‘Hypocrisy’ as volunteers left with hundreds of ageing CFA trucks

Volunteers across the state have battled fires in 230 30-year-old CFA tankers while public servants’ cars are replaced every three years.

The Allan Governemnt replaces its fleet of public servants’ cars every three years, while leaving many CFA volunteers to fight fires with 30-year-old trucks.

The Victorian government is accused of endangering volunteer firefighters’ lives by failing to replace the CFA’s ageing tankers - 230 of which are more than 30 years old - while upgrading public servants’ vehicles every three years.

Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria chief executive Adam Barnett slammed the revelation as “hypocrisy”, with volunteers asked to accept old vehicles “when their own employees aren’t expected to do it”.

Merino group officer Wayne Munro, who fought the recent Grampians fires, said: “I’d love to chuck these public servants into 30-year-old cars, without air-conditioning on a 40C day so they can enjoy the ambience.”

While Victoria is Australia’s most hazardous bushfire state, it has the nation’s oldest firefighting fleet, with 743 of its trucks more than 20 years old, including 230 that are 30-35 years old.

The CFA has Australia’s oldest firefighting fleet.

Meanwhile the government is not only replacing public servants’ leased vehicles every three years or 60,000kms, but is also introducing 400 “zero emissions vehicles” at a cost of $15m.

The government even granted Fire Rescue Victoria $3m last year to buy Victoria’s first electric fire truck.

Mr Barnett said 870 of the CFA’s tankers were ageing single-cab vehicles that forced half the crew to ride into danger on the back of the truck, in the open air.

“On a blistering hot 40C day they have no protection from the sun or heat, no aircon – and they can’t even see the road ahead,” Mr Barnett said.

“Not to mention the toxic smoke and fumes they are riding towards without even so much as a window to wind up. This is how the government rewards the selfless men and women volunteer firefighters keeping millions of Victorians safe from fire and other disasters year after year.”

CFA volunteers and Victoria’s fire services implementation monitor Niall Blair have repeatedly warned the ageing fleet is putting firefighters’ lives at risk.

Mr Barnett said firefighters and their communities were endangered when tanker spare parts could not be easily sourced, which was already happening.

“For example, a 20-plus year old pumper was recently off the road for almost 12 months waiting for a spare part to be manufactured overseas,” he said.

VFBV analysis shows the CFA needs $55m a year to replace its ageing fleet, so that no tanker is older than 20 years and pumper 15 years - the equivalent of 100 trucks per year at an average cost of $550,000 each.

But Mr Barnett said the CFA’s had only been able to afford $12m to $15m a year on fleet replacement.

While the CFA needs an extra $40m a year, Treasurer Jaclyn Symes would only commit an extra $10m to the service for fleet upgrades, despite announcing the government intended to collect an extra $616 million in fire services property levies in 2025-26.

The government has rebadged the FSPL as an Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund, increasing the amount collected from $1.033bn this financial year to $1.649bn in 2025-26, rising to $1.8bn in 2026-27.

The bulk of the extra levy revenue will be used to fund Triple Zero Victoria, the State Control Centre, Emergency Management Victoria, Emergency Recovery Victoria and Forest Fire Management Victoria.

Treasurer Jaclyn Symes’ office said “every single dollar raised by the new ESVF (levy) will go back into our emergency services”.

“Our emergency services put their lives on the line without a second thought and our $70m rolling fleet replacement package is making sure they have what they need to keep all of us safe,” Ms Symes office said.

However the Minister’s office failed to mention the $70m is to be distributed over five years for both VicSES and CFA vehicle upgrades, equal to $14m a year.

Opposition emergency services spokesman Danny O’Brien said the Government was “treating our CFA volunteers as second-class citizens and the age of their trucks tells the story.

“With 230 trucks more than 31 years old, Labor has simply not kept up with the needs of a modern fleet to support the great work that our volunteers do on the ground.

“And it won’t change under Labor’s great big newly increased (ESVF) tax, which will fund a range of agencies like Triple Zero Victoria and EMV with only a tiny fraction going to new vehicles for our volunteers.”

THE WEEKLY TIMES EDITORIAL

Imagine the uproar if Victorian politicians and public servants were told to drive around in 20 to 30-year-old Toyota Corollas and Commodores, with wind-up windows, no airconditioning or airbags, nor Bluetooth connectivity.

Yet CFA volunteers are expected to drive into danger in 743 trucks that are more than 20 years old, including 230 that are 30-35 years old.

What’s worse is that 870 of the CFA’s tankers are single-cab vehicles that force half the crew to ride on the back of the truck, in the open air. It’s not just the hypocrisy of the government that fires up volunteers, it’s that Premier Allan and Treasurer Jaclyn Symes are putting volunteers’ lives at risk.

Both seem to have forgotten their regional roots, given they could easily deliver the $55m a year the CFA needs to replace all trucks after 20 years of service. The government recently rebadged the Fire Services Property Levy as an Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund, increasing the amount collected from households and businesses from $1.033bn this financial year to $1.649bn in 2025-26 and $1.8bn in 2026-27.

The bulk of the extra $616m in extra 2025-26 levy revenue will go straight into funding Triple Zero Victoria, the State Control Centre, Emergency Management Victoria, Emergency Recovery Victoria and Forest Fire Management Victoria. Just $50m a year will go towards the CFA, VicSES and other emergency service volunteers.

The CFA will get an extra $10m a year for truck upgrades, well short of the $55m needed.

The facts are that volunteers are paying the price of Melbourne’s big-build blowouts and a government interest bill that sits at $6.6bn this financial year alone.