TRANSCRIPT: INTERVIEW ON SNOWY MOUNTAINS RADIO, 7 January 2020
E&OE
WITH: SENATOR THE HON. BRIDGET MCKENZIE, MINISTER FOR AGRICULTURE, SENATOR FOR VICTORIA.
Subjects: Bushfires, Telecommunications;
JOURNALIST:
[Indistinct] speaking with the Deputy Prime Minister, the Honourable Michael McCormack. Minister McCormack, thank you for your time today.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
That’s a pleasure David. Well, it is a pleasure in one sense and it’s not in another, and of course we’re back here- I’m back here to get a fire update, travelling up to Batlow pretty soon with Barney Hyams, meeting up there with the Snowy Valleys Council mayor James Hayes. Of course, they’ve been through a devastating situation. 20 homes lost, similar to the number at Tumbarumba, of course, Cabramurra – they’ve lost half their town. A town built in 1954 to service, of course, Snowy Hydro and the rest, and half the town is gone. But thanks to the amazing and remarkable efforts of the RFS, so many hundreds of homes have actually been saved. And so for all those people who made use of the evacuation centre at Wagga Wagga, most are relieved the fact that their houses have been saved thanks to those dedicated volunteers, many of whom risked their own lives and their own homes while they were fighting fires for other people. So we can't thank them enough.
JOURNALIST:
And Paul Broad- we spoke with Paul there, yesterday reiterating the same sentiments as far as people's safety is concerned as well. Mr McCormack, you've also brought in Minister for Agriculture, joining us in studio today, thank you very much for your time too, the Honourable Bridget McKenzie.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
Great to be with you Dave, and the community at this really difficult time. I know that whether you're in New South Wales regions that have been affected by fire or in my home state of Victoria, it really is our RFS, our CFA who have kept our community safe, and they’re often also the farmers that are getting off the fire field and then having to milk cows, care and tend to livestock, and in often times, start the rebuilds. So they've been doing it tough for a while now, and I think the Prime Minister's announcement, particularly in [indistinct] Bushfire Recovery Agency yesterday, will really go a long way in partnership with states and local governments, and the broader community in helping us rebuild regional Australia affected by bushfires.
JOURNALIST:
It will go a huge way and Deputy Prime Minister, when you look at the conditions that are around in your tours – and you’ve been here, as you said this is your second visit, and we're looking at- say, the farmers were talking off air about this, the bushfires, as you know, you covered it years ago, you were in the middle of it yourself - the fire is great, it goes away, and anyone says: oh, the fires down in town, it’s been on the farm - there's absolutely nothing left to eat.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Well, as I said yesterday, that national press conference, when I was standing beside the Treasurer and the Prime Minister announcing that National Bushfire Recovery Fund, and the agency to be headed by the former AFP commissioner Andrew Colvin who's very well respected nationwide, and that agency will do a lot. But this isn't going to take weeks or months, this is going to take years to rebuild. You can't just replace 20, 25-year pine plantations in a matter of months. You can't replace the orchards lost around Batlow, and most of the orchards have been incinerated. You just can't replace those trees. They take five years to- once from planning to fruit picking, and this is going to be devastating for the economy of Tumut, for Batlow, Tumbarumba, Gilmore, Adelong.
All these areas are going to- are so affected, and that's not to mention of course the Upper Murray area, which this radio station transmits brilliantly into. And of course, Corryong, Cudgewa, you know, all those areas, Tintaldra, Walwa, Jingellic – I know those areas well, and they’ve also been very, very affected. And of course for some of them they're still out of power, they're still out of mobile service, but there are people there working hard to repair those things.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
I think, Dave, one of the great standouts as I was traveling around the Upper Murray post New Year’s Day, prior to Saturday, obviously, we got a few loads of hay into Corryong for those families that had been affected by the Monday, Tuesday events. You know, the spirit out in the relief centre in Corryong, in Wodonga, in Tallangatta, down in Wangaratta, showgrounds filling up, being staffed by volunteers in community at a moment's notice, and then being flooded with support from broader afield. I think it's really showed us what we're made of and how we actually respond as regional Australians to crisis. But the Deputy Prime Minister is right, this is going to take years. For me as Agriculture Minister, what I've been hearing is, I've been on the ground, also talking with the VFF and New South Wales Farmers’ organisations - the dairy industry and the like - is that farmers first and foremost are needing fodder and water drops, and to get that in behind the- through the road blocks, if you like. That's been one of the real frustrations. And for those primary producers who did leave properties, getting back in, whilst it's not deemed highly safe, is proving very frustrating, especially if they've got livestock to tend or here in this region with Batlow, orchards, to actually assess their fruit trees to see if I can get water into the regions. You know, I might be able to save this, maybe not for this harvest, but for next season.
