Long-term changes needed to bailouts, natural disaster responses
RNZ / Nathan Mckinnon
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says the government won't be able to
keep bailing out flooded homeowners
.
Luxon told
Morning Report
Cabinet wouldn't be considering a package of assistance for the Tasman district on Monday, because it was too early in the flood response.
The region has been
battered by heavy rain
, forcing people from their homes,
closing roads
and leaving some cut off.
"At this stage we have to focus on the reponse and then we'll make the assessment on what's needed from a recovery point of view."
Luxon said there was concern about further rainfall and slips, and he was impressed with the local response.
Flooding on the Otuwhero Valley.
Photo:
Supplied/ Jodie Reed
However, in response to a recent report recommending that homeowners whose houses are flooded or damaged by weather events
not expect buy-outs in the future
, he said there would have to be changes.
The report recommended individuals should be responsible for knowing the risks and making their own decisions about whether to move away from high-risk areas. A climate policy expert called the suggestion
"morally bankrupt"
.
"In principle the government won't be able to keep bailing out people in this way, "Luxon said.
He said Climate Change Minister Simon Watts had been working hard to get a bipartisan view on how to deal long term with these weather events.
"This is a long term issue. We need a proper framework in place to work out whether its landowners, councils, whether its central government, banks, insurers that actually have to create a framework for dealing with these weather events an how we handle them going forward."
Luxon said the government would think through the report, and many other countries were dealing with the same challenges.
"We need to find a way to manage these events going forward and who takes reponsibility and is there a shared responsibility."
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