Victorian fire services reform stalls

An attempt to overhaul Victoria's fire services has once again stalled, despite plans to debate the bill in the state's upper house.

The legislative council sat on Friday - a non-sitting day - to debate the proposed legislation, but instead adjourned it until June 18.

The change would abolish the Metropolitan Fire Brigade and combine it with paid staff from the Country Fire Authority to form Fire Rescue Victoria, therefore making the latter agency volunteer-only.

The proposal on Thursday passed the lower house where the Labor government has a clear majority. In the other chamber the government needs support from three crossbenchers for it to pass.

The bill is relatively unchanged since it was spectacularly scuttled in the upper house last year when two Liberal MPs used religious reasons to skip parliament on Good Friday, but staged a last-minute return to help vote down the law.

Victoria's fire services debate has raged for years, sparking division between the volunteer and career sectors and their supporters.