A member of Wigan Council and a Labour Councillor since 1971, Cllr Walker served as Chairman/Leader of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority from June 1990 to June 2008 and is now Leader of the Opposition. He is also the Cabinet member for Housing and Efficiency on Wigan MBC. At national level, having held a number of senior positions on the former Association of
Metropolitan Authorities’ Fire and Emergency Planning Committee, Fred serves as Labour Lead member/Vice-Chair of the LG Group’s Fire Services Forum and Fire Services Management Committee. He represents the
LGA on the National Joint Council for Fire and Rescue Services, is a member of the Practitioners Forum and the f/f Pensions Committee. He chairs the National Directors Comm. for RCCs. Regionally, Fred serves as Chairman of the North West Fire and Rescue Control Centre Board.