Politics Blog

Firefighters are gathering at Parliament for the handover of a 50,000-strong petition calling for better resourcing and management of Fire and Emergency (Fenz).

This comes in the wake of Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden saying she has lost confidence in the Fenz chief executive Kerry Gregory, who is currently overseas.

The National Party is now campaigning on a reset of Fenz, promising to address pay issues, and putting the organisation under the watch of the Minister for Emergency Management.

Under National’s plan, Fenz will become a departmental agency directly accountable to the Minister, and the Board will be removed.

More support will also be given to volunteer firefighters, while getting ordered appliances into service and establishing a funded fleet replacement and training programme will also be prioritised.

Meanwhile, Labour have announced they will initiate an independent review into Fenz funding and operations to ensure it has the resources needed to keep firefighters safe and respond effectively to emergencies.

Labour’s internal affairs spokesperson Lemauga Lydia Sosene said the situation at Fenz is “untenable”.

“Equipment is failing, upgrades have been delayed and firefighters are feeling devalued. It is high time action was taken,” she said. 

Sosene said the party will make Kieran McAnulty’s members bill government policy - extending ACC cover to volunteer firefighters who are currently not covered for work-related illness or injuries.

Additional reporting by Zane Small