An inquiry into the 2026 summer fires across Victoria has been agreed to by the Legislative Council. The Upper House motion on 4 February requires the Environment and Planning Committee to inquire into, consider and report, by 1 June 2026, on the 2026 summer fires across Victoria, including but not limited to: (1) the preparation and planning by government, emergency services agencies and the community ahead of the fire season, including management of public and private land and roadsides; (2) the causes and circumstances of the bushfires, including climate change and the adequacy of the government’s climate policies and actions, forecasts, warnings and public education on bushfire threats; (3) funding, equipment and appliances for the Country Fire Authority (CFA), Fire Rescue Victoria and Forest Fire Management Victoria, and recruitment and retention of CFA volunteers; (4) the emergency responses to control and contain the fires, including adequacy of resources and communications; (5) resilience of critical services and infrastructure such as electricity, water and telecommunications during and after the fires; (6) the impact on the community, business and agriculture and efforts to aid in recovery; (7) the impact on the environment, including native wildlife, and any measures to better protect native forests, including technology for early detection and firefighting in remote locations; (8) the impacts of climate change on the natural environment, which has resulted in more frequent and intense bushfires occurring in Victoria; (9) the prevalence and impact of misinformation leading into and during the fire season; (10) the interjurisdictional support into and out of Victoria leading into and during the fire season, including interstate and international deployments, Commonwealth support and relief efforts; and (11) lessons from and progress on the implementation of recommendations from previous inquiries, reports and Royal Commissions.
