Senate debates

Thursday, 8 September 2022

Questions without Notice

Australia: Natural Disasters

3:01 pm

Photo of Glenn SterleGlenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Emergency Management, Senator Watt. How is the government working to improve Australia's resilience, response and recovery ahead of the 2022-23 high-risk weather season?

Photo of Murray WattMurray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Sterle, who I know has been very interested in this topic in WA—cyclone Seroja and other events, as well. In recent years we've seen the increasing impacts of climate change on our communities and our environment, from the most savage bushfires our country has ever seen to some of the most devastating floods on record. As our climate changes and natural disasters become more common, the way in which we manage our emergency response needs to change as well. Unlike those opposite, we are committed to acting on climate change, both through reducing our emissions and by supporting those communities most impacted by the effects of climate change. The bill we have just passed today is an important part of reducing those emissions, and better preparing for future disasters also protects communities as well.

As a country and a government, we need to be better prepared and we need to respond more quickly to natural disasters. Unfortunately, when those opposite were in power they did neither, and that left Australians exposed. If we are asking Australians to be better prepared for natural disasters, then our government needs to do the same thing. That's why, last week, I formally launched the National Emergency Management Agency, or NEMA, bringing together the capabilities of Emergency Management Australia and the National Recovery and Resilience Agency into a single agency. NEMA will bring together the capabilities of both agencies to provide support, prepare for future disasters, lead the response when disaster strikes and remain deeply connected with communities during recovery. It simply made no sense to have two separate disaster agencies in two different departments reporting to two different ministers, which was the situation we had under the former government. Bringing these agencies together as one, NEMA, will provide better coordination at a national level and ensure that we are better prepared for natural disasters and that we respond more quickly.

Good governments plan for the best and prepare for the worst. Now NEMA will be a big part of that. NEMA will work side-by-side with state, territory and local governments from beginning to end. (Time expired)

Photo of Sue LinesSue Lines (President) Share this | | Hansard source

Senator Sterle, a first supplementary?

3:03 pm

Photo of Glenn SterleGlenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

Will the minister advise the Senate what concrete steps the Albanese government is taking to prepare communities for future natural disasters?

3:04 pm

Photo of Murray WattMurray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | | Hansard source

Thank you again, Senator Sterle. Yesterday in the House of Representatives the Albanese government introduced amendments to the Disaster Ready Fund legislation. These amendments will ensure that $200 million a year allocated in the fund is spent on disaster mitigation while maintaining our commitment to support communities as they recover from disasters. I think members on both sides of this chamber will remember the comments that I had to make about the former government's Emergency Response Fund, set up over three years ago with the support of the then opposition with $4 billion in it. It was set up to spend money every year on disaster mitigation and disaster recovery. By the time we got to the election, after three years it hadn't built a single disaster mitigation project and hadn't released a single cent for disaster recovery. We're determined to change that, and I'm happy to report that this legislation has been welcomed by stakeholders across the community, from the Insurance Council of Australia and Suncorp to the RACQ and the Local Government Association of Queensland.

Photo of Sue LinesSue Lines (President) Share this | | Hansard source

Senator Sterle, a second supplementary?

3:05 pm

Photo of Glenn SterleGlenn Sterle (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

Although there's a great focus on floods at the moment, we know that parts of the country will experience bushfire. What is being done to prepare these communities, Minister?

Photo of Murray WattMurray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | | Hansard source

I know that Senator Sterle and the President are both interested in this because WA, of course, experienced bad bushfires again last year. I've recently been briefed by the Bureau of Meteorology about what they are forecasting for the upcoming high-risk weather season, and members of parliament and senators were invited to a similar briefing this week as well. It's true that, while there is a very high chance of a third La Nina this summer bringing more rain and flooding to the east coast states—and we need to be ready for that—in addition, in Central and Western Australia communities are facing increased chances of bushfire.

That's why last week I met with the Australasian Fire and Emergency Service Authorities Council, or AFAC, who coordinate the National Aerial Firefighting Centre, and they have assured me that the resources available to them are appropriate for this season and that preparedness activities are on schedule. That may well include the redeployment of some aerial firefighting units to the west. Also last week the new Australian fire danger rating system was launched. This is a once-in-a-generation change to how the sector forecasts and warns about fire danger. Unlike our predecessors, the Albanese government is looking over the horizon and ensuring we're better prepared.