Wednesday, 4 February 2026

 Jess WILSON (Kew – Leader of the Opposition) (14:02): My question is to the Premier. Yesterday the Treasurer confirmed that the emergency services tax will not be enough to fund all of our emergency services. How much more will this government tax Victorians?

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:02): I thank the Leader of the Opposition for her volley across the net with this question about the emergency services levy, because it clearly shows how once again Victorians just cannot take this Liberal Party seriously with questions like this. Let us be clear –

Members interjecting.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Tarneit can leave the chamber for half an hour.

Member for Tarneit withdrew from chamber.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker: relevance.

The SPEAKER: The Premier has only commenced her answer. I will give her an opportunity to answer the question.

Jacinta ALLAN: As I was saying, you cannot take this Liberal Party seriously, because it is absolutely clear that alongside their ongoing campaign of misinformation and deception about funding of our emergency services they do not understand –

Members interjecting.

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

Members for Eureka and Bulleen withdrew from chamber.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, sledging is not relevant.

Mary-Anne Thomas: Speaker, there is no point of order. It is entirely appropriate for the Premier, in her answer, to contrast the policy positions of our government with those of the opposition.

The SPEAKER: I ask the Premier to come back to the question.

Jacinta ALLAN: I say that because the levy is an important source of support for our emergency services, emergency services who have, as we have seen over the month of January, fought the fiercest of fires and have had to deal with flooding emergencies along the Great Ocean Road just in the matter of a couple of weeks when we have had a very prolonged heatwave as well. It is because of these more frequent and fierce natural disasters that we understand we need to increase support to our emergency services. The only people who are talking about cutting funding are those who would cut the levy, which would cut funding to our emergency services.

I want to explain to the Leader of the Opposition – and I would have thought this was something that may have already been known, but understanding that they are all about misinformation, I can appreciate that it may not – the emergency services levy is not the only source of funding for our emergency services. There are other government funding appropriations that are made to support our emergency services. Let us be clear: you cannot take this divided Liberal outfit seriously. Their own members of Parliament cut and run.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, this question went to asking the Premier whether or not the government had any further taxes and what they would be. The Premier has not dealt with the substance of that. That was the question.

The SPEAKER: I cannot tell the Premier how to answer a question. She was being relevant to the question. The Premier to come back to her answer.

Jacinta ALLAN: The emergency services levy is about backing our emergency services. For example, the CFA today is better funded, better resourced and stronger because of the support we are giving to our emergency services. We will always back our emergency services, and it is not surprising that those opposite are talking about cutting the levy, because they are all about cuts. Cutting the levy cuts funding to our emergency services.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, again on relevance, you have twice asked the Premier to come back to the question. She just continues to sledge. I would ask you to ask the Premier to come back to the question.

The SPEAKER: The Premier has concluded her answer. Before I call the Leader of the Opposition on a supplementary question, I would like to acknowledge in the gallery a delegation from the Legislative Assembly of Haryana: Speaker Harvinder Kalyan, Deputy Speaker Krishan Lal and Yoginder Singh.

 Jess WILSON (Kew – Leader of the Opposition) (14:07): Can the Premier give a guarantee to all Victorians, including CFA volunteers like those I met in Harcourt, that there will be no further increases to taxes, levies or charges to make up for this funding gap?

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:07): I can make a guarantee that the Leader of the Opposition cannot. The Leader of the Opposition has an $11 billion black hole that is only being filled by cuts.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, the Premier’s constant misinformation is not relevant.

The SPEAKER: I ask the Premier to come back to the question.

Jacinta ALLAN: I can guarantee this: that as Premier I will continue to support and back our emergency services. The Leader of the Opposition referred to Harcourt CFA volunteers, who were out protecting your community and mine, Speaker, in the most difficult of days and in the most dangerous of circumstances. I am grateful to those volunteers. The volunteers from the Werribee CFA, like the member for Werribee, protected my community in the toughest of times. I make this commitment: whether it is new trucks, equipment, resources or support, our government will always back the volunteers who keep our communities safe.