Review of disaster funding and progress on National Risk Reduction Framework

The Minister for Emergency Management and National Recovery and Resilience, Senator the Hon Bridget McKenzie has initiated a review into the national Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).

Minister McKenzie said it was important for transparency, consistency and accountability to review the current arrangements whereby the Federal Government provides money to state governments following a disaster.

“The joint disaster funding arrangements are inherently complex. But we need to ensure that taxpayers have confidence that the current arrangements ensure that those Australians in need are being assisted in a timely way.

“They also need to know how requests are made and for what purpose, with increased transparency. Most importantly, taxpayers need to know that the system works for people, not politicians.” Minister McKenzie said.

“Over the past decade the Federal Government has allocated more than $12 billion following disasters to the states – but often it takes years for us to understand from states how that money was spent.”

Minister McKenzie said the review will consider reporting requirements by the states about the money they spend and what support has been provided. It will also examine whether the Commonwealth should withhold funding to states that fail to report.

“The Australian Government is committed to protecting Australians from natural disasters and over recent years has shifted its responsibilities into resilience and mitigation.

“But we need to make it clear what the Commonwealth’s responsibilities for funding are and what are the states’ responsibilities – and what costs should be shared.”

“This review will also ensure we are more consistent in how recovery is delivered, so that whether you live in Queensland or South Australia, the help you get after a disaster that is funded by the Commonwealth is similar.

The review into DRFA complements work underway on the second National Action Plan under the National Disaster Risk Reduction Framework.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction Framework’s central premise is that by changing how we think about disasters and working together, we can take action to be better prepared and more resilient for whatever comes our way.

Progressing the priority areas of the Framework is currently driven through National Action Plans, and negotiations are already underway with the states on the second Plan.

“We will use these negotiations to ensure there are clear obligations, not just on the Commonwealth, but on the states and territories, to building in resilience and consistency in all we do to respond to natural disasters.

“Managing and reducing risk is key to limiting the impacts of disasters. Risk reduction was also a focus of the Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements,” Minister McKenzie said.

Any future National Action Plan under a Coalition Government will tie future funding for the states and territories to concrete action on resilience and mitigation. This includes action on implementing the Royal Commission’s recommendations and reporting on progress; better data sharing for the benefit of all Australians; adoption of proven mitigation strategies such as hazard reduction burning; and more focus on resilience and mitigation in state and territory planning systems.