The Committee recommends that the ACT Government conduct technology capability planning as part of the development of the Strategic Bushfire Management Plan version 5.

The Committee recommends that the ACT Government develop a Natural Disaster Strategy that covers all aspects of health to ensure continuity of access to healthcare in the event of a natural disaster.

The Committee recommends that the Multi-Hazard Advisory Council resume the Bushfire Council’s practice of providing annual reports to the Minister on bushfire preparedness ahead of every fire season.

The Inspector-General of Emergency Management recommends that the Queensland Reconstruction Authority continues to engage with councils in the development of their local resilience action plans including to identify local needs with respect to communication, connectivity, and power in suitable hubs.

The committee recommends that Treasury develop options for a levy on coal and gas extraction companies, based on the annual energy content they have extracted, from which the funds raised would be invested in disaster mitigation and resilience measures, and the cost of rising insurance.

The National Emergency Management Agency document its consideration of Crisis Arrangements Committee advice on gaps and priorities for whole-of-government exercising, as well as the annual analysis undertaken to review and update the list of identified hazards under AGCMF, to inform the development of the annual national exercise program. This should include ensuring that exercises consider both natural and all-hazard scenarios.

The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet:
- provide stronger guidance to entities in their development and updating of entity level and relevant national level crisis management policies and plans; and
- provide a formal response to the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit that outlines actions taken to address recommendation three from Report 494: Inquiry into the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's crisis management and arrangements

The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet:
- document a process for annual administrative updates that provides a consistent approach including ensuring appropriate records of engagement and input are maintained; and
- ensure significant issues are documented to be considered in comprehensive reviews of the AGCMF

That the Victorian Government increase funding and support for the Victoria State Emergency Service to enable a comprehensive upgrade of emergency communication technologies, ensure a steady supply of critical response resources, and expand volunteer recruitment and retention programs, thereby bolstering the agency’s capability to manage and respond to emergencies effectively.

To improve the management and distribution of sandbags during a flood event, that the Victorian Government:
- ensure that there is sufficient supply quantity of sandbags available for preparation for floods in a wet year.
- assess the benefits of a coordinated sandbag management system in Victoria. This system could include capacity for scalable sandbagging stations and address resource gaps in high-risk flood areas.
- ensure that emergency management plans are regularly updated to reflect current resource and logistical capabilities.
- explore options for supplementing reliance on sandbags with innovative new products such as floodgates or water inflated barriers.

That the Australian Government deliver National Climate Risk Assessments through the National Climate Service on a regular program, aligned to the Intergenerational Report.

That the Australian Government establish a mechanism within the National Climate Service to track user experience and satisfaction which gathers user needs and preferences, to guide the development of future products and services.

That the Australian Government establish the National Climate Service within the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, and consider opportunities for resource and systems sharing, potentially integrating its back office data and computational systems with Environment Information Australia.

That the Australian Government task the Climate Change Authority with a regular review of the National Climate Service against the KPIs

That the Australian Government Establish the National Climate Service, which will be available to serve all Australian governments (Commonwealth, state, territory, local) and, over time, provide information to all Australians. The National Climate Service should absorb the remaining Australian Climate Service functions (which are not transferred to the National Emergency Management Agency), and should be able to broaden its services to new users with agreement from the responsible Minister.

That the Australian Government regularly monitor against the new Statement of Expectations (refer Recommendation 4.1 and KPIs in Box 7) to ensure the National Climate Service is meeting expectations.

That the Australian Government allow the National Emergency Management Agency to make judgements about how to best meet its needs, including by managing its own tasking, data and analysis, with the ability to draw on external sources.

That the Australian Government publish all National Climate Service strategic documents by default to provide transparency on the National Climate Service’s program and timelines for implementation.

That the Australian Government transfer responsibility for operational support services for emergency management (as set out in the Australian Climate Service Operational Support Services – Service Level Agreement 2023-24) from the Australian Climate Service to the National Emergency Management Agency, to reinforce the real time connection of information and decision-making on emergency responses.

That the Australian Government require the National Climate Service to develop and publish a climate services roadmap, describing how to build to a national capability with explicit and ambitious time frames.

That the Australian Government establish the National Climate Service within the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water with arrangements that encourage the development of a separate and strong public profile.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government investigate mechanisms to require insurers to more clearly communicate the basis for the price of premiums. This could include:
- at a high level, highlighting the nature of risk for the property for each major peril type (for example, a traffic light rating system)
- last year’s premium alongside the current year’s premium, along with a descriptive analysis of why there has been a change if it is material (for example, over 10 per cent). The analysis could include highlighting different factors that may influence pricing such as changes in building costs or changes in the assessment of one or more perils, or the impact of household or community level mitigation, without attaching numerical estimates to each factor.

The Committee recommends that insurers report case management key performance indicators to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.

The Committee recommends the Australian Government consider appropriate regulatory or other mechanisms to reduce the instances of third-party builders and other contractors making changes to properties without the policyholder’s consent, including the practice of gaining entry, removing property (strip-outs) or conducting repairs without the policyholder’s knowledge or consent. Solutions should take into account the unique circumstances and challenges created by catastrophic flood events.

The Committee recommends that for each declared event, insurers be required to report the number of unresolved cases after 12 months to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and the overarching strategy for resolving these cases. This report should include the total number of outstanding claims and the most common reasons for the delay.

The Committee recommends the Australian Securities and Investments Commission publish quarterly insurer and brand level data on their performance on the metrics recommended in Recommendation 51.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Securities and Investments Commission develop and define key outcomes measures for the consumer experience, including:
- Communication (outcome measures)
o Overall customer satisfaction, such as a customer satisfaction score o Consumer comprehension of communications (random sample)
- Claims processing
o Average time taken to respond to a customer after first making an enquiry or initiating a claim
- Vulnerable customers o Proportion of customers identified as vulnerable (BAU, quarterly)
o Proportion of customers identified as vulnerable (designated events, monthly)
- Internal dispute resolution o Proportion of total cases that involved internal dispute resolution
o Average time taken to resolve internal dispute cases
- External dispute resolution
o Proportion of total cases that were referred to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority
o Success rate at the Australian Financial Complaints Authority
- Cash settlements
o Proportion of resolved cases that are final cash settlements
- Claims acceptance rates
o Percentage of claims acceptedPercentage of claims closed (at key points in time, for example 6 months, 12 months, 18 months)
- General Insurance Code of Practice Compliance Breaches of the General Insurance Code of Practice per thousand claims by clause, insurer, and brand.

The Committee recommends that legislation provide the Australian Securities and Investments Commission with sufficient data-gathering powers to obtain the information required to monitor and report on the metrics recommended in Recommendation 51.

The committee recommends that the Australian Government establish a national disaster mental health hub to coordinate and provide mental health resources, training, and support for first responders and communities affected by disasters across the nation. This hub should serve as a comprehensive resource centre for addressing the mental health needs of all stakeholders involved in disaster response and recovery efforts.

The committee recommends that the Australian Government consider how it can further support Disaster Relief Australia, and other similar organisations, not only with funding beyond 2026, but also how the Australian Government can further incorporate Disaster Relief Australia into its national disaster response arrangements and boost its numbers through partnerships with the Australian Defence Force and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.

The committee recommends that the Australian Government convene a disaster resilience mental health summit to hear from all related agencies and stakeholders to identify solutions to the mental health impacts of disaster.

The committee recommends that the Australian Government design and implement consistent national trauma-informed care principles, ensuring that first responders—both professional and volunteer—receive training and support in these national principles to better address the mental health and well-being of disaster-affected individuals and communities.

