B]
vice like, i must love you.
sounds like a set up[/B]
Very generous of you Imabell. ViceLike doesn't deserve it though. When he contributes something constructive to any debate on the forum without resorting to obscenities or personal attacks, we will all be better served. Until then, when ViceLike's name came up, my thought was "there goes the neighbourhood".
The topic deserves robust discussion. A lot of people's future will be impacted by the outcome.
Apart from whether it is a good move or not, it is inevitable. Running professional EMS operations on the chook raffle principle is a constant pressure on standards and crewing that does not belong in a public emergency service where the public has come to expect, even demand levels of service that are very difficult to fund through an NGO. That comment in no way detracts from the passion and drive that many in the pioneering days of EMS operations in Australia have displayed and continue to display. It was the only way it was going to start. Now Governments are recognising that the voter expects the service to be funded by them, and will no longer excuse the struggle to survive that has been the lot of many. That struggle has led to turf wars and squabbles which can no longer be tolerated, from a political perspective if nothing else. There has to be a standardized, quality controlled consistent product.
The question is will it happen this time around? The NSW Government will have to find a lot more than seems to be in the budget for the specified service, and will have to be prepared to wait for available aircraft for 1-3 years depending on equipment, if they intend acompliant result. They will have to find the will to ask for the extra funds, and then fend off all the political flak that will come their way during the waiting period from the very sophisticated lobby machines some charities have developed together with their sponsors.
The Snowy decision must worry each of the bigger players who are trying to put together costings and submissions in what is a very short tender period. Is all the work and extra hours just going to be a dry run to cost another tilt 3-4 years from now?