Page 1449 - Week 05 - Thursday, 13 May 1993
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An open inquiry will allow all of those things to come to the surface. There are still some people within the rural volunteers who perhaps resent the fact that they are now part of an amalgamated service, and I really see no benefit in pulling that out again.
We have had a very expensive and very extensive series of reports, extending over two-and-a-half years, into amalgamating the rural and urban fire services into the Emergency Service. We now have that in place. We have our civilian director and we have appointed our new Fire Commissioner. We have our rural and urban fire services working together as we have never had them working together before. We have the radio rooms of the separate rural and urban services amalgamated into a single fire radio room. We now have agreement for a single fire and ambulance radio room and co-location of the Ambulance Service with the Fire Service at North Curtin. We are moving. We have had more movement in efficient use of emergency services in the last six months than this Territory has ever had. And what does Mr Humphries want? He wants another inquiry.
Mr Humphries had another trump card that he played. He had the document he tabled in question time and he was waxing lyrical this afternoon about the very senior officer in the ACT administration who believes that the Emergency Service is going to be given full responsibility for rural rescue. Mr Humphries, you displayed your total lack of knowledge of the Emergency Service, which was evident in your chortling remarks during question time about giving them some sleeping-bags. The gentleman in question, valuable as he is, is a volunteer. He is not a full-time senior officer of the ACT administration. He is a dedicated volunteer in the ACT Emergency Service. No doubt he would like to have full responsibility for all rescue, as probably all of his officers would. But it is not on the Government's agenda; it has never been on the Government's agenda.
We always said that this rationalisation of urban road and industrial rescue was just that and that the police service would continue to have an emergency unit, which would have the prime responsibility for all the bush rescue, all of those types of activities. The fact that a well-meaning and highly motivated volunteer in the ACT Emergency Service might wish it otherwise demonstrates credit on the volunteer and shows the pride he has in the ability of his volunteer colleagues, but it is not a statement of government policy. For Mr Humphries to wax lyrical about the sinister nature of a senior officer's document demonstrates his total lack of understanding of how the emergency services work. The gentleman in question is, quite simply, but a part-time volunteer controller of his part-time volunteer regional group. That is the way, Mr Humphries, the emergency services work.
There was another issue raised towards the end of Mr Humphries's remarks, again in his attack on the competence of the Fire Service, which I think is very unfortunate. Throughout this debate I have always made it clear that both police officers and fire officers are very competent, very expert, and very well motivated in relation to rescue services. Our decision to transfer that rescue role from police to fire officers is in no way animus directed at the police officers involved. It is a decision relating to sensible use of resources and finally to put an end to the constant squabbles we have had over the last two years, a decisive, final decision to put an end to it, precisely as you, Mrs Carnell, you, Mr Westende, and you, Mr Kaine wanted it. (Extension of time granted) It is precisely the decisive action that some months ago Mrs Carnell, Mr Westende and Mr Kaine called upon the
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