The Drenthe Security Region (VRD) is concerned about possible cuts. If the government continues its plans, the VRD will receive 740,000 euros less on an annual basis. The VRD is concerned with fire brigade care and disaster and crisis.
State Secretary Ingrid Coenradie (PVV) of the judiciary and safety, in its own words, will extend her neck to get a cut on the safety regions off the table. Every year the 25 safety regions together are in danger of having to return 28 million euros. The budget of municipalities is also becoming less, so that it is expected that an additional 5 percent extra will be cut. The cutbacks also lead to concerns under the opposition and coalition in the Lower House.
All safety regions sent an alarming letter to the cabinet last week. The VRD previously also sent a letter to all municipal authorities in Drenthe. Main message: not cut. “The VRD is already very tight in the jacket, because we have always tried to do our work as efficiently and effectively as possible,” says a spokesperson.
“In addition, we are at a point where we would actually like to invest more in safety, but we also take shortage into account at municipalities, so we have not asked any extra money for this.” The safety regions are largely financed by municipalities, around 15 percent come from the government.
Drenthe has 36 fire brigade posts, 35 of which are staffed by fire brigade volunteers. In our province there are more than seven hundred.
If the cutbacks are actually implemented, the execution of the VRD tasks will be under pressure. “That means we have to surrender to quality, because we can have firefighters practice and train less,” said the spokesperson.
In the letter to Drenthe municipalities, the VRD acknowledges that less practice yields a cost saving, but that the quality of the fire brigade deployment is reduced. “Under the nationally determined standard.”
This also applies to the equipment of the fire brigade. In recent years, the VRD had to cut back, by replacing expensive aerial platforms with cheaper car ladders. There is also a minimal occupation with emergency vehicles. Part of the area is covered by working together with Groningen.
Then you could now fiddle with the period at which vehicles are debited. Normally there are fifteen years for that, but a number of installments have already been stretched, according to the VRD. “With this, Drenthe has the longest depreciation periods of the fire brigade in the Netherlands.”
According to a spokesperson, the safety of Drenten is not yet at stake. “The fire brigade is coming quickly,” the spokesperson emphasizes. “We are not going to close fire stations or say goodbye to equipment.” It is possible that in the future not everyone is practiced and trained equally well, which means that a tanker sprayer that is the first in a fire can handle all incidents. “Then specific help can sometimes take longer, because it has to come from further away.”
In April there will probably be more clarity about the financial future of the security regions. Then the so -called Spring Memorandum is handed over to the Lower House. In it, the cabinet explains how it is with all expenses and income.