Submission to Standing Committee on Disaster Ready Fund Bill 2022

The St Vincent de Paul Society National Council welcomes the name change (to Disaster Ready Fund) and the allocation of up to $200 million per year to natural disaster resilience and risk reduction. 

The Society supports capacity for the Minister to review the legislated maximum annual disbursement amount at least every five years, and to adjust the amount via a disallowable legislative instrument.

Streamlined administrative processes are also welcome. 

However, we call for the funding purpose to be broad (not limited) and for administration to be flexible to enable effective implementation of the full range of community-led, local responses essential to disaster recovery.    

The Society recommends that the Fund be used to: 

• prioritise community-led solutions and favour local businesses and organisations that have a local presence in the first instance  
• enable appropriate health and social support services to be funded  
• support activities that build community resilience 
• support activities that ensure the most vulnerable in our communities are assisted 
• enable organisations large and small to skill up their volunteers and staff to respond in a timely, professional and quality-assured way in times of crises 

Read our submission - pdf file