Josh Frydenberg (Kooyong, Liberal Party, Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

Over the course of this bushfire season Australia has faced devastating fires which have deeply affected communities across the country.

The unprecedented scale and damage of these fires has warranted an unprecedented response. The tireless efforts of our professional and volunteer firefighters to protect life and property cannot be understated. Nor can the generosity of the broader Australian and international communities, who have come to the assistance of those impacted by the fires.

The Morrison government is conscious of the enormous challenges of rebuilding bushfire-devastated communities. Australians are resilient and they want to rebuild, and we will be with them every step of the way. The government has made an upfront $2 billion commitment and established the National Bushfire Recovery Agency to coordinate a national response to rebuild communities and livelihoods.

The government is committed to supporting volunteer firefighters involved in the firefighting effort as well as ensuring the communities and businesses affected by the bushfires can get back on their feet.

We acknowledge and support the generous donations being pledged to bushfire-affected communities. This generosity is being seen in the partnership between the Business Council of Australia and equity trustees to establish the Australian Volunteer Support Trust and the Community Rebuilding Trust in response to the 2019-20 Australian bushfires.

The Australian volunteers trust provides support to volunteers and their immediate families where the volunteer has died or become seriously injured during their service in responding to a disaster in Australia. The Community Rebuilding Trust will receive, manage and mobilise donations to help rebuild and re-establish communities affected by disasters in Australia. These two charitable trusts will be chaired by Jeff Kennett AC and General Sir Peter Cosgrove AK CVO MC (Retd) and will be supported by boards of eminent Australians as well as representatives from Australia's emergency service volunteer organisations. The government has announced it will extend DGR status to these two charitable trusts to encourage philanthropy and provide support for individuals, families and communities affected by the bushfires. This is implemented through schedule 2 of this bill.

Schedule 1 to the bill comes in two parts. The first part gives effect to the Prime Minister's announcement on 29 December 2019 that the Australian government would in cooperation with the New South Wales state government provide tax-free financial support to volunteers in the New South Wales Rural Fire Service who are employed by small or medium businesses and had volunteered for an extended period to assist in combatting the bushfires. This tax treatment will also apply to similar arrangements for volunteer firefighters reached between the Australian government and other states and territories. Payments for eligible volunteer firefighters will be treated as non-assessable non-exempt income, which means:

The second part of the schedule gives effect to announcements made by the Prime Minister and myself on 8 January 2020 that in addition to the tax relief for payments to volunteer firefighters, government disaster relief and recovery payments in response to the 2019-20 bushfires will be free from tax.

Under the bill, bushfire disaster payments made or non-cash benefits provided by the states and territories and local governments that are not already free from tax will be made non-assessable non-exempt income. Payments will be made free from tax including the Disaster Recovery Allowance and payments under the disaster recovery funding arrangements 2018.

The bill also creates a regulation-making power which will provide flexibility to ensure later payments that might arise in relation to the 2019-20 bushfires can quickly be made tax-free if required.

Further information on the support being provided by the ATO can be found on the ATO website. Impacted individuals or businesses can also contact the ATO's emergency support information line on 1800806218.

Schedule 2 to the bill amends the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 to include the Australian Volunteer Support Trust and the Community Rebuilding Trust on the list of deductible gift recipients. DGR status allows members of the public to receive income tax deductions for the donations they make to these two organisations. Full details of the measures are contained in the explanatory memorandum. I commend the bill to the House.

Leave granted for second reading debate to continue immediately.

Jim Chalmers (Rankin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thanks very much, Mr Speaker, for the opportunity to speak on the Treasury Laws Amendment (2019-20 Bushfire Tax Assistance) Bill 2020. As we've said all along in this horrific summer of fire, Labor's highest priority is to provide support and assistance to those impacted by the bushfires, whether they be local communities, families, businesses, emergency services or others. We do recognise that these are truly exceptional circumstances. We will of course support the bill and we've also supported departure from the usual practice to ensure its quick passage in the House today and, I expect, through the other place tomorrow.

