In 2004, the last government embarked on a plan to set up nine regional fire control centres. This was supposed to speed up the response times to major events such as fires, flooding, and terrorist attacks. This scheme was eventually scrapped in 2010, leaving empty buildings, huge bills, £6000 Brasilia coffee machines, and taxpayers £469 million out of pocket.
The story didn't end there though, and this week Andrew Bridgen, Conservative MP for North West Leicestershire highlighted that taxpayers are still paying £5,000 a day in rent for a building in Castle Donnington. This building was going to be the FiRe Control Centre for Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, and Northamptonshire. The building was completed in 2007, but has just been put up for sale. Mr Bridgen told the BBC, "We need a company to buy those premises, and create some jobs, and get this millstone off the backs of the taxpayer." No-one would disagree with him.
This is what happened to the FiRe Control Centre in Merton. This too was a millstone around the necks of taxpayers, having never been used. Emma Boon commented last year that rent for office space in Merton is around £15 per square foot. The Government at the time managed to strike a deal that saw us paying over £80 per square foot, which is what hedge funds pay for office space in Mayfair!
Thankfully, in February this year the building was eventually used for the first time. It became the fire service's new National Co-ordination Centre. This has delivered an estimated £600K in savings to taxpayers. At long last, it has been put to some worthwhile use.
Until all of these buildings are sold off, taxpayers will have stump up tens of millions of pounds to pay for rent, management fees, utility bills, and rates. In the South West alone, the bill is over £13 million.
This is an ongoing problem the Government must deal with. This unnecessary burden must be lifted from taxpayers.