Arabic version: الائتلاف يتعهد بـ335 شاحنة لهيئة الإطفاء الريفية في انتخابات فيكتوريا

According to ABC News, the Victorian Coalition has promised 335 new Country Fire Authority trucks over five years if it wins the state election later this month. Its $200 million plan also includes 17 new and upgraded fire stations and a goal of recruiting 10,000 CFA volunteers over a decade.

Shadow Emergency Services Minister and Victorian Nationals leader Danny O’Brien said the proposal responded to an aging firefighting fleet. The auditor-general found last month that more than $1 billion was needed to upgrade the fleet. O’Brien said 57 per cent of trucks were at least 15 years old, while about 25 per cent of CFA trucks were more than 30 years old.

He said 802 of about 2,200 CFA trucks were single-cab tankers, requiring firefighters to sit exposed on the back. O’Brien said the Coalition would retire the remaining 802 trucks over about a decade. A Liberal and National government would also scrap Labor’s emergency services tax and restore the former Fire Services Property Levy model. Labor last month announced $167 million for 150 new trucks across the CFA and Fire Rescue Victoria by 2030.

One Nation separately said it would create a Your Money website to live-track Victorian government spending if elected on November 28. The party said the platform would show money entering and leaving the state, including spending on programs, grants and staffing, as well as debt and interest repayments. It would also include an Open Cabinet section for viewing cabinet decisions within 30 business days.

Electoral Commissioner Sven Bluemmel said voter registration closes on Melbourne Cup Day. Early voting centres are due to be published online on Wednesday, with early voting beginning on November 18. Candidate nominations open that day and close the following Monday.