TRANSCRIPT: SOUNDS OF THE MOUNTAINS WITH DAVID EISENHAUER, 9 NOVEMBER 2023

Subjects: Remembrance Day, Flood Recovery Funding, Regional Council Demerger Cootamundra-Gundagai

E&OE

STARTS: 8:30am

ENDS: 8:55am

DAVID EISENHAUER:

Member for the Riverina Michael McCormack, joining us on the line, Michael a very good morning to you.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Good morning, and I remember the song ‘Rain’ by New Zealand rock group Dragon, released in 1983, quite appropriate for today with the rain we had last night, the thunder and lightning, the light and sound show we had. My goodness, it was quite impressive around midnight in Wagga Wagga over the southern skies. Then of course 4 o’clock we had the hailstorm and again, this morning at 7 o’clock very heavy rain but it hasn’t had those showers in the north of the electorate. And in one sense thank goodness because they’re harvesting, of course, and hail is no good for anything. But I did get an early morning call this morning from Murray Watt, who amongst other things, is the Emergency Services Minister, and they’re extending a $50 million flood recovery for Cabonne, the Lachlan, the Forbes and the Parkes Shires and I have to say Neil Wescott, who didn’t know, but Phyllis Miller at Forbes did. The mayors there were very pleased with that information, very pleased with that announcement and better still the communities are going to lead the discussion as to how the money will be spent. So, $50 million will support the State Government’s $50 million, so that brings the flood recovery assistance for those shires that were so badly affected, up to $100 million. So that is good news.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

That is good news. That has been worrying Steph lately.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Oh, it’s been worrying us all and you know I certainly lobbied Murray Watt to match the State Government’s commitment and it’s taken a while but it’s good news, it’s being provided and he was good enough to make that early morning call. He also spoke to Phyllis so that was good and keeps Phyllis happy, so everything is good.

We had a very good catch-up last Friday night at Forbes where they thanked the medical staff there. Of course, Richard Draper is the GP of the Year, but also, just to thank the medical staff for what they do for the town and what they’ve done during these difficult times. They’ve been difficult times with COVID and all the rest. It’s actually not a bad concept that other towns could perhaps even follow just to say thanks to the pharmacists, the doctors, to the nursing staff, to all those people who do such a wonderful job for and on behalf of all these communities to keep them healthy, to keep them alive – which is a good thing, of course.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

Indeed, and we should do, we don’t say thank you enough after the work they did particularly, Michael as we know with our doctors and their hugely busy waiting rooms but also our really hard-working pharmacists who have also been going through their 60-day challenge that they put up and put up a good fight for, but it didn’t get very far.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Well, there is a sort of state of flux at the moment, many of them have cut back their hours. They have received some compensation, but it is really going to affect them when that money goes away and they really realise, the Government realises that they’ve halved their income. And you lose your community pharmacists in many places, in more than 400 communities throughout regional Australia, that’s their only frontline health service. And if you lose the community chemist and you lose that person who can provide that information, that assistance when it’s most needed. We all know how important health is, it is the number one thing in the community, and if you lose that you lose everything.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

My word, that is so true. It’s interesting to see, we’ll keep an eye on it and we do talk with local pharmacists around our region. Michael let’s have a look, the reason why we can discuss these things, we can debate issues like this, you know the 60-day prescriptions and we talk about water rights and all the things that happen in the region, is many, many years ago, lots of Australians went overseas to fight a war. We have a very special day coming up this Saturday, Remembrance Day, a lot of generations. Interesting to see we still know what it’s about, which is great news.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Indeed, and not many people realise that the minute silence, the period we stand in sombre respect and support and think about what we lost and who we lost and what sacrifices they made, it originated with Edward George Honey, who was an Australian journalist working in London at the time. And he thought it would be a good idea to have, initially a five-minute silence, cut back to 2 and now it’s 1, but still it does give people time to stop and reflect on the 60,000 plus who died in World War I and then another 10,000, well actually it was much more than that in the few years that followed – because PTSD wasn’t well known back then, shell shock and all the rest. But then of course we lost another 39,000 in World War II. There are 103,000 names on the War Memorial’s Roll of Honour. Not only that, but there are also names on every cenotaph, every obelisk, every monument, right throughout Australia, particularly in regional Australia. So many young men and women, too, in the nursing fraternity in World War I went to serve our nation and of course, let’s not forget the commitments at home, the Women’s Land Army and the efforts they made and the sacrifices by those generations. Our greatest generations who kept us safe, who kept us protected. You are right, but for those people who were prepared to lay down their lives for us, we would not enjoy the society we have today, we would not enjoy the freedom, the peace, the democracy that we have today.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

