Legislative Council Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3) 51 3 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Question Time Bushfire Bunkers BUSHFIRE BUNKERS The Hon. S.G. WADE Legislative Council BUSHFIRE BUNKERS The Hon. S.G. WADE (14:36): I have a supplementary question. I thank the minister for her reference to the cautionary note, but my quote was actually from that note. So, if technical advice is required to be sought from suitably qualified building professionals, as the cautionary note suggests, to what standards does the government want these professionals to refer? The Hon. G.E. GAGO Legislative Council Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister Assisting the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Energy BUSHFIRE BUNKERS The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister Assisting the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Energy) (14:37): There are currently no state or national standards; they are being dealt with at the moment. The cautionary note outlines a list of considerations that need to be taken into account if a person chooses to purchase or construct a fire bunker. There are issues relating, for instance, to the dispersal of carbon dioxide within the building and the management of smoke; there is a range of detailed issues outlined in the cautionary note that need to be considered in the design and construction of a fire bunker. It is called a cautionary note because we are saying to South Australians— The Hon. S.G. Wade Legislative Council The Hon. S.G. Wade: Because the government is overly cautious. The Hon. G.E. GAGO Legislative Council The Hon. G.E. GAGO: No; because people died in them, you idiot. People died in these things. There are no national standards, and human beings trusted in and built these bunkers and then died in them. That is why the government is being cautionary. The honourable member implies that the government is being overly cautious; it is being cautious because people have lost their life in these structures. That is why it issued a cautionary note, which comprehensively lists a number of issues that must be addressed by suitably qualified people to ensure that if the structure is built it is safe to be in.