The Commonwealth should use reporting established by the Outcomes Policy to inform requirements associated with international obligations (e.g., the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction).

The Commonwealth should develop a capability, with agreed accountability measures, to capture and track all Commonwealth expenditure relating to natural disasters.
- This capability should be digitally enabled and provide the supporting architecture for the Commonwealth to collate all disaster-relevant program information and report progress against the Outcomes Policy.
- The capability should be informed by existing Department of Finance data collection arrangements.

The Commonwealth should embed regular sharing of lessons learnt from program outcomes between state and territory governments, and the Commonwealth, to develop a continuous improvement culture.

The Commonwealth should conduct a stocktake to map existing partnerships in natural disaster management across various sectors including but not limited to, construction, healthcare, infrastructure, logistics, technology, philanthropy and the charitable sector.
- This mapping should inform membership of the Disaster Management Advisory Council (Recommendation 8).

The Commonwealth should implement an enhanced national training and exercise regime that tests local capabilities, but also encourages better information sharing, continual improvement, cross-Local Government Area (LGA) and jurisdiction collaboration, and the identification of gaps or weaknesses in local disaster management capability and capacity.
- Capability and capacity should be aligned with the requirements of the Nation-wide Natural Disaster Risk Profile (Risk Profile) and the National Natural Disaster Outcomes Policy (Outcomes Policy).

The Commonwealth should seek to establish enhanced relationships with key nongovernment and private sector partners as part of reforms to the disaster management system.

The Commonwealth, via NEMA, should work with state and territory governments to adopt a leadership and oversight role in ensuring adequate capability, capacity and/or investment exists across Australia for local government and communities to adequately respond to natural disaster events, and to engage with appropriate support and funding structures.

The Commonwealth should develop a National Natural Disaster Outcomes Policy (Outcomes Policy) that describes the outcomes the Commonwealth is seeking to achieve through its disaster funding.

The capability and capacity of NEMA should be aligned with the reforms proposed by the Review.
-This includes, but is not limited to, capabilities related to policy and program design, data collection and reporting, program assurance, monitoring and evaluation and program administration.

The Commonwealth should convene a Disaster Management Advisory Council to provide a constructive view of the Commonwealth’s current disaster arrangements, outcomes, and funding options. This Council should report directly to the Minister for Emergency Management and meet regularly (minimum twice per annum) but not be considered part of the decision making or administrative process.
- A primary purpose of the Disaster Management Advisory Council should include advising on priority projects identified through the Risk Profile, and on how national outcomes could be better achieved.
- The Advisory Council should be chaired by the Coordinator-General, NEMA and be supported by a secretariat within NEMA.
- The Advisory Council should be comprised of a representative mix of government and non-government members.
- Non-government members should be representative of a broad range of knowledge holders: industry, the not-for-profit sector, academia and representation of those groups who are disproportionately impacted by disaster.
- First Nations should also be represented, with that representation drawn from existing First Nations’ governance structures, or as otherwise nominated by First Nations communities.

The committee recommends that the Australian Government announce a position on the inclusion of marine insurance in the Cyclone Reinsurance Pool.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government consider development opportunities between the Australian Volunteers Program for Samoa and the Australian Engineers Association mentoring program and other relevant Australian mentoring programs.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government highlight opportunities for Australian partnerships with Samoa through Austrade and communicate opportunities for joint ventures with Australian organisations.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government propose that road asset infrastructure resilience planning and investment frameworks be made a standing item on the Infrastructure and Transport Senior Officials’ Committee meeting agenda.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government strengthen bilateral ties with New Zealand and Samoa, particularly in relation to disaster management and infrastructure issues.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government consider options for a formal exchange program between the New Zealand National Emergency Management Agency and the Australian National Emergency Management Agency.

The National Emergency Management Agency establish monitoring and reporting arrangements that demonstrate performance against the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements’ principles.

The National Emergency Management Agency:
a. establishes targets, monitoring and reporting for the time required to complete the assurance and acquittal processes; and
b. develops procedures for finalsing claims when requested information is not provided in the timeframes established under the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements 2018 ministerial determination

The Commonwealth Government should direct the Secretaries Board to ensure the overall coherence and efficiency of the Government’s resilience efforts, spanning both the climate adaptation/disaster risk reduction and the national security domains. A Secretaries Sub-committee on Resilience should be established to support this work.

The next iteration of NEMMM’s Five Priorities for Action should be explicit and measurable, bold but achievable and focused on national outcomes, rather than outputs. They should:
- Be formulated in terms such as “By 2026 we will have established…which will have reduced…”, etc.
- Be developed through a process that includes consultations with key stakeholders, including First Nations organisations, civil society, the private sector, foundations, and key entities active in the emergency management space, such as Australian Red Cross and the National Council for Fire and Emergency Services (formerly the Australasian Fire and Emergency Service Authorities Council or AFAC).
- Be highly compelling for each jurisdiction, large and small.
- Directly address our rapidly accelerating disaster risk environment, in which we can anticipate yearly, national-scale disasters with preparedness, response, recovery and resilience occurring simultaneously, year-round.
- Include at the approval stage the initial estimates of the resourcing required to achieve the outcomes and the sources of the funding.

The National Cabinet should task Ministerial Councils to include resilience activities in their annual reporting, with the NEMMM contribution focussing on natural hazards.

At least once each year, coinciding with the production of the ANRR, the National Cabinet should evaluate progress in bolstering national resilience.

The National Cabinet should take a leadership role in coordinating resilience initatives across the Federation

The Commonwealth together with the States and Territories should identify their shared high-level resilience objectives and develop indicators to monitor national progress in achieving them. The ANRR should also provide annual updates on progress in achieving the objectives.

It is appropriate that NEMA should be able to draw on its administered funding to support implementation across jurisdictions of projects associated with delivering the five national priorities for action. NEMA should explore this option.

The ANRR should be a National Cabinet product focused on climate and disaster risk as well as other key resilience risks agreed by the Commonwealth and the jurisdictions.

The Commonwealth should identify the longer-term resourcing and organisational requirements to build coordination capacity for relief and early recovery.

The First Secretaries, on behalf of the National Cabinet, should oversee (via a subordinate Deputy Secretaries Group) the development of an annual Australian National Resilience Report (ANRR) that combines the Ministerial Council resilience reporting, existing resilience strategies in jurisdictions and new initiatives.

NEMMM’s Terms of Reference should be amended to reflect the recommendations above.

By December 2023, the Rural Fire Service should: report annually on fleet allocations to RFS Districts, and identify the ways in which fleet resources align with district-level fire risks 

By December 2023, the Rural Fire Service should: develop performance measures to assess the performance and capabilities of the fleet in each RFS District by recording and publicly reporting on: fire response times and fire response outcomes; and, completions of fire hazard reduction works.

The Inspector-General of Emergency Management recommends Queensland Fire and Emergency Services review the Queensland Emergency Alert Manual – M.1.174 in its entirety by 1 November 2023. The manual should specifically address the authorising environment, legislative obligations and the capability and complexities of the Emergency Alert system.

The Inspector-General of Emergency Management recommends that Queensland Fire and Emergency Services review and update the State Disaster Risk Report, including re-evaluating the risk of flooding by all types. Queensland Fire and Emergency Services should publish the updated State Disaster Risk Report by 1 November 2023.  

The Inspector-General of Emergency Management recommends Queensland Fire and Emergency Services review the Queensland Emergency Alert Manual – M.1.174 in its entirety by 1 November 2023. The manual should specifically address the authorising environment, legislative obligations and the capability and complexities of the Emergency Alert system.

