Russell Broadbent (Monash, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I identify with all those affected by the floods, from the Maribyrnong to the Murrumbidgee, from Queensland to New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. I pay tribute to the members of parliament who are dealing with this with their constituents every day, knowing that the floodwaters do not discriminate. They attack the farms, the villages, the creeks and the rivers, and they leave damage untold, as has been outlined by the member for Bendigo. This is a tragedy that each family is facing, and it's a 24-hour-a-day, seven-days-a week problem for all of them today.

As parliamentarians, though many of us may not be affected, every one of us probably knows somebody who has their feet wet today in those places. It especially discriminates against those who are probably living in low-lying areas, which in a lot of places are the poorest of areas—the lowest socio-economic areas. They are the people who I know this parliament and this government—we as a group—will defend and look after. We are thinking of you, and we are prepared to protect you as well as we possibly can. This callout also goes to those first responders who are out there without sleep, working on behalf of their communities every day. I send out a message to them from this parliament that we are with you.