Tuesday, 8 March 2022

Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority

Mr DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan—Leader of the Opposition) (11:50): My question is again for the Minister for Emergency Services. Minister, I understand the federal minister for communications was in contact with you, on 17 December 2021, regarding ESTA’s performance, requesting updates on the 43 staff which you declared would be answering calls by the end of 2021 and then a date pushed back to the end of February 2022. Minister, have you replied to this letter, updating the federal minister on the inadequate staffing situation at ESTA?

Ms SYMES (Northern Victoria—Leader of the Government, Attorney-General, Minister for Emergency Services) (11:50): I thank Mr Davis for his question. There has been an exchange between me and the federal minister. In terms of the latest correspondence I will have to go and check my records, but obviously we also have arrangements in place through our emergency services agencies, who work very closely with our federal counterparts. You would be quite aware obviously of issues arising just in relation to emergency events in the north of the country. We always work together when it comes to emergency responses, and that is as it should be.

Mr DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan—Leader of the Opposition) (11:51): I thank the minister for her answer. It did not quite get to the point, but I think she is saying she is going to go and check. In fact she received an earlier letter from the federal minister, dated October 2021, which outlined his severe concerns at delays in ESTA’s response, citing specific stats from 6 October: 59 callers waited 15 minutes or longer on that particular day. The benchmark, as you have stated in this house, is 90 per cent of calls answered in 5 seconds. It took some weeks for you to respond to that letter. Just returning to this letter and whether there has been a response there, I would ask as a further point: did you advise the federal minister that it may take up to two years to be, in the words of Mr Leane, where it needs to be?

Ms SYMES (Northern Victoria—Leader of the Government, Attorney-General, Minister for Emergency Services) (11:52): It is an awkward conversation that we are having. We are having a three-way conversation without the person that you are purporting to represent being here. I am happy to follow up with the federal minister. Presumably he is watching today. If he has been watching for the last couple of months, all of those questions have been answered, because you have asked me.

Mr DAVIS (Southern Metropolitan—Leader of the Opposition) (11:52): That question has never been asked before, and I move:

That the minister’s answers be taken into account on the next day of meeting.

Motion agreed to.