Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Families and Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

I will take Senator Watt's interjection. I think the Australian public in general, particularly those who have been affected by bushfires, have been very, very grateful for the response they have received across-the-board—from the state governments across the many states that have been impacted by bushfires.

I have to say that I saw the military walk off the aircraft on Kangaroo Island and the Australian government's response through the ADF—and I thank Senator Reynolds for the response process that she put in place—and I watched the faces of people on Kangaroo Island, people who had lost their houses, lost their farms and lost their livestock. When those boots got on the ground on Kangaroo Island those people were very, very grateful. So I can assure the chamber that my statement yesterday was absolutely accurate: I do believe that the majority of Australians who have been impacted have been grateful for the response they've received across the board.

However, there will be individual circumstances—possibly like the one that Senator Ayres raised in his question—that we would be more than happy to take on and have a look at on a particular case-by-case basis so that we can have a look through the recovery process, both state and federal, to see whether there are other things that are available to the constituent to which you refer.