Tuesday, 28 July 2026

 Michael GALEA (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (13:26): Pursuant to standing order 23.22, I table a report on the inquiry into the 2026 summer fires across Victoria, including an appendix, extract of proceedings and minority reports, from the Environment and Planning Committee, and I present the transcripts of evidence. I move:

That the transcripts of evidence be tabled and the report be published.

Motion agreed to.

Michael GALEA: I move:

That the Council take note of the report.

I am pleased to be able to table the EPC’s report into the 2026 summer fires. The fires had a devastating impact on communities across Victoria. More than 440,000 hectares of land were burnt – an area larger than that affected by the Black Saturday fires of 2009; 451 homes were destroyed; and a further 1110 outbuildings were lost and businesses severely impacted. More than 45,000 livestock deaths were recorded, along with an incalculable loss of wildlife. Tragically, one individual, Maxwell Hobson, lost his life. I extend my sincere condolences to his family and loved ones.

Victoria entered the 2026 fire season with a clear understanding of the heightened risks posed by the conditions. On 9 January catastrophic conditions led to the creation or major expansion of numerous fires. Fire agencies and communities were generally well prepared, and through the tireless work of agencies, firefighters and local communities the response was strong and saved many lives. Considering the conditions, it is a remarkable thing to note that we did not see the mass fatalities experienced in 2009. Credit for this rightly belongs to Victoria’s dedicated firefighters, including career firefighters, volunteers and private landholders, as well as the incident control teams that responded to protect Victorians. It also reflects the lessons learned from Black Saturday and the major fire events that followed. This includes improvements in technology, such as the VicEmergency app, and other emergency management measures. In particular, the evidence showed the importance of clear and timely advice, most particularly including the message to leave early. Nevertheless, the committee heard recurring concerns from communities, agencies and other stakeholders. The resilience of critical infrastructure, particularly telecommunications, was raised repeatedly, as was the need to make better use of local knowledge within incident control centres. These and other important matters are addressed in this report and provide a basis for further examination.

This report should be read alongside the other reviews taking place in the aftermath of the 2026 summer fires. Fire agencies have been conducting their own after-action reviews as is customary following an event of this scale. The Minister for Emergency Services has also instructed the inspector-general for emergency management to conduct a full review of the fires. That review will take place after this report is tabled, allowing the inspector-general to draw upon the evidence received by the committee, particularly the vast evidence from the firsthand accounts of regional communities in the months immediately following the fires. This committee worked to ensure that these perspectives were heard throughout the report.

Transcripts from in particular the regional hearings powerfully reflect the energy, dedication and resilience of Victorians who experienced circumstances that were both unimaginable and regrettably all too familiar in this state. The committee held public hearings in Colac, Quantong, Alexandra, Harcourt and Melbourne, as well as an online hearing for north-east Victoria. Open mic sessions allowed members of the public to speak directly on record. The committee visited firegrounds in Carlisle River and Natimuk and held listening posts in Ruffy and Fawcett, two communities affected by the Longwood fire.

Given the compressed timeframe for this inquiry the committee was not in a position to draw upon an expansive body of technical evidence. Rather the strength in this report lies in the detailed evidence provided by communities about preparation and response as well as evidence received about relief and about recovery efforts, which remain ongoing to this day.

I took on the role of chair during the later stages of this inquiry, and I wish to acknowledge all fellow committee members for the collegial way in which they all worked to ensure that these voices are heard. I particularly want to acknowledge and thank the previous chair Mr Batchelor for his diligent stewardship of the inquiry throughout the submission and hearing processes. I would also like to thank our committee manager Kieran Crowe, and his team, including Te Kooanga Awatere, Joshua Pedersen, Simone McNaught and Monique Riordan‑Hill, for their tireless work. We are also grateful to Hansard and broadcast.

The fact that the response to the 2026 summer fires limited the loss of life must not lead anyone to underestimate the severe and continuing impact of these fires. We know it is a question of when, not if, the next event will occur, and I trust that this report will contribute to the continuing improvement of systems. I commend it to the house.

 Gaelle BROAD (Northern Victoria) (13:32): As a member of the parliamentary Environment and Planning Committee, these reports that have been tabled today are very important, and I hope they will not be lost in the chaos of Labor’s leadership turmoil. The question from this inquiry is: did we enter the fire season prepared? We had hundreds of Unimogs and G-Wagons offline, increased fuel loads, reduced planned burns, an ageing CFA fleet, underinvestment over a long period and newly installed radios that failed to work in the field. Over the last decade we have had declining numbers of CFA volunteers, frustration over roadside vegetation and a lack of clearance and maintenance around critical infrastructure. Senior operational leader positions were vacant at the time of the bushfires, leaving communities exposed, and what happened on firegrounds reflected a decade of policy, governance and preparedness decisions. The government had been warned time and again and failed to respond accordingly.

The inquiry received submissions and held hearings across the state, and the stories were harrowing. We had brigades that pleaded for help and no help came; some volunteers working 38 days straight; and communities cut off when their telecommunications and power failed, leaving them with no emergency warnings. We had farmers given single bales to feed cattle that were starving and seriously injured, teenagers left to euthanise hundreds of injured livestock and local councils expected to step up and support communities but left waiting for funding.

It is over six months now and the recovery process is still well behind. We have got a clean-up program that has been delayed, home sites destroyed by fires yet to be cleared, the tip waivers with extension after extension, people still homeless and community recovery grants announced just days ago. What happens next? There is so much more that needs to be done. We have got to build strategic water supplies and recognise private vehicle units. Telecommunications and power are essential. I could go on. I encourage you to read the reports.

