Karen Grogan (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Australians were truly disgusted to see the Prime Minister's behaviour last year, and that is not a smear; that is a fact. This is not a grubby attack, as has been accused by those on the other side; it's a fact. Mr Morrison was off on holiday in Hawaii when the bushfires hit, and when he finally got back and finally decided that maybe he should do something he made the whole thing about himself.

One of the things that shocked people about Mr Morrison's behaviour was his conduct towards Zoey, the young woman Senator Ayres was talking about just before. He referred questions to Minister Birmingham about that exchange. This was a young woman, pregnant at the time, who had lost her home. The Prime Minister grabbed her hand to shake it—that's a fact—and patted her on the shoulder, which is also a fact, and, when she turned around to plead with him for help, he walked away. That is also a fact. They're not smears; they are facts.

Senator Birmingham implied that Senator Ayres was out of line when he brought up this exchange, and that is outrageous. Those opposite said it was 'grubby' that we would raise such things. It's not grubby; these are facts we're addressing here. In her own words, Zoey said: 'I have lost everything. My house is burnt to the ground and the Prime Minister turned his back on me.' It is outrageous to say that those things are slurs. They are not; they are facts.

My home state of South Australia was hit especially hard by the bushfires last year, the bushfires that Mr Morrison handled so atrociously. Again, that is a fact. In Kangaroo Island, Cudlee Creek and communities across the Adelaide Hills homes and businesses were lost, livelihoods were ruined and lives were lost. Minister Birmingham has accused us of muckraking for raising it. It's not muckraking. The courage, strength and commitment shown by people across Australia has not been matched by their Prime Minister. He showed his true character in the heat of that crisis and he let us all down.

The bushfire season started yesterday in South Australia, and we're worried—we're worried about a repeat of last year and we're worried that once again we'll be abandoned by this government. Minister Birmingham says we should all be talking about policy, not people—that we shouldn't be raising these points and that we should just be talking about policy. Okay. So let's talk about the Emergency Response Fund. The government has spent just 0.37 per cent from a $4.7 billion fund—an 'Emergency Response Fund'. Now, you would imagine, from the name, that it would be about responding to emergencies, but, 2½ years after it was established, a minute amount of money has been allocated. So let's talk about the fact that this fund can allocate up to $200 million a year for disaster recovery and resilience—for things such as constructing evacuation centres, firebreaks and other mitigation measures that this country desperately needs.

By failing to invest this $4.7 billion fund, this government has again failed Australians, and this Prime Minister has again failed Australians—especially those who live in the bush. The Prime Minister has ignored very clear warnings by former Fire and Rescue NSW head Greg Mullins, and 23 other fire and emergency chiefs, back before the 2019-20 fire season. He refused to invest in a national aerial firefighting fleet—again, that is a fact. And when Australia was on fire, he went on holiday to Hawaii—a fact—and posed for gratuitous selfies on the beach.

What we need is real action. We need properly resourced fire services. We need help for our communities to prepare for future bushfire risks. And we need a Prime Minister—and a government—that acts and listens.