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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 8 Hansard (19 August) . . Page.. 2800 ..

MR CORBELL (continuing):

addressed. The government accepts and is getting on with the job and doing that. Mr McLeod recommends changes in the structure of the emergency services and their organisational relationships and the government accepts that, yes, this is a time to address those issues.

But the government also accepts that we have to go out and talk to the people who are most directly affected-the professional paid urban firefighting personnel, the volunteer firefighting personnel, the emergency services personnel, the police, the people who are in command and control roles right across the emergency services areas. And that is appropriate.

We accept the central tenet of what Mr McLeod says, and that is that organisational responsibility should sit outside the normal departmental arrangements. That is what Mr McLeod says, and we accept that. But we need to have the discussion with the volunteers, with the urban firefighters, with everybody else who has a very important stake in it to make sure that we get the structure right.

I think what Mr McLeod does say very clearly though, which the government believes needs to be resolved here and now, is that in a small place like the ACT we must cooperate and coordinate our services and we should not fragment and disintegrate them. I think Mr McLeod says that very clearly in his report. In a small jurisdiction all of our emergency services must work cooperatively and in an interrelated way and they should have command and control structures that reflect the capacity to work in a coordinated and integrated way.

That may be a sticking point for some people; that may be a sticking point for some services or people within some services; and that may be a sticking point for people outside of those services who feel that one group or another should have control. But I think the bottom line is it must be integrated and coordinated and that organisationally it should not be part of a government department. The government accepts that and, working on those principles, we are going to move forward and talk with everyone involved to get the best possible outcome.

There has been some criticism of this point, in particular from Mr Smyth who said at the commencement of this debate that although we said we would act immediately, the organisational structures will not be in place until June-July next year. Mr Speaker, I think it is unrealistic to assume otherwise because of the legislative and other challenges that need to be worked through.

If members look closely at the government's response they well see that we also make clear that the interim organisational arrangements can be put in place to ensure that we have the appropriate command and control roles in place for this coming fire season, and that the detail of legislative reform can be worked through over that period and into the middle of next year. That is a reasonable approach and one which I think is sensible in the circumstances.

Mr Speaker, this is an emotive issue and it is the right of every member in this place to question the response. But I do not believe it is appropriate for members to say there must be somebody who is to blame, there must be somebody, or a group of people, who are responsible for what happened. Mr Speaker, it is not like that. I am

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