After the contributions made yesterday, nobody in here needs reminding of the truly horrific nature of this summer's fires—33 lives lost, 3,000 homes destroyed, more than a billion animals killed in New South Wales alone—and all of the devastation, difficulty and challenges, whether they be in mental health or other areas, that will flow from this summer as well. Communities have truly been devastated. Our fireys, emergency services, Defence Force personnel and volunteers have saved countless lives and properties. The earlier start to the bushfire season has meant that they've had to work harder and longer than we'd hoped. This is a huge sacrifice, and this week we will ensure that the compensation payments that are to be made to people, communities and businesses are exempt from tax.

This disaster has clearly brought out the best in the Australian community, and yesterday in this place we heard many of those stories of resilience and selflessness. But it is also well worth learning from and reminding ourselves of some of the difficulties that come from the various government programs to support people who are affected. It is important that we not only put this on the record of the parliament but act on the lessons learned. It is important that we make sure the assistance gets to families, communities and businesses as quickly as possible, that the unnecessary bottlenecks are removed and that some of the concerns raised by members in this place, including the members for Eden-Monaro, Gilmore and Macquarie, are properly addressed. Despite all of the best intentions, there have been issues with the implementation of some of the disaster relief programs, and I will get to some of those in a moment.

This bill will ensure that disaster relief payments, including the disaster recovery allowance, are exempt from tax, and that grants made to small businesses and primary producers are tax free as well. It will ensure that payments provided to volunteer firefighters to compensate for the loss of income—a very important issue—are tax exempt as well. This scheme will apply to those who are self-employed or work for small and medium-sized businesses and who have been called out for more than 10 days. It will include farmers, small-business owners, tradies and contract workers in rural and regional areas, who have been hit especially hard by this fire season.

The other part of the bill, as the Treasurer just reminded us, will provide deductible gift recipient status to two trusts that have been established by the Business Council of Australia with support from their members and other businesses. The first of these is the Australian Volunteer Support Trust, which will support the families of volunteers who have tragically died fighting these fires and those who will lose their lives in future disasters. The second is the Community Rebuilding Initiative, which will focus on helping businesses and communities impacted by the fires. This initiative recognises that the task of reconstruction will take some time, so it's focused on assisting over the next five years. I want to put on record that the opposition welcomes and appreciates the BCA's decision to support kids who have lost parents in the fires and to support businesses as they try to recover. We look forward to more detail on how the funds will ensure that spending decisions are guided by the evidence of best value and greatest need.

I think it is important, given we're talking about disaster relief, that we focus on the ways in which government could be doing better when it comes to responding to these fires and providing relief in other programs to Australians who have been affected. In many instances the member for Grayndler, the Leader of the Opposition, has made a series of very constructive suggestions and calls on the government for them to act in a more substantial way as he has picked up information from so many of the communities affected over the last few months. It is worth noting that, in a number of areas where the opposition has called for action, the government has responded in some fashion. It's true of volunteer compensation, though we still need a more substantial national scheme. It's true of aerial firefighting. There was a response of sorts after the Leader of the Opposition called for one. It's true of national coordination, similarly, as well as ADF deployment, a national health response and other areas, including the environmental impact and some announcements made by the government following calls by the Leader of the Opposition.

But it's worth noting as well that there are some things that we are calling for which have still not yet been implemented. COAG, the Council of Australian Governments, clearly should have been brought together by now. It is unusual in the extreme, disappointing even, that last year was the first year there was only one COAG meeting. COAG is not due to meet for another five or six weeks or so. It beggars belief, in my view, that COAG wasn't brought together sooner to deal with and manage some of the Commonwealth and state issues which clearly are at play when it comes to responding to the devastation of these fires.

Clearly the Prime Minister should be sitting down with the fire chiefs, who've got considered views based on many, many years of experience, who've been trying to meet with the Prime Minister for some time now to relay their serious concerns, many of which, unfortunately, they've been expressing for some time and which have come true this fire season. It is extremely disappointing that the Prime Minister won't sit down with the fire chiefs to hear what they have to say.

