Page 2842 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 29 June 2011
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planning and logistics. It makes sense to put all these functions together. All remaining fire staff that currently do fire operations will remain in the operational areas within the regional parks, reserves and fire management section.
What are the other advantages of this approach? This will permit the Parks and Conservation Service to develop a master operational plan for all land management functions for the estate that TAMS is responsible for, including Namadgi, Tidbinbilla, Murrumbidgee River corridor as well as the urban reserves.
The fire operations area in the Parks and Conservation Service will remain as a single unit responsible for fire management across the estate, as currently occurs. That is the situation: functions and capability remain the same. Fire operational areas will be, in the government’s view, significantly enhanced, because there will be a single point of management in place which can deliver the bushfire management plan. At the moment that is not the case.
The capability of the well-trained and responsive parks brigade remains intact. There is no change in relation to parks brigade. The proposed fire operations unit and the planning and logistics section will be co-located at the Stromlo depot. They will be physically co-located. This will ensure that ongoing and effective communication between staff remains.
That is why we are doing it. I believe that it makes sense. I believe it is appropriate for me as the minister to back the judgement of my senior executive staff. I have their assurance, and I accept their assurance, that this maintains the capabilities already and currently extant in Territory and Municipal Services. I do not see them compromising it in any manner. I think that it is not for me, let alone for the Assembly, to make judgements about day-to-day management of the directorate as long as capability can be maintained. That is being maintained. There is no reduction in staff. I believe that this motion should not be supported today.
MR RATTENBURY (Molonglo) (3.39): The Greens heard reports last week about the fear that some changes were underway within the fire management unit in TAMS, and we were immediately concerned because we certainly understand the need for land managers and fire managers and policy staff to work together and be co-located. That is consistent with the position we have been arguing around biodiversity management in the ACT, where we have suggested that a range of teams be brought together under the Environment and Sustainable Development Directorate regarding the parks rangers, the biodiversity policy officers and the support staff to the Conservator of Flora and Fauna.
We argued for that approach on that side of the equation, so we certainly support the approach put together under the fire management unit in TAMS. Given the uncertainty of some of the suggestions that have been put forward, I did write to the attorney asking for clarification, and I have now received a letter from the attorney in a similar vein to the speech that he has just given, in which he has outlined some of the intent of what is being done.
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