Darren Chester suggests paying volunteer firefighters during major bushfires

Darren Chester suggests paying volunteer firefighters during major bushfires

Prime Minister Scott Morrison is facing pressure from within his own ranks to pay volunteer firefighters, as one Minister questions the sustainability of unpaid brigades working for months on end.

Key points: Mr Chester proposed using a property tax to pay volunteers during "campaign" fires

The Gippsland MP said he would bring a policy paper to his party in the new year

The Prime Minister earlier said he had received no requests from the states to compensate volunteers

As three large fires raged in his Gippsland electorate, Veterans' Affairs Minister and Nationals MP Darren Chester said there was strong support among his constituents to pay volunteers when they worked for extended periods.

Fires in New South Wales and South Australia are also continuing to burn after a catastrophic start to the fire season, and there are fears an imminent heatwave will again cause the blazes to spread.

Mr Morrison announced on Tuesday that volunteer firefighters who were Government employees would be given an extra four weeks of paid leave, and he encouraged businesses to follow suit.

But Mr Chester told ABC News Breakfast there was a need to have a conversation about compensating volunteers further.

He said it did not seem sustainable to expect firefighters to volunteer their time for "days, weeks and months" as a changing climate extends the fire season.

"Can it be sustainable in the longer-term when it's actually required under these changed climatic conditions, to be out there in the field for days, weeks and months?" he said.

"That's a long time away from your family."

Mr Chester said one possibility was using the fire services property levy — currently collected by Victorian councils — to fund payment for volunteers on longer "campaign fires".

He said "90 to 95 per cent" of constituents he had spoken to were supportive of that idea, and he was preparing a policy paper to take to his party in the new year.

Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said the Prime Minister was aware of how hard volunteer firefighters worked and was discussing financial support with state leaders.

"Ultimately, it is an issue for state and territory governments but the Prime Minister is very forward-leading and is working closely at the moment with the Premier of New South Wales about the responses that are required," she said.

"He's been discussing with other premiers and chief ministers what more we can do to assist volunteers in these extreme circumstances where they have run out of leave and are under some financial stress."

Ms Reynolds said the Prime Minister would make a statement in coming days about what more could be done to support volunteers.

Mr Chester's comments followed Labor leader Anthony Albanese's calls for an urgent meeting of state and federal leaders to discuss the bushfire threat and the possibility of paying firefighters.

Speaking to media in Nowra, south of Sydney, Mr Albanese again called for the Government to consider providing financial compensation to the volunteers.

"This is the best of Australia. People helping out their fellow neighbours, their communities and their cities and towns and regions," he said Friday.

"It is unsustainable, however, to not have an income for a period not of days, not even of weeks but of months. And this is an issue that does have to be addressed."

Firefighting services are run by the states and territories, and Mr Morrison said on Monday the Government had received no requests from the states to compensate the volunteers.

Mr Chester said he had not raised the issue with Mr Morrison directly and his proposal was his opinion, not government policy.

"There's no clash here between me and the Prime Minister," he said.

"It's a question of how do we maintain that strong volunteer ethos of a fire service, but understand that there's these long-term campaign fires [that] take more than just volunteers, and how much pressure can we keep putting on them," he said.

"These fires, if we don't get decent rain, could be still going in a few months' time."

Climate scientists have linked last week's record-breaking heatwave — which saw fires spread and new blazes start — to climate change.

Mr Chester said there was "no doubt" hotter, drier conditions had impacted on the fires Australia was experiencing, but was careful not to link specific events to climate change.

"Even the experts say you don't associate one natural disaster with climate change, it's a long-term pattern. So what we're seeing is a long-term pattern of drying, so right along the east coast, we're seeing fires spread right across the landscape," he said.

The Federal Government on Friday announced Australian Defence Force liaison officers would be deployed to parts of NSW to help with the bushfire crisis.

Extra resources such as bulldozers, bulk water carriers and troops will also be made available.

Topics: government-and-politics, federal-government, fires, bushfire, volunteers, community-and-society, melbourne-3000, australia, vic, nsw, sa, sale-3850