Suspended chief fire officer leaves service

Chief fire officer Graeme Binning and deputy chief Jim McNeil joined the service in 2023

A chief fire officer has left the service following a review into the organisation's culture, a council has confirmed.

Graeme Binning was suspended from Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service in March following a review which had been commissioned after concerns were raised by individuals in the brigade.

A spokesman for Northumberland County Council said: "We can confirm that Graeme Binning is no longer an employee."

Deputy chief fire officer Jim McNeil, who was also suspended at the same time, has retired from the service, the Conservative-led council said.

The decision on Mr Binning's future was made behind closed doors at a meeting of the council's employment appeals committee.

According to the meeting's agenda, the reason given by the council for holding the meeting in private was that the public interest in maintaining privacy outweighed the public interest in disclosure.

The council cited a "need for confidentiality when considering matters concerning individual officers and obtaining confidential legal advice".

The culture review was also not made available to the public, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Temporary chief

Following the suspensions in March, fire service officials said the findings of the culture review would be "considered" and "necessary next steps" would be taken.

Since his suspension, Mr Binning's role has been filled by interim chief Lynsey McVay who joined on a temporary basis from Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service.

That arrangement is set to continue for the time being.

In its last inspection, the service was rated as "good" for the way it promoted values and culture and "adequate" in the promoting fairness and diversity categories.

The BBC has approached Mr Binning for comment, but has been unable to contact Mr McNeil directly.