New legislation aimed at strengthening fire services across Nova Scotia will allow for the implementation of provincewide standards as well as better access to training for firefighters.

Emergency Management Minister Kim Masland tabled the Support for Fire Protection Services Act in the legislature Monday, the first day of the spring session.

Masland said the bill enables her department to provide oversight for fire services in Nova Scotia and, for the first time, set provincial standards for fire departments, training and personal protective equipment.

“Fire protection services in Nova Scotia are complex and, in many cases, fragmented. That has led to inconsistent levels of service right across our province,” Masland told reporters Monday.

“We know that gaps in training, standards and safety provisions … have had real consequences. We can and we must do better.”

Masland said the new standards will roll out over three years. The province will provide resources for fire departments to get the necessary training, she said.

The bill allows for improvements in mental health support for firefighters, volunteer recruitment and retention, training and interoperability, and mutual aid, Masland said.

It also creates an Office of the Fire Commissioner to provide co-ordination and support to fire services, and requires all municipalities to hold their own reviews that will outline what the needs are in each community.

The bill was created following consultation with more than 700 fire chiefs, fire service co-ordinators and municipal leaders, the province said, as well as a review from the Fire Services Association of Nova Scotia and an audit highlighting issues with the Nova Scotia Firefighters School. 

Masland said her department heard “loud and clear” that fire departments want training delivered to their locations so they can save costs on travelling.

“Our volunteer firefighters that are out there, that are having [fundraising] Bingos every Tuesday night so they can afford breathing apparatuses to fight fires in our communities — that’s not right,” Masland said.

“So government needs to step up and support, and that is what we’re going to do.”

New budget has $3M for improving fire services

Masland did not say how much it would cost to implement the changes in the bill, but the 2026-27 provincial budget tabled Monday includes $3 million to improve fire services in Nova Scotia.

Independent MLA Elizabeth Smith-McCrossin said she’ll ask local fire services and municipalities in her area for their thoughts on the bill, but that “on paper, it looks good.”

However, she questioned why the Progressive Conservative government would introduce the bill on a busy provincial budget day.

“It’s probably a sign that this session is going to be similar to [the] past, where everything is rushed and pushed through as fast as possible,” Smith-McCrossin said in an interview Monday.

“I don’t think today was the best day to be tabling this very important piece of legislation.”

A news release from the province said there are 363 fire service organizations in Nova Scotia, with a mix of municipal-led departments, volunteers, commissions, or a combination. 

There will be provincial support for any fire services wanting to transition to a municipal model, the release said.  

Firefighters have long called for provincial standards in the Nova Scotia fire service, which has been an outlier among many Canadian provinces. Until now, municipalities and fire departments in Nova Scotia set their own expectations and standards.

Amherst fire Chief Greg Jones, president of the Fire Services Association of Nova Scotia, attended Monday’s briefing alongside Masland. He said the recent consultation saw many firefighters give their “very candid input” on what was needed.

“We waited for 50 years to see change. We’re starting to move in that direction, and I think they’ll truly be impressed to see that work is starting to happen,” Jones said.

Municipalities will also be asked to participate in a common records management system, and Masland said the province will provide funding for municipalities signing into the new technology.

Masland and Jones said the system can track the firefighters attending each call, fire inspections, training and equipment.

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