Tuesday, 22 March 2022

Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority

Mr WELLS (Rowville) (12:44): At last. This statement condemns the Andrews Labor government’s appalling neglect of the 000 system and the tragic loss of 12 lives, including four children, who have died waiting for ambulances, since October. It is shameful that anyone in our state should die waiting for an ambulance. No-one should watch a family member, let alone a child, die before help arrives. It is a terrible betrayal of each of these Victorians that Labor had so many warnings and then did so little.

Ambulance dispatch staff also deserve better than Labor’s constant excuses. ESTA staff work incredibly hard in demanding jobs at the front line of the health system. The Deputy Premier was warned in 2016 about ESTA’s serious staff shortages. While ESTA’s 000 calls increased by 15 per cent in the first year of the pandemic, ESTA’s staff numbers went down. ESTA staff are not buying the excuses, saying, ‘To blame COVID is disgraceful. Our staffing models are already broken’. Labor did not fix the crisis last April either, when a 32-year-old woman died after waiting more than 6 hours for an ambulance. Labor’s latest bandaid solution is far too late, and new call staff will not be on board until mid-2023. With COVID numbers increasing, how can Victorians trust that anyone will pick up the phone when they need an ambulance?