We also want to make sure that the Bushfire and Natural Hazard Cooperative Research Centre's funding is guaranteed, and we have other proposals as well. The government was prepared to act in response to a number of the issues that the Leader of the Opposition raised in his letters and public commentary over the last few months. It should pick up and run with the remaining ones which are still left unattended. That would give the government an opportunity to respond in a more substantial way to what we've seen in this extraordinary summer of fire and smoke right throughout our country. And that's before we get to the broader topic, the important topic, of how we deal with climate change in this country.

But, on the specifics of this bill, as we say, we support the tax-free status of the bushfire relief payments. We support the DGR status of the funds which have been set up by the Business Council of Australia. We are prepared to support them through the parliament very quickly—through the House today, in fact in the next little while, and our other colleagues in the Senate tomorrow—so that, when this relief is rolled out, Australians who've been impacted enough already financially, emotionally and in other ways are not asked to also pay tax on these arrangements. We think that's a good outcome and we support that.

Zali Steggall (Warringah, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise in support of the Treasury Laws Amendment (2019-20 Bushfire Tax Assistance) Bill 2020. For six months Australia has been devastated by the worst bushfires in our nation's history. Communities have been wiped out, businesses irreparably impacted, cities blanketed by smog forcing many indoors, our courageous volunteer services stretched to the limit and our beautiful wildlife and landscape decimated. I'll never forget the images of Australian families being evacuated by the Royal Australian Navy or the first images of singed wildlife searching for water, all on the backdrop of a blood red sky with ashes eerily dropping like snow.

While we will rebuild and communities will recover, the psychological trauma will be with many for years to come. This period will live in the memory of our nation forever. We had repeated warnings from our former fire chiefs that it was all going to be bad, yet we were caught flat-footed. This disaster will give us many lessons, as we will continue to soul search in the weeks and months to come. Various royal commissions will look into the decision-making process, response and past practices that contributed, and all the factors that contributed, to the severity of the disaster. I encourage that. I intend to help by listening and finding solutions to prevent future disasters. The Standing Committee on the Environment and Energy, which I am part of, is tasked with an inquiry into the efficiency of past and current vegetation and land management policy, practice and legislation and their effect on the intensity and frequency of bushfires and the subsequent risk to property, life and environment. We must, of course, also broaden that to look at the impact on the environment and how we preserve the environment and address climate change.

But, for now, we need to focus on those who have been so devastated and provide immediate support. The government's response, if belated, has been adequate. I support the government's existing measures, such as the deployment of the ADF, the mental health counselling and further direct impact on the ground. But we can and must do more. I support this bill, as it will provide further relief to the individuals businesses that have been so impacted by the fires. In particular, we mustn't forget the communities on our North Coast of New South Wales and southern Queensland, who were already impacted in late August and early September, as we focus on the more recently devastated communities further south.

Schedule 1 of this bill will allow tax relief for all disaster relief payments to individuals and businesses impacted by the bushfires. Schedule 2 will provide some tax exemptions for compensation payments made to volunteer firefighters and schedule 3 will provide deductible gift recipient status to two trusts to support families and businesses affected. These are all correct and adequate responses, but consideration needs to be given to the scope of these responses being broadened to make sure that all those who have been seriously and severely impacted are assisted.

In all of this, we cannot overlook the major contributing cause: climate change. Now is, absolutely, the time to talk about it. The Commonwealth Scientific Research Organisation, the Bureau of Meteorology and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change all state that there is a tangible link between increases in background temperatures and the severity and duration of bushfires. We continue to set temperature records: 2019 was the hottest year on record for Australia. It's likely, according to the new study by the Australian National University, that temperatures will likely exceed 50 degrees by 2040 and temperatures in the 40s will happen three times more often. This is all impacting fire severity and danger. In 2019, new records were set for high daily Forest Fire Danger Index reports in all states and territories of Australia. Australia's fire weather, therefore, will worsen in the future. The number of very high and extreme fire danger days is projected to increase by a further 15 per cent at the minimum—and, at the upper range, by up to 70 per cent—by 2050. It's hard to imagine that kind of environment or how we could possibly prepare and be fully equipped to deal with such a scenario. This will make fire management increasingly more challenging and near impossible. The only way to manage and prevent further worsening is to increase our emissions reduction ambitions, as we are committed to under the Paris Agreement, and limit warming to no more than 1.5 degrees.

