Tuesday, 20 May 2025

Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund

John PESUTTO (Hawthorn) (14:31): What an impassioned and dedicated assembly of people from regional Victoria did we see on the steps of this Parliament today. They came here in their thousands, they came here proudly wearing their uniforms, they came here proudly as friends and representatives and leaders of their communities. These people volunteer on top of all of the dedicated work they do to put food on our tables, to make sure we have the products we need to enjoy the quality of life we do in this great state and this great country. And what did this government do? It ignored them. It snubbed them. They were here. They were upset. They were concerned. They are worried about the future of their families and their local communities because the government led by this Premier keeps heaping upon them tax after tax. Imagine saying to regional Victorians, the farmers who I said put food on the table, that we are going to push you off your farm.

I spoke to them today and last week when they came here. They see it that seriously. They are asking how can they go on when they have a government that keeps imposing taxes on them. Today’s budget shows unemployment going up, employment going down, the fiscal cash deficit going up and the operating surplus is illusory. Debt, whether it is gross state debt or general government debt, is on the way up.