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

Thanks, Senator Davey. The announcement we made today for disaster assistance for South Australia is actually for nine local government areas that are already experiencing some level of flooding along the river, so they're not pre-emptive. I know the state opposition in South Australia have called for pre-emptive action here, and you might want to chat with them about why they think that should happen. But, in fact, the LGAs in South Australia that are eligible for funding are already experiencing a level of flooding. Of course, every indication is that that flooding is going to get worse, whether it be in those LGAs or in others. As that flooding occurs, we will inevitably end up extending the LGAs that receive that assistance. If you have examples of LGAs in New South Wales or any other state where flooding is occurring and people aren't currently getting disaster assistance, I invite you to provide that information so we can take it up.