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CFA splurges on PR focus groupsThe Member for Eastern Victoria, Philip Davis, has called on the State Government to explain why the Country Fire Authority is spending a vast amount of money on community opinion surveys. By Kevin Balshaw - 24th September 2009 - Back to News The Member for Eastern Victoria, Philip Davis, has called on the State Government to explain why the Country Fire Authority is spending a vast amount of money on community opinion surveys.
Mr Davis says the cost of the survey program in six high-risk fire communities including Cann River in East Gippsland was likely to have been in excess of $100,000.
He has written to Police and Emergency Services Minister Bob Cameron seeking an explanation and will question the Government on the surveys at the next sitting of Parliament in the week of October 12.
"Predominantly, I believe the Victorian community deserves a straight answer as to why the CFA, on the Government’s behalf, would spend such a large sum on surveys covering areas that the Bushfires Royal Commission is examining objectively and in infinite detail," he said.
"It is an unnecessary replication and a waste of money when we will get more substantive and comprehensive answers from the Royal Commission.
The community survey involved at least 18 focus groups of eight people each at Cann River, Cockatoo, the Mornington Peninsula, Mt Macedon, Woodend and Apollo Bay.
It was conducted when the Bushfires Royal Commission had handed down only an interim report and was looking further into the management of the Black Saturday fires of February 7 in Gippsland and central and western Victoria.
In June the CFA also appointed a public relations crisis manager to boost its image after being grilled at the Royal Commission over its performance on Black Saturday.
Mr Davis said investigations revealed the CFA commissioned the Albert Park marketing agency, Sweeney Research, to carry out the survey, and Sweeney engaged ERG Research, otherwise known as Efandis Research Group, of Toorak, to set up the community group meetings late in August.
Sweeney’s contact point at CFA headquarters was one of the authority’s senior executives whose role covers publicity and communications. The agency was briefed to carry out the survey as a community engagement exercise.
Three of the meetings were held in Cann River on August 20 and 21, and a number of members of the East Gippsland Wildfire Taskforce attended in an endeavour to establish the purpose of the survey. The members donated their $70 payments to the taskforce.
Mr Davis said local people were lured to take part in discussion groups to "develop a better understanding of the attitudes and behaviours of people living in bushfire risk areas" on the promise of a $70 cash payment.
Some of the discussion groups were restricted to CFA personnel, a fact Mr Davis said he found bizarre when the stated objective was to assess community opinion.
"I make the point that this errant behaviour on the part of CFA management does not reflect the dedication and integrity of the core of country CFA volunteers who face a constant struggle to keep their vehicles, equipment and facilities up to date and fully operational and whose singular commitment is to protect their local communities," Mr Davis said.
"Property owners are being slugged with a levy on their insurance policies for public relations advice for CFA management and the Government rather than fire protection.
"Now that this case has been brought to light, it demands a prompt and thorough explanation from a government that claims to be open and accountable."
Source: http://gippsland.com/ Published by: kevin.balshaw@parliament.vic.gov.au
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