Media Releases

The Nationals Member for Lowan Hugh Delahunty has welcomed the release of the Green Paper “Towards A More Disaster Resilient and Safer Victoria” which will provide the state’s emergency services, volunteers and communities the opportunity to have their say as the Victorian Coalition Government initiates major reform to Victoria’s crisis and emergency management arrangements.

 “The Green Paper marks the start of a two month consultation process that seeks innovative ideas and feedback to improve the way Victoria responded to emergencies,” Mr Delahunty said.

“While we have one of the best emergency services in the world, the Green Paper offers the opportunity for all of us to consider new ways to ensure we are equipped to deal with the increased risks of fire, flood and other natural disasters,” Mr Delahunty said.

“The Green Paper will challenge current thinking about Victoria’s crisis and emergency management arrangements and pose proactive questions about the practical options for reform.

“We want to get the structures, response and laws right and the Green Paper will help develop options that will improve support for the thousands of volunteers and staff in our emergency services organisations who sacrifice so much to protect our communities.”

Mr Delahunty said the Green Paper process would also take into account the valuable lessons and recommendations from the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission and the current Flood Review. 

“The Green Paper consultation process will seek input from experts, those at the coal face and from Victorians to get a range of views of this important reform program,” Mr Delahunty said.

“Victoria’s resilience has been tested in recent years, with extreme events proving too big for any one emergency services agency to manage alone.  Western Victoria unfortunately has endured many significant emergency events such as floods and fire over the past few years.

“The Coalition Government and every person involved in emergency management wants to ensure Victoria has a world’s best practice emergency management framework for now and into the future.” Mr Delahunty said.

The Green Paper can be accessed at www.dpc.vic.gov.au and submissions can be made until 14 November.

The Nationals Member for Lowan, Hugh Delahunty said that after many years of intense pressure for reform from the Victorian Liberal Nationals Coalition, the tired and out of touch Brumby Government has reluctantly decided to replace Victoria’s inequitable insurance-based Fire Services Levy (FSL) with a fairer property-based system.

“Premier Brumby has completed another huge back flip from his strong stance of opposing  changes to the fire service levy to now agreeing to move to a property based scheme, ensuring everyone contributes to our emergency services including the CFA,” Mr Delahunty said in Parliament today.

“For many years, along with my Nationals and Liberal colleagues, I have lobbied for a more equitable FSL and now it seems that because the Royal Commission has recommended a fairer system the Brumby Government has finally conceded despite its earlier protests.”

Mr Delahunty said that Labor have known for years how unfair and inequitable the FSL has been, and everyone but the Premier has acknowledged that the FSL was a tax that placed a heavy burden on regional Victorians, yet until now Labor has done nothing to address this anomaly.

“In fact, the Premier John Brumby stated in the Parliament in August 2009, that The Nationals policy for a property based levy, was a poll tax, and he thought it was a disgraceful policy”

“Country businesses that pay $1000 for an insurance premium have to pay an additional $840 for the fire services levy. Include GST and stamp duty on top of this and you more than double the cost of the initial insurance premium,” he said.

An example of the costs are:

Premium                                   $ 1,000.00

Fire Services Levy (84%)          $    840.00

GST (10%)                                $    184.00

Stamp duty (10%)                      $    202.40

Total Cost                                 $ 2,226.40

 “John Brumby is trying to rewrite history, because Labor has consistently opposed a property-based fire services funding system and has stifled any moves towards such a system over its 11 years in office,” he said.

Mr Delahunty said Labor has deliberately ignored numerous reports and advice from as far back as 2001 that have said the FSL was inequitable and in desperate need of reform. In recent times the Bushfire Royal Commission and the 2010 Federal Government Henry Tax Review also recommended the abolition of the existing FSL in Victoria.

“Labor has been shamed into action when for years it did not care about the expense of the FSL on Victorians, particularly those in country Victoria who have had to endure ever-increasing FSL rates on their insurance premiums,” Mr Delahunty said.

The Nationals Member for Lowan Hugh Delahunty this week in Parliament spoke on the Bushfires Royal Commission final report and called the Government to get on with implementing the recommendations.

