Mr Deputy Speaker, 

As people and businesses right around the mighty Eden-Monaro manage the rise and fall of the bushfire recovery process they are committed to sharing their learnings with the wider Australian community.

Insurance has long been one of the challenges those impacted by natural disaster have faced – and the Insurance Council of Australia has played a positive role in that space.

With the first anniversary of last summer’s flames almost here, I am being approached by businesses big and small - from Kosciuszko, to the Sapphire Coast to the Snowy Valleys – businesses who simply can’t insure their properties into the future.

Either the cost is just too prohibitive, or insurance companies simply aren’t willing to take on the risk and offer a policy.

Some residents are also struggling to find insurance again for their family home.

Mr Deputy Speaker, this is a worrying trend and has the potential to undermine the very confidence and investment needed to drive jobs and renewal.

One ski resort operator I met with suggested that it might be time to bring back the Government Insurance Office to help our businesses and residents get back on track.

The Bushfire Royal Commission outlined 80 recommendations to make our nation better prepared for such emergencies.

Had the recommendations of the 240 previous disaster enquires been adopted the insurance sector might have more confidence in our future.

Longer bushfire seasons and rising sea levels are the headlines when it comes to climate change – the finer details are now being felt, the ripple effects that impact the foundations of our economy.

The time for action is long overdue both in terms of natural disaster preparedness and climate action.

The Morrison Government must read the signals and get to work.