PARLIAMENTS - PLACES OF SOLUTIONS NOT CONDOLENCES
Member for Western Victoria Region, Bev McArthur spoke on the bushfire condolence motion in Parliament this week, expressing her sympathy for those who had lost family, property, livestock and livelihoods. She thanked emergency responders, volunteers and the Federal Government who had contributed financial assistance and other assistance, including military manpower.
She also asked for urgent action on bushfire risk mitigation in rural Victoria.
Mrs McArthur reported on the successful public meeting on fire prevention, that she convened in Terang in conjunction with Richard Riordan MP and Dan Tehan MP.
She said “For the people at that meeting it was not a matter of ideology. It was not about the politics. When there is a fire at the end of your property you do not really care what caused it. You just want to deal with it, and when you have done that, you just want to stop it happening again.”
Mrs McArthur took the opportunity to recognise the efforts of volunteers across the state, particularly the charitable efforts of her constituents in Western Victoria Region, “who, while mostly avoiding suffering damage from the fires this season, having gone through fires themselves many times, can empathise with those in Eastern and Northern Victoria and made significant contributions through providing CFA strike teams, fodder deliveries, stock agistment, Blaze Aid fence rebuilding and other donations.”
She said “Most of us in rural Victoria have been burnt by fire. We have smelt the smoke, felt the heat, shed the tears, buried the livestock and mourned loved ones.”
Bev McArthur reflected on the lack of real action by the State Government on addressing the causes and contributing factors to bushfires.
“On the second day of Parliament for 2019 I spoke on a motion of condolence for the tragic 2009 Black Saturday bushfires.”
“On the second day of Parliament 2020 I am now speaking on a motion of condolence for the tragic 2020 bushfires.”
“How many times do we have to come back to this place to repeat the same exercise? Parliaments should strive to be places of action, not reaction; places of solutions, not condolences.”
Mrs McArthur contended that those solutions involved reducing fuel loads, managing roadside vegetation, and revitalising the diminishing volunteer firefighting service.
“Our population, our farms and our wildlife will continue to be affected, even exterminated, if we allow intense-heat fires to continue because of fuel loads. There is no point in locking up the forests and throwing away the keys.”
“Roadsides need to be safe places, not ‘wildlife corridors’ or ‘conservation zones’. Roads and roadsides need to be firebreaks, not fire wicks.”
“We can begin strengthening the CFA volunteer service rather than destroying it like this government seems so intent on doing… Our weakened CFA means fire risk is real for rural Victorians.”
She concluded by saying “We should not have to continuously return to this place and voice our condolences for the lives, animals and property lost in Victorian fires. Fire-affected and fire-prone communities need action and solutions from their parliamentarians, not just commiserations.”
9 February 2020