Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2025 to Question 34056 on Fire and Rescue Services: Finance, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of population (a) density and (b) sparsity on fire and rescue services funding.

Government funding for fire and rescue services is provided by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) through the Local Government Finance Settlement (LGFS) in the form of revenue support grant (RSG) and retained business rates.

The 2025/26 LGFS was published on 3 February and sets out funding allocations for all local authorities including fire and rescue. Standalone fire and rescue authorities will see an increase in core spending power of £65.5m in 2025/26. Including the National Insurance Contribution Grant, this is an increase of 3.6 per cent in cash terms compared to 2024/25. In 2025/26, Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Authority will have core spending power of £40.3 million; an increase of £1.8 million (4.7 per cent) on 2024/25.

The amount of funding that fire and rescue services receive is determined and distributed using an outdated formula. This formula is currently being reviewed as part of Local Government funding reform and a public consultation on this ran from 18 December 2024 to 12 February 2025.