Firefighters furious after court ruling on disability pensions

The firefighters are now pinning their hopes on reaching a fresh agreement with the government.

The decision by Deputy High Court Judge Michael Supperstone QC that the new rules on ill-health pensions are lawful was a blow to three London firemen who all had their payments stopped by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority.

The three, Martin Marrion, Neil Burke and Andrew Scott, lost their pensions last year following medical appeals dealt with under new government guidelines issued in 2006.

Lawyers for the firemen said that the ruling also affects all firefighters who have been, or who will be, retired due to ill-health or injury since the new guidelines came into force.

The FBU said that, under pensions guidelines issued in 2004, a disabled or badly injured firefighter would be given an ill-health pension unless they are redeployed to a job within their role.

But the new guidance, issued in September 2006, meant that, if they were capable of doing any single part of their work, even answering the phone, then they would not get a pension regardless of whether they were, in fact, redeployed to those restricted duties.

FBU general secretary Matt Wrack said that he was "very disappointed" with the outcome of the application for judicial review.

"We cannot tolerate a position where firefighters cannot rely on a pension if they are unable to work after being injured on duty," he said.

"Who would want to take the risks of firefighting in those circumstances?"