In recent months, about 40 staff at Triple Zero Victoria have been made redundant. Insiders are warning the agency is unprepared for surges in emergency calls.
The number of Victorians waiting more than a minute to connect to an ambulance call-taker has risen to the highest level since the final stages of the COVID pandemic.
Whistleblowers claim the cuts have been explained internally as "budget repair'' - a damning insight into the financial mismanagement of Labor.
Shadow Minister for Emergency Services, Danny O'Brien, said Labor was a slow learner given the devastation of long waits on Triple Zero during COVID when 33 people died.
"These staff cuts are the result of poor economic management - cuts to frontline services like Triple Zero are unforgiveable," Mr O'Brien said.
"Labor can't manage money and Victorians are paying the price."
Mr O'Brien said it also underlined the con-job that is Labor's new $3 billion emergency services tax.
"Labor is taking more with one hand, slugging Victorians more in tax, then with the other hand ripping money away from crucial frontline services.
"Cuts to Triple Zero confirm this tax is designed to fill budget black holes - not to boost frontline emergency services."