One thing I have been noticing, and I don’t know why this is, you go to clubs as a kid growing up, you go for a nice Chinese meal on a Saturday night, and suddenly The Ode would be read out. And that was a regular occurrence in our RSL clubs, every night at the Junee Services club. That doesn’t seem to happen anymore.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

It does at some, and I must admit I was with Former Governor-General Sir Peter Cosgrove the other night in a club, and it was read out…

DAVID EISENHAUER:

Oh, that’s good.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

People were talking and he very loudly and in his rather loud General’s voice said “stand fast” and we all stopped and those who were talking realised this was important and they should be quiet just for a few moments to reflect. I know it’s done in some of the clubs around the region. I will be in Junee on Saturday to commemorate Remembrance Day, it used to be called Armistice Day, I’ll be there at the 11th hour of the 11th month. And they are going to put on a very good ceremony, and they’ll be reflecting on the many men who went to serve from Junee, none less than Wilfred Knight who, of course, was the first New Zealander killed at Gallipoli and he actually lived at Junee.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

There is a lot of heritage there, and Legacy who do a wonderful job. They were well represented there on the day as well. It’s wonderful to see these continue, let’s hope they continue for many years to come Michael. We need to get a few younger members in as Legatees to help in those areas part of our RSL clubs, they are trying to survive, it’s a tough road for clubs these days and whatever field they’re in, it’s not like it was years ago. There is so much more on offer these days, but we go back to that Ode and the red light that the kids look up at and they say, “what’s that flame thing up there?”

Valmar, when they rebuilt the Valmar headquarters down here, it was the RSL Club, they kept that eternal flame going, it’s still there, it’s still lit to this day down in the carpark underneath, a very important little grotto.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Which is good and appropriate.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

My word it is. Now, let’s talk about good things, suppose keep talking about good things. Australian Agricultural Societies Council, the show society as it’s known locally, what an amazing run we’ve had throughout your electorate with these shows. I was at Junee Saturday a week ago. Record gate takings. This is across all that the shows that they can remember, the best gate they’ve ever had.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

And many of the patrons are appreciating the amenities and the infrastructure that was put in place under a Federal initiative, I know the State Government chipped in some money, too, to upgrade facilities during COVID because of course shows could not be held and weren’t held. So, at that time, money was given by Government to those shows to improve horse facilities to improve pavilions and the like. The rewards are being reaped now. I have been to a few shows this year, I went to Cootamundra, it was a great little show, Ganmain, of course was as big as it always is. This is good because shows are needed. They are very, very needed, because not only to bring communities together, but also once again underlines the importance of agriculture. And you know, a lot of kids love colouring in and doing those things and seeing their entry pinned up on the exhibition hall boards and the displays there. Sometimes, there’s just a little blue certificate that says they won something is always good for a kid and always encouraging. Whether its jams, or preserves or knitting, or whatever the case is, right across the region, those exhibition halls, mind you, they have got some great produce and some great examples of good local work.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

They do and look the prize money is something I’ve always been a bit worried about, Michael. We used to get 20 and 50 cents to win stuff, but that’s something we will work on in the future.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

It was a bag of lollies when you and I went to the show many years ago!

DAVID EISENHAUER:

We did and show bags. But they’ve changed too, I looked through the pavilion there at the Junee showgrounds and yeah it would be lovely to see a few younger ones getting involved.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

It is difficult to get volunteers in anything, whether its Rotary or sporting clubs. People should give back because that is important to keep those community things going. If we lose them, you don’t get them back. You never know the value of them until you lose them and they’re so important for our local communities. And regional communities are the best places to live, we found that out during COVID. And you know we find it out when tragedy strikes particularly. You know I would say these communities are big enough in which to get a good cup of coffee and small enough to still care. And they do. And it’s important thagt people get behind and volunteer, even if it’s the rural fire services, you know those bush fire brigades, they’re looking for people, too, as well of course with the impending Summer weather we’re going to get, all measures look like we are going to have a hot Summer. It could be a dangerous fire season, but there’s also opportunities there for people to put their name down and to give back.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

Michael, heading up towards news and sport, let’s talk about the Gundagai merger, demerger the process, it is being reset as we talked about last time, it’s a bit quiet on that front again, but I know it’s hurting the community. And I know Steph Cooke has mentioned this from the Nationals’ each time we speak, each fortnight I catch up with Steph and she’s doing her best as I know you are, too, as the Federal Member. Now what’s the story here? Tumut is having a go now, Tumut, Tumbarumba they’ve got their paperwork on the table, the Minister’s office has got that there. They’re not listening to the communities, why do you think that is?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