We recommend that DEWLP and CFA (in consultation with FRV) develops financial reporting to monitor fuel management costs and estimate future costs.

We recommend that DEWLP and CFA (in consultation with FRV) systemically documents and publicly reports reasons why it does not complete planned burns.

The Inspector-General for Emergency Management recommends that the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (or the single entity referenced in Recommendation 4) – in conjunction with legislated fuel management organisations – develop a common set of objectives, metrics and reporting requirements for fuel management that form part of a compulsory regime that enables the Victorian Government to report publicly on a holistic fuel management program. The reporting requirements should:
a) apply to all organisations with a legislated role in fuel management; across public and private land (all land tenures); and at all levels – state, regional and municipal
b) include residual risk where appropriate - however, complementary metrics should be developed if residual risk cannot be determined. 

The Australian Government should establish accountability and assurance mechanisms to promote continuous improvement and best practice in natural disaster arrangements. 

Documenting results and recommendations from disaster recovery tests.

A single point of truth be established for accurately capturing and reporting on disaster management group activation levels for any given timeframe. 

The Department of Housing and Public Works should be included within Local Disaster Management Group evacuation centre planning and plans and assist with decision making around the relocation of evacuees from evacuation centres.

Where safety-lamps are used the lock should be of such a character as to prevent any workman opening it. If the "Protector" type of lamp be employed the necessity for a lock is the less necessary, as the unscrewing of this type of lamp extinguishes the light. 

Complete sets of daily-report books should be provided, and kept in the mine or office, to be overlooked by the Inspector during his periodical visits.

A measure of safety may be found in the use of high explosives combined with wet tamping, or, still better, water cartridges, instead of powder under any of its modifications. Encouragement ought also to be given to the use of patent multiple wedges and applicances of a like nature, for supplanting the use of explosives. Under all circumstances and conditions some provision should be adopted for compelling workmen to thoroughly undercut, shear, or nick, and generally to work the coal as directed by the Manager. 

I recommend that: the Commonwealth Attorney-General and ASIO confer with the Australian Psychological Society regarding the restrictions in clause A 5 2 of the Code of Ethics (2007) with respect to radicalisation, terrorism and politically motivated violence; and the Australian Psychological Society consider amending clause A 5 2 of the Code of Ethics (2007) to enable psychologists to report risks of a terrorist nature.

I recommend that the Commonwealth Attorney-General liaise with ASIO to develop a policy to ensure that where correspondence is received by a government agency, minister or public office holder, from a non government entity, and that correspondence is relevant to the security assessments of the author, the correspondence be referred to: ASIO; and a Fixated Threat Assessment Centre.

I recommend that ASIO liaise with the Fixated Threat Assessment Centre with a view to both agencies cooperating in the identification, assessment and management of fixated, radicalised individuals.

Personal protective equipment (masks, gowns, gloves, goggles) – enhance stocktake methods.

Review temporary bridge stockpile for adequacy (DSG).

Personal protective equipment (masks, gowns, gloves, goggles) – review supply/distribution arrangements.

The report recommends that regional summary reports of clinical reviews be standardised to facilitate review and comparison across regions.

The report recommends that Ambulance Tasmania collects data to allow regular and meaningful comparison of clinical outcomes at the regional level, to better allocate resources and to rapidly identify problems.

The report recommends that Ambulance Tasmania outline what KPIs are measured and provide targets or benchmarks to define what is good or poor performance.

The committee recommends that the Australian Government: • recognise that climate change has increased fire conditions in south-eastern Australia and the risk to natural and cultural values in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area; and • report annually to the World Heritage Committee on the state of conservation in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area.

The committee recommends that the Australian Government recognise the need to enhance protection and conservation efforts in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area by allocating increased funding:
• to the Parks and Wildlife Service, Tasmania, for appropriate management activities and resources; and
• for research projects aimed at providing qualitative and quantitative data specific to climate-related and ecological threats to the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (such as dry lightning strike).

The committee recommends that the Australian Government commit to long-term funding for the the National Aerial Firefighting Centre of an amount that is at least equal to government's current contribution, rising in line with the Consumer Price Index

The committee recommends that the Australian Government, in conjunction with state and territory governments, investigate a national remote area firefighting capability, to support Australian fire agencies.

SACFS and the BoM review current weather, fuel loads and curing rates to determine the most appropriate and accurate forecast is prepared, issued and validated against current conditions.

To provide improved oversight and assurance in its administration of the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements, the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) recommends that the Attorney‐General’s Department:
(a) obtain project level information from states and territories to enable more informed analysis of claim amounts; and
(b) implement a risk‐based approach to examining the eligibility and value for money of a sample of recovery and reconstruction projects.

The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) recommends that the Attorney‐General’s Department significantly improve the administration of disaster relief and recovery funding by:
(a) adopting more timely processes for developing, finalising and promulgating disaster funding guidelines and advisories; and
(b) implementing administrative arrangements that provide it with greater details of the amounts included in expenditure claims, including project specific information.

Within three years, the Australian Government should develop and implement a framework for untied grants for community recovery assistance to state and territory governments. This framework should take into account factors such as the type, location and scale of a disaster, and the number of people affected.

The ANAO recommends that the Department of Defence take steps to strengthen the priority afforded by Defence units to meeting these reporting requirements.

St John Ambulance should develop quantitative performance targets for community paramedics and report these to Western Australia Health

Western Australia Health should require service providers to report more comprehensive performance data using additional cost and clinical indicators

Western Australia Health should include in contracts minimum standards for emergency and secondary ambulance services and effective mechanisms to monitor these

That Government agencies work closely with the Bureau of Meteorology and radio stations that broadcast emergency service announcements, to ensure the earliest possible determination of, and communications about, dangerous bushfire conditions.

That the Department of Health publicly reports a comprehensive suite of performance information, including:
- response performance across all priority codes, including Code 2 (urgent) incidents and against response targets
- results of clinical audits and reviews

That the Department of Health enhances management reporting processes over complaints by recording the number and nature of complaints, following up outstanding complaints formally and reporting complaints data to executive management.

That the Queensland Police Service Commissioner addresses the situation regarding statistical reporting. The Commissioner, in collaboration with the Chief Executive Officer Portfolio Business and the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service Commissioner should also examine the opportunity to acquire the services of a qualified and experienced Chief Information Officer or Chief Digital Officer in line with other Queensland and Australian government agencies.

Recommendation: That the CEO Portfolio Business collaborates with the two portfolio Commissioners to:
- develop an analytical tool to identify the most appropriate level of service
- identify the need for new or enhanced services
- reduce the level of resources where appropriate
- identify current anomalies regarding service delivery and therefore opportunities for rationalisation of stations
- consider collocation with other services as a first principle before committing to new capital projects.

The Chief Executive Officer Portfolio Business establishes a set of performance indicators to provide a transparent process for government to monitor its performance.

That Queensland Corrective Service continues to develop its proposed recidivism index as a priority, including place and program based measures.

That should the Mobile Strategy in its current form be approved by government the CEO Portfolio Business and the Deputy Commissioner Operations:
- monitor the success of the mobility strategy
- report on a quarterly basis to government on the achievement of the identified saving presented as part of the mobility strategy business plan (1414 FTE $174 million)
- report on the achievement of the increased frontline police numbers from this initiative of 1,587 FTE on a quarterly basis.

That Queensland Corrective Service, in consultation with key partners in the criminal justice and social services sectors, develops specific performance indicators focused on efficiencies and customer/stakeholder outcomes across the criminal justice system.

