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The Home Office is facing demands from opposition MPs for a national inquiry into the culture of the UK’s fire services, as new details emerged from a damning report into London’s brigade that revealed widespread abuse and racism.
Labor and the Liberal Democrats said the inquiry was necessary after the government ignored earlier warnings that fire brigades across the country were rife with hooliganism.
Previously unpublished testimony from female firefighters revealed that one claimed to have been regularly sexually harassed after complaining about a male colleague who she said would show colleagues footage of herself having sex, while another said she experienced decades of physical and sexual abuse. The psychiatrist was then induced to use antidepressants. Bullying
A report conducted by Nazir Afzal, a former chief prosecutor, included alarming revelations that female firefighters were molested and beaten. A female firefighter reportedly said that some male firefighters who visited women’s homes for safety visits went through drawers looking for underwear and sex toys.
In the Commons on Monday, Shadow Home Office Minister Sarah Jones said: “Will the Minister immediately carry out a fundamental review of national standards and culture in our fire service? Will he now agree to publish national statistics on misconduct? And will it commit to national professional standards today?”
Munira Wilson, Lib Dem MP for Twickenham, called on the government to launch a national inquiry because “public confidence has been shaken”.
Chris Philp, the Home Office Minister, responded by saying that he would raise with the appropriate body, the Inspectorate of Her Majesty’s Constabulary Fire and Rescue Services, whether it could look at the culture of fire services across the UK.
“She [Jones] Asked about issues outside the London Fire Brigade and I agree that needs to be looked at, and I will discuss it with him. [sic] “Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary Fire and Rescue Services to look at behavioral and cultural issues across the country such as what they can do,” he said.
Testimony handed over to the Afzal inquiry included claims by a female firefighter with 20 years’ experience that she was harassed and stalked after she complained about a colleague who would show footage of herself having sex.
“One firefighter in particular was showing videos of himself having sex with women on his phone. I ignored it for a long time and then finally spoke to my sub officer,” she said. “This man knew my mobile number and I was getting anonymous video calls from a man with an erection calling my name and saying ‘you want this’.
“This happened several times and my husband saw it. I decided to tell this man that I had changed my phone number … then the profanity stopped.
Another female firefighter with 10 years of experience said that while all firefighters face humiliating initiation rites, they never end for women. “As a woman it is much worse. You are told that you only got the job because you are a woman. That you are only there to fill quotas and that you are worthless. Then they drive over your shoes, throw your kit in the bin and drag you to hoist training,” she said.
“A guy kept telling me I was a useless driver and tried to pull me out of the seat when I was reversing. I have been punched, slapped and even had my hair pulled. A while ago I was on antidepressants.
She also told investigators: “If you complain about bullying, it doesn’t go anywhere. I did once and my crew manager lied and said he didn’t see anything. It’s an incredibly laddish culture and diversity is not valued at all. A lot All the farting, burping and sexist jokes. And lots of racism. People go on about ‘Muzzers’ all the time. We did terror training and my watch was pointing out the window at the brown people. ‘There’s one, there’s one and there’s another,’ they said. kept saying
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