Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Minister for Women) Share this | Hansard source

As I said, Senator Cameron, they are very, very serious statements to make. But what I think I am even more alarmed by is evidence given to the Senate committee that, because of this dispute, a number of volunteer firefighters on the border of Victoria and New South Wales are now seeking to transfer their membership into New South Wales. Senator Cameron, you may not have concerns with this agreement, and that is fine. If your concerns are therefore not realised, then what we are doing here today will have no impact at all on the enterprise agreement. But the volunteers have raised significant concerns over a number of years now. The letter from the MFB to Minister James Merlino clearly articulates the reality of some of those concerns. I am going to stand here and defend the volunteers and the CFA in Victoria every step of the way. As I said, I do not know what phone call they are going to receive tomorrow but I do know that, when they receive it, they will do everything to ensure that the community in Victoria is kept safe.