On 23 March, I'll introduce a climate change bill—a national framework for adaptation and action—to this parliament, and call for a bipartisan approach so that we can, united, make 2020 the year where we have ceased being divided on climate and where we can work towards a safer future for Australia. It's a positive response to the current disasters and a reposition for Australia as a climate leader.

The bill has four key components: a net zero target by 2050, risk assessment, risk management and adaptation plans. We need to listen to the experts. We need to have a clear, empowered and independent climate change commission so that we have the expertise and the advice to properly manage our response and action. We know these elements work because they have been enacted in the United Kingdom, France, Germany and many other countries. Specifically, in respect of bushfire response, the national risk assessment will assess how increasing bushfires will affect our economy, our environment, our society and our communities as a whole. Following that, we will have mandated adaptation plans that assist in adapting and increasing our response to bushfire risk.

Part of the problem in this disaster was that there were no adequate plans, key agencies tasked with investigating and responding to bushfire risk were defunded and our services did not have the resources they needed to protect our communities. There were many calls during last year for meetings with the government by the ex-fire chiefs. I met with them in both September and November. Their warning and call was clear, but it went unheeded. By having plans set in advance and implemented accordingly, we can ensure that we are adequately prepared when disaster strikes again; sadly, it's not an 'if'.

The bill mandates five-yearly emissions budgets and emissions reduction plans that are designed to meet a net zero goal in an economically and fiscally responsible way that ensures proper growth for Australia. This is consistent with limiting warming to no more than 1.5 degrees. It is an opportunity for Australia to reset its position in the world, be ambitious and be a leader.

There will be no new normal to adapt to. We must operate in a continued state of readiness. Our defence forces know that. It's no longer acceptable to the Australian community to be unprepared. My heart and my mind are with the many communities that have been affected. For them, in this place, we must be willing to give our strongest effort to prevent these disasters in the future and keep future generations safe.

Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Centre Alliance supports the passage of the Treasury Laws Amendment (2019-20 Bushfire Tax Assistance) Bill 2020 and acknowledges that the bill seeks to minimise the financial impact of the bushfires through three stages. The bill provides tax relief to individuals and businesses who receive a disaster relief payment, provides a specific income tax exemption for compensation payments made to volunteer firefighters and gives DGR status to two trusts established to support families and communities affected by this summer's bushfires.

Schedule 1 of the bill provides tax relief for all disaster relief payments to individuals and businesses impacted by the bushfires. The exemption will extend to disaster recovery allowance payments made to individuals and payments that would otherwise be taxable under the disaster recovery funding arrangements, such as grants that may be made to small businesses and primary producers.

I welcome the Prime Minister's announcement of $2 billion in financial support to help communities recover from the bushfires and for the establishment of the National Bushfire Recovery Agency. But, like so many things, the devil is in the detail. Over the last fortnight it has become quite clear to me that the announced assistance packages may not be filtering down to those who need them most and that business owners, primary producers and even accountants have struggled to navigate the grant application forms. I am also concerned that many primary producers and business owners who were affected by the Cudlee Creek and Kangaroo Island fires either do not fall within the strict grant guidelines or have been placed at a financial disadvantage as a consequence of having taken out insurance policies to minimise the economic impacts of bushfires.

To complicate the matter, these individuals are also often unable to source relief funds from charitable organisations unless they have lost their primary place of residence. While many in the Adelaide Hills region were fortunate to have their homes saved by CFS volunteers or their own farm firefighting equipment, their fodder, livestock, orchards and vines were destroyed, along with their shedding and tanks. Anyone who lives on property knows that shedding and tanks are as vital as the four walls and roof of your home. It's rectifying this damage that requires an urgent injection of funds if we are to maintain our vibrant communities and support local economies.

