Mr DEAN ( Windermere ) - Madam President, I have some issues I will probably raise during the Committee stage. As I understand this, the $163 000 was a direct payment from the Commonwealth to the Fire Service. It was not collected by way of tax levy by local government and because that has fallen over, or is now completed, the new position has now been put into place to ensure that those funds are collected. In the main those funds will be collected by local government.

Local government, as I understand it, when you read through this, have a role to collect some of the funding from the Commonwealth, so is that the situation or will local government not be collecting anything in relation to the Commonwealth Government?

Perhaps that is a matter that needs explaining, Madam President, because in the bill and the second reading speech, local government is referred to as a part of this. I made contact with local government and was told that they did not know what was going on here and that they had not been consulted in any way. They did not even know that this was going through. Some might say it does not really impact on them to any great degree, but there are references in there to them and I would have thought that they would have been spoken to.

One of the corporate leaders in a local government area for which I have responsibility said that they would just do as they are told. It is a levy that they collect, but one that they do not like to collect. It has been raised in this House on many occasions before, Madam President, that the fire service levy inflates the rates bills that are sent out by local government. Local government then are seen as the villains in putting this extra cost on top of their taxes, and we have often come here and said they should not be collecting this levy.

Mr Parkinson - Just like the water rates; if it was taken off local government they would just increase the rates to fill the gap.

Mr DEAN - No, that is not quite right. Certainly local government get a take from collecting this tax, levy, whatever you like to call it, it is the same thing; they get some income from it but what they say at the end of the day is that the income they get from it is not worth the pain and suffering that they go through from their ratepayers. I will raise some further issues perhaps through the Committee stage.

[11.38 a.m.]
Ms THORP (Rumney - Minister for Police and Emergency Management) - In relation to the last comment made by the honourable member for Windermere , Madam President, councils around Tasmania do in fact receive $1.3 million for collecting the fire service levy, a not insignificant amount of money.

Mr Dean - Okay, so there are 29 councils.

Ms THORP - A total of $1.3 million goes to councils. In response to questions raised by the honourable member for Apsley, in terms of moneys there will be no significant change. A sum will be agreed between the Commonwealth and State Fire Commission. Given that the 2009-10 agreement was for $163 000, that agreement has lapsed, they will come up with another amount and that will be for the Commonwealth to be confident that should there be any fire on their properties that the State Fire Service will be responding and that will help the State Fire Service with its brigade costs.

When it comes to the place in your electorate that you referred to, the name escapes me at the moment.

Ms Rattray - DNRC, Defence and Nutrition Research Centre.

Ms THORP - Thank you. If an area of land is specifically named in the agreement with the Commonwealth then there is no role for councils. If it is not the case then there is a role for councils. Do you see where I am coming from? There might be a tract of land; if it is in the agreement with the Commonwealth, there is no role for the council to collect the fees on their behalf.

Bill read the second time.