A FIREFIGHTERS union leader whose members have been told they can only have a 1% pay rise has slammed proposals to give the Devon and Somerset fire chief a 6% salary hike.

Lee Howell will find out tomorrow (Thursday) if the fire authority will sanction his earnings going up from £137,392 to £146,031.

His bosses justify the proposed increase by pointing out that Mr Howell is now working more hours for the Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service after being seconded part time to another post in Wales.

But Trevor Finch, of the Fire Brigades Union, said he hoped a similar rise would be given to firefighters, whose pay increases have been capped at 1% for the last four years.

He added: “Cuts agreed in 2013 will see 159 full time firefighters leave, which is 25% of our workforce and 15 middle managers will also go by 2017.

"The authority sees it as a business, but we see it as a service. Is it really appropriate for a pay rise at this time?"

A fire service spokesman said the pay arrangements for the chief fire officer were a matter for the fire authority to determine.

An authority spokesman pointed out that Mr Howell, who has overseen £5.5million in service cuts, spent two days a week as an HM Inspector in Wales from 2013.

It said that he now works full-time in Devon and Somerset and independent research concluded that his current earnings are “well below the median salary” in relation to the amount of people it serves.