Category: Australian News

The Australian Defence Force (ADF) will increase its support to fire authorities, deploying additional specialist personnel to advise Incident Controllers at Fire Control Centres in New South Wales.
Planning will also begin for the recovery effort to access and clean-up affected areas, which could involve support from the ADF, if requested by NSW state authorities.
“This deployment will see Defence Liaison Officers positioned at all 14 Incident Control Centres in New South Wales with a list of equipment and support that can be made available. This will include bulldozers, bulk water carriers and troops,” the Prime Minister said.
“We’ll continue to do everything in our power to ensure our fireys have the resources and support they need.
“We’ve already got our Defence Forces providing helicopter search and rescue, ground transport, accommodation, meals and re-fuelling. We’ve boosted our support for water bombing planes and helicopters by $11 million.
“Disaster recovery payments of $23 million have also flowed to affected families and businesses with more to come.
“My Ministers and I remain in constant contact with our state and territory counterparts and fire chiefs and we stand ready to deliver whatever extra help they ask of us.”
Minister for Defence, Senator the Hon. Linda Reynolds CSC said enhancing its liaison network will enable the ADF to continue providing extensive support to State emergency services.
“These additional liaison staff will embed with Fire Control Centres across NSW to advise their NSW Rural Fire Service counterparts and help coordinate ADF logistical and engineering support,” Minister Reynolds said.
“All three services of the ADF continue to provide significant behind the scenes support to firefighting efforts across the nation, including aerial fire reconnaissance; helicopter search and rescue; logistical support such as ground transport; providing meals for exhausted firefighters; as well as basing, re-fuelling, water re-supply, loading fire retardant and air traffic management for firefighting aircraft.
“Navy helicopters have helped with evacuating residents from their homes, Army crews have provided assistance with clearing fire breaks, while our Air Force bases are supporting the state Large Aerial Tanker fleet.
“This behind the scenes support from the ADF frees up more of our firefighters to perform their specialised roles fighting the fires.”
Minister for Water Resources, Drought, Rural Finance, Natural Disaster and Emergency Management, the Hon. David Littleproud MP offered his congratulations.
“This is another great example of how the bushfire response has been coordinated between all levels of Government,” Minister Littleproud said.
“They’ll be wearing two different uniforms but have one objective, protecting Australians and their property.”
The Federal Government stands ready to deploy whatever further assistance State and Territory authorities request to manage this disaster.
Details of ADF’s support to the firefighting effort is updated daily here: https://news.defence.gov.au/national/defence-continues-bushfire-support

Labor welcomes Scott Morrison’s decision to provide additional support for volunteer firefighters on the frontline – something he has repeatedly claimed is unnecessary.
It’s good that federal public servants will receive the same conditions currently enjoyed by Army reservists, but many volunteer firefighters will not be assisted by this decision.
Many private sector workers, self-employed workers, contractors and family business owners have been fighting fires, not just for days or weeks, but for months.
These firefighters have to pay bills and put food on the table for their families. No firefighter should have to choose between continuing to serve their community with courage and distinction and being able to provide the essentials of life.
There is a precedent for providing support for volunteer firefighters. The Keating Government did it in 1994.
Firefighters deserve our respect. They also deserve our support.
This issue was urgent when Labor called on the Prime Minister to act in mid-November.  With fires raging across the country it is now more urgent than ever.
Mr Morrison has consistently underestimated the scale of this year’s bushfire crisis and has repeatedly asserted that resources are adequate.
He has refused to bring forward a meeting of state and territory leaders. He has also refused to review his Government’s inadequate climate policies.
Clearly there is more to be done and we urge the Prime Minister to investigate all options as this national crisis deepens with more dangerous weeks ahead.