I wish to raise some issues in relation to the $75,000 grant being made available to primary producers, which is known in South Australia as the PIRSA grant. Firstly, the grant guidelines appear not to permit the purchase of farm firefighting equipment. Farm firefighting units played a vital role, a pivotal role, in defending lives and property on Kangaroo Island and across the Adelaide Hills. Often, CFS trucks just didn't get there; the fire was too enormous and widespread for the CFS to be everywhere. And there is currently no financial support offered to those who seek to purchase, upgrade or even maintain their systems for the remainder of the bushfire season. If we are to encourage preparedness and resilience in the face of worsening conditions, arguably this would be a sensible allocation of funds.

Secondly, the guidelines, by setting the off-farm income threshold at $100,000, do not recognise the unique character of primary production, particularly in the Adelaide Hills. One local accountant I spoke to believes none of his bushfire-affected clients will be eligible for financial support from the government as a consequence of this threshold. Unlike in other locations, many primary producer families in the Adelaide Hills supplement their income through off-farm employment. It's not uncommon for one or both partners to be in full- or part-time employment either in their local community or downhill in Adelaide. Similarly, in the face of worsening growing conditions and declining profits in the agriculture sector, many primary producers in the region have sought to diversify their income by setting up complementary tourism ventures, such as farm produce lines and accommodation. This is particularly relevant to producers on Kangaroo Island. We have been encouraging them for years to have agritourism ventures, and now they are being penalised for that. These primary producers have been operating successful ventures that supplement their modest primary production income—ventures that will no longer be viable without immediate government assistance.

Finally, even if they are eligible, the grant will not meet the costs that are covered by an insurance claim. Accordingly, any claim must be finalised prior to an application being made for the PIRSA grant scheme. This fails to acknowledge the time taken to finalise insurance claims. Dairy farmers, vignerons and farmers I know who are awaiting insurance payments have in many cases been waiting for over six weeks now and are unlikely to receive their payments in the near future. Yet they are unable to access PIRSA grant funds until this occurs and are therefore left without any access to any of the emergency relief funds. In the meantime, they are facing increasing costs in the light of overwhelming demand for fencing and irrigation. One vineyard owner I spoke to was quoted $85,000 for two kilometres of fencing. And a dairy farmer explained to me that every week his fencing quotes were creeping higher and higher. First, it was $10,000 a kilometre and in the next week it was $20,000 a kilometre. He remarked that he had not been insured for that amount and that, if he hadn't been insured, he could simply have taken the PIRSA grant and half of his fencing would have been replaced by now. So primary producers with insurance policies are being disadvantaged by the grant guidelines.

Further to that, if you are a hobby farmer you are not technically a primary producer—if you have 20 acres and you have some horses, a few goats, a few sheep and a bit of a veggie garden—you are not entitled to any of the PIRSA grants. That is placing many in the community at a serious disadvantage. I have previously proposed that the grant guidelines be amended to allow for the provision of an immediate grant of $15,000 pending the finalisation of an insurance claim. The payment could be determined on a case-by-case basis by PIRSA officers. It would at least enable people to buy fodder and remove items that have been destroyed, including vines or trees, and it would provide some limited financial relief from the bushfires. Now is not the time for the government to be concerned about the bottom line. It is an unprecedented disaster and the government should be responding accordingly. The more we delay supporting people to get back on their feet, the longer this recovery is going to take for all of us.

In relation to the $50,000 grant made available to small-business owners, I understand that small-business owners are only eligible if they can demonstrate a loss of stock, equipment or other physical damage as a consequence of the bushfires. The grant does not cover loss of income. The small businesses that are in need of immediate assistance are those that have suffered a loss of income as a consequence of the disruption of their businesses. This is true on Adelaide Hills and Kangaroo Island, particularly for tourism businesses. I understand that concessional loans of up to $500,000 may soon be made available, but I'm concerned that yet again the strict eligibility criteria may mean that many small businesses may not be eligible for this assistance either. Those that are likely to be eligible have said to me that they simply cannot face the prospect of sitting down at the kitchen table to decipher yet another incredibly long, difficult government form.

