Kealy concerned over CFA change

Changes to the state’s firefighting services has Member for Lowan Emma Kealy worried and alarmed.

Ms Kealy said she believed the State Government was ‘breaking the hearts and backs of stalwart firefighting volunteers as it rammed through divisive changes’.

She made the comments before confirming that if the Nationals were government they would legislate to rebuild and restore the Country Fire Authority as an independent, volunteer-based autonomous fire service.

She said the Nationals had also promised to establish a volunteer commissioner to independently hear and arbitrate on disputes.

“Premier Daniel Andrews is tearing the CFA apart,” she said.

“Labor has paved the way for Peter Marshall and the United Firefighters Union to take over the CFA.

“The union effectively has control of the CFA. A panel dominated by UFU members is responsible for appointing Fire Rescue Victoria staff to run the CFA, sidelining the CFA’S chief fire officer and silencing volunteers.

“Volunteers are gutted by Labor’s betrayal but I want the men and women who selflessly serve our communities through the CFA to know that we value them and we value their work.”

Ms Kealy said Labor was treating volunteers ‘like dirt under their shoes’.

“If the Nationals are elected in 2022, that will change. If the Nationals are in government, we will work with volunteers and brigades across the state to rebuild and restore the CFA,” she said.

“This will include repealing provisions of Labor’s disastrous legislation which undermines the capacity of the CFA to function as an independent, autonomous fire service and enshrining in law the power for the CFA to select, recruit and manage its own staff.

“We will also ensure that CFA staff wear the CFA uniform and we will require the CFA board to sign up to the Volunteers’ Charter, which was legislated in 2012. The charter was designed to protect the rights of volunteers, but the board is not bound by it and the experience of the past five years has shown that this government just sacks anyone who gets in their way.”