Part-time crews 'are being intimidated'

There were allegations last night that part-time firefighters had received threatening telephone calls and notes even before the strike had begun.

The Retained Firefighters Union (RFU), which represents many of the part-time or retained firefighters, said there had been attempts to intimidate its members. A spokesman said: "Unfortunately there will be a lot of nastiness before this dispute is over." Its members in Berkshire, West Yorkshire and on the Isle of Wight are believed to have reported threats, some from anonymous phone calls.

Members in south Wales have apparently been sent copies of Jack London's poem "The Scab", which describes a strike breaker as a "two-legged animal with a corkscrew soul".

RFU officials in Norfolk and Wales said firefighters serving part-time in the hope of securing a full-time job have been told they will not be recruited if they work during the dispute.

In a separate development, the union's spokesman, Tristan Ashby, said members were being wrongly accused of striking by the public. "Our members are getting spat at and called names in the street because the media is giving the impression that all the firefighters are going on strike when they are continuing to serve their communities," he said.