The contents of a letter sent by West Midlands fire chief Vij Randeniya opposing plans to change fire cover in Warwickshire has been revealed by Warwick and Leamington MP James Plaskitt following a request under the Freedom of Information Act.

In his letter Mr Randeniya points out "gaps in evidence" in the county's consultation document and said the 12-station model may not provide "adequate response cover" for the area.

Mr Plaskitt said: "The verdict on Warwickshire County Council's plans given by a respected neighbouring fire chief is damning.

"Mr Randeniya makes the same basic criticisms that I made. Our county council did not think this through properly and their cuts plan would leave people at risk."

Mr Plaskitt has collected more than 7,000 signatures from residents opposing the proposals.

Plans to close seven of the county's fire stations including the Albert Street site and others in Kenilworth and Fenny Compton were revealed in September and the public consultation period ended in December.

Thousands of residents from across the county marched through Warwick on December 6 to protest against the plans and the county council was originally due to vote on the proposals in February but postponed the decision.

Mr Plaskitt added: "Why are Warwickshire's Conservative leaders still sitting on this issue, refusing to say what will happen next? We were promised decisions next month. There is no sign of that happening.

"They should come clean, accept that they got this all wrong, abandon the cuts plan and give all of the reassurance we need about future fire cover."

County councillor Richard Hobbs (Con, Aston Cantlow) who is responsible for fire service policy said Mr Randeniya's comments were already in the public domain and would be considered along with concerns from residents and firefighters.

He said: "This is what it is all about. We will take into account Mr Randeniya's comments when we draw up our final plan."

Cllr Hobbs hopes residents will soon have a decision about future service. He added: "I don't think people should be kept waiting too long.

"The plan is to recruit more whole time firefighters. It will give us the same cover but improved fire safety measures. There will also be better training for firefighters."