Susan McDonald (Queensland, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to take note of the report from the Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management on the National Disaster Risk Reduction Framework. I appreciate that the chamber is tired and wants to move on as quickly as possible, but I could not sit and let the comments by Senator Watt pass unnoticed.

It is a tragedy for those of us who live in the part of the country where we see a lot of natural disasters—floods, bushfires, cyclones—that we have people from the Gold Coast making commentary around what are primarily state based risks. Unfortunately, in Queensland, we've just seen Fraser Island burn to the ground. The locals have been begging the state government to take appropriate action to prepare for the bushfire on that World Heritage listed island. They have been begging the state government to utilise the water-bombing plane. And yet: nothing. But this government—the federal government, guided by the Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management, has been providing the very tools that we need to provide assistance and support to Australians who've been left unprotected by their state Labor governments, primarily. There are things like telehealth for mental health services and things like additional radar, weather bureau measurements and flood monitoring.

In Queensland, it was the LNP government that built levies around towns like Goondiwindi, Charleville and Roma that have saved people from flood risks and floods since they've been built. In north Australia, it is very difficult to get insurance. There are people who are underinsured or not insured at all. The ACCC has made several recommendations to provide ways to reduce the costs for northern Australian people. Yet the Queensland state government and others won't take the necessary steps to reduce those costs by at least 9½ per cent straight off with the removal of state stamp duty. So I could not let Senator Watt make such outrageous comments about what is required from the federal government, when the National Disaster Risk Reduction Framework, as presented by the Minister for Agriculture, Drought and Emergency Management, has provided $2 billion of support for Australians to manage natural disaster resilience. I commend it to the Senate.