Firefighters have said their eight day strike is to go ahead on Friday after their employers tabled an "insulting" pay offer.

Talks between the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) and employers stalled on Thursday afternoon after the employers made a final offer of an initial 4%, with a further 12% over the next year if the union accepted a package of modernisation.

That would take a qualified firefighter's salary to �25,000 (�28,000 in London) by November 2003.

Jim Barbour, the Northern Ireland FBU representative said he was not optimistic the strike would be averted at the last moment.

Jim Barbour: "Some elements never had any intention of solving this"

"They know that 4% is not enough, they know that 4% is not acceptable to us," he told BBC Radio Ulster.

"It is clear to us now that there are elements within the national employers who for their own political agenda are hell-bent on a wrecking agenda."

On Thursday evening in the Commons, Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott made the plea to firefighters: "Talk don't walk".

In an emergency statement Mr Prescott urged the firefighters' union to call off the walk-out at 0900 GMT on Friday and continue pay talks.

The FBU has been calling for a 40% pay rise to bring experienced firefighters' salaries up to �30,000.

But it had indicated it would be prepared to accept 16% after the government-sponsored Bain review suggested firefighters should be offered 11%

During the strike last weekend there were no serious incidents in the province which 500 security force personnel using 32 yellow goddess tenders were not able to deal with. There were no fire-related deaths.

Fire pay dispute

FBU demand: 40% Old offer: 11.3% Expected offer: 16% New offer: 4% Old wage: �21,000

Mr Barbour said Northern Ireland's 2,000 firefighters realised the serious implications of their planned eight-day strike.

The strike would again take 130 modern tenders out of service.

He said: "We have always been conscious of that. We hoped against hope that the threat of strike action would focus the minds of senior politicians and the employers.

"To a certain extent that has happened. But we believe we have been strung along time after time by the national employers, or elements within that, who have no real intention, whatsoever of trying to solve this problem."

'Major setback'

FBU general secretary, Andy Gilchrist, described the employers' offer as "totally unacceptable" and a "major setback" in the dispute.

National officer Geoff Ellis described the offer as an "absolute insult" and said Friday's strike was "almost definitely on".

But employers' secretary Charles Nolda said: "This is the most generous pay offer made by the local authority.

"It's a good way forward for the fire service and I call on the FBU to seize this opportunity to go forward with the employers."

Earlier on Thursday Chancellor Gordon Brown had insisted there would be no additional money from the government to fund an increase.

Mr Brown told the Cabinet on Thursday that "some of the figures being put around cannot be justified".

He said any additional increase would have to be financed by reform and modernisation changes, including efficiency and productivity savings.