Firefighters warn of more strikes if restarted talks fail

Firefighter's leaders are expected to warn of fresh industrial action if management make unacceptable demands in talks starting today.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) will dismiss suggestions that it has abandoned its campaign of strikes with its decision to call off an eight-day stoppage which was due to begin today. Andy Gilchrist, general secretary of the FBU, is expected to declare that there could be walkouts before and after Christmas unless exploratory discussions at the conciliation service Acas result in substantive negotiations over wages and modernisation of the fire service.

The comments by Mr Gilchrist follow speculation that the FBU had in effect given up its campaign of industrial action in pursuit of a 40 per cent increase in wages.

The union is expected to present its proposals for changes in the service today, followed by a separate submission from the fire authority employers tomorrow. A full version of a report being compiled by Sir George Bain into pay and the fire service will not be published until 16 December – the proposed date for the start of an eight-day strike.

Mr Gilchrist said the invitation to talks at Acas offered a "glimmer of hope" that the deadlocked dispute could be resolved. Face-to face negotiations between the two sides are, though, unlikely to start before next week.

The FBU has refused to take part in the Bain review and has attacked many of its interim findings as dangerous.

Referring to Mr Gilchrist's comments that he would work to replace New Labour with Real Labour, John Monks, TUC general secretary, said: "Mistakes have been made.

"From my perspective, I could see that the dispute was getting too political. It was too much in the headlines, there was more going on in the television studio than going on at the negotiating table, and it was time to draw back from that and actually take a cool, quiet look at the issues."