Government employees fighting this season’s devastating bushfires will have their paid volunteer leave allowance boosted.
The Prime Minister and Minister for the Public Service said he had directed all Commonwealth public service leaders to permanently offer at least 20 working days paid leave, or 28 calendar days, for volunteers aiding with firefighting efforts. And for additional leave to then be provided as when needed.
“We’re helping get more boots on the ground and giving people who’ve been out there for weeks some relief,” the Prime Minister said.
“With bushfire seasons starting earlier, one of the things I’ve heard on the ground is that some people are dipping into their other leave entitlements to stay out there battling blazes. Today’s announcement is about ensuring our volunteer firefighters can keep focused on the job at hand.
“We’ve also already deployed our Defence Forces to assist with logistics, fire mapping and even meals and accommodation, already nearly $23 million in disaster recovery payments has flowed to affected families and businesses with more to come, and we’ve boosted our support for waterbombing planes and helicopters by $11 million.
“My Ministers and I are in constant contact with our state and territory counterparts and fire chiefs and we stand ready to deliver whatever extra help they ask of us.”
The change to volunteer leave entitlements for Commonwealth public servants brings those contracts into line with the arrangements offered for Australian Defence Force reservists.
“We’ll do everything in our power to ensure these fireys have the resources and support they need,” the Prime Minister said.
“Once again I’d also like to thank the many businesses – small and large – and the state and territory bureaucracies who have been so generous giving time off to our volunteer fireys.
“We call on other large employers to follow our lead and we commend those who have already put in place more generous volunteer leave arrangements. We know this does not address the situation for self-employed and small businesses directly, but it does mean those working for larger organisations can step in and take some of the load from those volunteers who work for themselves or small businesses.
“This comes on top of existing Commonwealth disaster relief support, both direct and through the states, supporting families, businesses and primary producers impacted by the fires.
“The current contracts for our Commonwealth employees have ad hoc volunteer leave entitlements but this direction brings that up to a consistent standard and one that we offer ADF reservists.
“Our brigades in metro areas are working right across the fire fronts in non-metro areas and this will give them greater capability to deploy and meet the demand and provide relief to some of those very tired firefighters.”

On the eve of Christmas the Morrison Government has quietly revealed more than 110,000 older Australians are still waiting for aged care services at home.
It is completely unacceptable that in a wealthy country like Australia so many older vulnerable people can’t get the aged care they need.
These figures underscore how woefully inadequate Scott Morrison’s response was to his own Royal Commission’s interim report – particularly when it comes to the home care crisis.
Even with the Government’s additional home care packages announced last month there will still be more than 100,000 older Australians waiting for care they have been approved for but are not receiving.
The figures the Government has released late and just prior to Christmas, on the home care crisis, are damning.
Some older Australians are still waiting more than two years for home care.
Recent figures revealed almost 20,000 older Australians were forced into residential aged care when they wanted to receive care at home.
In the last year (2017/18) for which figures were available 16,000 older Australians sadly died while waiting for home care.
The Liberals have been asleep at the wheel for six years, with four Ministers and billions ripped out while Australia’s aged care system has lurched from one crisis to another.
Scott Morrison and the Government must do better to ensure older Australians get the quality aged care services they deserve now – older Australians and their loved ones cannot afford to wait any longer.

Payments of $1000 per adult and $400 per child are now available to those worst-hit by the bushfires in the local government areas of Blue Mountains, Lithgow and Singleton.
Minister for Natural Disaster and Emergency Management David Littleproud said the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment would help to provide dignity for those who had suffered a catastrophic loss.
“This is for people whose home has been severely damaged or destroyed, who’ve been seriously injured or who’ve lost a family member,” Minister Littleproud said.
“It’s going to take time for life to return to normal and we’ll be standing shoulder-to-shoulder with these communities until they’re back on their feet.
“This will help to cover the immediate needs of those worst hit, and help them get through the coming days.
“We will make further assistance available to these communities if it is needed.
“Anyone who may meet the criteria should call the Department of Human Services to check their eligibility.”
The Australian Government assistance announced today is over and above the support already being provided for under the jointly funded Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).
Claims will be open from Monday 23 December 2019. For more information or to make a claim visit www.humanservices.gov.au/disaster or call 180 22 66. More information on Australian Government disaster assistance is available at www.disasterassist.gov.au.

I express my sincere condolences and sympathies to the families of the firefighters who have so tragically been killed overnight.
They were bravely defending their communities with an unmatched spirit and a dedication that will forever set them apart amongst our most courageous Australians.
Their sacrifice and service saving lives and saving properties will be forever remembered. I wish those injured all the best in their recovery.
Our hearts go out to their families, friends and colleagues who have been working tirelessly beside them, particularly during this Christmas period.
These fires and heat conditions are horrendous, and there are still difficult days ahead, with Saturday predicted to be the most severe day, with extreme temperatures and wind making conditions very difficult for fire crews.
We wish all of those putting themselves in harm’s way for all of us, all the best. Stay safe, stay together.
Know that Australians are deeply grateful. To Australians living in fire-ravaged regions, please heed the warnings of the authorities, and stay safe.
Given these most recent tragic events, I will be returning to Sydney from leave as soon as can be arranged.
The Federal Government stands ready to deploy whatever further assistance State and Territory authorities request to manage this disaster.

Greens Senator Janet Rice has slammed the government’s failure to act as farmers suffer the effects of the climate emergency, following a damning report released today from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences.

The report found that the climate crisis has sunk Australian farms’ average annual profits by 22% and that crop farmers have been hit the hardest, losing $1.1bn in revenue a year since 2000.

Senator Janet Rice, Greens spokesperson for Agriculture and Regional Affairs said:

“This is the cost of our climate crisis. It’s unacceptable that Australian farmers are losing around $18,600 per farm and yet the government is still failing to act on the climate emergency that’s causing this loss.

