Yahoo Finance $132 million cash boost for ‘brave heroes’
The New South Wales government will provide a $132 million cash injection to the State Emergency Service (SES).
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said the multi-million-dollar investment would include two incident control centres to help the SES respond to disasters.
“We want to ensure that the State Emergency Service has the equipment they need to keep people safe,” Perrottet said.
“It's obviously been a very difficult time for the communities in the Northern Rivers and, as I have said and as our government has committed, we will be here every step of the way.”
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Perrottet said the money would help ensure the state was better prepared to deal with natural disasters in the future.
“We know events will occur in the future, but we can't make the mistakes of the past,” he said.
“I will ensure our government is there every step of the way into the future to make sure that our communities are more resilient when the next natural disaster occurs.”
The money will be used for the SES to acquire resources, infrastructure and staffing it needs to continue providing its services.
Climate change impacting communities
Both Perrottet and NSW Treasurer Matt Kean said the funding boost would also help communities struggling to deal with the devastating effects of climate change.
“We're also investing in communities right across New South Wales who may one day need our help,” Kean said.
“That's what today is about. We know that Lismore and the Northern Rivers are on the front line when it comes to the impacts of climate change and no-one can forget the power of the recent floods.”
Kean said the government needed to change the way it thought about addressing climate change and natural disasters.
“We want to make sure that we're tackling climate change, we're addressing these challenges, so that communities like Lismore and the Northern Rivers are better prepared in the future to tackle these events as they arise,” Kean said.
“In addition, we want to invest in the amazing, brave heroes that volunteer their time to keep the rest of us safe.”
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