Tuesday, 3 October 2023

Flood recovery

Tim McCURDY (Ovens Valley) (12:58): The recent flood inquiries that have been held around the state of Victoria have continued to show the lack of support, and sheer neglect in some cases, from this Victorian government. We have heard how this tired government has let down communities in Rochester, Echuca, Seymour and Shepparton. There are many smaller communities in between who still seek answers and solutions to future flood mitigation. The previous Premier was very quick to visit and offer support to these communities, but nearly 12 months on we are still seeing many of these families homeless, waiting for planning permits and financial assistance. Like the bushfires in East Gippsland in 2019–20, we often see the Premier visiting and offering support to these communities during their hour of need and then the bureaucratic red tape blocking the real assistance going forward. One year on from these devastating floods we are seeing the same movie all over again. I urge the current Premier to visit these communities and deliver real outcomes, not just a warm handshake and a Facebook post.