By Lisa Visentin, Michaela Whitbourn and Jenny Noyes
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has apologised for going on a family holiday during the bushfire emergency, as he rejected criticism that his government was not doing enough to tackle climate change.
In his first press conference since returning to Sydney on Saturday night from Hawaii, where he had been holidaying with his family, Mr Morrison said with the "benefit of hindsight we would have made different decisions".
Scott Morrison arrives at RFS headquarters in Homebush on Sunday morning before addressing the media.Credit: James Brickwood
"I get it that people would have been upset to know that I was holidaying with my family while their families were under great stress," Mr Morrison said during a press conference at the NSW Rural Fire Service headquarters in Sydney.
"But I'm comforted by the fact that Australians would like me to be here, just simply so I can be here, alongside them as they're going through this terrible time ... and I apologise for that."
Mr Morrison said by going on holidays he was trying to keep a promise to his children, but said that he accepted as Prime Minister "you have other responsibilities".
"I accept that. I accept the criticism," he said.
The Prime Minister also indicated the bushfire emergency would not prompt a change to the government’s emissions reduction policy, saying: "I do not accept the suggestion that Australia is not carrying its weight.
"People can expect my government to do what it promised to do, what it took to the last election," Mr Morrison said.
"We will take a responsible approach to taking action on climate change. We are taking action and we will continue to take action," he said.
"We are carrying our weight. We are meeting and beating our target and there are very few countries who can say that."
His remarks follow sustained international criticism about Australia's reliance on carryover credits to meet its commitment under the Paris climate agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by between 26 and 28 per cent by 2030.
Federal Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese said it was "a good thing" Mr Morrison was back in the country "but we saw today no change in his strategy with regard to the bushfires".
"We’ve seen no change to climate change policy and we’ve seen no commitment to provide compensation to our volunteer firefighters who are giving up working and the wages that come from that in order to help their communities," Mr Albanese said on Sunday.
As more than 100 fires burnt across the state, including the out-of-control Green Wattle Creek fire in south-west Sydney, Mr Morrison joined NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian on a visit to the Wollondilly Emergency Fire Control Centre, where they jointly announced an extra $3.5 million in disaster relief funding for fire-affected communities.
Balmoral consists of about 150 houses with a population of some 400 people.Credit: Kate Geraghty
Ms Berejiklian confirmed the small community of Balmoral in Sydney's south-west had been all but wiped out.
"We’ve got the devastating news that there is not very much left of the town of Balmoral. Very sad to hear that."
NSW Police also said that a man, believed to be in his 60s or 70s, was missing from his rural property in Bell, a town near Lithgow where fires burnt on Saturday.
A police spokeswoman said the man remained unaccounted for on Sunday.
Another man who was thought to be missing from the neighbouring town of Dargan was found at an evacuation centre in Lithgow on Sunday afternoon.
Ms Berejiklian said the funding extension would enable residents and small businesses in the Wingecarribee and Wollondilly local government areas to access grants of up to $15,000, taking the total state-federal recovery fund to more than $63 million.
Mr Morrison also acknowledged a link between climate change and bushfires, but said it was "not credible" to directly link specific fires to the issue.
"There is no argument, in my view, or the view of the government, and any government in the country, about the links between broader issues of global climate change and weather events around the world – but I’m sure people would equally acknowledge the direct connection to any single fire event is not a credible suggestion," Mr Morrison said.
The fire that tore threw Dargan, west of Bell, in the Blue Mountains Credit: Dean Sewell
Mr Albanese also seized on Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack's comments on Saturday, in which he said Australia must "absolutely" take more action on climate change, to highlight a split between the pair.
"The Deputy Prime Minister said yesterday new measures were needed and a new response and today, going from the acting prime minister to the real Prime Minister, we have a dismissal of the need for any action on climate change," Mr Albanese said.
But Mr Morrison claimed Mr McCormack was "making exactly the same point I am making", and asserted he was confident Australia would beat its Paris commitments.
"There is a long time between now and 2030 and we will continue to refine our policies because we are serious about taking action. But what we won't do is act in a knee jerk, or crisis or panicked mode," Mr Morrison said.