To support people navigating through this grant pathway I have written to the government to request business counsellors to be based at both the Parndana and Lobethal recovery centres. I understand that experienced business counsellors from the Rural Financial Counselling Service are ready, willing and able to provide such support should the state and federal governments wish to pursue this opportunity. While I think we need them to be based there, they need to outreach. They actually need to go and sit down at the kitchen table with families that have lost everything around their property. They need to be able to meet in a private way and actually support families one on one. I urge the government to review bushfire grant recovery guidelines to ensure that each grant meets the needs of the local communities and that the necessary supports are available to secure the long-term recovery of our bushfire affected regions.

Schedule 2 of the bill relates to payments made to volunteer firefighters and provides a specific income tax exemption for payments intended to compensate for loss of income. In South Australia, volunteer firefighters who are self-employed or employed by a small to medium business who have been called out for more than 10 days may be eligible for financial compensation. This bill ensures that these payments, of up to $300 per day and up to a total of $6,000 per person, are not subject to income tax. I note however that those who have already retired, and therefore do not suffer any loss as a consequence of days absent from employment, will not be eligible for financial compensation, but this does not mean that they did not incur costs as a result of their volunteer efforts. Many retirees are still active members of their local CFS. In fact, across Mayo the majority of people that I meet in our CFS are retired or semiretired, and they do incur costs such as fuel and meals during the course of their volunteer duties. I accept that volunteers do not expect to be paid for their time, but the public expects that the government will take a flexible approach to this reimbursement program and ensure that no volunteer firefighter is left out of pocket no matter their employment status. I think about the length of time fighting these fires that are still going on Kangaroo Island that were only contained; they're not extinguished.

Finally, schedule 3 of the bill provides deductible gift recipient status, otherwise known as DGR status, via specific listing in the income tax law to two trusts to support families and communities affected by bushfires. I have seen firsthand the benefits that flow from granting DGR status to charitable organisations. SAVEM is an emergency responder and animal welfare agency that assesses, triages, treats, shelters and returns, to their owners or to the wild, companion and assistance animals, sport and recreation animals, livestock and, as I said before, wildlife. SAVEM are the only charitable emergency management trained veterinarians in Australia and are much valued by my community and across South Australia, especially by farmers affected. However, the lack of DGR status had frustrated SAVEM's capacity to raise much-needed funds to support livestock owners and wildlife in the wake of the bushfires.

I urged the government to expedite DGR status to SAVEM so that they could more effectively assist farmers. Recognising the genuine need, both the Treasurer and Minister Seselja worked swiftly to make the changes necessary to see DGR status granted to SAVEM within a matter of days. I would like to thank the government and particularly the Treasurer for their assistance.

The granting of DGR status to SAVEM enabled the organisation to attract $300,000 in donations, and that figure continues to rise. Those funds have enabled around 20 fireground-trained vets and nurses to rotate through the firegrounds continuously for 40 days. SAVEM worked closely with the ADF's joint task force, RSPCA, Zoos SA and the South Australian department of environment, water and natural resources. Local vets also worked with them. Together they treated over a thousand animals.

I also want to thank Minister Littleproud for the assistance that he has provided to my community on behalf of the government. The minister has travelled to the Adelaide Hills and seen firsthand the devastation that our community has endured. The minister took the time to meet small-business owners, community leaders, farmers and winemakers in the region. I'm hopeful that the concerns that were raised, some of which I've already spoken about here today, will inform the government's recovery response. I look forward to continuing our collaborative relationship for the benefit of many fire affected communities, particularly mine in Mayo.

Finally, I wish to reflect on statements made in this place during the debate on the condolence motion. We heard stories of devastation and tragedy, but we also heard words of compassion and kindness. Similarly, while I have serious concerns regarding the implementation of the financial assistance offered by the federal government, I am optimistic that as the recovery process continues these matters will be dealt with in a fair and just manner.

Helen Haines (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to make a brief statement today to support the Treasury Laws Amendment (2019-20 Bushfire Tax Assistance) Bill 2020 and to underscore the critical importance of delivering support to individuals, primary producers and small businesses in bushfire affected regions. The support that the government has announced to date, part of which is contained in this bill, is extremely welcome, but as we shift from response to recovery we need to constantly interrogate whether the support that is offered is right and whether it is enough. Both of these questions are important, and to see why that is we need look no further than Murrindindi shire in the south of my electorate of Indi.

