As desperate American mothers are being encouraged to abandon their new-born babies with firefighters if they cannot cope, North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said today they do not have the facilities to manage such an innovative scheme.

This week, a massive television advertising campaign has started in Texas to promote a new State law that was passed last September.

The law allows new mothers, who are finding it difficult to cope, to leave their baby anonymously with firefighters or paramedics.

Today, York fire station's station officer Donny Westmoreland said the proposal would not work in York.

He said: "It's certainly not in our job description. We have not got the facilities to care for children and if we have to go dashing out on a fire call we cannot leave a baby unattended.

"There is no way we could cope."

Terry Glover, a spokesman for North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, said fire stations and ambulance stations are integrated in America and therefore makes it a safer place for a baby to be cared for on a short-term basis than would be the case here.

"But if it was to happen in North Yorkshire, as they are encouraging in America, the first thing we would do is contact the police and it would be dealt with very quickly."

Nigel Metcalfe, a spokesman for Tees East and North Yorkshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust, said: "Our staff are well prepared to deal with most eventu-alities. If a baby were taken to an ambulance station it would receive care and attention.

"But ambulance stations tend to be very busy places and we would encourage des-perate mothers to go to the police or the social services as their first port of call."