I want to thank the member for Leichhardt for the question. In his part of the world, natural disasters are something he deals with frequently, and I really value the input he gives to my office on what's happening in his part of the world. Australians are no strangers to the impact of bushfires, floods and severe storms, and parts of Queensland are experiencing flooding right now. I'd like to send the parliament's condolences to the family and friends of James Hansen, who, tragically, died in floodwaters on the Fraser Coast this week.

Our government is focused on helping Australians to reduce risk and to build resilience. That's why we're investing record amounts in disaster risk reduction, in resilience and preparedness through our $1 billion Disaster Ready Fund. In just the past week I've announced 32 new projects across Victoria, Queensland and the ACT. These 32 projects will share in $54 million in Commonwealth funding as part of Disaster Ready Fund round 4. Combined with the investment from our project partners, that's more than $105 million to help communities prepare for and withstand the impacts of natural disasters. They include investments like the Aurukun Multipurpose Community Resilience Centre in Queensland, a $7.9 million project to deliver a purpose built public cyclone shelter and facility for disaster coordination and evacuation, or the $3.7 million for a flood levy to protect the Rochester hospital in the electorate of Bendigo. We're also investing in innovative technology too, like a $4.3 million investment in SmokeBench, enhancing our camera based bushfire detection technologies. SmokeBench is one of seven projects receiving more than $30 million in combined funding that I announced with the member for Canberra this morning.

We'll be announcing further investments through our Disaster Ready Fund in coming weeks as communities continue to prepare for the high-risk weather season, we've invested more than $100 million in our aerial firefighting fleet to support states and territories, and they are now prepositioned across the country to provide support this summer. We continue to invest in the National Emergency Management Stockpile to make more assets available and more easily accessible to supplement state and territory resources should they get stretched. Our new national warning system, AusAlert, is ready for use by emergency service agencies this summer, delivering near-real-time notifications to Australians in times of crisis. And, of course, we continue to support states and territories through our disaster recovery funding arrangements.

Our government will always be there to support Australians before, during and after natural disasters, and, as we head into this high-risk weather season, now is the time for all Australians to have their emergency plan ready. Now is the time to plan and prepare for what is ahead.