Met Commissioner wants ban on strikes that threaten public safety

Britain's most senior police officer called last night for a ban on all strikes that endanger public safety as the threat of the first firefighters' walkout since 1977 loomed closer. Hopes of averting a national strike by firefighters hang in the balance after talks between the Deputy Prime Minister and union leaders remained deadlocked.

The Fire Brigades Union said it had another round of "constructive" talks with John Prescott but no agreement was reached and time was running out before the first of a series of strikes starts on Tuesday.

Sir John Stevens, the Metropolitan Police Commissioner, intervened yesterday for the first time in the dispute. In an interview to be broadcast tomorrow on GMTV's Sunday Programme, Sir John warned that a strike would mean police officers would be diverted from their normal duties and as a result cut his crime-fighting capacity. Sir John said the fire strike would mean 400 of his officers would have to be taken off other duties every day, which will have an effect on London. He said the strike "will make our life more difficult, just as we had a problem over the business after the 11 September terrorist outrages, where we had to bring people, to reassure them, into the centre of London".

Asked if he thought it would be a good idea for workers whose work involves public safety who to be prevented from striking, Sir John said: "I think for public services, where we've got public safety as an issue, where people lives are at risk, I do. And I personally have no problem with signing up for that as a police officer.

When asked if he felt that the strike ban should be extended to firefighters, Sir John said: "I think the Fire Service do an outstanding job. They haven't been on strike for 25 years. I think it's one of these aspects that needs to be negotiated. If it happens, of course, then I think people who haven't got the right to go on strike need to be rewarded better for that."

Plans to cope with the effects of the strikes are continuing and the union even circulated details of where FBU leaders will be during the walkout on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The FBU general secretary, Andy Gilchrist, who had three hours of talks with Mr Prescott yesterday, after a two-hour meeting on Thursday, said both sides were trying to avoid industrial action. The union's 19-member executive is expected to meet in the next few days before making a decision on the strikes.

The mood of the talks was said to be positive and constructive, but there was a feeling that the first of the strikes was now likely to happen.