So they’re the sorts of things that we're wanting to see done. We've also got the livestock recovery and dispersal- disposal task ahead of us. We've got the ADF now, thanks to the Defence Minister, getting on with that task…
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
And doing a fantastic [indistinct].
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
Yeah. Absolutely. We talked to the comm guy here in Tumut-
JOURNALIST:
Bradley Stewart.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Yeah, very, very pleased. And Barney Hyams, as you know, a Batlow farmer and head of the local LLS. He said that the army have done a tremendous job. Their presence- it’s not just- it's good for people's spirit to see a uniform there, but so good for them for their help on the ground.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
Well, they’re so good at logistics. So getting the fodder in, getting the water in, getting new generators particularly to our dairy farmers. I mean, this is what the ADF is very, very good at. And we know as of today, New South Wales- you know, the loss of stock has almost doubled now that we've got those assessment teams getting onto farms. They’re in excess of 6000 now, and that's only going to rise as we get more assessors at the state and federal level onto local farms assessing. And the fodder piece – I know New South Wales has been incredible with its fodder distribution points. We have them around Cooma, [indistinct], Bega. But we've also got them planned- the New South- the DPI here in New South Wales got them planned for Holbrook, Tumbarumba, and Tumut once the fire grounds are deemed safe.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
And of course, the hard issue there- and it's not [inaudible]… they don’t already know, is the lack of fodder and then hay produced in- we’re lucky in this district we have had some, but most of that unfortunately has been burnt in [indistinct] where it’s already been stacked away.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
And I think that’s one of the challenges that, as you know, Southwest Victoria has had an awesome summer and so a season, and they’ve got hay coming out of the ear. It's now going east to East Gippsland or the northeast of Victoria, south east [indistinct] New South Wales, rather than going to Queensland, where we've got those drought-affected farmers so …
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Exactly.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
There are challenges for regional communities across the board but I think that's the benefit of being a government that has the financial means to really put the support on the table when and where it's required, which we've been able to do.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Speaking of which, David, I just want to make the point very clearly to your listeners that should they present themselves to the Department of Human Services or ring that 180-22-66 number, which they're encouraged to do in New South Wales, and of course, there's a Victoria assistance line as well, and they have lost everything and they are without any means whatsoever, they only need to say that and they will be paid $1000, or the $400 in the case of a child …
JOURNALIST:
Yes.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
… they will get that assistance. No questions asked. A lot of people have lost everything but the shirt on their backs. And so, I did get a call of some concern last night. I've put that right up the chain to the Prime Minister. He said this morning in a meeting that we had, a top level meeting, he said: if anybody presents themselves and asks for assistance, they are to be given it immediately. No questions asked. Now, that's really important for people to know that because the last thing they need is for somebody to go down the bureaucratic path and to be asking questions, having to fill out forms. If they've lost everything, they need that assistance that will be made available straightaway.
JOURNALIST:
That was the big question we’ve been sort of asked, that- we're seeing in the media, $2 billion here and $2 million there and so forth-
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
And that $2 billion is over and above, over and above the Category A, B and C. So it is additional initial assistance over a two-year period. And look, as I said yesterday and as Bridget has just clearly enunciated now, this is not going to just take months or even just perhaps a couple of years. So we will monitor the situation. We will be there and we are now wrapping our arms around, providing the support and the encouragement and the financial assistance needed, and we will go on doing that until we get through this.
JOURNALIST:
Indeed. Well, the Government is accessible in this region. We've seen that from small media. We've seen lots of the major media about covering bits and pieces. From the real regional media, the Government has been extremely accessible and answered so many questions in this too, which is terrific.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
Well, David- yeah. I think that's one of the issues. I hear about it wherever I go and I'm sure Michael does too around information.
