Emergency services cuts expose the lie of Labor's big new tax
Massive cuts to the budgets of Victoria's emergency services agencies expose the lie that Labor's big, new emergency services tax is designed for anything other than filling budget black holes.
Parliament's Public Accounts and Estimates Committee today heard that the 2025/26 budgets for Fire Rescue Victoria, Country Fire Authority and State Emergency Service had been slashed by a collective $165 million as compared to the 2023/24 budgets.
The figures were revealed in a Government Gazette published on Friday which also reveal significant reductions for agencies such as Triple 0, Forest Fire Management and Emergency Recovery Victoria.
This comes despite the Allan Labor Government repeatedly insisting that its new $3 billion emergency services tax is necessary to support our emergency services agencies.
Leader of The Nationals and Shadow Minister for Emergency Services, Danny O'Brien, said the figures showed Labor was slugging Victorians with massive tax increases during a cost-of-living crisis on a false pretence.
"These figures reveal dramatic cuts to our frontline emergency services agencies despite the government ripping over half a billion dollars of extra tax next year from Victorians," Mr O'Brien said.
"This reveals the lie behind this new tax - it was never about supporting emergency services; it was always about the government trying to plug holes in the budget because Labor can't manage money and now every Victorian is paying the price.
"Premier Jacinta Allan needs to explain why Victorians are paying more in taxes and yet our hard-working emergency services, including the volunteers, are getting less."
The Gazette reveals the CFA budget is cut by $42 million, FRV by $115 million and the SES - which the government has repeatedly hidden behind to justify its new tax - has been cut $8.4 million.
Shadow Treasurer, James Newbury, said Labor was cutting frontline services to cover its own financial ineptitude.
"This big, new tax is about making Victorians pay the price of Labor's financial incompetence," Mr Newbury said.
"It was never about better funding our volunteer and front-line services and the Treasurer's own figures now prove this.
"The figures also reveal the new tax will fund $464 million worth of agency budgets previously funded out of consolidated revenue, a massive saving to Labor's budget bottom line at the expense of additional taxation on all Victorians."
