❓ Question regarding firefighting capacity and resources in the South West region. The Minister outlines government initiatives following the Margaret River fires, including funding commitments, the establishment of new bodies, and appliance upgrades for volunteer brigades, particularly in the capes region.
AnsweredQoN 564Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
FIREFIGHTING RESOURCES — SOUTH WEST
REGION
564. Mr J.M. FRANCIS to the Minister for Emergency Services:
A number of my colleagues in volunteer fire brigades have
raised concerns about comments on the firefighting capacity and resources in
our south west region. Could the minister therefore please advise the house of
the status of government initiatives in this area and of the validity of
comments made by the opposition spokesperson?
REGION
564. Mr J.M. FRANCIS to the Minister for Emergency Services:
A number of my colleagues in volunteer fire brigades have
raised concerns about comments on the firefighting capacity and resources in
our south west region. Could the minister therefore please advise the house of
the status of government initiatives in this area and of the validity of
comments made by the opposition spokesperson?
AnswerView source ↗
I will give it a go! Firstly, though, I thank the member for
Jandakot for his attendance last week at the opening of the new Cockburn
volunteer facility. I did not see the local member there, but I saw the member
for Jandakot there, along with a number of members of his local bush
firefighting brigade.
Mr F.M. Logan : I
was here!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
It does not matter; no-one missed the member for Cockburn, but we were out
there. Following those horrible fires in Margaret River last year, the
government commissioned Mr Keelty to conduct a review, which he did. When Mr
Keelty handed down his findings, the government made a number of commitments
over and above the recommendations of Mr Keelty. At the time of the budget we committed $20 million to fund the
implementation of those commitments. They included things like enhancing and
changing the role of the State Emergency Management Committee, and establishing
the Office of Bushfire Risk Management, both of which have happened. They
included a thing called the capes enhancement project, which was a commitment
of funds to move more resources into the capes area; that is, the area between
Cape Naturaliste and Cape Leeuwin, because clearly it was deemed to be an area
of high risk. When we looked at how we would spend that money —
Ms M.M. Quirk : Has that policy been released?
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Just hold your breath! When we looked at
how we could do that —
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will deal with the member for Girrawheen
in a minute; don't worry about that! When we looked at the options, one
option was to look at building and developing a professional fire station in
and around the Busselton area to help service the capes region. However, the
government decided to focus on using the existing resources we have, which is
the volunteer fire and rescue service in Busselton, Dunsborough and Margaret
River, and the volunteer bush fire brigades that sit through that region. Those
brigades will receive extra appliances and training, especially those brigades—as
is the brigade at Jandakot—that operate on that peri-urban fringe,
which is that difficult fringe between traditional bushfires and urban
structural fires. It is a major challenge for our firefighters. I suspect there
will be announcements around that in the not-too-distant future.
We placed an order
with the company that makes our appliances to deliver those appliances. The
fact is that we could not get the appliances delivered in the time we wanted,
effectively because of complications in getting them out the door. So we have
had to make some decisions around our existing order, so that brigades that
already have equipment and were receiving upgrades would receive their upgrade
a little later but still in the 2013 year, so that those appliances could go
down to the capes region.
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will now deal with what the member for
Girrawheen said.
The member for
Girrawheen comes out today, I think, with a media statement containing two
major points. Firstly, she talks about the Preston Beach fire brigade in the
member for Murray–Wellington's electorate.
Ms M.M. Quirk : Which was promised!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : It is being delivered.
Ms M.M. Quirk : It is not!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : It is being delivered in the next couple of
weeks.
Several members
interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : The fire season starts at the end of the
year, member for Girrawheen.
The SPEAKER : Order! I am glad you are all enthusiastic about volunteer
firefighting. I appreciate that. All I want to hear at this stage is the
Minister for Emergency Services. I do not need to hear further interjections.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : That appliance is in Perth; it will be
delivered to Preston Beach as soon as possible. I may well drive it down
tomorrow, member for Girrawheen. I will take the member with me.
Ms M.M. Quirk : You're on! Tomorrow!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will take the member for Girrawheen with
me! The member for Girrawheen goes on —
Several members
interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am busy! I am taking the member for Perth
to the George Michael concert—certainly not if he is dressed like that,
though!
Then the member for Girrawheen goes on and talks about an Australind
career fire station. As the members for Bunbury, Collie–Preston and
Murray–Wellington would know, there have been difficulties delivering
the Australind fire station because of the contract that was entered into for
the development of property.
Mr P.C. Tinley : Where has the money gone?
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Here is the nub of it. The media release
stated that Ms Quirk said there had been another blow to service in the
electorate of Busselton. That is what she said. She said that a Busselton
station was not included in the budget and that it appeared to have been
fast-tracked.
Member for Girrawheen, the reason the Busselton station is not included
in the Barnett government forward estimates is that we are not planning to
build one. The member has criticised this government for diverting money from a
fire station in Australind to a fire station in Busselton, when we have no
plans to build a fire station in Busselton. The member for Girrawheen's
statement is absolutely false. It is absolutely misleading, and she knows that.
The member for Girrawheen needs to be very careful. I am reminded of her
performance at Margaret River when she stood up like an emergency services
ambulance chaser —
Ms M.M. Quirk : That is an absolute lie! I sat there and
didn't say anything!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : That is what the member is! You go down
there to try to stir up the crowd.
Ms M.M. Quirk : That is an absolute lie! Withdraw!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : You go down there to try to stir up the
crowd. We know what your approach is like to emergency management.