JOURNALIST:
Yes.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
When I was in Walwa pre-Saturday but at a community meeting but post the fires. They were without power, without telecommunications and now in a local ABC black spot, for instance. So they had no information about what was going on, what support was available, even whether they needed to evacuate or not. So in times like this, it's really important that, however we can, have those whether it's community meetings face to face; the police out there door-knocking saying it's time to evacuate.
JOURNALIST:
Yes.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
People like Michael and I heading out into National Party communities and saying: we’re here. We’re with you all the way. We'll do whatever we can to support.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
As a little aside to that, thank you for doing what you were doing. But I had David Crowe, the senior reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald, rock up here today and admired the coverage in the local Tumut and Adelong Times and he said: it was so good I bought two copies. We need to keep these locally-owned, independent newspapers alive …
JOURNALIST:
Well, we do. And look, we've talked a lot because it's not just the print presses that are covering it these days. It has evolved over years from the days when we were both working in media, Mr McCormack, and now with the electronic side of print press, people are really adopting that electronics. So we have got the newspapers doing the traditional media but they're also doing the electronic side and that's been one of the biggest assets for us on [indistinct].
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
It’s lucky you've got a place for radio and I've moved on David.
[Laughter]
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
I think it's [indistinct] communities on Facebook and other platforms that really can disseminate information, drive opinion and I think inform community, which is actually what media is all about.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
But your radio station has done a magnificent job so thank you so much.
JOURNALIST:
No. Look, and as we've said, it's a privilege. We had six transmitters. We've now got three. We’re attempting to get the other three back up and operational again for the Upper Murray crew, and that's happening today. We've got the company [indistinct] setting some fairly horrendous photos back as you've had, Minister, with your Jingellic site, for one example there, which is just- it looks like somebody has dropped a bomb on it and it is just completely obliterated. It is phenomenal.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
Well, I think- and that's one of the issues in telecommunication piece. And I left that meeting. I rang Andy Penn and sort of said: we've got to get the Jingellic tower up. These people need telecommunications to stay safe. But he did everything they could. Their team got a generator in, but then it was just wiped out, as those photos say. We might put them up if you haven't put them up on your social media.
JOURNALIST:
We might show [indistinct].
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
Yeah. Because everyone is trying and this is, I guess, the thing: it's very frustrating when you're on the ground having to deal with loss of home, loss of livestock, loss of business and in some cases, loss of loved ones. But to know that everybody outside with the emergency service provision is doing everything they can to get power, water, telecommunications back on the ground as soon as possible.
JOURNALIST:
And including, to wrap up today, Snowy Hydro. We spoke with Paul Broad. His team, safety first is the motto of Snowy Hydro but they've suffered damage as well and-
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
They have but thankfully, their assets are okay and of course, the worrying thing is this: as the temperature starts to increase towards the end of the week and the winds start to get a bit gusty again, Friday and Saturday in particular, Sunday as well, are going to be very dangerous – some critical days. Now, we've- I've said to the RFS whatever they need from a Federal Commonwealth perspective, we will provide. They are very prepared for the worst, but they're going to do their utmost and their best as they have this whole danger period, and we need to protect those assets. But of course, as you quite correctly say, lives are the most important thing and we’ll be working our utmost to do just that.
JOURNALIST:
Indeed.
Thank you both very much for coming in on your schedule. You're heading up to meet with Batlow [indistinct] Batlow, of course, [indistinct] Snowfields of course and the tragic loss there, with the [indistinct] industry as well.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Awful. Absolutely awful. We will rebuild. We will reconstruct and we'll do it with the state, we'll do it with local authorities, but we'll do it with local people.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
Absolutely.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
We can't say that enough. We want our local people to know that there will be the support there. We will rebuild and we'll build it even better.
JOURNALIST:
Indeed.
Ministers, thank you very much for your time. Minister for Agriculture, Bridget, thank you very much for your time.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
Great to be with you, David …
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Thanks, David.
BRIDGET MCKENZIE:
… and all the best for the coming weeks and months.
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Keep up the good work yourself, mate.
JOURNALIST:
Thank you very much.
Of course, speaking with the Deputy Prime Minister and of course the Minister for Agriculture, in the studios of Sounds of the Mountains and Radio Upper Murray.