Page 2040 - Week 07 - Thursday, 20 August 2020
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current circumstances, but I think that in governance terms there should be some other oversight of the situation, whether that be that the minister advises cabinet and the cabinet says yes or that the minister seeks the view of the standing committee on health or something. It is just so that there is somebody else in the loop. That is not a criticism of what is actually happening but a suggestion for how to make it better in the future.
Because this is the last update of this type, I again thank the minister and the staff and public health workers, who we will talk about later today, for the great work they have done in serving the people of the ACT during this crisis.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
MADAM SPEAKER: I think that Mrs Dunne and Ms Stephen-Smith have reflected the thoughts of all of us on the good work of our public health officials during this time.
Emergencies Amendment Bill 2020
Mr Gentleman, pursuant to notice, presented the bill, its explanatory statement, and a Human Rights Act compatibility statement.
Title read by Clerk.
MR GENTLEMAN (Brindabella—Manager of Government Business, Minister for Advanced Technology and Space Industries, Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Minister for Planning and Land Management, Minister for Police and Emergency Services and Minister for Urban Renewal) (10.23): I move:
That this bill be agreed to in principle.
The bill before us this morning has come about as a result of the whole-of-government review into the bushfire season earlier this year. This is one of many reviews, including an independent operational review commissioned by the ACT Emergency Services Agency, the ESA—a review which I will touch upon in my closing remarks. To help members’ consideration of the bill, I present the following papers:
2019-20 Bushfire season—
Report to the Minister for Police and Emergency Services on ACT Government coordination and response, dated 7 August 2020.
ACT Emergency Services Agency Operational Review.
As members would be aware, the 2019-20 bushfire and storm season produced some of the most unprecedented weather conditions in Australia’s history. Large parts of Australia were impacted by significant fires, with unpredictable and dangerous fire behaviour fuelled by hot, dry, windy conditions. These conditions meant that fires
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