Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Hansard source

We understand that road repairs are a major concern for a lot of regions who have experienced flooding. Roads are the arteries of regional Australia, and we need to keep them open as quickly as we can. Support for road repairs is currently available in New South Wales, Tasmania and Victoria through the disaster recovery funding arrangements, which are jointly funded by the federal and state governments. These funds provide immediate help for states and councils to repair roads, footpaths, bridges, tunnels, flood levees and stormwater infrastructure. The National Emergency Management Agency and Resilience NSW will meet with councils in New South Wales this week to help them with information about what support is available.

I am very conscious that these floods are not just happening in New South Wales. They've been happening in a number of other states, and our friends in South Australia are watching with concern about what might be coming down the Murray River shortly. That support will continue to be in place for every state and every community to repair the roads and infrastructure that we're seeing destroyed. We are standing with these communities, and we will continue to do that for as long as is necessary.