The Victorian Auditor-General’s report into Victoria’s firefighting fleet is a damning verdict on the Carroll Labor Government’s failure to keep firefighters and communities safe.
The Victorian Auditor-General’s Office (VAGO) report, Managing Victoria’s Firefighting Fleet released today, found fire authorities need an estimated $1.5 billion over the next decade to replace and upgrade their trucks, but have only around a quarter of the funding they need.
Among other findings in the report were:
– The Country Fire Authority (CFA) and Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) were instructed by the government to cut back their budget bids. FRV’s 2024-25 request of $158.9 million thus became a $14.1 million proposal.
– More than half (57.1 per cent) combined CFA and FRV fleets are 15 years or older, with FRV’s fleet availability falling below its target, and no fire authority is completing all of its scheduled maintenance.
– Planning failures by Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) led to cracking in their trucks, putting firefighters at direct risk. More than half of the fleet (54.4 per cent) had to be grounded leading into last fire season.
– Over the past three budgets, authorities received just 12.1 per cent of the funding they need to address problems across their fleets.
Shadow Minister for Emergency Services Danny O’Brien said Victorians should be able to expect that the people who protect them are given safe, reliable equipment.
“CFA volunteers and career firefighters put their lives on the line, and they are being sent out in trucks that are old, unreliable and, in some cases, unsafe,” Mr O’Brien said.
“The Labor government continues to hold our emergency services in contempt and told agencies to ask for less, and then gave them even less than that. Firefighters and regional communities are the ones paying for that decision.
“An elected Liberal and Nationals Government will scrap the emergency services tax and properly support the CFA after years of Labor neglect.”
Shadow Minister for Public Land Management Melina Bath said the findings on DEECA’s fleet were alarming heading into another fire season.
“Over half of the public land firefighting fleet was taken off the road because of problems that were known for years. Trucks were kept operating while overweight and cracked, putting crews in danger,” Ms Bath said.
“Crews who protect our forests and regional communities cannot rely on repairs that were only certified for temporary use over summer. The Labor Government has no costed plan to replace these trucks, and the next fire season is already here.”
