With the hearings for the Bushfire Royal Commission continuing this week and the first hearing of the Senate Inquiry into the recent bushfire season starting today, Member for Gilmore Fiona Phillips MP has called for the focus to be listening to local stories and acting quickly to provide assistance.

Mrs Phillips said it was crucial local people and their experiences were considered as paramount when the findings are handed down, and that the Government acts quickly to fix the many problems still hurting bushfire-affected communities.

“The NSW South Coast has been through a harrowing year and help is just not getting through. We need to make sure that the truth about what happened before, during and after the fires is closely examined and acted on,” Mrs Phillips said.

“Every day, I hear more and more stories about local people who are still struggling to get help. The Government has made a lot of funding announcements but it is absolutely clear that this is not making it through to people on the ground,”

“This isn’t about slogans or numbers – this is about real people with real stories to tell. They need help and they needed it months ago,” Fiona Phillips said

The local MP said she was looking forward to hearing some of these stories told on the national stage and hopes the government will finally start listening to what people on the South Coast have been saying for months.

Further information on the Senate Inquiry into the lessons to be learned in relation to the Australian bushfire season 2019-20 can be found here. Further information on the Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements can be found here.