Christopher Back (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I, and on behalf of Senators Williams and Milne, move:

That the Senate:

(a)

notes that:

(i)

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientists have warned that Australia will experience more high fire danger days,

(ii)

three Australian states are on high fire danger alert and record high temperatures are being recorded for November 2009 in several Australian cities and towns including Adelaide,

(iii)

a government report in 2005 said that no single state or territory is likely to have the human and material resources required to resolve a catastrophic natural event; and

(b)

calls on the Government to:

(i)

acknowledge the Australian Emergency Management Committee’s 2005 Review of Australia’s ability to respond to and recover from catastrophic disasters,

(ii)

examine the existing Commonwealth Disaster Plan to assess its adequacy in the event of a catastrophic natural disaster,

(iii)

establish criteria by which the Commonwealth should take a coordinating role in natural disasters crossing state or territory borders, and

(iv)

implement the remaining recommendations of the 2005 review.