Queensland to recruit more firefighters

Independent reviewers noted that no stakeholders felt the current arrangements are working effectively, and made 19 recommendations for structural change.

As a result, SES and marine rescue services - under the soon-to-be established Marine Rescue Queensland - will have their own dedicated budgets within Queensland Police.

The report also found that disaster management should sit with the police, to which the government has agreed.

A dedicated fire services department will also be established, including the Royal Fire Service as a separate entity with a dedicated budget.

State Disaster Coordinator Deputy Commissioner Steve Gollschewski will lead the reforms, expected to take about two years. 

Fire and Emergency Services minister Mark Ryan said the changes would mean a strong capacity to respond to disasters as well as more support for volunteers, staff and officers.

"They give of their time, they make sacrifices of their own, to serve us, to protect us, to be there for us in our time of need," he said on Wednesday.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced $400 million to add personnel and upgrade firefighting equipment on Wednesday, a day after her government revealed a much higher than expected 2021/22 budget surplus of $4.3 billion.

The government had planned to hire 357 firefighters by 2026, but it has raised  that target to 500.

"Our emergency services do an extraordinary job keeping us safe and it is crucial that we continue to stay well prepared," Ms Palaszczuk tweeted on Wednesday morning.

"We are well prepared and the historic changes we will announce today will help put our emergency service personnel in the best position to respond when disasters strike."

Queensland firefighters are responsible for rescuing people from a range of disaster situations, including during floods and cyclones.

Ms Palaszczuk said the state is the most disaster-prone in Australia and has faced 100 events since 2011.