“Farmers and rural Australians are on the frontline of the climate crisis and this drought is devastating families and leaving communities to perish.

“Instead of helping regional communities and farmers, the coal-hugging Liberal-National Coalition have lifted pollution and done everything in their power to make global heating worse.

“The LNP seem more interested in cosying up to their coal, oil and gas lobby mates than they are in supporting farmers.

“The Bureau of Meteorology predicts that drier than average weather will continue, so we must ensure farmers have what they need to adapt.

“The Morrison government can’t just throw money at the problem as a bandaid during times of crisis. This is an ongoing crisis, made worse by the government’s failure to address the root cause of drought, fund long-term drought resilience programs, and take urgent climate action.

“It is only by cutting pollution that we can reduce the impact of droughts and alleviate the effect on farmers.”

It’s time that the fossil fuel companies whose products are responsible for the climate crisis start footing some of the bill for cleaning it up. A $1 levy per tonne of carbon pollution from the country’s biggest polluters, proposed today by the Australia Institute, is the very least that these companies can do, said Leader of the Australian Greens Dr Richard Di Natale.
“Fossil fuels like coal are the biggest cause of climate change, and yet despite raking in billions of dollars in super profits each year, the companies that dig up and sell them aren’t paying enough towards cleaning up the mess their products help to cause. That needs to stop” said Di Natale.
”Houses in Australia are on fire today. Hundreds of thousands of hectares of bush land is on fire today. Temperature records are being broken across the country today. It’s not too much to ask that fossil fuel companies contribute some of the money we will need to clean up the mess.”
“Coal will kill us. The producers of disaster inducing coal, oil and gas cannot get off scot free while their product contributes to deadly fires and oppressive heatwaves,” said Greens Climate Change spokesperson Adam Bandt, MP.
“The costs of these climate induced extreme weather events are skyrocketing. If this government was serious about protecting the Australian economy and saving Australian lives, they’d introduce a pollution levy to properly equip our emergency services and prepare our cities and towns.
“The Liberals just sabotaged global climate talks for the sake of dodgy credits they now say they don’t need.  The government has been shamed by the rest of the world and is now trying to crabwalk out of its unlawful carryover credit debacle. If the Liberals say they don’t need their dodgy carryover credits then they should rule out using them and apologise to the rest of the world for scuppering the Madrid climate summit.”

Australia is in the midst of an unprecedented heatwave and bushfire emergency, but the Prime Minister has been missing in action. Scott Morrison must show some leadership and immediately convene emergency meetings with fire chiefs, peak medical bodies and cross-party political leadership to craft a response to this crisis, said Leader of the Australian Greens Dr Richard Di Natale.
”The country is in crisis and the Australian people are crying out for leadership, but Scott Morrison has been missing in action,” said Di Natale.
”We are seeing the climate crisis play out right now across Australia, and it is only going to get worse. That’s why we need the Prime Minister to lead an emergency response that is above politics, that brings the community together and not only responds to these fires but prepares for the fires that are yet to come.
“The decision today by NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian to declare a State of Emergency in New South Wales highlights just how serious this situation is not just in New South Wales but across the country, and how missing leadership has been at the national level.
“That’s why the Greens are calling on the Prime Minister to immediately :

• Commit to convening an emergency Summit with the Emergency Leaders for Climate Action to discuss improving how we prepare for and resource bushfire emergencies in a changed climate.
• Meet with the Presidents of medical colleges who have called the current crisis a public health emergency to discuss critical responses to protect human health.
• Take a page out of John Howard‘s response to the Port Arthur tragedy, convene an urgent cross party forum with the leaders of our main political parties to find a way forward on our paralysed and wholly insufficient climate policy.

Our blind and vision-impaired communities are celebrating today, after years of campaigning alongside the Greens, that audio description will be made available on Australia’s public broadcasters: the ABC and SBS.
Australian Greens Disability Rights spokesperson Senator Jordon Steele-John said there are more than 450,000 blind or vision-impaired Australians who are currently unable to enjoy television with friends and family, or reap the medium’s educational potential.
“This is now finally beginning to change, with funding made available to our public broadcasters to implement audio description across their channels from 1 July 2020,” Steele-John said today.
“Whilst this is a huge win for our blind and vision-impaired communities, it is disappointing to see that this government has not committed to requiring commercial free-to-air television stations to provide audio description as well.
“The commercial stations – Channel’s Seven, Nine, Ten and Sky – are now on notice. The technology is readily available and cheap, and the community expects them to follow suit and make sure their content is accessible to blind and visually-impaired Australians!
“The Greens will continue to campaign alongside the community to make sure that free-to-air TV in Australia is accessible and inclusive for everyone.”