Budget 2021: $600m for natural disasters aid agency

The Morrison government will move to deliver a key recommendation of the bushfires royal commission by establishing and investing $600m in a new national agency.

Firefighters in Western Australia battle a blaze near Perth.

The Morrison government will move to deliver a key recommendation of the bushfires royal commission by establishing and investing $600m in a new national agency to help communities respond to large-scale natural disasters and improve resilience in the face of climate change.

The National Recovery and Resilience Agency, recommended by last year’s landmark Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements, will receive a multi-million-dollar cash injection at next week’s budget for a new program focused specifically on disaster preparation and mitigation.

“The new agency will help communities rebuild and recover from natural disasters, helping many Australians in their greatest time of need, while strengthening our defences against future major disasters,” Scott Morrison said.

“Immediate funding will support resilience projects across the community and for individuals’ homes, such as bushfire and cyclone proofing houses, building levees and improving the resilience of telecommunications and essential supplies.”

The government has come under fire over the slow rollout of commonwealth funding in the wake of the Black Summer.

Last month, the Department of Home Affairs told a Senate estimates hearing officials had not selected or funded a single disaster recovery or mitigation project under the $4bn Emergency Response Fund since it was announced in April last year. It also heard the fund had earned at least $370m in interest while sitting untouched in the bank.

The National Recovery and Resilience Agency will be led by co-ordinator-general Shane Stone and will bring together the former National Drought and North Queensland Flood Response and Recovery Agency and the National Bushfire Recovery Agency.

It will also take responsibility for supporting the rebuilding of communities after events such as the recent storms and floods in NSW and Queensland and cyclones in Western Australia.

Emergency Management Minister David Littleproud said a critical part of the reform was the establishment of a “world-class climate service” with detailed climate and disaster information.

The royal commission’s final report found natural disasters were becoming increasingly complex and unpredictable because of climate change.

It warned that states and territories alone might not be able to respond effectively to, or provide immediate relief or recovery from, extreme to catastrophic disasters.

Mr Littleproud said the Australian Climate Service would help the government “better anticipate, manage and adapt to climate impacts” and would inform the work of the National Disaster and Recovery Agency and Emergency Management Australia.

EMA also would receive support to upgrade its national situation room to include a real-time “common operating picture” for all natural disasters, as recommended by the commission.