It has been another historic week for CFA with The Country Fire Authority Amendment (Volunteer Charter) Act 2011 passed in Parliament yesterday.
We welcome the introduction of this legislation and reaffirm the importance of CFA volunteers to our organisation and the Victorian community. The legislation recognises that CFA exists because of its volunteers, backed by the support of our career staff; both operational and administrative.
This is another significant step forward in defining CFA’s future direction. Volunteers are critical in fulfilling our mission of protecting lives and property and our vision of working together with communities to keep Victorians safe from fire and other emergencies.
We also reaffirm our commitment to open consultation with our volunteers and also through Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria. This commitment is enshrined in the legislation and we will be providing further detail about this consultation in the near future.
It is a nice coincidence that the legislation has been passed on the eve of Volunteer Week, the largest celebration of volunteers and volunteerism in Australia. National Volunteer Week’s slogan is “Inspiring the volunteer in you”, and I know that many have, and will continue to be, inspired by the example of CFA volunteers.
Let me take this opportunity to again thank you for your outstanding service to your communities across the State.
Mick Bourke
Chief Executive Officer
