Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the findings of the study on Scottish Firefighters Occupational Cancer and Disease Mortality Rates: 2000-2020 published on 10 January 2023, if she will hold discussions with (a) trade unions, (b) the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and (c) other Cabinet colleagues on cancer mortality among firefighters.

The health and safety of firefighters is of great importance and employers must be mindful of the academic research in this area.

Fire and Rescue Authorities are responsible for the health and safety of their employees. It is for individual fire and rescue authorities, as employers with responsibility for health and wellbeing, to ensure that firefighters receive the appropriate equipment and training they need to safely respond to the wide range of incidents which they attend. This includes working conditions inside fire stations where there are strict requirements for decontamination of personal protective equipment following incidents.

The Home Office will be studying and considering this report carefully.