That an organisation made up of more than 90 per cent volunteers can be charged with such a serious responsibility as protecting lives and community assets from the ravages of fire, and yet not already have appropriate tax-deductibility status is a disgrace.

The Country Fire Authority has a long and proud history of selfless service to the community. CFA members have dedicated thousands of hours of their own time and demonstrated a willingness to put their own lives on the line for the sake of others, and mostly for no financial return. Until Senator Sherry’s announcement, less than one-third of Australia’s 6000 volunteer brigades could access tax-deductible donations.

And while the Federal Government’s move to ensure all fire brigades are capable of receiving tax-deductible support is welcome, it’s just the next step that our nation needs to take to ensure that something so vital as our fire protection services are adequately funded and resourced in a way that befits an organisation with such serious responsibilities and challenges.

Our state and federal governments both need to recognise the great work done by the CFA and its equivalent interstate organisations, but more importantly, they need to provide funding to enable firefighters to continue to do such an outstanding job, mostly for no pay and mostly under conditions none of us want to see again for a very long time.

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