I do not know. I all too often think that Labor Governments don’t ever consider too much what goes on beyond the sandstone curtain that is the Great Dividing Range. All too often what happens in regional Australia, regional NSW, is forgotten by the halls of power and Macquarie Street is showing exactly that at the moment. We need to get these councils demerged. They should not have been amalgamated in the first place. I realise it was a long and ongoing debate but they shouldn’t have been married in the first place. They were and they need to be split. Gundagai and Cootamundra they’ve been through this long and arduous process and I appreciate that Tumbarumba has as well, and they do need to be demerged because the communities have asked for it, the communities have been told it's going to happen, it shouldn’t come with a huge price tag, it shouldn’t come without State Government supporting these councils, these communities. I mean look at Tumbarumba, they won the AR Bluett award for financial management about 18 months before they were told they had to merge with Tumut. And that is just so wrong when they were considered the best council for a comparative size across the state, and the next thing they are being told that they can’t run their own financial rates because you have to merge with a neighbouring council. Now, you know, it’s no wonder they protested loudly, it’s no wonder that you know the Tumbatrek became almost a vehicle for people to wear those orange T-shirts, to complain about the process. And so now the situation is such that they want to be demerged and there is a process in place and that Local Government Minister, and the Government, needs to honour that process.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

I hope that they listen. I mean the fact that Gundagai has to go back through that whole process again is just disturbing and it’s very …

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

It’s absurd and so totally wrong. And then you look at the water infrastructure situation with Rose Jackson in NSW and she’s now told us that they’re not even going to review Warragamba for the potential to raise the dam wall, and of course they’ve already said that about Wyangala, they’ve said it about Dungowan Dam, they are not interested in building water infrastructure but insultingly she says, ‘I will build better escape infrastructure so when there is a flood, they can get out of their towns quicker’. Well, that is just so, that shows no understanding, no empathy, and that’s probably the worst thing, not only that they don’t care, they don’t appreciate what country people do for the city people, they don’t understand what they do for the State’s economy.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

Well, you know full well what the fires were like at the time, and realistically you can have a book of rules that sits there year after year, but when it’s a big enough an event like that one was its fascinating how irrelevant that becomes and its escape routes and things like that, really. You know, Tumut was a good example, Tumbarumba a great example, there were no escape routes, the fire was burning in a circle. There are things that need to be looked at indeed. Now Michael, anything else you’d like to add this morning while we are chatting, I could talk a lot about emergency broadcasting and emergency services and we will next time, but anything else you’d like to bring up?

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Speaking of that, and I know I always say it but I am a big road safety advocate, but people need to be safe on the roads, just be mindful today, there has been a lot of rain, in some places there could be limbs of trees down, there could be trees down. We had a lot of rain coming down in a torrent. So just be mindful of that. Drive to the driving conditions always. Let’s get where we need to be, in one piece, safe and sound. On Saturday, please stop and observe at 11 o’clock, the service and sacrifice made by so many so we can enjoy the lifestyle we live today.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

And what a wonderful lifestyle we live today. On quick thing, you mentioned road safety, we have a police officer called Senior Constable Paul Dean with Highway Patrol has given out over 30, it would be at least probably nearly 40 push bike helmets, instead of fines, locally, to kids who haven’t got helmets they’ve got a lot of stories to tell. Mum and dad can’t afford it or whatever the case may be, but as a police officer, of course, your safety is paramount. Here’s a helmet, nearly 40 helmets this policeman has given away. What a fantastic program.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

That is very admirable and well done to him and well done to all those who put on the blue uniform and serve to protect each and every day.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

Like your family.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Indeed. We owe a debt of respect to those officers, too, because they never know what they are going to confront during the day, whether it’s domestic violence or people disobeying road rules or anything. They do what they do to protect us, to keep us safe. We should take our time to thank Police officers every day.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

My word. That is 40 little heads with helmets on bikes, scooters, whatever it may be, I know you don’t need one on a scooter but it’s good to see kids wearing them on scooters.

MICHAEL McCORMACK:

Well, you should wear them on scooters and particularly when you go to Canberra or one of the other big cities, where they’ve got those scooter programs you do have to wear it on them and you know they’re mixing with traffic and commuters so they should be wearing helmets for their own safety. It’s common sense. But the thing about common sense is that it ain’t that common.

DAVID EISENHAUER:

That is very true. Michael McCormack love catching up with you thanks for your time.

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

Thanks David, talk soon.