THE chief fire officer for County Durham and Darlington has called for help to meet modernisation requirements.

The authority hopes to avoid budget restrictions next year by highlighting its achievements and claiming it was not given a fair share of Government funding.

County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority's share of the council tax was said to be too high by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and it could be capped next year.

Yesterday, Chief Fire Officer George Herbert said it needed the extra money to meet modernisation targets.

He said: "We have found ourselves in a position where we are genuinely trying to deliver on the modernisation agenda.

"If that opportunity had been removed by the removal of that money then we would have had great difficulty in being able to modernise.

"As a consequence, no doubt, we would have been criticised by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for not doing what they asked of us."

The authority is compiling its case in a bid to prevent budget cuts next year.

It will also draw attention to concerns over the £13.5m grant it was awarded by the Government.

Mr Herbert said he would not know whether the authority will face cuts until mid-June or mid-July.

He said: "I am very, very optimistic on the contents of the response.

"What we have to do is wait and see whether or not the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, and ultimately, the minister is sufficiently impressed by arguments we believe are strong."

Officials fear there could be cuts to front line services if any reductions are imposed.

It was initially feared that 100 jobs could be axed because of the budget shortfall.