Two Bills to support firefighters are one step closer to being brought into law with the Bill to extend ACC cover to volunteer firefighters drawn from the ballot, and a Bill granting occupational cancer cover out for political party support.

Kieran McAnulty's Accident Compensation (Extended Cover for FENZ Personnel) Amendment Bill, would extend ACC cover to volunteer firefighters who are currently not covered for work-related illness or injuries.

“Firefighters put themselves on the line to protect New Zealanders. They deserve an ACC system that recognises the risks they take and supports them if they’re injured or become ill as a result of their service,” McAnulty said, in a statement.

“Career and volunteer firefighters face traumatic incidents and dangerous working conditions. They don’t stop to ask whether they’re protected before running into a burning building and Parliament shouldn’t hesitate to ensure they’re properly covered afterwards.”

Meanwhile, the Green Party’ has announced a new Member's Bill that would grant eligible professional and volunteer Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) firefighters presumptive occupational cancer cover.

Green Party MP Mike Davidson, who developed the Bill, said, "The biggest killer of our firefighters isn't the fires they are trained to fight; it's the occupational cancer they develop long after the fire is out."

"After getting the diagnosis nobody ever wants to receive, our firefighters must spend their time compiling a dossier of evidence and trawling through their work history instead of focusing on their health and family."

Under the current settings, FENZ firefighters who developed cancer linked to carcinogens they were regularly exposed to as a result of their role, must prove to ACC that their cancer is a result of their work as a firefighter.

The Member's Bill covered 21 named cancers that international research links to the carcinogenic hazards firefighters are exposed to.