 Sarah MANSFIELD (Western Victoria) (13:34): I too want to thank my fellow committee members, the chair, former chair and the secretariat, and in particular I want to thank the community members, the firefighters, the wildlife carers and others who made submissions and who came to our hearings and our listening posts. The trauma experienced by communities who bore the brunt of these fires was something that I certainly felt viscerally as we travelled around the state. Many residents, farmers, CFA volunteers and businesses lost everything. One person sadly lost their life, and countless animals were injured or killed.

The trauma for many was also compounded by the recovery process itself, which could be frustrating, difficult to navigate and too often characterised by an overwhelming sense of abandonment. It is critical that these extraordinary losses and their pain are not in vain. The majority report recognises this and recommends numerous changes that need to be made to systems from preparation to recovery and in particular how CFA and firefighters need significantly more funding. We need better resource coordination during fire emergencies and easier to access recovery support.

While we broadly support the majority report, there are several key areas that are either inadequate or missing entirely that are the subject of the Greens minority report. It is absurd that recommendations we put forward regarding the need to address the drivers of climate change – that is, the new fossil fuel projects – were not supported. We have also once again called for a levy on fossil fuel companies to ensure polluters, not everyday Victorians, are paying to support disaster preparedness, firefighter resourcing and recovery. We also call for a science-based approach to fuel load reduction and safeguards for ecosystems and wildlife as well as an increased focus on critical infrastructure resilience in the face of climate disasters. As our climate catastrophically warms, we know that there will be more catastrophic fires, and it is absolutely critical that we are as prepared as possible for what is to come. I really hope that the government heeds the recommendations from this inquiry.

 Ryan BATCHELOR (Southern Metropolitan) (13:36): This is an incredibly important inquiry and an incredibly important report. The fires across Victoria in January were devastating. The amount of the state that was burnt and the number of structures and homes that were destroyed was extremely significant. That only one life was lost is a tribute to the work that everybody did to keep Victorians safe. I think that both the firefighters on the ground and those who helped prepare communities when we knew that danger was coming all need to be thanked and supported. Certainly the lessons that this state has learned from the devastating fires we have seen previously did play a very important role in ensuring that on the days like we saw in January more lives were not lost. I think a lot of people should be very proud of the work they did to keep Victorians safe and protected, and we thank all of those who heeded the warnings and those who fought the fires.

It was an absolute privilege to be the chair of the Environment and Planning Committee during the hearings for this inquiry, and I want to thank the committee members and the committee secretariat for all the work that they did during those hearings. I was very moved by the evidence that we received and the communities we visited and the places we listened to. I have gone back since I stepped down as chair in my role as Parliamentary Secretary for Emergency Services and sat down and listened more to what has been said, and there is a lot of work that we have got to do in following up. I want to thank Mr Galea for taking over as chair of the inquiry, and all the rest of the committee members. I was not part of the deliberations for the report. My one reflection is that I think this report and this inquiry would have benefited absolutely from having a bit more time. These were very significant issues. I commend the report to the chamber.

 Wendy LOVELL (Northern Victoria) (13:38): I rise to speak on the committee’s report into the 2026 summer fires across Victoria, fires that absolutely devastated much of Victoria but particularly a vast area of my electorate of Northern Victoria. I too acknowledge the loss of communities, the loss of individuals and particularly the loss that was suffered by the family of Maxwell Hobson, who lost his life in the fires. I would like to take the time to thank all Victorians who took the time to submit a submission or to give evidence at our hearings. They were vitally important to our understanding what happened in Victoria during the summer fires this year. They did it under severe circumstances too, because many of them are still struggling with the recovery from those fires, and they will continue to suffer for many years.

I would like to encourage Victorians to read not only the majority report but also the excellent minority report by the Liberal and National committee members. I would also encourage Victorians to read the deliberations of the committee, where Victorians will see the sensible findings and recommendations put forward by the Liberals and Nationals that improve this report somewhat. Many of those sensible recommendations were voted down by Labor and the Greens. I would also say that this report is chapter and verse on how Labor’s fire services reforms have actually failed the CFA and regional communities, and the minority report highlights many of those failures and makes recommendations on how we can improve our fire services. I would like to thank our committee secretariat for the time that they put in and the support that they provided to us. This is an excellent report.

 Melina BATH (Eastern Victoria) (13:40): Firstly, I would like to thank our secretariat – very dedicated staff who have travelled the length and breadth with us and our very collegiate committee. I want to start with this: the current situation we have got sets us up to fail.

Across the board CFA lacks depth in numbers for core roles in both the fireground and in …

incident control management teams. So said experienced CFA group officer Lachlan Gales in Alexandra. If you were there, the emotion and content of all of our hearings was very palpable, including that one. We heard evidence from volunteers, firefighters, community, farmers, affected communities and councils. The evidence painted quite a damning picture: that this state was actually underprepared for this bushfire season. It heard evidence of declining CFA volunteer numbers, command shortages, ageing appliances and communications failures. It heard that there was inadequate fire management and fuel-load reduction. It heard that we were underprepared. Most concerning were the two responses, one from CFA on 4 June and the other on 30 June, that the committee received. The one that was vetted – I will say ‘vetted’ quite strongly – was in relation to leadership roles, vacancies, workforce shortages and the like. Fuel is the one thing that government has traction on and can materially make a difference on. Labor’s bushfire mitigation has failed in this state. Hazardous fuel loads remain high, roads are poorly managed and strategic fuel breaks are lacking, and the communities remain exposed. The government was warned; the government failed to act. I encourage everybody not only to read the good parts of the main report but indeed the minority report by the Liberals and the Nationals.

Motion agreed to.