That the roll-out of the mobile service program business case mentioned earlier
- Be specific about gateways and milestones; and
- If the new technology enables improved data, the Queensland Police Service revisit previous statistical reporting and identify any major anomalies.

The committee recommends that in relation to mandatory and confidential reporting, the default position should be that no identifying details should be provided or disclosed. However, if there is a clear risk to safety then the ATSB, CASA and industry representatives should develop a process that contains appropriate checks and balances.

The committee recommends that where a safety action has not been completed before a report being issued that a recommendation should be made. If it has been completed the report should include details of the action, who was involved and how it was resolved.

The committee recommends that the ATSB prepare and release publicly a list of all its identified safety issues and the actions which are being taken or have been taken to address them. The ATSB should indicate its progress in monitoring the actions every 6 months and report every 12 months to Parliament.

To strengthen its oversight of Queensland reconstruction progress, the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO)  recommends that the National Disaster Recovery Taskforce:
(a) monitor revisions to scheduled project completion dates, and raise with the Queensland Reconstruction Authority any issues and anomalies, as appropriate; and
(b) adopt a more pro‐active approach to requesting timely progress and completion reporting documentation from the Queensland Reconstruction Authority according to planned and reported actual completion dates.

The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) recommends that the Australian Government Reconstruction Inspectorate and the National Disaster Recovery Taskforce seek to maximise the benefits from their value for money review activities by obtaining more timely and comprehensive information on project progress and completion from the Queensland Reconstruction Authority, to enable the preliminary value for money assessments to be finalised based on the scope and cost of works that were actually delivered (rather than estimates).

The Australian Government coordinate the development of a highly skilled workforce which can respond effectively to a sustained pandemic in Australia.

The Commonwealth Government support the growth of vaccine development and production capacity for vaccines in Australia, to enhance Australia’s preparedness to respond to outbreaks of infectious disease in Australia, and in particular, pandemic influenza.

Having regard to the terms of the Torres Strait Treaty, the Department of Health and Ageing, Queensland Health, AusAID and the Papua New Guinea Government:
- establish a set of protocols and procedures for the identification and treatment of tuberculosis and other infectious diseases in Papua New Guinea and the Torres Strait Islands; and
- consider what clinical services should be available in both Papua New Guinea and Australia for the identification and treatment of tuberculosis and other infectious diseases.

The Australian Government work with the state and territory governments to assess the viability of providing a centralised refugee and migrant health service in each state and territory, which would automatically refer people who move from immigration detention into the wider Australian community.

The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) recommends that the Department of Regional Australia, Local Government, Arts and Sport improve its monitoring of the delivery of the Natural Disaster Recovery Work Plans for Queensland and Victoria by:
(a) seeking from each state the project level data that is required to report to Ministers on reconstruction progress in the manner required by each National Partnership Agreement (or as may otherwise be agreed); and
(b) undertaking analysis of relevant data that has been reported by each state over time to identify significant trends and other matters of importance, and updating this analysis as and when further data is reported.

The Territory and Municipal Services Directorate, as part of its Bushfire Operations Plan monitoring and reporting, should assess and publicly report on cumulative progress against broader outcomes identified in the Regional Fire Management Plans and the Strategic Bushfire Management Plan.

I recommend that the Commonwealth ensure that there is a mooring buoy which will enable the mooring of SIEVs to take place and free up the Christmas Island response vessel for ongoing surveillance duties. 

I recommend that the Commonwealth liaise closely with representatives of the Christmas Island VMRS prior to purchasing or replacing any vessels for the VMRS in the future. 

I recommend that the Commonwealth and the Shire of Christmas Island take steps to ensure that the Ethel Beach boat ramp is significantly upgraded, that it should be provided with shelter in the form of a rock groyne or similar buffer and that provision should be made so that a person can walk beside the ramp on a stable footing; or If this is not considered likely to be effective in providing an appropriate means of deploying a rescue vessel in adverse conditions, such other action be taken as is necessary to ensure that there is a means of deploying a rescue vessel in adverse conditions. 

The Ministers for Emergency Services, Environment and Police ensure their departments include in their annual reports the expenditure they have incurred on preparing their staff for critical incidents, and for managing their response to these incidents.

Housing should use risk based analysis of its tenant and property information, job order data and quality assurance results to better inform target setting for KPIs, job order controls, and the sampling used for completed work inspections before and after payment. This analysis should synthesise information from all sources and include a risk assessment of tenants and properties, as well as consideration of the various types of maintenance work being done (emergency, priority and routine, and planned maintenance).

Housing should further develop its Head Contractor key performance indicators to include quality, cost and tenant satisfaction. Currently performance reporting is focused entirely on timeliness indicators.

That the Department of Sustainability and Environment continue to invest in the auditing of Victoria’s levee systems, both public and private, so that the Victoria Flood Database contains reliable and up to date data, including information on levees’ location, height, condition and ongoing viability for flood protection.

Carriers, councils and the Australian Communications and Media Authority should take into account the risk of flooding when considering the placement of telecommunications facilities.

An equipment replacement schedule for all Bushfires NT equipment be developed.

The Assets and Equipment Register be reviewed prior to each fire season.

Implement maintenance schedules for all common assets and shared equipment.

Update the Asset and Equipment Register for all assets and equipment.

Conduct a stocktake of all assets and equipment in all regions for Bushfires NT and Volunteer Brigades.

Conduct a stocktake of all PPE and implement a top up program to bring all PPE to a fully operational standard.

Upgrade to the Bureau’s supercomputing capacity:
(a) Status quo
(b) Step change
(c) Further enhancements

Boost the Bureau’s flood warning capacity by:
(a) Increasing the number of frontline hydrologists
(b) Upgrading the flood monitoring system

Cease or reduce the Ionospheric Prediction Service or offer it as a commercial service.

Additional frontline meteorologists and specialised centres and systems:
(a) Enhanced severe weather units
(b) National extreme weather centres
(c) Integrated all-hazards decision system
(d) Enhanced observation network

Boost the number of frontline meteorologists to build response capacity in regional forecasting centres.

Centralise media services and establish protocols for media activity.

Lower yield options identified by the Bureau:
(a) Reduce staffing at remote observing stations
(b) Close the training facility at Broadmeadows, Victoria
(c) Consolidate forecasting functions for Northern Queensland
(d) Outsource the Bureau’s library

Explore options to limit forecaster intervention in site-specific web forecasts.

Lower yield options identified by the Bureau:
(a) Reduce staffing at remote observing stations
(b) Close the training facility at Broadmeadows, Victoria
(c) Consolidate forecasting functions for Northern Queensland
(d) Outsource the Bureau’s library

Explore use of social media to enhance data gathering from authorised and informal sources and to disseminate weather information

Complete workforce planning project and succession plans as a matter of urgency.

Fund delivery of improved seasonal forecasting services by:
(c) Identifying potential offsets from government beneficiaries of any additional investment in seasonal forecasting services
(d) Undertaking market research to establish industry willingness to pay for enhanced seasonal forecasting services

Improved seasonal forecasting capabilities: 
(a) Improved presentation of existing products
(b) Enhanced capability – keeping pace with international standards

Focus the Bureau’s evolving environmental information role on natural hazards in the first instance.

Phase out seasonal prediction development and modelling and rely on products generated elsewhere

The Committee recommends that the Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation immediately establish a joint industry-Government action group to address evidence of the rising costs and market failure of insurance premiums across Australia.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government investigate ways to reduce the cost of calling 1300 numbers from mobile telephones in areas of natural disasters.

