Raff Ciccone (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It gives me great pleasure to stand here today in the Senate and express not just the government's support but my personal support to Senator Lambie's proposal to establish a select committee here in the Senate into Australia's disaster resilience.

Indeed, earlier today, I was standing here in the Senate making a short contribution in senators' statements about the floods that are impacting many of the eastern states, particularly my home state of Victoria. I talked about the amazing efforts of all volunteers, the emergency workers and our ADF personnel, both those who are engaged on a full-time basis in the ADF but also our reservists, who have a dual role—a role of not just working in their own private lives but also the other very important role that they play in assisting the full-time ADF officers when they're needed in some of these dark times. I really do take off my hat to the role that our reservists play when it comes to natural disasters. All these people do an amazing job, all working together on the ground, as we speak, to protect many communities and to begin the recovery efforts. Again, I want to thank them all for their courageous and essential efforts.

I also just wanted to briefly note the earlier contribution by a good friend of mine here, Senator Sheldon, especially in his capacity now as the Special Envoy for Disaster Recovery. This is a new position that was created by the Albanese Labor government since we were elected about five months ago. It really reflects on how seriously the government is taking this policy area, an area that does need reform, as noted earlier by Senator Davey and Senator Sheldon. He's been out and about, out there on ground zero, dealing with many communities, as has our Minister for Emergency Management, Senator Murray Watt, talking to those who've been directly impacted by the flooding, as well as those communities that have been preparing for some time, dealing with the various state and local government authorities about how they can best manage the flood situations at hand.

Natural disasters, as we know, devastate communities. They absolutely smash them to pieces, particularly in our regions. We've heard, and we no doubt will continue to hear, from many senators in this place who represent those communities. The devastation and havoc of disasters uproot lives, lay waste to homes and businesses, and often, tragically, result in fatalities. Sadly, there have been a few fatalities in my home state of Victoria from the recent floods. Thousands of people in Shepparton are currently homeless. There was an article recently in the media, which highlighted that a particular individual is currently living in a tent with her family of five children. She says it's unlikely that her family will be able to stay in that area. We could just imagine the situation that she and her family are going through right now. I really hope that all of the various local and state government authorities are offering all the support they can to this individual and to others in the community.

Beyond the economic damage that's been caused by the natural disasters, there is also this enormous and disruptive impact on the fabric of many communities. Families are forced not just to move but also to change jobs and change schools. It's not as simple as, 'We'll just wait for the water to subside, and then we'll go back to normal.' This has some real long-term impacts, not just on people but also on families, communities and the social fabric of that community. Neighbours have instead become distant friends, and connections to various sporting clubs and community groups are disrupted. This is what is at stake, and when we're talking about emergency management, it is so important that we get the reforms right.

It was really good to see Minister Watt earlier this year announce a new agency to deliver that support before, during and after those kinds of disasters. While we as a country prepare and respond and recover from these natural disasters, it was really comforting to know that the new National Emergency Management Agency was established on 1 September. NEMA brings the capabilities of Emergency Management Australia and the National Recovery and Resilience Agency into a single agency. This is the first time that has happened. This change is delivering a more coordinated approach to Australian government responses to emergencies and to preparing for future hazards. The minister said at the time that the new NEMA would lead Australia's disaster and emergency management efforts working in partnership—and I think it is important that it is in partnership—with state and territory governments and local councils right across Australia.

NEMA will provide informed strategic oversight and guidance on how we deal with and prepare for emergencies in this country. Previously, the Australian disaster response, while good, was in some ways very ad hoc and patchy. The work of the select committee proposed by Senator Lambie will no doubt look at those important issues—how are we going, in terms of how we are responding to natural disasters, to floods, to bushfires and to the other disasters that will, no doubt, happen in this country? It was comforting to see that there's been a much improved response from the Australian government in times of emergency, giving people in our community the support that they need to recover and to recover quickly.

NEMA will also drive long-term resilience and preparedness, which is increasingly important in the face of the longer and more intense natural disasters that are due to climate change. I think also it would be great to see NEMA considering the costs for our economy—and the livelihoods that are affected—due to floods and other disasters. It is claimed that these cost around $38 billion a year. It is important that we consider the economic impacts and the livelihood impacts that this has for many people around the country.

