We need to rethink the funding model for Fire and Emergency NZ - Editorial

Burning wiring forced Tauranga's relief fire truck off the road for urgent repairs.

THE FACTS

• Fire and Emergency New Zealand faces staffing and equipment issues.
• The service is 97% funded by an insurance levy, with only $10 million from the Crown.
• Ageing vehicles and low staffing impact response times and safety.

The staffing and equipment problems that plague Fire and Emergency New Zealand are signs the Government should rethink how it is funded.

Fire and Emergency is 97% funded by an insurance levy, with only $10 million funded directly from the Crown as of last year.

Compare this with a 2024 forecast of the service’s operating costs reaching $748m this year, along with nearly $90m in capital costs.

The evidence that this system is inadequate has been building.

Firefighters in Hawke’s Bay, Bay of Plenty, Whanganui, Whangārei and Auckland have complained about the age of their vehicle fleets and problems such as breakdowns and pump failures.

Auckland only has one high-reach aerial appliance. When it had a fault this year, the nearest alternative was two hours away. Two firefighters had to be rescued during a North Shore fire in April after their aerial unit malfunctioned.

Whanganui firefighters have reported breakdowns on the way to jobs and pump failures due to their ageing fleet.

Career firefighters from Napier and Hastings fire brigades resorted to painting slogans on their trucks to highlight “dire” concerns about old and unreliable vehicles.

A 28-year-old relief fire truck in Tauranga had to be taken off the road for urgent repairs after burning wiring in a battery filled the cab with smoke.

The national fleet totals 1300. Some stations have trucks with an average age of more than 30 years.

The problems are not just with equipment either. Low staffing in Gisborne means response times have lengthened and non-responses have increased.

The region will get nine new full-time equivalent roles by 2026, but it still relies on the goodwill of volunteer firefighters to shore up the gaps.

The insurance levy increased significantly by 12.8% last year. Fire and Emergency recommended another 5.2% increase from 2026 to 2029, but the Government revised this down to 2.2%.

The levy means the burden of covering the cost is shared by a smaller portion of the population, as not everyone has insurance, compared with direct Crown funding, which comes out of taxes.

Crown funding of $10m is underwhelming relative to the entire Government budget. A single devastating fire in Northland in 2022 nearly cost Fire and Emergency that much to respond to.

Firefighters are like the knights-in-shining armour of our communities and often treated as heroes.

They put their lives on the line, and they must be well-equipped to safely and efficiently tackle incidents such as the Loafers Lodge fire or the increasing frequency of disasters such as Cyclone Hale, Cyclone Gabrielle and the Auckland Anniversary floods.

They need modern and reliable trucks, and the examples listed here are unacceptable.

The Government needs to urgently address how much it directly funds our firefighters, and increasing the overall budget.