“The lives of many Victorians were changed forever on Black Saturday, 7 February 2009 and also in the weeks around that period of time. There were 173 unfortunate deaths. I acknowledge these losses of family members, friends and fellow Victorians, many others were scared for life both physically and emotionally,” Mr Delahunty told Parliament.

 “The 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission -- the people's commission -- was set up to learn from experiences about ways to improve the way we prepare and respond to bushfires and community voices were heard during this 19-month period.”

“Two fires occurred in the Lowan electorate at Coleraine and Horsham, both are covered extensively in the Bushfire Royal Commission final report.  Horsham lost a lot of buildings including the Horsham Golf Club, a symbol of the Horsham fire.   In the Coleraine fire, John Smeets was injured trying to help a friend, and was unfortunately caught up in the fires and received burns to 50 per cent of his body.

“I spoke to John and his wife Lorraine this week and John said he is making good progress -- in his words, he is 'going okay' he has a fantastic spirit and he is always positive.   He and his wife have  received tremendous support from the Coleraine community and the Alfred Hospital.

Mr Delahunty said the royal commission has now made 67 recommendations and he is pleased to see that the Liberal-Nationals Coalition has supported in principle all the recommendations of the bushfires royal commission.

“I believe three of the recommendations need to be acted on immediately for the benefit of western Victorians – these recommendations refer to the fire services levy, fuel reduction burning and roadblocks,” Mr Delahunty said.

“I have been lobbying for many years for a fair and equitable fire service levy. The report highlights that a country business pays a $100 premium, the fire services levy, GST and stamp duty, and some businesses also pay the terrorism levy, so together with the original $100 premium they pay over $220.

“The fire services levy is a great disincentive to insure against fire.”

Mr Delahunty said we need more prescribed burning and the report gives a good summary of the lessons learnt from earlier fires in Victoria and in other areas around Australia and overseas. The Royal Commission recommended that “the state fund and commit to implementing a long-term program of prescribed burning based on an annual rolling target of 5 per cent minimum of public land.

“This must happen because 2006 we had a wildfire in the Grampians which took out nearly 70 per cent of the Grampians, not only public land but also a lot of private land. The reality is that when that wildfire happened we lost not only public and private land, we also lost a lot of native animals.

“The other recommendation concerns roadblocks and we must do something to improve the way roadblocks work,” Mr Delahunty said.

“People are saying to me that they have had enough of reports; they want action. Let us talk to the affected people about the implementation of the Royal Commission recommendations, but please, let’s get on with it and do something!” Mr Delahunty said.

The Nationals member for Lowan Hugh Delahunty welcomes the Bushfire Royal Commission final report and calls on John Brumby to implement the 67 recommendations – there have been enough reports, people want action.

“It is critical that Mr Brumby stop dithering and immediately ramp up fuel reduction burning, replace the Fire Service Levy and address telecommunications black holes before this fire season,” Mr Delahunty said.

“I also welcome Ted Baillieu’s & Peter Ryan’s immediate support in principle for all 67 recommendations and their commitment to implement them in government.

“Having lobbied for change, I particularly welcome the recommendation to replace the inequitable fire services levy on insurance premiums with a property based system which works well in several other Australian States,” Mr Delahunty said.

“Both the fires at Horsham and Coleraine were started by power line failures, so the recommendations regarding upgrading power lines or putting power underground, whilst expensive, are clearly an integral part of reducing the risk of major bushfires in future.

“It was also interesting to note that the Royal Commission report dismissed claims by the Brumby Government that these fires were unprecedented – a claim which Mr Brumby had used to justify his failure to implement key recommendations from reports of previous fires including the 2003 & 2006/07 fires.

“It is also clear from the report that fuel reduction burning was inadequate before the fires so the Commission’s recommendation to significantly increase fuel reduction burning is very welcome by western Victorians.

“The State Government must not shift the cost and responsibility of implementing the recommendations to Local Government in particular, the State Government must assist with the preparation and maintenance of neighbourhood safer places, municipal management plans and action plans for our vulnerable people.

“The handing down of this report is another step towards closure for the families of the 173 people who lost their lives and the thousands of other people whose lives will never be the same.

“Let’s all work together to help those still recovering from the fires and to implement the many recommendations which will reduce the risk of fire and improve our ability to combat fires and recover from them,” Mr Delahunty said.