New fire chief unveiled

THE first Chief Officer of the new Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has been named.

Alasdair Hay is currently acting chief officer of Tayside.

The eight regional brigades will be merged into one next April.Scottish Government Ministers insist it will save millions of pounds.However, union leaders are concerned that jobs could be lost.Mr Hay will take charge of a staff of 9,000, based at an interim headquarters at Perth Community Fire Station.Mr Hay said: "I am honoured to take this unique opportunity to shape and deliver the new single Scottish Fire and Rescue Service."It will allow us to sustain and improve the local services communities in all parts of Scotland depend on, to build on success and do more."
It is not yet clear what the new single service will mean for local services.

Moray has one full-time station at Elgin which is manned 24 hours a day.

The Scottish Government insists that the move will "protect and enhance frontline services".

"This exciting post will be one of the top fire jobs in the UK and one of the most demanding and high-profile roles in civic Scotland," a spokesperson added.

The move to single police and fire services for Scotland will save £1.7 billion over 15 years, insists the Government.