David Coleman (Banks, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am pleased to have the opportunity to ask a question of the minister this afternoon about the Bureau of Meteorology. I was pleased to hear him make reference to its important role in his opening remarks. The Bureau of Meteorology plays a critical role right across the nation. Australians of all walks of life rely on the bureau for their day-to-day weather forecast. Importantly, it also plays a role in forecasting extreme and unexpected weather events and, indeed, emergencies which we see in our nation whether they relate to flooding or extreme heat—which can lead to fire—or other extreme forms of weather. The bureau plays a critical role in ensuring that Australians are aware of those events in advance to the greatest extent possible.

The bureau is particularly important in rural and regional areas where so much of the livelihood of rural and regional Australians is affected by the weather in farming and in the utilisation of our arable land. The bureau's advice of expected rainfall and temperature conditions is very important to the planning of those businesses.

It is also the case that, over the years, weather forecasting technology has improved from the early days where there was probably a very limited reliance on technology to now where in real time on the Bureau of Meteorology website you can observe the different forecasts as they pertain to different postcodes right around the nation in different regions. Again, the atmospheric conditions are so critical.

As our population is increasingly concentrated around large metropolitan areas, there is obviously an increased impact from extreme weather events because more people are affected by those events as they occur. The bureau's good work in forecasting those events is well known, which makes it one of the most highly respected institutions in the nation.

Against that background, I did want to ask about the government's efforts in computing technology. I understand that the government has made some moves recently to invest in super computing technology, and I am very interested to understand the likely impact of technology on boosting Australia's forecasting capabilities and of the benefits that will be derived from that technology more generally.

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