmed. | |
| FBU general secretary Matt Wrack said the four-hour strike is "a warning shot to government". | |
| Firefighters in Scotland will not strike on Wednesday, but could still take industrial action later, the union said. | |
| The government had previously called its pensions offer "generous". | |
| It had offered to release full pensions to firefighters when they reach the age of 60. | |
| Mr Wrack said: "This initial strike is a warning shot to government. Firefighters could not be more serious about protecting public safety and ensuring fair pensions. | |
| 'Lives endangered' claim | |
| "Governments in Westminster and Cardiff have simply refused to see sense on these issues. | |
| "It is ludicrous to expect firefighters to fight fires and rescue families in their late 50s - the lives of the general public and firefighters themselves will be endangered." | |
| The FBU had previously said the current proposals would see firefighters who retire or are forced out of work at 55 losing about 50% of their pensions. | |
| Around 85% of firefighters in England and Wales are union members, and 78% of members balloted in England, Scotland and Wales voted in favour of strike action. | |
| The walkout will take place for four hours, between noon and 16:00BST. | |
| During the action, each of the 46 fire and rescue authorities in England have a legal duty to put contingency plans in place. | |
| No army intervention | |
| Unlike the strikes of 2002 and 2003, army personnel will not be brought in. | |
| The ageing Green Goddess fire engines used then were sold off in 2005-06 (800 of them) to different organisations and individuals by the Disposal Services Authority, the Ministry of Defence said. | |
| Should a "major incident" occur, the FBU has agreed it will exempt firefighters and operation managers from strike action if they volunteer to help. | |
| The FBU said that firefighters in Scotland will not strike next week while union officials are discussing the Scottish Government's most recent proposals. |