Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Emergency Management, Senator Watt. Last year, communities across Australia were devastated by floods, with some towns hit multiple times across a matter of months. In my home state of New South Wales the Central West region experienced unprecedented flooding. In the town of Eugowra, the scale of the flooding was described as an 'inland tsunami'. Minister, what is the Albanese government doing to support towns across the Central West to recover and build back stronger?

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

Last year, communities in the Central West of New South Wales experienced floods on a scale that had never been seen before, and Senator Sheldon is right: it was described by those who experienced it as an 'inland tsunami'. Tomorrow, in fact, will be one year since the devastating flood that took lives and properties in Eugowra and a number of other nearby communities, and I know that we'll all be thinking of residents of Eugowra when tomorrow arrives.

I travelled to some of these communities such as Parkes, Forbes, Eugowra and many others, as did Senator Sheldon and many others across politics, including Senator Davey, in the days following the event. It was clear to me, as I'm sure it was to others, that, as we delivered short-term recovery support, more would need to be done for a longer-term strategy to improve flood resilience. That's why I'm pleased that last week the Albanese government agreed to match funding announced by the Minns government in New South Wales to jointly deliver $100 million to the most flood impacted parts of Central West New South Wales. That funding will support repairs and replacements of roads, community halls and other infrastructure, sporting fields, parks and playgrounds as well as legal aid assistance for flood victims.

The funding also includes an in-principle commitment towards a $40 million resilient housing program, with details of the program to be agreed following consultation with the local community. The support we announced last week is on top of the half a billion dollars the federal and New South Wales governments have jointly delivered to New South Wales, including areas within the Central West which were impacted by those floods last year. The feedback received so far about last week's funding has been very positive, and people in the Central West are excited to see this support. Cabonne Mayor Kevin Beatty told Triple M Central West that this was fantastic news and gave some people a bit of direction and a little bit of certainty about where they're heading in recovery. We will continue to stand by these communities as they recover.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Sheldon, first supplementary?

Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the minister for the update. I'm sure all of us here will pass on our condolences to all those families and community members affected on the year anniversary tomorrow. I note that the recovery is ongoing in nearly every state and territory across the country, including in many regional and remote areas. Can the minister please provide an update on how recovery is progressing in remote communities like Fitzroy Crossing?

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

I'm pleased to advise that the Albanese and Cook governments are continuing to support the flood impacted communities in northern Western Australia. This is an area I know people like Senator Sterle, Senator Lines, Senator Dodson, Senator Pratt and Senator Payman have taken a very big interest in since these events occurred. Alongside the state government, we've delivered a range of measures to help recovery efforts, including housing; mental health assistance; support for local farmers, small businesses and Aboriginal corporations; and grants for environment and heritage funding. I can confirm that, as Senator Sterle observed just recently, the Fitzroy Crossing bridge reconstruction is well underway. The new bridge will be six times as strong, 100 metres longer and two lanes wide, and it will include a shared path for pedestrians and cyclists. One hundred and thirty-two local jobs have been created, with around a quarter of total crew hours worked attributed to Aboriginal people, and around $11 million has been committed to Aboriginal owned businesses in the area.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Sheldon, second supplementary?

Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We know that increasing disaster risk is driving up insurance premiums in disaster impacted communities. What is the Albanese government doing to reduce disaster risk and put downward pressure on insurance premiums?

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

Thank you, Senator Sheldon. As I know you know well, disaster risk is the largest driver of insurance premium rises along with the rising cost of reinsurance internationally. The Albanese government is committed to doing our bit to reduce the cost of living for all Australians, and that's why we're designing policies to put downward pressure on insurance premiums and get real results. Through our Disaster Ready Fund, which, of course, replaced the failed Emergency Response Fund from the opposition, which didn't build a single disaster mitigation project in the years that it existed, in contrast, we're investing up to $200 million each and every year through resilience and mitigation projects across Australia. Within the Disaster Ready Fund we're co-funding $40 million towards the Queensland Household Resilience Program. Previous rounds of this program have seen a more than 13 per cent drop in insurance premiums for Queenslanders who made their homes more resilient. Our $174 million joint commitment to the Bundaberg flood levy—not supported by the local National Party member—estimates reductions in insurance premiums of $1,000 a year. (Time expired)

Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

President, I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.