Thursday, 5 February 2026

 Jess WILSON (Kew – Leader of the Opposition) (14:22): My question is to the Minister for Emergency Services. The proposed CFA mobile data capability and short status messaging project was due to be delivered by June 2021 yet has been delayed until June 2027. Why has the government compromised the safety of CFA volunteers, including in her electorate of Eltham, by delaying this critical infrastructure upgrade?

Members interjecting.

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

Member for Berwick withdrew from chamber.

 Vicki WARD (Eltham – Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Natural Disaster Recovery, Minister for Equality) (14:23): I welcome this opportunity to talk about the extraordinary work of our CFA and the extraordinary support this government gives to our CFA. We have had over 200 ‍bushfires ‍–

Members interjecting.

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

Member for Laverton withdrew from chamber.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, on relevance, the minister has picked up the wrong PPQ.

The SPEAKER: That is not a point of order. I ask the member for Brighton to not raise frivolous points of order.

Vicki WARD: The behaviour that we are witnessing is quite extraordinary.

We have seen over 200 fires burn across our landscape in the last month alone, and the response that our CFA has given and the leadership that has been shown have been nothing short of extraordinary. I imagine that every person in this place is very grateful for the work that they do. This government has continued to increase funding to CFA in a variety of ways, covering a variety of purposes. We have seen in the annual report that grants funding has increased by over $21 million –

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, this was a very specific question. I am happy to table the tender document if it assists the minister, but it was a specific question and the minister is responding generally rather than to the specific question.

The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?

James Newbury: Relevance.

Mary-Anne Thomas: On the point of order, Speaker, on relevance, the minister on her feet is being entirely relevant to the question. Of course the preamble to any question forms part of the question, and the minister was asked directly about our government’s support for CFA. The minister is addressing that element of the question.

Danny O’Brien: On the point of order, Speaker, we cannot have a situation in here where a question about the CFA is answered generally when this is –

The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?

Danny O’Brien: On relevance.

The SPEAKER: I have already heard that point of order. Do you have a different view on this point of order?

Danny O’Brien: The question was about why this project has been delayed six years.

The SPEAKER: I have the question in front of me. I will give the minister an opportunity to come back to the question.

Vicki WARD: Total income has increased by $26 million to $477 million. We have funded new fleet, we have funded new radios, we have –

James Newbury: On a point of order, the minister is defying your ruling, Speaker.

The SPEAKER: I ask you to resume your seat unless you have a point of order.

James Newbury: I have a point of order.

The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?

James Newbury: The minister is taking a word from the question and responding –

The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?

James Newbury: I am entitled to ask for your advice.

The SPEAKER: What is your point of order?

James Newbury: My point of order is: how can we have a circumstance where relevance means that a minister can simply pick any word from a question and respond to that rather than to the substance of the question? This is farcical.

The SPEAKER: I do not make the rules, member for Brighton, I enforce the rules. The standing orders are very clear. A minister can answer a question in any way they choose. A minister may also use the preamble of a question as part of an answer. The minister has an opportunity now to answer the question. I ask the minister to answer the question.

Vicki WARD: In travelling around the state I have spoken with a number of CFA volunteers who have all spoken about their gratitude for the new Motorola radios that they have received and the increased ability that they give. What the Leader of the Opposition refers to is ongoing work that is happening with the CFA, as well as its integration with the computer-aided dispatch system, which this government has invested in and which this government is boosting for Triple Zero to ensure that this state has the strongest response system available. The new CAD system, which will be integrated with services like the one the Leader of the Opposition mentioned, is ongoing work, and they know full well that this is underway right now. This undermining of trust in institutions as important as the CFA in the middle of the fire season is disgraceful.

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, the minister is debating the question.

The SPEAKER: The minister has concluded her answer.

 Jess WILSON (Kew – Leader of the Opposition) (14:29): Minister, isn’t it the case that this government’s reductions in funding to the CFA for three years in a row mean that the CFA has not been able to afford the upgrade to this communication system?

 Vicki WARD (Eltham – Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Natural Disaster Recovery, Minister for Equality) (14:29): This goes to a fundamental issue the opposition have. While I reject the premise of their question, there is a real challenge here where the leadership of the CFA – the chief officer, the board and the CEO – are being undermined by those opposite, who refuse to accept the statement that there have been year-on-year funding increases with the CFA.

Members interjecting.

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

Member for Mildura withdrew from chamber.

Vicki WARD: In the middle of a fire season, when trust in our services should be paramount and when support for our services should be paramount, to undermine the leadership –

James Newbury: On a point of order, Speaker, the minister is required to be truthful in her response, and she has just misled the Parliament.

The SPEAKER: That is not a point of order. The minister has concluded her answer.