Parliamentary Committees

Economic and Finance Committee: Emergency Services Levy 2018-19

Adjourned debate on motion of Mr Duluk:

That the first report of the committee, entitled Emergency Services Levy 2018-19, be noted.

(Continued from 6 September 2018).

Mr BASHAM (Finniss) (11:54): I rise to continue my input on this motion. At the time when I sought leave, I was talking about the Alert SA app and how important it is to the community. A great example of this was a few years ago, when I was in Melbourne on dairy industry business. In the middle of a meeting, the Alert SA app alerted me to an accident at the end of our driveway on the farm. A school bus was parked to let off one of my staff member's kids in the driveway and a car drove straight into the back of the school bus. Interestingly, I knew about it before my wife, who was only 500 metres away from the accident—that is how great the Alert SA app is when it is working well.

I think it is great that we are seeing money in the budget to make sure that we get this app back up and running. It has really concerned me that we have been operating for many months now without the app in place in any shape or form. The CFS first had the mapping system in place, and then it was put into Alert SA. To have to rely on ABC radio to listen for events to be reported has made it very difficult for many people in regional areas to understand what is going on and what they need to do to manage their businesses. The other time that comes to mind for my farm was, again, back in the mid-nineties pre the CFS app, when a fire started.

Luckily, at the time I was actually outside and saw the fire start upwind of us. We had half an hour to move every mob of cattle on the farm prior to the fire arriving on our farm. Luckily, we were out there and saw it. Without that half an hour, some of our cattle would have been in the direct line of the fire and we might have had some stock losses. That extra half an hour is really important to people in the community, so I think it is great that this app is being supported. We are seeing the investment of $2.6 million, plus ongoing funding of $866 million, each year indexed, into the app. I think it is a credit to the Liberal government that it is investing in this space.

It is also fantastic that in the state budget we are putting into the emergency services an increase in the aerial firefighting fleet, from 18 to 26 aircraft and that we are seeing an increase of $5 million for CFS station upgrades. We are also seeing other things, not just in the fire space but in the investment of shark-spotting drones, which both the clubs in my electorate, Port Elliot and Chiton Rocks, are seeking to be part of. We are seeing $5,000 available for Surf Life Saving Clubs to upgrade equipment. We are seeing the provision of new CFS and SES command centre headquarters and also $4.2 million for an upgrade of the SA Computer-Aided Dispatch System.

All these things are an enormous benefit to our emergency personnel, both volunteer and paid. I think it is really important that we look after those individuals who are risking their lives out there to protect the lives of community members and their assets, so thank you to all of them. The amount of effort that is put in by volunteers, in particular, is a real credit to them in this space, such as the hours that people are prepared to go and do training. The expectation of CFS volunteers now is much more than jumping on the fire truck on the day the fire starts. It is very much about training, making sure that they have the adequate skills and understanding of what is needed of them and knowing how to best protect themselves during a fire.

It is not just the commitment at the time of the fire but also many hours of training and making sure that they understand the needs. It is also a great part of our Australian community that, when there is trouble elsewhere in the country, our volunteers put up their hand to go and help. Many times, we have seen South Australian firefighters and other personnel going interstate, and even on occasions overseas, to help in these situations, so it is very important with the emergency services levy that we support this space.

There are many emergency services in Finniss. We have police operating in the Goolwa and Victor Harbor police stations, we have ambulance stations also in Goolwa and Victor Harbor and we have the Victor Harbor Goolwa Sea Rescue Squadron. We also have the Victor Harbor MFS and the south coast SES, which covers the Fleurieu Peninsula, which is a very large area for them to cover during storms and other emergencies. Then there are nine CFS stations in the seat of Finniss: Victor Harbor, Goolwa, Back Valley, Lower Inman Valley, Currency Creek, Port Elliot, Middleton, Mount Compass and Waitpinga, all of which are very well supported by volunteers across the electorate. I conclude my remarks.

Motion carried.