Scott Morrison says Hawaii holiday was like taking 'that extra plumbing contract' on a Friday afternoon

PM says ‘we can all make better decisions on occasions’ as he again defends government position on climate change amid catastrophic bushfires

Scott Morrison has claimed climate change is “as important now” amid an extended bushfire crisis and a record-breaking heatwave as it was at the election and denied that the government is split over whether to improve Australia’s policy response.

In a series of interviews on Monday Morrison cited family commitments as the reason for his decision to holiday in Hawaii during the crisis, comparing himself to a plumber forced to choose between a Friday afternoon job or seeing his family.

Morrison returned to work on Sunday, cutting short the holiday by a day after the deaths of two volunteer firefighters on Thursday, but insisted he would not “panic” by increasing Australia’s ambition to fight global heating.

Asked about his judgment in taking the holiday, Morrison said the fires had been going since September – citing his earlier visits to bushfire areas – and “still have a time to run yet”.

“We all make decisions … we all seek to balance our work-life responsibilities and we all try and get that right,” he said. “We can all make better decisions on occasions, and I was pretty upfront about that with the Australian people yesterday.

“Whether it’s on a Friday afternoon and you decide to take that extra plumbing contract and you said you were going to pick up the kids, or something at my level, these are things you juggle as parents.”

Ahead of a visit to Mudgee on Monday, Morrison told Channel Seven’s Sunrise the issues around climate change were “as important now as they were” at the time of the May election.

Read more:

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/dec/23/scott-morrison-ha...

An ongoing wildfire emergency in several Australian states has already led to massive land burns and destruction of hundreds of houses, with country’s prime minister experiencing heavy criticisms in relation to his role in addressing the emergency. 

Prime Minister Scott Morrison responded to Greta Thunberg’s comments on the Australian wildfire disaster, after teenage environmentalist slammed politicians for failing to find connection between world’s climate crisis and the ongoing weather catastrophe, by stating that he was focused on Australia’s interests instead of trying to “impress people overseas” with his policies.

On Sunday, Swedish eco-activist Greta Thunberg turned to Twitter to comment on around 200 wildfires that are currently burning in four Australian states, by retweeting a video report on the ongoing fires and questioning why catastrophes like that did not bring a response from politicians.

Read more:

https://sputniknews.com/asia/201912231077740165-im-not-here-to-impress-a...

Yes Greta. Our PM, Scudscumdodgeitson, is a selfish brain dead advertvisioning evangelical guru whose only hope for the future is the end of times when he becomes a fully paradisicalized soul, sitting next to the old bearded white guy, after a new Noah's Ark event which he prays for like Moses, to stop the burning bushes. He has the planning vision and the scientific knowledge of an infinite zero. Don't blame me and Australia for him though. Blame Rupert Murdoch, the devil genius of the two-words (sometimes three) headlines.

Read from top. Oh.... And the BBL cricket got reduced to 18 overs a side in a burning Adelaide, because of a drizzle that wetted the pitch and bothered the firefighters as well, for falling in the wrong place. You can't please everybody... Carry on though. You're doing a fine job... Even RT does not like you, Greta...

See also:

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said the Government is "not going to make any knee-jerk responses" to the growing bushfire catastrophe, despite calls for compensation for firefighters.

• Labor leader Anthony Albanese wants the state and federal governments to meet urgently to address bushfires
• He has suggested the Federal Government provide financial support to firefighters
• Prime Minister Scott Morrison says the Government is not going to provide "knee-jerk responses"

Labor leader Anthony Albanese wants an urgent meeting of state and federal leaders to discuss the bushfire threat and address the need to pay firefighters.

"I say to the Prime Minister he can do three things immediately," Mr Albanese said, "which is to bring forward the COAG [Council of Australian Governments] meeting, meet the former fire chiefs, and do something now to provide support for those volunteer firefighters who have been in the field for such a long time".

Mr Morrison said the meeting would not be moved and he had received no requests from fire chiefs for firefighter compensation.

"It's important to do the work properly. It's important to properly consult with the state premiers and chief ministers," he said.

"If there is the need, and fire commissioners and chiefs and state premiers wish to raise issues before then … I've been talking to them and they are not. They are very comfortable with the arrangements."

He said "some" people seeking to take political opportunity in these events were not "very helpful".

Read more:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-23/scott-morrison-anthony-albanese-b...

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Who is seeking "political opportunities" at every turn of the snake wriggle? Answer: Scumturdolisticson. At least, despite "lighting fires" by his non-"belief" in global warming, Turdy Abbott knew which end of the firehose to use...

At least 50 houses have been engulfed by fast moving forest fires in the Chilean city of Valparaíso, prompting a mass evacuation.

All the city's firefighters have been deployed to tackle the fires in the Rocuant and San Roque areas. 

Power was cut to about 90,000 customers in the area as a precautionary measure.

Valparaíso Mayor Jorge Sharp told Canal 24 Horas that the fires had been started "intentionally". There have been no reports of any casualties.

• Chile's worst wildfire destroys town as help arrives
• How do you fight extreme wildfires?

"At the moment, emergency teams from all over Valparaíso are working, using land and air resources, in two areas in the higher part of the city," the mayor said.

He added that strong winds and high temperatures were exacerbating the situation. Valparaíso is one of Chile's largest cities and a major port on the Pacific.

Read more:

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-50907976

Meanwhile:

The number of homes razed by bushfires this season has climbed to almost 1,000, the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) says in its latest impact assessment.

After re-entering the charred remains of towns ravaged by fire in the past week, the RFS confirmed 873 homes had been destroyed since July 1.

That figure is in addition to 100 homes believed destroyed since last Thursday, which the RFS has not yet included in its official count.

Some of the latest figures included homes in Balmoral, a town south-west of Sydney, where NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said there was little left after Saturday's catastrophic fires.

The RFS said an additional 2,048 outbuildings and 68 facilities were levelled by the blaze.

Meanwhile, residents and travellers have been left stranded by extensive road closures caused by the bushfires.

Live Traffic NSW said hundreds of kilometres of roads, including major highways and busy arteries, around the state were closed in both directions.

The closures include a 70-kilometre stretch of Bells Line of Road, between Kurrajong and Lithgow, in the state's west, with diversions in place at the Great Western Highway.

Also in the south-west, a 20-kilometre stretch between Tahmoor and Hill Top — the areas surrounding Balmoral — remained shut on Christmas Eve.

However, there has been some reprieve, with the Princes Highway south of Nowra reopening after being closed in both directions overnight.

Read more:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-24/nsw-bushfires-destroy-almost-1000...

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Scott Mo is an idiot.