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government work with the Insurance Council of Australia to make the following amendments to the General Insurance Code of Practice by 1 July 2012:
- remove the clauses that set aside the Code standards in times of disasters;
- require insurers to refrain from advising policyholders against making a claim under their insurance policy, and incorporate a ‘right to claim’ so that policyholders who contact their insurer about their eligibility to make a claim are offered the opportunity to lodge a claim and have it assessed fully;
- ensure that a full explanation of the claims-handling process, including the right to escalate decisions to internal dispute and external dispute resolution systems, is given when policyholders lodge a claim;
- ensure that an acknowledgement of the claims lodgement, contact details of the claims officer, and expected timeframes for the claims-handling process are provided to policyholders in writing;
- require that copies of external expert reports used in the determination of a claim to be provided to claimants within 10 days of request; and
- introduce the following minimum standards for claims handling in times of exceptional circumstances such as declared disasters:
⇒ a timeframe for informing claimants of the progress of the claim;
⇒ a timeframe for advising claimants if an external expert has been appointed;
⇒ assurance that external experts are fully qualified to undertake assessments;
⇒ an undertaking to provide claimants with information about the qualifications, employer, and role of external experts that are appointed to assist with their claim;
⇒ a maximum timeframe of 12 weeks for external experts to provide reports;
⇒ a maximum timeframe for accepting or denying a claim;
⇒ a timeframe for responding to requests for information;
⇒ an undertaking to communicate all decisions about insurance claims to the claimant in writing with clear and explicit reasons relating to their particular claim; and
⇒ a timeframe for informing claimants of the progress of their complaint or dispute.

The Board of Tourism WA should take action to ensure that it reviews the quality of Board papers that are submitted to it by the executive of Tourism WA.

the state and commonwealth undertake a review into the appropriate institutional arrangements for the forecasting and predictions function currently undertaken by Melbourne Water for the Port Phillip and Westernport region.

the Bureau of Meteorology adjust its flood prediction models to incorporate water storage conditions (to enable it to issue more timely and useful flood predictions for communities based downstream of water storages).

the Bureau of Meteorology undertake a review of its radar coverage in the context of flash and riverine flood warnings for Victoria, with a particular focus on known gap areas such as the Horsham/Nhill region.

the state review the potential for National Registration and Inquiry System 6 to provide a single point of information collection to both register individuals and plan the delivery of recovery services. If the review determines National Registration and Inquiry System 6 is unable to fulfil this function, the state should work with the commonwealth and other states to implement the necessary changes to National Registration and Inquiry System 6. If National Registration and Inquiry System 6 is unable to be developed as a single information collection system: the state should develop and implement a single point of information collection system, including how information obtained from outreach activities can be incorporated into this system and how such information may be linked into the Rapid Impact Assessment process.

the Bureau of Meteorology should present water levels in both local datum and Australian Height Datum (gauge zero) for all its published information and warnings

the commonwealth consider including (as part of its review of standards for aged care services) requirements for: • robust ‘all hazards’ evacuation plans that include current after-hour contact details of people who are able to make authoritative decisions during an emergency; and • rehearsal of those plans.

the state and the Bureau of Meteorology liaise to ensure the existence of appropriate quality control processes for gauges and contingency measures in the event that gauges are damaged during flood events.

the Bureau of Meteorology expand its volunteer amateur weather watch groups to enhance its weather and flood information gathering procedures.

the state engage with the Bureau of Meteorology to establish a joint initiative to review existing flash flood warning systems in Victoria and identify where additional systems are needed, with a particular focus on urban centres with a history of flash flooding. This review should seek to achieve outcomes similar to those implemented in NSW. Subject to those outcomes being implemented, the state should determine which agency is responsible for flash flood warnings.

the Bureau of Meteorology provide Incident Control Centres with real-time access to flood data held by the Bureau of Meteorology. This will require Bureau of Meteorology staff making themselves available to respond to enquiries from Incident Control Centres during a flood event.

The Fire Services Commissioner requests the Federal Government to revise the National SEWS Guidelines

The Committee recommends that Parliament establish a standing committee for natural disasters. The purpose of this committee would be to ensure that Government agencies and emergency services are fully prepared to deal with natural disasters and to provide an opportunity for Members of Parliament, as opposed to Cabinet, to have input into disaster management.

That the Queensland Reconstruction Authority consider extending the suite of internal performance indicators being used as the Authority matures.

NOPSA should:
a) maintain effective policies and procedures that ensure that NOPSA inspectors and other decision makers interpret and apply the OPGGS legislation and NOPSA’s policies fairly and consistently in similar circumstances; and
b) periodically examine consistency in regulatory decision making and the exercise of regulatory powers, for example, by audits or surveys.

To ensure that NOPSEMA is in a strong position to perform its functions effectively:
a) NOPSA (and NOPSEMA) should continue and strengthen ongoing, constructive engagement, directly and through their representatives, with the industry and the offshore workforce;
b) agreed legislative changes should be given priority attention, including the issues of when its jurisdiction ceases to apply and the proposed updating of the compliance tools available to it under the legislation;
c) consideration should be given to providing for the recovery of costs for NOPSA’s work undertaken on a safety case that is formally submitted but (a) withdrawn before a decision is made on it, or (b) rejected.

In order to improve the effectiveness of National Offshore Petroleum Safety and Environmental Management Authority (NOPSEMA), with similar benefits for State or Territory regulators, attention should be given to the following actions.
a) Ministers should consider developing an overarching national understanding under which Commonwealth and State or NT regulators are expected to work cooperatively in respect of a large or complex Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage (OPGGS) project or activity that requires their regulatory attention in their respective jurisdictions.
b) The aim of that cooperation would be to ensure that, as far as possible:
i. information about such projects is shared,
ii. regulatory actions are co-ordinated under a regulatory plan relating to the project or activity;
iii. approvals and other necessary steps in each jurisdiction occur speedily, 
iv. possible regulatory gaps or inconsistencies arising from the crossjurisdictional nature of the project or activity are identified and addressed; and
v. there is continuous improvement in the cooperative regulatory inter-action.
c) The understanding would provide a framework for MOUs or similar arrangements between regulators and provide accountability by requiring annual reporting to Ministers on:
i. the OPGGS projects or activities that had come within the scope and application of the MOUs or similar arrangement;
ii. how well the MOUs or other arrangements were working;
iii. what action had been taken or should be taken to improve regulatory cooperation;
iv. whether any significant regulatory gaps or inconsistencies had been identified.
d) To allow for a smooth transition to the Ministerial understanding and supporting regulatory cooperation, the understanding should be developed for early consideration by Ministers.

In developing and improving its policies and practices for stakeholder engagement, NOPSA should ensure that:
a) they are underpinned by a clearly stated commitment to representative, tripartite and consultative engagement (this could be included in a service charter 5);
b) a clear program for stakeholder engagement be developed and implemented as part of NOPSA’s Annual Operating Plan, with appropriate preliminary scoping of stakeholder needs and issues and the outcomes of such engagement analysed and reported to the Advisory Board

That a national agency sponsored by the Commonwealth Government be established to undertake national coordination of flood risk management and to operate the system of premium discounts and the flood risk reinsurance facility. The Agency would:
• coordinate flood mapping across the country (while leaving responsibility for undertaking flood mapping in the hands of State and Territory governments and local authorities);
• introduce national guidelines for flood risk mapping and classifications, prepared in consultation with producers and users of flood risk information;
• act as a national repository of flood risk information, primarily through collating and analysing information collected by others;
• continue development of the Insurance Council of Australia’s National Flood Information Database or an equivalent developed by the Agency;
• monitor the effectiveness of flood risk mitigation initiatives across the country and advise on priorities for flood risk mitigation;
• publish and disseminate flood risk information in forms appropriate to various groups of users; and
• oversee the quality of flood risk information.

