THOUSANDS of troops who should have joined British forces in the Gulf have been held back to stand in for striking fire fighters, it was revealed last night.

In the North alone, almost 2,400 soldiers at Europe's biggest base, Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, are on standby for firefighting duties.

This compares to 1,500 Catterick-based servicemen and women who have been called up for action in the Gulf.

Last night, Army officials confirmed that the continuing industrial unrest meant troops trained for war in the Gulf would be manning Green Goddesses instead.

The manpower crisis has also hit the senior service.

Navy chiefs said yesterday that a planned visit by HMS Newcastle to Tyneside had been postponed because crew members were needed to man fire engines.

Army spokesman Tim Zillessen conceded that "elements" of the Catterick force would have joined the impending war against Iraq if they were not required at home.

Many soldiers were disappointed at the decision by the Fire Brigades Union to continue strike action, he said.

Infantry battalions based at Catterick spent late summer and early autumn last year on manoeuvres in Canada.

But the firefighters' strike began soon after the soldiers returned to the UK in October. The 1st Battalion of the King's Regiment, the Queen's Lancashire Regiment and the 1st Battalion of the King's Own Scottish Borderers have since had to swap weapons of war for ageing fire-fighting appliances.

"It's true that three highly-trained infantry battalions, who worked hard to qualify as part of the British Army's high-readiness brigade, are now tied to the firefighters' strike," said a spokesman yesterday. "The Kings are an armoured unit and would have been a useful asset if British troops are sent into Iraq. It is fair to say, if the firefighters' dispute had been settled, any of these units could already have been in the Middle East.

"As it seems there is a risk of more industrial action by firefighters, they will be staying in the UK - at least until there is a lasting settlement."

Last night, the timing of the latest 24-hour strike next Thursday and its impact on the resources of the military was condemned by former Tory leader William Hague.

Mr Hague, whose Richmond constituency takes in Catterick, said: "It is completely inappropriate to take action like this when it requires thousands of troops to be diverted from crucial frontline duties at a time when war is a imminent possibility."

Steve Gregg, the Fire Brigades Union's regional organiser, said: "Our pay claim was lodged long before the Government even thought about going to war with Iraq.

"It is the Government which has chosen to stretch the military and fight on two fronts, not us.

"Their agenda all along has been to destroy the fire service and nothing has changed."

Mr Gregg claimed firefighters were virtually unanimous in their support for the latest strike date and it was "absolutely inevitable" that it would go ahead.

The executive of the FBU decided to call a fresh 24-hour strike on March 20 in protest at the latest "unacceptable" offer from their council employers.

They rejected a "final" offer of 16 per cent over three years, linked to changes in working practices.

The strike call is expected to be endorsed at a recalled national FBU conference in Brighton next Wednesday, when new dates for industrial action could be agreed.