Kristy McBain (Eden-Monaro, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories) Share this | Hansard source

I'm going to avoid even commenting on that ridiculous interruption.

Competitive grant funding really needs to take a back seat, because communities should not be pitted against each other in times of disaster. In times of disaster, people need to come together for recovery. I don't know if those opposite know that in my electorate a thousand homes were burnt during the Black Summer bushfire, and 2,000 sheds and outbuildings and tens of thousands of kilometres of fence line lost, and not once in those 10 years prior did I see anyone over there saying, 'Where's the black spot funding for Eden-Monaro? They're going to need it, because there's a disaster coming'—not once. You guys had three years under former prime minister Morrison where you had a disaster recovery fund where you collected $800 million of interest and didn't spend a single dollar on a mitigation project—not a single dollar on recovery. It's absolute hypocrisy coming from those opposite.

And we won't repeat those mistakes, which is why we are committed to the Disaster Ready Fund—a billion dollars over five years so that we can help communities to prepare for the next natural disaster with flood levies, evacuation centres and cyclone shelters. We know it's important, and we know regional communities do best when they work together. When they're not politicised, we get outcomes. Grant funding doesn't need to go to the North Sydney pool. Those opposite should have thought about that when they sent regional dollars there. People in communities spend time and money applying for grant funds, and this side of the House will work with communities to deliver grant funds on an integrity and transparency basis. Our government is committed to working with communities, especially in our regions. Our Powering the Regions Fund and the National Reconstruction Fund will bring investment into our regional communities on a transparent basis— (Time expired)

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