That an agency sponsored by the Commonwealth Government be created to manage the national coordination of flood risk management and to operate a system of premium discounts and a flood risk reinsurance facility, supported by a funding guarantee from the Commonwealth.

The committee recommends the Commonwealth Government require guaranteed access to emergency call services for people with a disability at all times.

The Commonwealth, states and territories continue to pursue the National Action Plan to Reduce Bushfire Arson in Australia, giving priority to producing a nationally consistent framework for data collection and evaluating current and proposed programs in order to identify and share best-practice approaches.

The Department of Human Services should create evaluation guidelines for recovery operations, including links to planning. 

The Government should examine the scope for a single environment plan to meet the regulatory requirements of both the OPGGS Act and the EPBC Act. This could possibly be achieved by way of bilateral agreements and accreditation arrangements and/or legislative amendment.

The proposal of the Productivity Commission’s Research Report (Review of Regulatory Burden on the Upstream Petroleum (Oil and Gas) Sector, April 2009) to establish a NOPR should be pursued at a minimum.

The body established to undertake a central coordination and facilitation role in the event of any future blowout in Commonwealth waters should undertake to make all relevant information publically available from one, authoritative and easy to access source.

A single, independent regulatory body should be created, looking after safety as a primary objective, well integrity and environmental approvals. Industry policy and resource development and promotion activities should reside in government departments and not with the regulatory agency. The regulatory agency should be empowered (if that is necessary) to pass relevant petroleum information to government departments to assist them to perform the policy roles.

In any future similar blowout or offshore emergency situation, the Minister appoint (through either a NOPR or the relevant Department) a senior public servant to establish and oversight a central coordinating body that will facilitate interaction between regulators, industry, AMSA and the owner/operator. Primary responsibility for stopping a blowout should remain with the owner/operator but should be subject to direction from the central coordinating body in consultation with stakeholders (including the owner/operator).

The successful installation of every barrier should be the subject of written verification within and between licensees and rig operators; and should be the subject of explicit reporting to the relevant regulator(s).

In carrying out a review of PTTEPAA’s permit and licence, the Minister should have regard to this Report, particularly (i) the adverse findings set out in this Chapter; and (ii) the extent to which PTTEPAA has implemented the Action Plan submitted to the Inquiry, or otherwise addressed the matters canvassed in this Report.

The Minister should appoint a senior policy adviser to investigate and report on the best means to implement the recommendations contained in this Chapter 3 of this report.

In the future, and in the interests of ensuring that all possible well control options are comprehensively pursued to exhaustion, decisions as to well control response options should be the result of collaboration between the regulator and the operator rather than leaving one party to make unilateral judgements as to the appropriateness of various well control operations. The regulator should provide transparent and contemporaneous explanations to the public of all well control options under consideration at any particular time.

Licensees should be subject to an express obligation to inform regulators of problems which arise in the course of installing barriers, even if they consider that well integrity is not thereby compromised. The information should be provided by way of special report, rather than included in a standard reporting document (such as a DDR). The information provided should include risk assessment details.

For the purposes of that review, the Minister should issue a ‘show cause’ notice to PTTEPAA under s 276 of the OPGGS Act.

In the meantime, the Minister should:
a. consider revoking the existing delegation to the Director of Energy, NT DoR providing the functions and powers of the DA under the OPGGS Act and Regulations specified in item 1 of the Schedule to that instrument (the Minister’s DA powers and functions) and transferring this delegation to either NOPSA, RET, or a DA from another state;
b. enquire into whether the other DAs to whom he has delegated his functions and powers relating to well integrity are adequately fulfilling their roles; and
c. consider amendments to the OPGGS Act to enable DAs to be given direction as to the performance of their regulatory roles.

OSCPs should be endorsed by AMSA prior to regulatory approval to ensure that they align with the National Plan. Once field operations commence, the capability of operators should be assessed against their plans, and exercises conducted to ensure the plans remain effective.

Responsibility for well integrity should be moved to NOPSA (as also proposed by the Productivity Commission).

The Commonwealth co-ordinate a standing national arson forum between fire and law enforcement agencies to be held every two years.

The Commonwealth Government examine potential new arrangements for Commonwealth involvement in the development and implementation of a national policy for bushfire management.

The Commonwealth publish all fuel reduction plans and related audit findings on a national database.

Reports on the training exercises should be retained in an appropriately secured central repository so that consolidated results of the exercises can be drawn together effectively. 

The Department of Premier and Cabinet and Victoria Police, in consultation with departments, should standardise reporting on training exercises conducted under Part 6 of the Act and the CIP framework to promote greater consistency and to enable better identification of lessons learned and continuous improvement.

The Department of Premier and Cabinet should lead the development of a performance management framework for measuring, monitoring and reporting on the implementation of Part 6 of the Act and the CIP framework. The framework should include key indicators, targets and reporting arrangements for assessing the extent to which departments, agencies and industry have fulfilled their obligations, as well as measures for monitoring achievement of joint objectives.

The ANAO recommends that the Business Continuity, Crisis Management and Security Sub committee:
(a) endorse an annual program of scheduled testing for business continuity plans, including relevant Disaster Recovery Plans for all services and systems assessed by the agency as being business critical; and
(b) receive performance reports on the completion and key results of plan testing.

The ANAO recommends that Centrelink develop and promulgate a business continuity plan (BCP) template and require business units to develop BCPs that identify:
(a) risks to the business/service and their impact, based on the respective business impact analysis; and
(b) risk treatments and business resumption tasks to manage these risks, which can then be tested on a regular basis.

In order to identify key business processes and provide for the regular comparative assessment of Maximum Allowable Outage periods (MAOs), the ANAO recommends that Centrelink:
(a) commission a formal Business Criticality Review of its operations, including National Support Office, Area Offices and its service delivery channels; and
(b) establish a process for the annual review and endorsement of MAOs determined by branches to ensure that they represent a collective view on the relative criticality of the services that Centrelink provides.

To improve the governance arrangements for business continuity management (BCM) in Centrelink ,the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO)
recommends that:
(a) the recently constituted Business Continuity, Crisis Management and Security Sub committee be provided with regular reports on IT business continuity
issues; and
(b) Centrelink review existing BC and risk management planning and implementation activities to identify areas where coordination and collaboration could be further improved.

The ANAO recommends that Centrelink:
(a) develop performance measures against which its business continuity management preparation and response can be regularly monitored and assessed by the Business Continuity, Crisis Management and Security Sub-committee; and
(b) provide reports to the Business Continuity, Crisis Management and Security Sub-committee on the findings and implementation of there commendations of post–implementation review reports on business continuity incidents, including IT-related incidents.

ACTAS should establish a clinical information database that:
• enables the tracking and analysis of patient care records;
• facilitates improvements to the clinical care of patients; and
• provides an evidence based dataset to inform the future planning of the delivery of ambulance services.

ACTAS should implement systems to enable the accurate collection and measurement of non-emergency ambulance service bookings to facilitate monitoring of performance and the provision of accurate advice to Government.

ACTAS should log all emergency calls on CAD to document non-ambulance dispatch decisions, and to provide more complete data on demand.

ACTAS should develop a comprehensive performance management framework that includes key performance indicators and targets aligned to its service delivery activities, to help inform management and stakeholders of its performance.

ACTAS should develop a set of standards to measure and monitor patient satisfaction, so that improvements to the service can be made, based on patient satisfaction information.

That the nominated marine safety authority is required to ensure that incident notification and data recording requirements for Victorian commercial ports are consistent and adhered to.

