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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 8 Hansard (20 August) . . Page.. 2965 ..

MR SMYTH (continuing):

I would simply like to close with the words of Lieutenant Colonel Don Woodland of the Salvation Army, who knows more about this matter than any of us here. Colonel Woodland said, "People seem to be locked into the physical recovery, battling red tape and insurance companies to rebuild, and have not been able to consider their emotional and spiritual needs."He is seeking a meeting with Mr Stanhope, claiming that the government's assessment that the recovery process is going well is not correct.

It is not the Liberal Party saying that, it is not I, it is an expert out of the community. That is why we have moved this motion. Paragraph (1) calls on the government not to implement the proposed Emergency Services Authority until consultation has occurred because those agencies, units, volunteers and community people out there want to be asked.

Paragraph (2) calls on the government, where appropriate, to increase services to those in the community affected by the bushfire disaster rather than decreasing or removing services. The feedback that I am getting-I have given one very concrete example of a school that has removed it-is that people cannot access these services when they need them.

Mr Stanhope said earlier that there are three counsellors and there is no waiting at the recovery centre. That is great. Let's make sure that that continues; but let's make sure that there are adequate resources for unmet need, because I know that there are people who still shake when they talk about the bushfire and have not yet started down the road to recovery.

Based on that, I have asked for the government to outline to the Assembly by the close of business tomorrow their assessment of the future needs. They have put money in the budget and they have said that they are getting on with the job. They must have based that on something. Let's see the basis of that.

Paragraph (4) calls on the government to provide suitable recognition to volunteers, emergency services personnel, et cetera. We need to do that because, as you can tell from the angst in those emails, the cry in those emails, volunteers are still suffering.

We do seek to censure the government for failing to heed the warnings. Their own reports said there should have been better education, but it was not delivered.

Preamble and paragraphs (1) to (4) agreed to.

Question put:

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