This is only the beginning

SCOTT Morrison last week announced the drought package.

Fifteen million dollars to provide more mental health initiatives which removes the challenges to transporting hay to farmers in need.

Food vouchers for struggling farmers which can only be spent locally and the obligatory website “The Online Farm Hub” because apparently closing down community centres has turned out to be a bad idea after all and has left people with nowhere to go to find out about services. I wonder if people will be able to pay for internet with a food voucher?

Although helpful these responses are Mr Morrison’s shallow attempt to respond to the drought which is a result of climate change raising questions.

Where is the tree-planting package? Where is the carbon reduction? Where is the climate change policy? Where is the carbon-trading scheme? Where is the promise to phase out the burning of fossil fuels?

We need government with policies which recognise this is only the beginning of the problems climate change will bring to our rural sector and tinkering around the edges to reduce the symptoms will not have any effect on the cause. Carmel Murray, Parramatta Park 2001: Ukraine destroys its last nuclear missile silo, fulfilling a pledge to give up the vast nuclear arsenal it inherited after the breakup of the Soviet Union. 2003: An army of 13,000 US firefighters struggles to contain the worst wildfires in California in years. Twenty people die and thousands of homes are destroyed. 2004: Osama bin Laden issues his first videotaped message in more than a year to deride US President George W Bush and warn of possible new September 11-style attacks. 2012: Australian reality TV show winner Jason Sullivan escapes charges for trespassing at Tom Cruise’s (above) Hollywood home. 2016: The Turnbull government announces all adult asylum seekers who have tried to reach Australia by boat since mid-2013, including those detained on Manus and Nauru Island, will never be settled in the country.