BRITAIN: The Blair government has taken the gloves off in its battle with the Fire Brigade Union (FBU), warning striking firemen that extra pay will mean "modernisation" and possibly thousands of job losses.
The warning came from the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr John Prescott, who told MPs the fact that some 20 per cent of firefighters were set to retire within three years provided an "ample opportunity" to create a fire service fit for the 21st century.
An angry Mr Andy Gilchrist, general secretary of the FBU, said Mr Prescott had "let the cat out of the bag" and confirmed the Blair government's aim was downsizing and not modernisation.
Despite Mr Prescott's call for all sides to move beyond "the recrimination and bile" of recent days, the dispute last night claimed its first political casualty when the minister responsible for the fire service in Scotland resigned after claims that he had described striking firemen as "fascist bastards".
The Deputy Justice Minister, Mr Richard Simpson, was summoned to talks with Scotland's First Minister, Mr Jack McConnell, after which he quit his post.
Meanwhile, the fourth day of the firefighters' strike played out against an increasingly bleak industrial relations landscape, with striking teachers marching in protest, having closed more than 1,000 of the capital's primary and secondary schools in pursuit of their claims over London living allowances.
Elsewhere in the capital, striking firemen evoked memories of a previous political age, protesting outside a meeting of Labour's National Executive Committee to chants of "Maggie, Maggie, Maggie, out, out, out." The Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, refused to speak directly to some firemen who rushed to greet him, an action which soured the mood of the protest.
Mr Tony Hoy from Acton, West London, said: "I just said to him 'what's your position?' and he disappeared into the building without even acknowledging our presence. He just doesn't listen. It seems he is more interested in killing people in Iraq than the preservation of life by the firefighters."
Another protester, Mr Paul Embery, from Islington Fire Station, said: "I think it is a disgrace he didn't speak to us. He can rub shoulders with the rich and wealthy but he is not prepared to talk to us. If I'd had the chance I would have asked why a 40 per cent pay rise is acceptable for him but not for firefighters who risk lives."
Talks continued last night in an effort to bring the strike to an end.