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Each year CAFC holds a Government Relations Week through which Fire Chiefs meet with Members of Parliament and other elected or senior officials. During this week we discuss key issues in the fire service, our prebudget asks, and engage in relationship building and education on Parliament Hill.

This year 38 fire chiefs from across the country came to Ottawa to share the results of the Great Canadian Fire Census, the related issues and the proposed solutions.

You can read about the Census here

You can read our Government Relations Leave-behind here

You can find photographs here

Among the census highlights:

• Diminishing Numbers: In 2016, there were a reported 156,000 firefighters; in 2022 and consistent in 2023 this number fell to 126,000 (of this, 89,000 are volunteers)
• Increasing Call Volumes: Of the 2 million calls responded to over a 12-month period: 50% were for medical emergency, 30% for all-hazard response, 10% for climate emergencies, and only 10% for fire suppression
• Aging Equipment and Rising Costs: 54% of Canada’s fire departments have had to defer training and new equipment for more than two years, due to fiscal pressures
• High Reliance on Volunteers: Of the $5.9B in fire department expenditures, only 15% is attributed to the more than 2,000 fire departments that are volunteer (located mainly in rural areas)
• Risks of Death and Injury: Over a 12-month period, 534 fire departments reported: 1 active line of duty deaths, 41 deaths due to illness associated with the profession, 5 suicides. In addition, there were also over 600 profession-related injuries

Call to Action - Don't allow history to repeat itself:

While the 2023 fire season was unprecedented, the solutions needed have been known for some time and articulated in position papers submitted to the federal government over the past few years. 

• Increase the volunteer firefighter tax credit from $3K to $10K to help retain volunteer firefighters
  
• Reinstate the Joint Emergency Preparedness Program to help replenish the supply of equipment from fire trucks to radio communications.
• Fund FireSmart™, critical infrastructure assessments and resilience plans in all communities to maximize resilience during wildfire season
• Establish a National Fire Administration to better coordinate, advise, lead and support the complexity of fire situation in Canada, just as comparator countries have done in response to such crises.