Ken O'Dowd (Flynn, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am pleased to speak this morning on the important motion of the member for Groom. While enormous effort has been put in over the last few decades, drownings continue to be a leading cause of unexpected death in Australia—280 people drowned in the year 2015-16, and 32 were school-aged children under 14 years of age. Rivers, creeks, lakes and dams were second only to beaches for recorded drownings, with 58 drownings recorded in inland waterways. Many people forget that such dangers exist even in the dry interior of Australia. New South Wales and Queensland topped the list of the states with the most fatalities—New South Wales, 96; Queensland, 66; Victoria, 43; Western Australia, 37; South Australia, 13; Tasmania, nine; Northern Territory, 14; and the ACT, two.

Laurie Lawrence had a large impact on the way we approached child drownings. In 1988, Lawrence was the Olympic swimming coach when he launched the 'Kids Alive' drowning prevention campaign to combat the problems of accidental deaths by drowning for the under-five age group. He personally and passionately worked on the subject and made the campaign a huge success. Barely any Australian under the age of 30 who would not have known the 'Kids Alive—Do the Five' mantra:

1.Fence the pool

2. Shut the gate

3.Teach your kids to swim – it’s great

4.Supervise – watch your mate and

5.Learn how to resuscitate

Unfortunately we still have these deaths.

There are dangers in the homes which families need to be vigilant about, especially with toddlers in the house. It only takes two inches—I'm showing my age—or 50 millimetres to drown a child. Buckets, toilets, sinks, wading pools and bath times always need to be supervised. Programs like this and many others across the country are critical to reducing the number of drowning deaths, and the government is committed to helping.

My brother-in-law Paul Jones drowned at the Gold Coast, aged 47. He was a big, strong swimmer and yet he was taken out by a strong rip and could not get back to shore. I was personally involved in a near drowning when I, with my brother Robert and our neighbour Tommy Murphy, went duck shooting—would you believe?—and we ended up in a terrible mess, having to drag Tommy unconscious from the lagoon. He was lucky to survive, because none of us had learnt to swim before this incident.

I feel it is important to mention this as we go into the rainy season: if there is a flood, please do not attempt to drive a car through it or walk through it or ride a horse through it. Use a boat.

I have the utmost respect for the lifesavers who give up their own time and risk their own lives to keep our beaches and people safe. In my electorate of Flynn, the lifesavers at Tannum Sands, Agnes Waters and Moore Park, like all other lifesavers, do a fantastic job in looking after your health, your children's health and the health of everyone who visits the beaches. Swimming between the flags is a must.

The federal government is providing funding of $3.6 million in 2016-17 through the National Recreation Boating Safety program, which aims to reduce the number of drowning deaths. The federal government also released the Australian Water Safety Strategy in April 2016, which aims to reduce drowning deaths by 50 per cent by 2020.

My condolences go to all of those people and families who have lost loved ones and friends through drownings.

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