THE Home Office has recently announced that police and crime commissioners in England will be able to take responsibility for their local fire and rescue services, making emergency services more efficient and effective.

With the police and fire services working together our emergency services will be strengthened as well as resulting in significant savings and benefits for the public.

Indeed, much of the work the police and fire service undertake is often run as a joint venture already.

PCCs are democratically accountable to the public and have a strong incentive to pursue ambitious reform to improve local services and deliver value for money, so it makes sense for them to take on the responsibility for fire and rescue services where a local case is made.

And it simply doesn't make sense for emergency services to have different premises, back offices and IT systems when their work is so closely related.

I have significant experience in bringing large organisations together safely and their resulting economies of scale will increase their availability.

These changes will mean more efficient and effective emergency services, resulting in peace of mind for families if they ever need them.

David Burgess-Joyce Conservative PCC candidate for Merseyside