Thursday, 29 May 2025

Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund

Joe McCRACKEN (Western Victoria) (12:34): (939) My question is to the Treasurer. Treasurer, in a social media post yesterday the member for Ripon, while talking about the emergency services tax that passed last week, said:

I have spoken directly to the Treasurer and Premier to make them aware of my community’s views.

Despite voting for the tax, the member for Ripon said:

It is not fair …

Treasurer, did the member for Ripon raise flaws and problems with the emergency services tax, and did you ignore them?

Jaclyn SYMES (Northern Victoria – Treasurer, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Regional Development) (12:35): Mr McCracken, Martha Haylett is an amazing advocate for her community. This is a community that we know is under pressure in relation to drought. It is why Martha has been out there talking to her community about the drought support measures that are on offer. It is why Martha was very supportive of initiatives to ensure that any increases in relation to what was the fire service levy, which is now the Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund, would not be anything additional in those LGAs in the drought-impacted areas. That is something that is an initiative that we have been talking at length about with farmers and their representatives in relation to ongoing support for Martha’s electorate. Many regional MPs are obviously very concerned about the outlook and the lack of rain, and we are continuing to have conversations and initiatives that are coming and available. There was another drought package announced just recently. The Minister for Agriculture is in the south-west today. The Premier and the Minister for Agriculture, with my support, have said that we stand ready to do more, and that is what we are –

Joe McCracken: On a point of order, President, on relevance, I asked about the emergency services tax, not about drought.

The PRESIDENT: I believe the Treasurer was relevant to the question.

Jaclyn SYMES: I will just finish on this for Mr McCracken, then. Mr McCracken, if you are a farmer, if you have a primary production landholding in a drought-impacted LGA, you will not receive any additional levy against your property compared to last year. And if you are a CFA volunteer or an SES volunteer, you will pay nothing or less because of the exemptions that we recognise in supporting and acknowledging the amazing work that our volunteers do. Many of those CFA volunteers are also farmers, so as I said, no increase from last year and many will pay nothing or less.

Joe McCRACKEN (Western Victoria) (12:37): You really did not answer my question, Treasurer. So my supplementary to you is that the member for Ripon also stated in the same social media post:

It is clear the way this levy has been calculated has a disproportionate impact on farmers.

Treasurer, does the government accept that characterisation from the member for Ripon, or is she incorrect?

Jaclyn SYMES (Northern Victoria – Treasurer, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Regional Development) (12:38): Mr McCracken, the exemption for drought-impacted farmers is designed to address exactly that. When it comes to the levy and the collection of the levy, 27 per cent of the Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund would be collected from the regions and 73 per cent from metro at its current settings. I expect that that would change as a result of the drought measures that I have outlined for you. So yes, there are concessions and acknowledgements of what is happening out there in many parts of the state. I am more than happy to make sure you have got all of that information, because I am sure some of your constituents would appreciate accurate information in relation to the measures that we have announced.