The recovery process after Black Saturday involved some things that were effective but others that were not enough or were not right for the community. On the one hand, we saw construction of white-elephant infrastructure that was neither asked for nor appropriate for the community's needs. 'Stadiums belong in Melbourne,' one constituent told me. 'We didn't ask for that stadium. It's underutilised and now our rates are going towards its upkeep.' Local government representatives have told me that public buildings were hastily constructed and of poor quality and have led to expensive long-term maintenance by councils that have insufficient funds to maintain them. On the other hand, many issues that should have been addressed properly received insufficient or unsystematic attention. We know that mental health impacts of Black Saturday are still prevalent 10 years on, and we know that parts of the shire of Murrindindi still struggle with a lack of jobs as businesses have struggled to establish, let alone new ones to develop.

As we move forward, though, we must have a community-led and community-centric approach to reconstruction, one which delivers enough support and the right kind of support. I'm really encouraged by a meeting I had last week with Mr Andrew Colvin, coordinator of the new National Bushfire Recovery Agency, who was very clear in his conversation with me that community consultation was his top priority. I look forward to working with him over the months and years ahead.

Today, I'd like to share some further details of people who have been impacted, to ensure that their stories and needs remain in the centre of this discussion and in the centre of legislation that's drafted in this place to support them. In my condolence speech yesterday, I mentioned stories of the impact of fire on people in Indi: the stories of Cindy Penny, who lost most of her cattle near Bandiana; of Sharan and Jay Rivett, whose pumpkin farm was left devastated after three weeks of forced evacuation and a poisoned water supply; and of Stef Antonello, whose grape farm is looking at a 100 per cent loss of crop due to smoke taint. There are many other stories like this.

Rob Hawkings runs a large local grape farm and winery that's been hit by smoke taint. Rob will also lose 100 tonnes of fruit that would have sold for $800,000 if it were not for these fires. For him as a winemaker, that hundred tonnes of fruit he will lose means lost income of $1.3 million worth of wine that will never be made and never be sold. Usually, this week would herald the start of the vintage, where he'd inject $150,000 into the local economy through labour to pick the grapes. None of that will happen this year and that casual workforce will not be spending money in the town, and so the trickle-on effect continues. The support that the government has provided so far is good and it's welcome. But we need to ask: Is it enough to sustain businesses like Rob's that will lose far more than they will get back in support? And, if it's not, what can we do to ensure our regional economies survive, not just in the immediate aftermath but in the longer term?

Diane Gibbons runs Bella's Cafe in Harrietville. She usually takes $700 a day. When she called my office a few weeks ago on a day that was supposed to be in the busiest week of the year she'd just taken $7. Steph Mannix, who runs the Beechworth on Bridge Motel has seen all her bookings cancelled. She called me in late January, frustrated that support for small business had been announced but was not yet accessible and that Beechworth sat outside the zone of ATO deferrals. Fiona Goldman runs High Country Horses in Mansfield. They run multiday horse rides into the mountains around the Howqua Hills and Mount Buller. They've cancelled weeks of rides, and even now that the parks have reopened people are very slow to come back. Over the Australia Day weekend, usually one of the busiest of the year, they had but four visitors.

In our Alpine shire we've lost 2,000 hectares of hardwood plantation, meaning a shortage for local timber mills. In Myrtleford, 22 per cent of the workforce is employed in the timber industry. These people will be affected in four to eight years time, when this shortage starts to hit. We need to plan for them too. I spoke to the owner of a restaurant in Tawonga. She employs five staff. On 1 January, during the dinner service, they received a text. It was an evacuation order for the Kiewa Valley. The next day, Alpine shire was declared to be in a state of disaster. Since then the business has been shut. All bookings for January and February have been cancelled. The owner left a fridge full of stock that's gone off, and she told me that she'd have to sell her vehicle and redraw on her mortgage in order to pay her bills. 'I've been putting in 100 per cent to build my business,' she told me, 'and I've worked too hard to go under.'