That the nominated marine safety authority, in consultation with the Emergency Services Commissioner and senior emergency services personnel, is responsible for monitoring the implementation and auditing against appropriate performance standards, risk management guidelines and good practice guidelines.

The Bureau of Meteorology contact list for severe weather warning be strategically managed in consultation with Emergency Service Organisations, to identify critical contacts. The Bureau of Meteorology must ensure the detail for these critical contacts remains up to date.

That all information pertaining to current and planned prescribed burns be published more prominently on the Department of Sustainability and Environment’s website, with a single prominent link to this material on the website homepage.

That the details of any variation or amendment of a Fire Operations Plan, including: the carrying forward or postponement of burns within the three-year period covered by a Fire Operations Plan; the carry over, removal or rescheduling of burns between past, present and future Fire Operations Plans; and the alteration of burn boundaries (including alterations of less than 25 per cent); should appear on the Department of Sustainability and Environment’s website at the time of the change and be included in the Fire Operations Plan for the following year.

That finalised Fire Operations Plans be made publicly available in their entirety (with the exception of any private information) on the Department of Sustainability and Environment’s website and in hard-copy, and that this requirement be clearly stated in future Codes of Practice. This should include the “district burns list”, or its future equivalents, and a map which shows the corresponding burns for each Fire District. Each map should be provided in a format which can be downloaded directly from the Department’s website without the need for further data manipulation by the user. An identical hardcopy version of the map for each Fire District should be also be available to members of the public on request and free of charge.

That the Department of Sustainability and Environment, Department of Primary Industries, Parks Victoria & VicForests separately cost, and report, annual expenditure on fuel reduction burning, ecological burning and regeneration burning in their Annual Reports.

The Department of Sustainability and Environment should report its performance against the increased prescribed burning target in its annual report, which should also include the following details:
- the total area treated within each fuel management zone for each region;
- the total number of burns conducted within each fuel management zone for each region; and
- the extent to which planned ecological and fuel reduction outcomes were met for prescribed burns within each fuel management zone for each region (e.g. a summary of the results of the post-burn assessments to be conducted in accordance with recommendation 2.3 above).

That the Minister for Emergency Services and the Minister for Local Government cause local council plant and equipment that is suitable for use in bushfire fighting be fitted with radios connected to the Government Radio Network.

QFRS introduce a system to collate and analyse performance information for use in management reporting and to support effective decision making processes. 

The current KPI measures used by the Regulator and industry need to be reassessed and the performance indicators need to be related to the risk profiles of the industry. The industry needs to develop the indicators, which need to be agreed and measured by the industry in discussion with other stakeholders. The KPI's selected should be published in comparison with the worldwide offshore industry and with other industries. NOPSA should continue discussions with Australian Safety and Compensation Council (ASCC) with a view to adopting their goals. 

The role of the advisory Board, namely to give advice to Ministers and NOPSA when asked, should be made clear to Board members and all stakeholders. The Board and NOPSA should consider the need for a clear description of who does what based on the legislated responsibilities of the NOPSA CEO.

That facilities for the unloading and transferring of horses at Tullamarine Airport in Melbourne be constructed urgently, upon advice of experts in biosecurity containment, to enable adequate biosecurity precautions to be taken effectively and to minimise the risk of injury to horses and those handling them.

That each government controlled and operated quarantine station have sufficient staff to carry out properly all activities and measures required by the current operating procedures dealing with the quarantine of horses.

That the officer responsible for the importation of horses prepare a report to the Executive Director of AQIS that:
(a) identifies (by category) all non-AQIS personnel involved in the importation of horses, including post-arrival quarantine, from countries other than New Zealand
(b) identifies the requirements in respect of biosecurity that AQIS has of those people
(c) identifies the source of those requirements—for example, by import conditions, agreement or understanding, whether formal or informal, with AQIS, and compliance agreement under s. 66B of the Quarantine Act 1908
(d) assesses whether compliance with those requirements can be and is adequately being enforced
(e) recommends measures to be taken to rectify any shortcomings.

That the facilities for unloading and transferring of horses at Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport be upgraded without delay, following the advice of experts in biosecurity containment, so as to enable appropriate biosecurity precautions to be taken effectively and to minimise the risk of injury to horses and those handling them. The facilities should include at least one padded box or stall sound-proofed to the extent that it is reasonable to do so.

That, in the absence of other satisfactory government controlled and operated post-arrival quarantine stations becoming available before the options to renew the leases of Eastern Creek and Spotswood Quarantine Stations expire, those options be exercised.

That there be established the position of Inspector General of Horse Importation, the duties of that position being:
(a) to check, by inspection and audit at least once every 30 months, that operations and procedures at each approved pre-export quarantine premises are documented and being complied with
(b) to check, by inspection and audit from time to time at the Inspector General’s discretion, that import conditions covering the period until horses arrive at an airport in Australia are being complied with
(c) to check, by inspection and audit at least once every 30 months, that operations and procedures applying from when horses arrive at an airport in Australia until the completion of post-arrival quarantine are documented and being complied with
(d) to report in writing at least once every 12 months to the Minister responsible for quarantine on the results of such inspections and audits and such other related matters as the Inspector General thinks necessary.

That the person holding the position of Inspector General of Horse Importation may be removed in the following circumstances only:
(a) automatically
(i) on bankruptcy or on an application to take the benefit of a law for
the relief of bankruptcy
(ii) on conviction for an indictable offence
or
(iii) on loss or suspension of any licence or authority to practise his or her regular profession
(b) by dismissal by the Governor-General in Council for proved misconduct in or relating directly or indirectly to the performance of his or her duties
(c) by resignation in writing to the Minister responsible for quarantine
(d) on certification by two medical practitioners of mental or physical
incapacity to perform the duties of Inspector General.

That there continue to be in Australia government controlled and operated post-arrival quarantine stations for horses.

That the person holding the position of Inspector General of Horse
Importation:
(a) be appointed by the Governor-General in Council following public advertisement
(b) be appointed for a term of five years only or for such lesser term as may remain at the time of appointment
(c) receive such remuneration and other benefits as fixed or recommended by the Remuneration Tribunal
(d) be a person with expertise in equine affairs and with such other qualifications and experience as the Governor-General in Council considers appropriate
(e) not hold or take other employment or consultancies that might give rise to an actual or perceived conflict of interest with the duties of Inspector General
(f) be obliged to submit to any medical examination reasonably required by the Minister responsible for quarantine before or during the term of appointment for the purpose of assessing his or her suitability for the position
(g) shall not be, or have been within the two years immediately preceding the appointment, employed or engaged by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

That there be similar facilities for the unloading and transfer of horses at any other airport in Australia that might receive horses imported from places other than New Zealand.

That the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry designate, without delay, a Senior Executive Service officer to be primarily responsible and accountable for the importation of horses into Australia and to that end to have the power to exercise all necessary authority.

That there be provided without delay at Sydney (Kingsford Smith) and Tullamarine Airports facilities to enable people who might have had contact with imported horses to shower and change their clothes, under supervision, before leaving the airport.

The Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) recommends that, in order to assist management decision making and to inform Parliament about performance, Emergency Management Australia (EMA) develop and report appropriate measures for its key emergency management activities and outcomes.

The committee recommends the Australian Government strengthen CASA's governance framework and administrative capability by:
• introducing a small board of up to five members to provide enhanced oversight and strategic direction for CASA; and
• undertaking a review of CASA's funding arrangements to ensure CASA is equipped to deal with new regulatory challenges.

The Committee notes the importance of mitigation measures in addressing climate change impacts and accordingly recommends that the Australian Government continue to take urgent action to ensure that Australia can best contribute to a reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions.

