Firefighters Traffic Infringements

Mr RICHARD AMERY: My question—

Mr Andrew Fraser: Bring him back!

Mr RICHARD AMERY: I am here.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Mount Druitt will ask his question.

Mr RICHARD AMERY: My question is addressed to the Minister for Emergency Services.

Mr Andrew Fraser: Leave him alone!

Mr RICHARD AMERY: I am sure he has anticipated this question. What measures have been taken to ensure that firefighters are not fined for traffic infringements incurred when responding to genuine emergencies?

Mr NATHAN REES: I thank the member for his longstanding interest in important matters of public administration. Members would be aware of reports last week claiming New South Wales Fire Brigades members were receiving speeding or traffic light infringement notices while responding to emergency call-outs. The community was understandably concerned and I shared their concern. It defied commonsense. I am pleased to report to the House that actions the Government set in train following these reports last week have yielded commonsense results. First, New South Wales Fire Brigades has advised me that the two cases referred to where an infringement notice had been erroneously issued were immediately rectified and the penalty notices withdrawn once the fire brigade and the State Debt Recovery Office were given the details.

As of last week, when a notice was issued to New South Wales Fire Brigades, the brigade would check its logs immediately and determine whether the vehicle was engaged in an emergency call-out at the time. If so, it would then advise the State Debt Recovery Office and provide a notice to that effect, and the infringement notice was waived. It was as simple as that. However, it is clear that an interpretation of the Road (General) Transport Act also played a role in the few aberrant cases where fines were issued in error to drivers. Section 179 (4) of that Act requires all fleet owners to identify the drivers where an offence has been committed.

In the case of the fire brigade this resulted in a handful of infringement notices mistakenly being issued to drivers even though they had already been shown to be responding to urgent call-outs. I stress that the two cases reported last week were rectified immediately and the notices were withdrawn, as always happens when such errors occur. However, the latest advice makes it apparent that there is no need for this situation to arise. As of yesterday, the process has been changed. Legal advice from New South Wales Fire Brigades I received yesterday is clear: Given that the vehicle is engaged in an emergency response, no offence is committed by drivers picked up by speed or red light cameras. The Fire Brigades Act 1989 is very clear. Section 11 provides:

When there is an alarm of fire, a fire brigade must, despite anything to the contrary in any Act, proceed with all speed to the fire and try by all possible means to extinguish it and save any lives and property that are in danger.

That is exactly what the excellent men and women of New South Wales Fire Brigades do day in, day out to an internationally recognised standard. I am delighted to report to the House that even this handful of cases where erroneous fines were issued will not happen from now on. Henceforth—

Mr Alan Ashton: Be careful around Coffs Harbour, there are a lot of fires there.

Mr NATHAN REES: There are fires in Coffs Harbour, but that is the responsibility of the Rural Fire Service. As soon as the brigade establishes that the vehicle was on a genuine emergency call-out, it will advise the State Debt Recovery Office accordingly and the drivers will not be identified. That is the end of that matter. Obviously, any Fire Brigades members who commit traffic offences while not on emergency duty are subject to the traffic laws the same as everyone else. In those cases, the drivers will be identified and they will receive fines like any other driver. No-one would seriously argue against that. While I am on the topic of our world-class fire services, I inform the House that following—

[Interruption]

The SPEAKER: Order! I remind members that this is a serious matter.

Mr NATHAN REES: While I am on the topic of our world-class fire services, I inform the House that following the tragic fatal fire last week in Hamilton, New Zealand, the national commander of New Zealand Fire Services, Mr Mike Hall, has approached us and requested that one of our most experienced fire investigators, Inspector Robert Alexander from the New South Wales Fire Brigades Investigation and Research Unit, travel to Hamilton to assist New Zealand authorities to investigate the fire and explosion that killed a senior fire officer and injured a number of others. Mr Alexander is internationally renowned in the field of fire investigation, as this request shows. It is a tribute to him and the New South Wales Fire Brigades that such international requests are made. I am advised that he left yesterday to lend every possible assistance to our New Zealand colleagues.

I am sure I speak for all members in this place in extending the heartfelt condolences of this House to the family of Senior Station Officer Derek Lovell, who tragically passed away. His death is a sobering reminder of the extreme dangers routinely faced by our terrific fire and other emergency service workers. I advise members that New South Wales Fire Brigades stations flew their flags at half-mast yesterday and that they are doing so again today in honour of their New Zealand colleague.