Likewise, I spoke to the owner of a caravan park in Bright, which employs 24 staff. Usually at this time he is at 95 per cent capacity; today he's at five per cent. A local bread company near Wangaratta has seen trade decreased by 90 per cent. They employ 30 people. The owner told me, 'If we don't have the turnover to pay wages at the end of the week I'll have no income to pay loans and living costs.' For each of these businesses, and for the people receiving the disaster relief payment, the provisions of this bill will mean more money straight into their pockets, so I welcome this and I congratulate the government on this move. But we must do more, and in every step we take we must centre the stories of the people affected to ensure they get the support that they need.

In that spirit, there are four things I've heard from my community that I'm calling on the government to do. Firstly, we must continue to systematically engage affected small businesses and primary producers to identify whether the support provided is enough to sustain them. If it's not, the government will have to decide what price it's willing to pay to save these regional economies. Secondly, I've talked today about the grapegrowers in Alpine Valleys facing thousands of tonnes of lost fruit, and I've been working with some of my local grapegrowers on proposals to take to government about possible support packages. Unfortunately, we're currently without an agriculture minister. But, when one is appointed, the new minister must urgently look at support for the grape industry nationally. I stand ready to engage with them.

Thirdly, the Australian Taxation Office has allowed affected businesses to defer their tax payments to the end of May. This provides life support to small businesses in the form of a rapid cash injection, and many of my constituents are thrilled to receive this extension. However, this allowance is available only to individuals in eligible postcodes, and this list of postcodes does not cover all those areas where small businesses have faced near-complete loss of income. I have fielded many, many calls from businesses that are desperate for this assistance and cannot access it. I believe the ATO allowances should be expanded to all affected businesses, and I call on the government to review this list of postcodes.

Finally, I'm calling on the government to update its payments to affected individuals. The disaster recovery payment—a non-means-tested transfer to affected individuals of $1,000 for adults and $400 for children—has not been updated since 2006. This means the value of this payment has fallen in real terms. I believe this level is no longer adequate. I'm calling on the government to lift the default rate of the recovery payment to $3,000 for adults and $1,000 for children.

Similarly, the disaster recovery allowance to support individuals who have lost income as a result of natural disaster is limited to 13 weeks. This may have made sense once upon a time when fires were a sudden event. But in our changed climate, where in some parts of the country the fires have been raging for months already and show no signs of slowing, I believe this is no longer adequate. I am calling the government to lift the cap on the allowance from 13 weeks to 26 weeks to enable individuals who are without income for long periods of time to continue to have the support they need.

I have already drafted legislation to give effect to these changes; however, of course, as a private member, I am not able to introduce them to the House, so today I'll be in touch and send a copy of my draft bill to the Minister for Social Services and the Minister for Natural Disasters and Emergency Response, inviting them to support such a bill by introducing it to the House.

Like many MPs, I've heard too many stories of individuals who are scared of being left out in the cold in the wake of this crisis, so this week many have called for cooperation and unity. It is in this spirit that I offer these proposals to government and I look forward to working with them so that together we can support our bushfire-affected and impacted communities.

Stuart Robert (Fadden, Liberal Party, Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank those members who have contributed to the debate. The bushfire season in Australia has faced devastating fires. They have disrupted the lives of communities right across the country. The government is supporting volunteer firefighters involved in the firefighting effort as well as ensuring that communities and businesses affected by the bushfires can get back up and running as soon as possible. The government is making this support tax-free.

On 29 December 2019 the Prime Minister announced the payments being made to eligible volunteer firefighters will be free from tax. Further to that, given the exceptional circumstances of these bushfires, on 8 January this year the government announced the disaster payments in response to the 2019-20 bushfires will be free from tax. Schedule 1 to the bill gives effect to the announced tax treatment.

Schedule 2 to the bill amends the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 to include the Australian Volunteer Support Trust and the Community Rebuilding Trust on the list of deductible gift recipients. Deductible gift recipient status allows members of the public to receive income tax deductions for gifts of $2 or more made to these organisations.

I would like to thank the opposition and the crossbench for their constructive engagement on this important bill and for their support for its swift passage through the parliament. I commend the bill to the House.

Bill read a second time.