I've touched on our regional communities, but let's talk about the farmers. We see on the nightly news—calves being washed away, farmers breaking down in front of media crews when they are interviewed, entire harvests being lost—the devastating impact disasters are having on the agriculture industry in this country. That will no doubt play a role in increasing our food costs, and also in reducing the supply in the economy. Everything that we've heard so far indicates that there is a real threat to our food security. Despite those concerns, and it's important to stress this: I would urge people not to rush to our supermarkets and not to panic-buy, because our agriculture industry is very resilient. But it is important, with the reforms that Minister Watt indicated earlier this year, that we look at and inquire into other areas of improvement. There is no doubt the contributions by Senator Lambie and others in this place will play a pivotal role in ensuring that we have a system in place where Australians are confident that the Australian government, in partnership with the state and territory governments, can manage these disasters in the best way they can and provide all the support that people expect when things go wrong.

Of course, these disasters are deeply traumatic for communities around Australia. But I also want to highlight that the awful events bring out the very best of many Australians. I know many of us, particularly senators from the south-eastern states, have been glued to the news about the floods. For every story about another town that has been impacted, there is another story about communities that are coming together to help each other out. Whether it be the local churches, the local sport clubs, community groups or charitable organisations, they're all doing an amazing job. They are acting as relief centres, distributing food and providing shelter for those who need it. They're also coordinating volunteers, acting as a base camp for those in the community who are putting their hands up to help out their neighbours.

I was recently reading about the local football and netball club in Skipton in Victoria, whose clubhouse had been acting as a base of operations and providing a barbecue lunch with the Lions club every day for volunteers. They're also a source of relief for families who have tragically lost everything in their lives. Australians all over are providing such great comfort and great support to one another. Our great country has been incredibly generous with the donations to flood relief efforts from those who were touched, as I'm sure we all were, when we saw those reports of floods in communities across New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and now Queensland. This charitable reaction was so immediate and so generous that state governments had to scramble to point donors in the right direction to ensure that their donations were actually going to help communities affected by the floods. It would be great to see if the committee does look at that aspect of support that has been offered by many Australians. Whether it is the volunteers in Skipton or donors from around the country, these are just some of the great examples of the Australian spirit, demonstrating that we are always willing to lend a hand, whether it's by picking up a sandbag or by digging into our wallets to help out our fellow Australians.

While these efforts should be celebrated, and the government's response to these floods has been swift, continuing to respond every day to the evolving situation on the ground, that does not mean that we should not review Australia's ability to respond to disasters. Our emergency management systems cannot rely entirely on the abundance of the Aussie spirit. Indeed, the generosity of the volunteers can be made necessary by a lack of sufficient resources from governments. I really think this goes to the heart of what is being put here today. What then happens to communities that don't have enough volunteers? What happens when all the people who would have volunteered are instead occupied defending their own families, homes and businesses? We cannot rely on ad hoc arrangements or on the hope that volunteers will be able to just plug gaps in government responses, as we do from time to time. We're constantly relying on the ADF and our reservists to somehow fill that short gap in times of need. The stakes are far too high, when bushfires are approaching properties or flood levels are rising, to rely on the generosity of Australians who may not be in a position to help.

We know that when we formed government our country's ability to respond to events like the current floods was far from perfect. Unfortunately, these events seem to be getting more frequent, not less. Too many communities hadn't recovered from the last disaster before they were hit with another one. The announcement by Minister Watt of the $1 billion Disaster Ready Fund to support our long-term preparedness and responses to natural disasters is a significant investment. We have made that in the last five months since we've come to government.

In the budget that was handed down this week, the government also committed $38 million to veteran led organisation Disaster Relief Australia. I hope that the role of veterans and the role that many veteran led organisations play in how we handle disaster resilience in this country is also looked at. I know there's a group of fine veterans in Victoria who are currently helping out with the resilience efforts up north in Victoria. They have sent a delegation of people there, former veterans who are helping other fellow veterans who are in need of help at the moment with the floods. But it is also comforting to see that the government has come to the table, providing financial assistance to those who have been affected in council areas, offering $1,000 per adult and $400 for every child. In addition, there is the disaster recovery allowance, which is available in a wider range of council areas and works out to be a 13-week payment at the JobSeeker rate for people who have lost income as a result of these floods.

I would note that the Minister for Emergency Management, Murray Watt, has also flagged his intention to look at bolstering Australia's emergency management workforce capability, which is welcomed and, again, is another area that could be looked at by the committee we are dealing with today. So I want to thank the minister, and I want to thank Senator Lambie for her initiative in bringing this matter for the chamber's consideration. I really do look forward to the report the committee will hand down late next year.