Life Saving Victoria funding
Tim BULL (Gippsland East) (19:09): (1284) My adjournment is to the Minister for Emergency Services, who I note is at the table, and the action that I am seeking is for the minister to confirm that Life Saving Victoria will receive the same amount of funding this year as it did last year. What has occurred over recent weeks is Life Saving Victoria has written to a number of coastal councils, claiming that the state contribution has not been committed to and therefore has told councils that to maintain the same level of service they need to pick up the tab. So East Gippsland Shire Council has been told that they are facing an increase of $56,000 to $105,000. Wellington has been told they need to contribute $66,000 instead of $32,000. South Gippsland goes from $33,000 to $113,000; Warrnambool, from $23,000 to $77,000; and Mornington Peninsula, I note, has corresponded with the honourable member for Nepean, saying they will need to increase their payments from $90,000 to a whopping $351,000.
This is going on while we have the new emergency services levy being applied to our electorates. It will take $5 million out of East Gippsland Shire Council and around $10 million out of Wellington Shire Council. Given that, the ratepayers in these coastal councils should not have to fill any void if it has been left by a lack of state contribution to Life Saving Victoria. The action I seek is to ask the minister to confirm that Life Saving Victoria will indeed be funded to the same level.