We can all see now what Mr Prescott and his chums in the Home Office mean when they say they want to "modernise" the fire service.

Within the very near future, aerial appliances such as turntable ladders and hydraulic platforms will no longer be automatically dispatched to fire alarms or suspected fires in high rise buildings, only on request of the officer in charge of the first appliance in attendance.

Am I alone in thinking this is a cut in our fire service?

-Dean Docherty, Peacehaven