Wednesday, 14 August 2024

 Nicole WERNER (Warrandyte) (14:51): (758) My question is for the Minister for Emergency Services. When will the government fully fund our SES units to cover the mandatory training required to keep Victorians safe? I have previously raised in Parliament how Manningham SES, led by controller Vincent Ciardulli, reported a lack of funding for critical courses like emergency vehicle response driving, which is needed for training volunteers in responding to priority 1 events with lights and sirens. Manningham SES tell me that since I last raised this additional mandatory training and testing have been imposed, yet no extra funding has followed. Volunteers across SES units now must undergo yearly fitness testing, requiring two full days for volunteer trainers and forcing units to source their own fitness equipment. In order to complete this testing, the Manningham unit were forced to borrow kettle bells from their local gyms. Our volunteers committed to serving the community in times of crisis. The least we can do is – (Time expired)