People Are Furious At Scott Morrison For Denying Extra Support To Firefighters
He told reporters the volunteers firefighters "want to be there".
People are furious at Scott Morrison for denying extra support for firefighters battling our unprecedented bushfires, saying they “want to be there”
Australia’s Rural Fire Service is the world’s largest volunteer fire service, with more than 70,000 volunteers and around 900 paid staff.
Can I give a shout out to all the #firefighters throughout Australia who have been working beyond exhaustion in these harrowing conditions. All Australians are proud of the job they have done and will continue to do.#NSWbushfires #AustraliaBurns #AUSTRALIANBUSHFIRES pic.twitter.com/C0QDO3yizE
— dinnnia (@dinnnia) December 10, 2019
Today bushfire smoke pushed Sydney’s air quality to more than 11 times the hazardous levels, yet when our PM called a press conference today, it was talk about the religious discrimination bill.
Keep in mind that Australia is in the middle of an unprecedented bushfire crisis that has burnt through two million hectares, destroyed more than 1,000 homes and killed six people — and it’s only expected to get worse.
ScoMo — or Smoko, as Twitter has renamed him — was asked how volunteers who have already been away from their jobs for weeks were expected to continue without pay.
In response, he told reporters they “want to be there”.
PM @ScottMorrisonMP is correct. I want to be there, volunteering, protecting my community, all volunteer firefighters do. However my landlord also wants his rent, my employer also wants work doing, and ironically, the ATO wants its tax bill paid… #AustraliaBurns #bushfiresNSW
— Dean Knowsley (@deanknowsley) December 10, 2019
Whoever came up with calling Scott Morrison #SmoKo deserves a prize that’s a superb play on words.
— Scott Rhodie (@ScottRhodie) December 7, 2019
“The fact is these crews, yes, they’re tired, but they also want to be out there defending their communities,” Morrison said.
“We do all we can to rotate the shifts to give them those breaks but … in many cases you’ve got to hold them back to make sure they get that rest. And I thank them all for what they’re doing, particularly all those who support them.”
“The volunteer effort is a big part of our natural disaster response and it is a big part of how Australia has always dealt with these issues.”
Firefighters are exhausted. Sydney is choking. NSW is burning. And THIS is all he has to say??
— Mehreen Faruqi (@MehreenFaruqi) December 10, 2019
Clear Abrogation of duty. Worst prime minister ever. What kind of leader would hide and ignore a national disaster of this scale?
— Stace Jarman (@stacejarman) December 10, 2019
what an absolute disgrace 😡
while #AustraliaBurns, Scott Morrison announces legislation to entrench religious privilege & to further allow discrimination
at the same time, his Coalition Govt rejects providing firefighters extra help or any funding#NSWbushfires #SmoKo #AusPol
— Mark ✊🏻 🔴⚪️💙🐶 (@WorldOfMarkyD) December 10, 2019
This is in essence a major negligence of duty. Flabbergasted this quote is actually coming from a “Prime Minister” of ANY country as a response to an environmental disaster, let alone ours… Doubt even Abbott will sink to this low. Pathetic effort. #auspol
— Valandiel (@Valandiel) December 10, 2019
He also rejected suggestions the federal government could be doing more, saying the relevant agencies were being directed to states and territories.
He did not address reports that RFS brigades were being forced to seek donations for water, food and sunscreen.
For anyone looking to help our volunteers firefighters, you can donate to the NSW Rural Fire Service here.