Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee, , 1:05:11 to 1:09:02
The committee examines the impact of the liquidation of Disaster Relief Australia and the interim measures being taken to replace its rapidly deployable recovery workforce for the upcoming weather season.
Topics: Public safety, Drought and disaster support
Speakers: Speaker 12, Senator Susan McDonald, Speaker 11, Mr Pat Hetherington, Unknown Speaker, Senator Jana Stewart
Um specifically, uh we know that the disaster relief Australia was liquidated on the 29th of May 2026, only two days after the last Senate estimates with NEMA on the 27th of May. Um DRA national not-for-profit organisation, which consisted of thousands of veterans and volunteers who utilise their training, their skills, their expertise and commitment for turning up to Australians at the worst of times. Given that we have recently commenced a severe high-risk weather season, what nationally scalable and rapidly deployable boots on the ground recovery workforce now exists to replace the proven capability, which was previously provided by disaster relief Australia.
I might quickly pass to Ms. Carroll to talk about some of the capabilities we can feel. But I would say at the outset, it it is it is true that we won't have a DRA style capability for this next high risk weather season in the format that you have seen with DRA. We're considering options working up some thinking around what that could look like into the future. But that's not to say that there's no capability that can be brought to bear uh across the next high risk weather season. And I might throw it Ms. Carroll to walk through some of those things, including stockpile and the like.
Thank you for that. And Senator Caterina Carroll, Deputy Coordinator General from the Emergency Response Group. First, from the outset, I would like to just say that it really is disappointing with the liquidation of DRA. They were highly regarded, deployed a number of times, particularly for cleanup, logistics, planning, management of spontaneous volunteers. So certainly there are some challenges going forward. We are doing a piece of work to see what a future capability will look like. But in the meantime, obviously doing some work to make sure that we address some of those risks and gaps. And if I could pass on to Karina Mende, please, the Assistant Coordinator General. Thank you.
Thanks, Senator Karina Mende, I'm the Assistant Coordinator General in our national capabilities branch. So as you say for the season, we're working really closely with the states on how we can support them with a whole range of recovery and response activities. So that includes things like deploying liaison and planning officers into states if that if that is helpful. We also have capabilities like the National Emergency Management Stockpile that states can call on if they need that type of capability.
That's not people though, is it, just to clarify?
It it's it has two elements to it, Senator. So we have the physical stockpile, which has you know the things in in warehouses that are ready to deploy. But um the other thing that the NEMS capability has is a panel arrangement, which is which is a little bit like a virtual kind of supermarket, um, and it has a whole lot of emergency services support that states and local government can call on as well. So it does include there are capabilities there around recovery planning, logistics, that kind of support that states or local governments could access if they needed to at fixed prices and already kind of procured and checked organizations.
On notice, if you could provide that list.
Yeah, sure.
Uh because I'm still seeking to understand the capability of DRA. Um the replacement for that.
Absolutely, Senator.
Thank you, Senator McDonald. We will return to you. We're going to Senator David Pocock.