Ms M.M. Quirk : Withdraw it! That's an absolute
lie!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will not withdraw it because it is true!
Ms M.M. Quirk : No, it wasn't!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I sat in front of you and listened to what
you said under your breath to the people who sat around you, and it was a
disgrace!
This government has
an approach to fire management that embraces and respects the role of
volunteers. We have given commitments arising out of the Keelty report into the
Margaret River fires to provide an enhanced level of services to the capes
region and that commitment will be delivered on tomorrow.
Jandakot for his attendance last week at the opening of the new Cockburn
volunteer facility. I did not see the local member there, but I saw the member
for Jandakot there, along with a number of members of his local bush
firefighting brigade.
Mr F.M. Logan : I
was here!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
It does not matter; no-one missed the member for Cockburn, but we were out
there. Following those horrible fires in Margaret River last year, the
government commissioned Mr Keelty to conduct a review, which he did. When Mr
Keelty handed down his findings, the government made a number of commitments
over and above the recommendations of Mr Keelty. At the time of the budget we committed $20 million to fund the
implementation of those commitments. They included things like enhancing and
changing the role of the State Emergency Management Committee, and establishing
the Office of Bushfire Risk Management, both of which have happened. They
included a thing called the capes enhancement project, which was a commitment
of funds to move more resources into the capes area; that is, the area between
Cape Naturaliste and Cape Leeuwin, because clearly it was deemed to be an area
of high risk. When we looked at how we would spend that money —
Ms M.M. Quirk : Has that policy been released?
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Just hold your breath! When we looked at
how we could do that —
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will deal with the member for Girrawheen
in a minute; don't worry about that! When we looked at the options, one
option was to look at building and developing a professional fire station in
and around the Busselton area to help service the capes region. However, the
government decided to focus on using the existing resources we have, which is
the volunteer fire and rescue service in Busselton, Dunsborough and Margaret
River, and the volunteer bush fire brigades that sit through that region. Those
brigades will receive extra appliances and training, especially those brigades—as
is the brigade at Jandakot—that operate on that peri-urban fringe,
which is that difficult fringe between traditional bushfires and urban
structural fires. It is a major challenge for our firefighters. I suspect there
will be announcements around that in the not-too-distant future.
We placed an order
with the company that makes our appliances to deliver those appliances. The
fact is that we could not get the appliances delivered in the time we wanted,
effectively because of complications in getting them out the door. So we have
had to make some decisions around our existing order, so that brigades that
already have equipment and were receiving upgrades would receive their upgrade
a little later but still in the 2013 year, so that those appliances could go
down to the capes region.
Ms M.M. Quirk interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will now deal with what the member for
Girrawheen said.
The member for
Girrawheen comes out today, I think, with a media statement containing two
major points. Firstly, she talks about the Preston Beach fire brigade in the
member for Murray–Wellington's electorate.
Ms M.M. Quirk : Which was promised!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : It is being delivered.
Ms M.M. Quirk : It is not!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : It is being delivered in the next couple of
weeks.
Several members
interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : The fire season starts at the end of the
year, member for Girrawheen.
The SPEAKER : Order! I am glad you are all enthusiastic about volunteer
firefighting. I appreciate that. All I want to hear at this stage is the
Minister for Emergency Services. I do not need to hear further interjections.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : That appliance is in Perth; it will be
delivered to Preston Beach as soon as possible. I may well drive it down
tomorrow, member for Girrawheen. I will take the member with me.
Ms M.M. Quirk : You're on! Tomorrow!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will take the member for Girrawheen with
me! The member for Girrawheen goes on —
Several members
interjected.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am busy! I am taking the member for Perth
to the George Michael concert—certainly not if he is dressed like that,
though!
Then the member for Girrawheen goes on and talks about an Australind
career fire station. As the members for Bunbury, Collie–Preston and
Murray–Wellington would know, there have been difficulties delivering
the Australind fire station because of the contract that was entered into for
the development of property.
Mr P.C. Tinley : Where has the money gone?
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Here is the nub of it. The media release
stated that Ms Quirk said there had been another blow to service in the
electorate of Busselton. That is what she said. She said that a Busselton
station was not included in the budget and that it appeared to have been
fast-tracked.
Member for Girrawheen, the reason the Busselton station is not included
in the Barnett government forward estimates is that we are not planning to
build one. The member has criticised this government for diverting money from a
fire station in Australind to a fire station in Busselton, when we have no
plans to build a fire station in Busselton. The member for Girrawheen's
statement is absolutely false. It is absolutely misleading, and she knows that.
The member for Girrawheen needs to be very careful. I am reminded of her
performance at Margaret River when she stood up like an emergency services
ambulance chaser —
Ms M.M. Quirk : That is an absolute lie! I sat there and
didn't say anything!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : That is what the member is! You go down
there to try to stir up the crowd.
Ms M.M. Quirk : That is an absolute lie! Withdraw!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : You go down there to try to stir up the
crowd. We know what your approach is like to emergency management.
Ms M.M. Quirk : Withdraw it! That's an absolute
lie!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will not withdraw it because it is true!
Ms M.M. Quirk : No, it wasn't!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I sat in front of you and listened to what
you said under your breath to the people who sat around you, and it was a
disgrace!
This government has
an approach to fire management that embraces and respects the role of
volunteers. We have given commitments arising out of the Keelty report into the
Margaret River fires to provide an enhanced level of services to the capes
region and that commitment will be delivered on tomorrow.
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