As Victorian communities continue to face devastating floods, the Victorian Greens have today called for an urgent allocation of $50 million in funding for Victoria’s overstretched State Emergency Services (SES).
Greens Deputy Leader and Emergency Services Spokesperson Ellen Sandell has also called for a comprehensive investigation of SES funding and capability to respond to increasing climate disasters.
The Greens have heard first hand from SES units, including the unit responsible for the recently flooded suburbs of Maribyrnong and Kensington, that they are chronically under-resourced and require urgent funding for facilities, vehicles and safety equipment.
In the past three years alone, Victoria has faced catastrophic fires, destructive storms and now unprecedented flooding.
As stated by Deputy Leader of the Victorian Greens, Ellen Sandell MP:
“In times of disasters, all Victorians rely on the incredible generosity of hard working SES volunteers, yet Victoria’s State Emergency Services has been underfunded and under-supported by Liberal and Labor Governments for years.
“Facilities are not up to scratch, SES branches lack the basic equipment they need and volunteers feel taken for granted.
“The climate crisis is fuelling more floods, storms and fires, and Victoria needs to ensure we have the emergency response capability to respond to this reality.
“It’s not good enough for the Labor Government to ignore the needs of the SES, then cross fingers and hope for the best when the next disaster hits.
“The Greens are calling for more funding and an independent review into how our state’s SES is structured and funded, to ensure we are prepared for a future with more climate disasters.
“Victoria’s SES and emergency response volunteers are incredible, but they need more government support. These are no longer ‘1 in 100 year’ weather events.”