Formation of a subcommittee of the DHHS Tasmanian Medical Retrieval Services Committee to identify risk exposures, system problems and potential solutions. The subcommittee should review data, problem cases, system issues and generate a risk register. Meetings should occur at least quarterly.

Accordingly I recommend that the Federal Minister for Transport, consider engaging an external consultant to assess whether high level intervention is warranted. 

This Report should be considered for publication so that the insights, data, conclusions and recommendations are available within Queensland and other jurisdictions to assist with disaster management issues in the future.

To improve the management of the National Medical Stockpile, the ANAO recommends that the Department of Health and Ageing incorporate into its governance framework:
(a) an assessment of the risks associated with the Stockpile in a risk management plan that is periodically reviewed; and
(b) a performance management and reporting framework for the Stockpile.

We recommend that NSW Health continue with its good work and establish a performance management framework with targets and indicators to assess progress in preparing for infectious disease emergencies.

That the Department of Primary Industries should ensure the roles and capacities of Rural Lands Protection Boards and industry are effectively monitored to enable assessment of the effectiveness of animal health programs.

That the Department of Primary Industries make every effort to meet its targets for the TSE program and encourage public and private sector veterinarians across the State to submit samples. The Department should include reports on its performance against these targets in annual reports.

That the Department’s performance against tactical and strategic benchmarks be regularly reported in annual reports or animal and plant health emergency evaluation reports and compared to other jurisdictions where possible.

That, as a matter of principle, the NSW Government provide public reports on the lessons learned from emergency exercises which it manages or in which it participates. If necessary, such reports should exclude material which might jeopardise security.

That the Emergency Services Agency give priority to ensuring it has guaranteed access to an adequate number and type of bulldozers, as well as experienced operators, during the fire season, for immediate deployment as required

All train drivers’ defects reports should be entered by RailCorp into a computerised record and tracked to finalisation.

The ITSRR must provide a quarterly report to the Minister for Transport Services on the progress made by RailCorp in implementing these recommendations, including:
(a) a statement as to whether or not the recommendation has been implemented and, if so, is working effectively; and
(b) if the recommendation has not been implemented, the me

All reports of the Chief Investigator of OTSI should be delivered, upon completion and without being reviewed, to ITSRR and the Minister for Transport Services.

All ATSB accident investigation reports should be made public.

The ATSB should deliver any report of any such rail accident which it investigates to the Board of any rail organisation involved in the accident, ITSRR and the Minister for Transport Services.

The Minister for Transport Services should retain, independently of ITSRR, safety auditors to provide a report to the Minister confirming or qualifying the contents of each such ITSRR quarterly report.

RailCorp and ITSRR should co-operate with national programs for the collection, collation, trend analysis and dissemination of safety critical information.

The Minister for Transport Services must table in Parliament, each such quarterly report by ITSRR.

It is recommended that providers supply data to the Board:
- for each rescue attended, the location and type of incident, turnout time, response time and time when available for re- tasking (page 30)
- on the cost of rescue (page 25).

That the Prime Minister’s Science, Engineering and Innovation Council requests that the Australian Government, through the Australian Emergency Management Committee, develops an effective pathway to incorporate hazard science into emergency management policy.

Consolidate the Australian Government decision to establish an Australian Tsunami Warning System through a long-term government commitment to ensure a sustainable and effective national tsunami warning system beyond the current four-year initiative.

The ANAO recommends that, to ensure the outcomes of evaluations are effectively used to enhance the national counter-terrorism arrangements, the Attorney-General’s Department and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet take appropriate measures to ensure:
a) the continuous improvement process for the counter-terrorism arrangements is strengthened and made transparent. Key areas for improvement in this regard include:
• a more strategic approach to the determination of desired outcomes,
• a more strategic and systematic approach to the setting of evaluation objectives and performance information and assessment mechanisms,
• increased analysis of actual performance against objectives, and
• amoresystematicmonitoringandfollow-up of evaluation outcomes and recommendations; and
b) sufficient and skilled resources are assigned to undertake the data management and analysis required.

The ANAO recommends that, to provide better information to contribute to strategic assessments, decisions and reporting, the Attorney-General’s Department, with input and guidance from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet:
a) centrally coordinate and amalgamate the issues and recommendations arising from the various reviews and exercises; and
b) provide strategic analyses of this information.

Related to recommendation 16, the Working Group recommends that the likelihood and consequences be systematically assessed by appropriate agencies that would include Geoscience Australia, the Bureau of Meteorology, CSIRO and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry among others. The range of hazards to be considered should include but not be limited to;
• Tsunami
• Bushfire (working with the Bushfire CRC)
• Severe storm
• Flood
• Cyclonic wind and storm surge
• Earthquake
• Temperature extremes and the impact of climatic change
• Disease threat – human, animal and flora/fauna 

That the joint agencies introduce a system of performance measures for reporting the effectiveness of aircraft in firefighting operations.

That DSE:
• Provide further training and/or field staff for the routine acquisition and reporting of geographic data (maps of fire extent for prescribed and unplanned fires) and fuel-array data (quantity, type, condition and arrangement before and after fire as in the Overall Fuel Hazard Guide).
• Routinely and explicitly report on measures of the effectiveness of the prescribed burning program.
• Measure the total area subject to prescribed burning treatment in each Fire Management Zone each year along with the average proportion of that area successfully burned.
• Develop an explicit, routine system of evaluation, analysis and reporting of the effects of prescribed burning in relation to environmental outcomes such as conservation of flora and fauna and water quality.
• Train more crews, use Project Firefighters more extensively (and CFA members or MFESB firefighters where appropriate), to undertake prescribed burning.

That the creation of buffers by chaining and then burning swaths of mallee be explicitly monitored for:
• The risk of fire escapes during their establishment;
• Their effectiveness as a barrier to unplanned fire under various weather and fuel conditions; and
• Any adverse environmental effects such as soil mobilisation and loss of biodiversity.

That the success of current buffers in terms of assisting suppression operations be continually reviewed, evaluated and documented.

That if ‘link’ burns continue to be used, then on-site weather sequences and fuel conditions marking successful (‘within explicit prescription’) and unsuccessful burns be documented. 

That instances where demand for air support outstrips the supply of State Fleet Aircraft available are recorded. 

The Committee recommends that the Department of Transport and Regional Services review its record keeping practices to show the type of emergency for which assistance is provided through the Natural Disaster
Relief Arrangements.

The Committee recommends in acknowledgement of the expertise that the Commonwealth can bring to the Australasian Fire Authorities Council and of funding already supplied to the Council for the development of a National Aerial Firefighting Strategy, that the current status of Emergency Management Australia on AFAC as an associate member be upgraded to full membership and that full membership also be extended to the Department of Defence.

The Committee recommends that the functions and administration of Emergency Management Australia be reviewed to develop an organisation that is proactive and involved in the development and implementation of national policy on emergency response.

The Committee recommends that performance monitoring standards be established, reviewed and maintained through a common reporting system by the Minister for Police and Emergency Services.

To arrange for uniform water facilities, where possible, by having large taps attached to elevated tanks, suitable approaches made to dams for filling carts, and convienient gates to approach same.

To recommend to shire councils the purchase of fire carts and necessary equipment for fire fighting.

The Commission recommends that buckets of sand or other apparatus for extinguishing fire be kept in any chamber where high powered electricity is used.

That suitable metal receptacles be fitted under the spittoons of all smoking compartments of country trains, to receive pipe ashes, lighted tobacco, cigars, cigarettes, matches, or other inflammable matter used by smokers.