March 31, 2020
The State Opposition fears a mass exodus of rural firies now the March 31 deadline for volunteers to apply for a Blue Card has arrived.
Shadow Emergency Services Minister Lachlan Millar said he was concerned fire brigades across the State could have their numbers depleted and capacity to defend their local communities drastically reduced from Wednesday.
“A mass exodus of thousands of Rural Fire Brigade volunteers over paperwork mustn’t be allowed to happen,” Mr Millar said.
“Community safety must always come first, especially when it comes to children, but the Blue Card requirement process by Labor has been bungled from day one.
“Queensland can’t afford to have thousands of rural firies walk away from the job.”
Mr Millar said that Labor Minister Craig Crawford needed to work with rural firies to ensure they could continue to provide their incredible volunteer service to their communities.
“The LNP don’t want to see yet another extension to the deadline, but this time a workable solution to the crisis facing our rural fire brigades,” he said.
“Labor needs to urgently put in place a better process to ensure the Blue Card requirement is appropriately rolled out.
“It’s time for Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Minister Craig Crawford to fix this mess before it’s too late.”
- Related article: Rural Firies Reject Blue Cards
