ESL budget concerns linger on

He says a response from Treasurer Tom Koutsantonis to a letter he sent, cited by Stock Journal, confirms the government is no longer budgeting for major bushfires.

Previous governments funded declared natural disasters from contingency monies set aside in Treasury, but Mr Brokenshire said this changed when $10 million was recouped after the Sampson Flat fire through the ESL.

“This means that every time there is a natural disaster the parliament will have to accept or fight the government on this issue,” he said. “It is unacceptable the government wants to pass the cost to the community simply because they do not have the forethought to plan or budget for natural disasters.

"If they can find more than $100m to save two minutes on a trip into the city on the O-Bahn, they can budget for this.”

But Acting Treasurer John Rau says the government sets the ESL on the requirements of the emergency services agencies and every dollar raised must be spent on the delivery of those services.

“While there will be instances when severe fires result in more damage than anticipated, in other years the cost of fires will be lower, so to claim that these disasters will always result in increases to the levy is simply not true,” he said. 

“Mr Brokenshire would know this because he was a minister in the government that was the architect of the ESL.”