Interview with Greg Jennett, ABC Afternoon Briefing

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
TELEVISION INTERVIEW
ABC AFTERNOON BRIEFING
THURSDAY, 4 AUGUST 2022

SUBJECTS: Exotic Animal Diseases Preparedness Taskforce; foot and mouth disease; lumpy skin disease; climate; support for flood communities.

GREG JENNETT, HOST: An extra layer of planning has been put in place to ward off any arrival of the devastating foot and mouth disease. Agriculture Minister Murray Watt has pulled together a federal taskforce to double check preparedness for any outbreak. It will bring together biosecurity and animal health experts and they'll do disaster simulation exercises as well.
Murray Watt joined us right here just a short time ago.

Murray Watt, great to see you again, right here in the studio. So much easier to talk to you in this environment! Why don't we step back through your latest initiative on foot and mouth disease preparedness, what is the purpose of this taskforce that you're standing up?

MURRAY WATT, MINISTER FOR AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FORESTRY: Yeah well Greg as you’re probably aware, so far we've been putting a huge amount of effort into making sure we're doing every measure possible to keep these diseases out of Australia. Our strongest ever biosecurity response as a nation, whether it be foot mats or biosecurity zones in airports and things like that.

But one of the things we need to do is make sure we're fully prepared if we do end up seeing an outbreak of foot and mouth disease or lumpy skin disease in Australia. So what I've announced today, we're establishing a new Exotic Animal Diseases Preparedness Taskforce. The reason it is called that is it's not just about foot and mouth disease, it's lumpy skin disease which affects cattle, we have African swine fever not too far out of the country as well and other things too. So what it's about is making sure as a nation we're thoroughly prepared in case an outbreak does occur.

JENNETT: So what do they practically do, are they simulating outbreaks? Other than holding meetings, what are they doing?

WATT: So basically initially the taskforce will be set up for a 4-week period for a really urgent, quick analysis of how prepared we are and where there might be gaps, whether it's at the federal level, state and territory level or industry, to provide me with advice about what more we should be doing if there is anything missing. One of the things they'll be doing is running some scenarios, so if, for instance, a farmer in western Queensland were to discover a cow with blisters around its lips or something like that, what would then happen? It's about then testing to make sure everyone understands their roles and responsibilities to make sure we're very quick to react if we do end up seeing an outbreak.

JENNETT: And do you undertake to implement any and all recommendations - obviously we know what they might be yet - but would you accept, at face value, any recommendation and act on it?

WATT: Well we deliberately set up the taskforce where it's co-led by a senior official from the Department of Agriculture, but also a senior person from our emergency management agency. And that's about making sure that we're drawing on the best expertise, whether it be biosecurity or disaster management and certainly if they have recommendations to make about where we might have deficiencies we will obviously act on that.

JENNETT: I want to get to some questions in your emergency management area around flooding and floods in New South Wales. Can I go via the climate change legislation, though? It's cleared the House, it's headed towards your team in the Senate. Against that backdrop, the Greens are locked in but they're engaged in this sort of war of words, taking pot shots with Paul Keating today. Does that threaten to fracture any agreements or any harmony between the ALP, Greens in the Senate?

WATT: I don’t think so Greg, I mean, there are people in the debate who have strong views ,but the main game here is today is a historic day in the Australian Parliament with the passage of serious climate action by a federal government, and it's a great Labor achievement that we then intend to replicate in the Senate. We can only take the Greens at their word that they'll support the legislation. Obviously we would still require one more vote and we're working actively to make sure of that. But the fact is this something the country wants. The country does want an end to the climate wars and it’s a Labor Government that is delivering it.

JENNETT: Is Adam Bandt playing with fire though, by attacking a former luminary, widely regarded, within in your party in Paul Keating?

WATT: Well I think it's important in an issue as big as this that everyone does keep cool heads and focuses on the main game which is passing legislation to make sure that Australia finally catches up with the rest of the world and achieves some serious emission reductions. That's what the legislation will do. We're very proud of it as a Labor Government and we look forward to it getting in the Senate.

JENNETT: Alright. Hard to believe so many months after the floods in northern New South Wales that we're still having to see governments, federally and in New South Wales, paying so much attention still to the clean-up there. What's the latest instalment or initiative that's coming from your level?

WATT: Yeah well we've been announcing a range of extra support ever since we took office for the Northern Rivers but some of the other regions in Australia that have experienced floods. Even this week we have announced a new round of funding particularly to assist those sort of regions around Sydney, the Hunter, those kind of areas that experienced floods recently. I'm intending to be back in Lismore very soon to make sure I've got eyes on the ground about how things are going. And of course, we recently appointed a new special envoy, Senator Tony Sheldon, who was there last weekend. The reality is a disaster of that scale that we saw in the Northern Rivers, particularly around Lismore, that will take a long time for people to recover and our message is we'll be with people very every step of the way.

JENNETT: And so is it conceivable this is not yet the last instalment, in federal funds at least?

WATT: I think it's certain that there will be more funding from both federal and New South Wales government to support the Northern Rivers region and people who experience those floods more recently. We have already committed to roll out money from that fund, the Emergency Response Fund that Scott Morrison set up and never used. There will be money coming from that and other assistance as well.

JENNETT: Alright more to look forward to, more to discuss in the future. Murray Watt, thanks for joining us again today.

WATT: Thanks Greg, good to see you.