Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has ignored pleas to visit south-west residents "living in fear" of bushfires.
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But federal Energy Minister Angus Taylor, who told The Standard on Wednesday “keeping communities safe must be the priority of any government”, will hold a community forum at Terang in coming weeks.
"However, it seems Premier Andrews has other priorities," Mr Taylor said.
"I will visit Terang to speak with locals and hear first-hand how this situation is impacting the region. It is time for the Andrews Government to act," he said on the 10th anniversary of the Black Saturday bushfires which led to the death of 173 Victorians.
Federal Minister for Education and Wannon MP Dan Tehan and Mr Taylor have joined the campaign sparked by victims of last year’s devastating St Patrick’s Day bushfires to heap pressure on the state government to bring energy giant Powercor to heel.
The campaign has been led by The Sisters dairy farmers Jill Porter and Jack Kenna after St Patrick’s Day fires razed 26 homes, damaged more than 200 farms and killed in excess of 10,000 head of stock.
"I look forward to inviting the community to meet with him in the next few weeks. As a government, we must always work towards ensuring the safety of our communities," Mr Tehan said.
When questioned this week by The Standard, Mr Andrews handballed queries to the Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio.
... it seems Premier Andrews has other priorities.
- Federal Energy Minister Angus Taylor
In a bland, general statement, Ms D’Ambrosio said the state government was taking action to reduce the risk of bushfires and protect Victorian communities.
She said the government was committed to the safety of Victorians and currently working through the most effective way of implementing changes to Energy Safe Victoria after supporting 42 of an independent review’s 43 recommendations.
But, Mrs Porter said many changes had not been implemented to make Victorians safer 10 years after the Black Saturday bushfires, when ESV was identified as a weak regulator.
She said while the independent Grime’s report tabled in August last year made 43 recommendations, the state government fully supported 21 of those recommendations while another 21 only received in-principle backing.
"Support is different to legislating for those recommendations to come into effect," Mrs Porter said.
"Black Saturday identified ESV as a weak regulator. As a bushfire victim it concerns me these changes have not been implemented in a timely manner.
"How can we feel safe without legislative change?
"ESV is our only safety regulator.
"The state government is ultimately responsible and so far has dragged its feet in making crucial change which would make Victorians safer.”
In an open letter to Mr Andrews last week, Mr Tehan demanded the premier visit the the region’s communities who “live in fear” of more blazes after Powercor’s ageing and decrepit power infrastructure started last year’s fires.
Mr Tehan said the fears of south-west communities were only heightened by demonstrated inadequate inspection and maintenance of electricity infrastructure under the watch of Powercor and ESV.
The farmers’ campaign in a series of articles in The Standard over recent months has already led to a national first-ever “no costs” offer by insurance companies that they say help bushfire victims recover fair compensation sooner than through costly legal class action processes.
Powercor has also responded to the campaign’s exposure of independent testing of dodgy power poles near the one that started The Sisters/Garvoc fire by replacing eight power poles on just one line there and undertaking additional testing of another 17,000 poles across the south-west.
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