Simon Birmingham (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Hansard source

Let me try to deal with some of Senator McKim's questions. In relation to looking at adaptation to climate change matters, as my colleague Senator Sinodinos said in his answer in relation to the reconfiguration of CSIRO resources, there is indeed a reconfiguration within the CSIRO that is shifting from looking at whether or not climate change is happening to certain issues around the response to it, perhaps such as this one. I would again emphasise to the chamber that the Commonwealth has significantly escalated its response under the arrangements set up between the Commonwealth and all the states and territories and New Zealand for handling these types of emergencies—