NSW would join Victoria in conducting its own state-based bushfire review, but NSW was open to participating in any federal inquiry, Ms Berejiklian said. 

"NSW is always guided by the experts.  It's not for politicians to decide how we manage hazard reduction or back burning operations," she said on Sky News. 

"If they determine after these bushfires we need to up the ante, of course we will.  If they determine we need to change laws in relation to land clearing, then certainly we'll consider those." 

"The summers get longer and as conditions get more ferocious your window to conduct some of those activities is reduced." 

The United Firefighters Union opposed a federal royal commission and called for a federal-state audit committee to be established to review the findings and recommendations of other bushfire-related inquiries. 

After tension emerged about Mr Morrison ordering 3000 Army Reservists to the fires in early January without the request of NSW and to the surprise of NSW Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons, Ms Berejiklian said she was "grateful" for the military's support in the clean up phases. 

But she drew a distinction between the fire fighting and clean up phases. 

"The extra resources from the ADF for the recovery effort is welcome and we need it." 


"Recovery is very different from emergency response." 

Mr Morrison has said the Commonwealth had pushed to the "very edge" of "extreme constitutional territory" by the compulsory call-up of 3000 army reservists and his direction for the Chief of the Defence Force, Angus Campbell, to act regardless of whether a state asked for help. 

He wants a review to consider expanding commonwealth powers to unilaterally deploy defence personal during natural disasters. 

Scott Morrison deployed the Army Reserves without the request of NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and NSW RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons in early January.  Bianca De Marchi

After being trumped by Victoria announcing its bushfire inquiry, Mr Morrison signalled he would not rush a federal commission because "right now it is all about focusing on the basics people need". 

Bushfire-hit children who have received $400 cash disaster recovery payments will get a further $400, the government announced Wednesday. 

Firefighters would not need to substantiate their income losses in applying for up to $200 a day, capped at a total of $6000. 

Disaster recovery grants of up to $75,000 for farmers have also been adjusted, with the program set to cover major assets whose residence may not have been affected, but their fences or sheds might have been damaged or destroyed. 


Federal Labor Opposition leader Anthony Albanese mocked Science Minister Karen Andrews' warning that denying climate change is a waste of time and the focus should be on climate mitigation and adaptation steps. 

"The fact is, there has been a decade wasted by the Coalition as a result of the fact that a small rump of people have held the policy back for a long period of time,” Mr Albanese said. 

Mr Morrison rejected a binary choice between Australia lowering carbon emissions or building better resilience and adaptation to climate change. 

He said: "There is a broader range of responses that go beyond just emissions reduction and that goes to climate resilience, and we are in for longer, hotter, drier summers... whether it's hazard reduction, whether it’s building dams, whether it is taking better lessons from Indigenous burning practices." 

With AAP