Nick Xenophon (SA, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I support this legislation. This flood levy has correctly arisen as a result of the actions of the Queensland government in failing to insure the public assets of Queensland, the infrastructure that is owned by taxpayers, because the Queensland government—unlike Western Australian, South Australia, New South Wales, Victoria and the Australian Capital Territory—failed to take out insurance over their assets. As a result of the negotiations I entered into with the government, there is now a new determination in the natural disaster relief and recovery arrangements. These are very significant changes—new guidelines and significant clauses—that will require the states and the territories to go through a very rigorous, robust and transparent process to ensure that they do the right thing when it comes to protecting their assets. Because of those safeguards, I believe that this is going to be the last flood levy we will ever need to pass in this place. I think that is a good piece of public policy. It is a good reform.

As a result of this reform, I believe that the states and territories all have to act to the highest prudential standards and act responsibly when it comes to their assets. Senator Macdonald was quite right when he was very critical of the Queensland government over their abject failure to appropriately insure their assets. That is why there is a shortfall. That is why $1.8 billion needs to be found to cover this—of which Queensland only needs to pay a quarter under the current natural disaster relief and recovery arrangements. That will change as a result of the arrangements in the new determination. That is unambiguously good for the protection of taxpayers’ assets. Ultimately, it is a good thing in terms of ensuring that taxpayers will not have to be looking at flood levies in the future with these new arrangements.