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Just a reminder the Royal Commission set up by the Abbott Govt into the scheme found the incidence of fires fell under the home insulation program. https://twitter.com/liberalaus/status/1314127233062113285
This is why I get so ranty about shit reporting.
Some of the worst reporting in the past 20 years was done on the GFC stimulus, especially the home insulation program.
Some of the worst reporting in the past 20 years was done on the GFC stimulus, especially the home insulation program.
There was a *big* focus on fires, esp in The Oz eg
eg: one article featured a couple who house had caught fire:
Mrs Thrush, 64, said it was a miracle she & her husband, Eric, 69, were not dead & they want Mr Garrett sacked. She said it was not enough to axe the scheme. “It’s not enough” she said. “What about all the people still sitting on these time-bombs? What’s going to happen to them?
3AW ran hard as well with a big scare campaign that only served to freak out the elderly
Nicola Berkovic's reporting on the issue won the 2010 Paul Lyneham Award for Excellence in Journalism for the federal parliamentary press gallery - "She broke stories, was fair and balanced and accurate in her reporting"
So let's now go to the Royal Commission into the Home Insulation Program which as just about all reports at the time noted (eg by Steve Lewis) "triggered countless home fires". https://www.news.com.au/national/prime-minister-tony-abbott-launches-25m-royal-commission-into-rudd-governments-controversial-roof-batts-program/news-story/fe4fb60190560dbd77a3b46c9e4d3b93
Here's what the RC found:
"the fire incident rate for those homes in which insulation was installed under the HIP is some 1.07 incidents per 100,000 households per year. That rate is below that which applied before the HIP started.”
Yep... the incidence of fires *went* *down*
"the fire incident rate for those homes in which insulation was installed under the HIP is some 1.07 incidents per 100,000 households per year. That rate is below that which applied before the HIP started.”
Yep... the incidence of fires *went* *down*
How many fires? I mean they were "countless" right?
Err no, they counted them:
"144 of them involved flames and required fire brigade attendance, and 30 resulted in structural damage to the dwelling. Only a small number of fires resulted in substantial property damage"
Err no, they counted them:
"144 of them involved flames and required fire brigade attendance, and 30 resulted in structural damage to the dwelling. Only a small number of fires resulted in substantial property damage"
It continued: "The data, however, with which no witness and no submission sought to take issue.... shows an apparent improvement in the controls and/or in the practices with respect to laying insulation in proximity to heat-producing elements in the ceiling under HIP."
And then the commissioner made perhaps the most damning statement about Australian journalism that I have ever read from an independent view:
"The occurrence of fires does not appear to have been an issue of particular concern, other than to the media”
"The occurrence of fires does not appear to have been an issue of particular concern, other than to the media”
And yet here we are 6 years after the RC report was handed down, and still the lies get spun out about fires from pink batts. And I'd suspect most people don't realise they are lies. I wonder how many journalists do as well?
Shit reporting matters.
Shit reporting matters.
I should note, we really didn't need to wait for the Royal Commission to find this out. @Pollytics in 2011 wrote a blog post on the CSIRO's findings, which were not disputed at the RC
https://blogs.crikey.com.au/pollytics/2011/04/24/the-csiro-gets-hip-to-debunking-media-hysteria/
He didn't win an award for it though. He was just an amateur...
https://blogs.crikey.com.au/pollytics/2011/04/24/the-csiro-gets-hip-to-debunking-media-hysteria/
He didn't win an award for it though. He was just an amateur...
