The following has been supplied by the TUC:
Panic-buying of fuel and mixed messages over the safe storage of petrol have exposed the irrational decision to close the government agency that specialised in public information, the union PCS has said. And firefighters' union FBU has warned a minister's advice that householders should keep jerry cans of petrol in the garage is 'wrong' and 'massively dangerous.' The comments from civil service union PCS came as the government's Central Office of Information closes its doors last week. The cabinet minister responsible for the decision to shut it down, Francis Maude, was the same minister who gave the controversial advice on storing petrol at home. Commenting last week, PCS said: 'Mixed messages from government ministers, and their politically-motivated attempts to blame the Unite union for the tanker driver dispute, have led to panic-buying at petrol stations. This could easily have been avoided if the government had planned properly and professionally how to communicate the serious issues at stake.' FBU on 30 March called on the government to make an urgent public safety announcement highlighting the dangers of petrol in the home. It says the call echoes the safety concerns of North Yorkshire fire and rescue service after Diane Hill, 46, was critically injured, suffering 40 per cent burns, when petrol she was decanting in her kitchen ignited. The union called for advice to be issued by government warning the public of the dangers of petrol handling and storage. Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary said: 'Government needs to issue urgent professionally-based advice to warn the public before we have another incident, perhaps with far worse consequences. It is important we're taking every step to ensure there are no other incidents of this kind.'
