Tuesday, 20 May 2025

Questions without notice and ministers statements

Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund

Brad BATTIN (Berwick – Leader of the Opposition) (12:05): My question is to the Premier. Thousands of everyday Victorians, including CFA volunteers and career firefighters, are protesting on the steps of Parliament for the third time in two weeks over Labor’s unfair emergency services tax cash grab. Why won’t the Premier listen to the very people she claims to be helping and, like the Nationals and Liberals, commit to scrapping this tax?

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: The member for Tarneit can leave the chamber for an hour. Further members will be removed from the chamber without warning.

Member for Tarneit withdrew from chamber.

Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (12:06): I thank the leader of the Liberal–National coalition. Just confirming, do we have any announcements? Do we have any announcements to make today? We know where your heart truly beats, member for Gippsland South, on these questions, we truly do. The Leader of the Opposition asked a question about the emergency services volunteers levy, which, as I went through on previous occasions, is an existing mechanism that was introduced by I think the member for Malvern when he was Treasurer as a result of the recommendations of the Black Saturday royal commission. So when the leader of the Liberal–National coalition for today asks me about who we are listening to, since 2009, since those devastating fires, we have listened to the victims of those fires, the victims of those floods, the victims of those storm events and have understood that since that time more has been asked every month of our volunteers.

Brad Battin: On a point of order, Speaker, the Premier when answering the question has to be factual. John from Kaniva out the front was saying he goes to more and more –

The SPEAKER: A point of order is not an opportunity to make a statement to the house. All members are required to be factual.

Jacinta ALLAN: It is a fact that 173 people lost their lives in that devastating Black Saturday fire. It is a fact that there was a royal commission into that fire. It is a fact that that royal commission recommended a levy that the former Treasurer introduced, and we supported that levy. We supported that recommendation at that time.

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition! The member for Malvern can leave the chamber for half an hour.

Member for Malvern withdrew from chamber.

Jacinta ALLAN: The Leader of the Opposition asked who we have been listening to. I will share with the Leader of the Opposition who we have been listening to. The member for Kew wrote to the Minister for Emergency Services asking for more support for the Whitehorse State Emergency Service. The member for Lowan wrote to the Minister for Emergency Services asking for more support for the Stawell State Emergency Service.

Bridget Vallence: On a point of order, Speaker, the Premier is debating the question. It is a very narrow question about their big new tax. Will they commit to the Liberals and Nationals commitment to scrapping the tax?

The SPEAKER: The Manager of Opposition Business knows that a point of order is not an opportunity to repeat the question.

Mary-Anne Thomas: Speaker, there is no point of order. The Premier is not debating the question. She is clearly setting out the facts in relation to the many representations that have been made by those on the other side to government seeking more support for our emergency services volunteers, and that is what we are delivering.

Danny O’Brien: On the point of order on the question of debating, Speaker, none of us on this side asked the Premier to put in a new tax to support the SES.

The SPEAKER: I do not uphold the point of order.

Jacinta ALLAN: I thank the Leader of the National Party for making the exact point I was about to make. It is so typical of those opposite to say one thing on Main Street in Stawell and another thing here in Spring Street.

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! Leader of the Nationals and member for Nepean, this is your last warning.

Jacinta ALLAN: You cannot ignore the fact that more and more is being asked of our emergency services, our state emergency services, which is why taking the existing mechanism and providing them with that support is what we have done.

Brad BATTIN (Berwick – Leader of the Opposition) (12:10): Premier, the Treasurer claimed yesterday there are no new taxes in today’s budget. Will the Premier acknowledge that without the emergency services tax that imposes a $2 billion hit on Victorians, which was pushed through by the Labor government last week, her budget would still in fact be in deficit?

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: The member for Mordialloc can leave the chamber for half an hour.

Member for Mordialloc withdrew from chamber.

Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (12:11): The Treasurer also yesterday announced that today’s budget will deliver the first operating surplus since before the pandemic. Also I say this to the Leader of the Opposition: you cannot commit to ripping away hundreds of millions of dollars from our emergency services without finding it from somewhere else, and that is the bit that the Liberal Party are denying to say to Victorian communities. Which hospitals are they going to cut? Which schools are they going to close? Those opposite have form. They cut funding to the CFA, they cut funding to the Metropolitan Fire Brigade and they will do it all again.

Bridget Vallence: On a point of order, Speaker, the Premier is misleading the house. She is also debating the question. I would ask you to ask her to come back to the narrow question.

The SPEAKER: There is no point of order. The Premier has concluded her answer.