Mr Rob Mitchell MP, Federal Member for McEwen.
Mrs Sophie Mirabella MP, Federal Member for Indi.
Councillor John Walsh, Mayor of the Murrindindi Shire Council and your Council colleagues,
Other community leaders,
And above all, to our medal recipients, who enrich us with their presence here today
Three years on from Black Saturday:
The trees are growing back.
Buildings are going up.
And life, from the outside, seems to have returned to normal.
Except it hasn't.
After the loss and destruction experienced in this region, life will never be the same again.
Some have moved away and sought to forget.
Others have stayed and forged an uneasy truce with nature.
Most will carry the loss and scars for the rest of their days.
Whatever path each individual and family takes, the path for our nation is clear:
We must stand by them for however long it takes.
And we must remember.
One of the things I hear most often in communities hit by disaster is this: don't forget us.
Don't forget us when the cameras move on, or the focus shifts to more recent tragedies.
And I'm here as Prime Minister to say loud and clear - we haven't.
As the calendar turns over to the third anniversary, the bonds of support and solidarity are very much alive.
Today we convey that message in a new and powerfully symbolic form: with the award of the new National Emergency Medal.
The government asked the Queen to institute this medal because there was nothing in the Australian Honours system to recognise much of the service that was performed in these fires or in last year's floods and cyclone in Queensland.
Awards do exist for the most conspicuous bravery and some have been awarded here in Victoria already.
But there was nothing in the system that recognised the other forms of courage and service that a disaster brings forth.
Not only acknowledging those who fight the fires or supervised evacuations on the frontline.
But also those present day after day to feed and support them.
To offer clothes and accommodation to families who have lost everything.
Or ensure they get the government payments they need.
There is more than one way to serve our community during a natural disaster.
Contributions differing in function - but all partaking of the same spirit:
Of giving your time and skill for those in need.
Being there when it counts.
This, too, is service worthy of a nation's recognition.
And it gives me great pleasure to convey that recognition today.
Along with the group I presented in Canberra yesterday, you are the first recipients of the National Emergency Medal in our nation's history.
And I know from the generous heart of the Australian people that you won't be last.
Because the spirit that impelled you to serve was not some passing fad or impulse.
It was the deep love that we as Australians hold for our land, its people and its future.
And so in the shadow of Australia Day here in the landscape where the deeds of your generosity were inscribed I proudly present these medals to a very deserving group of recipients, from a very proud and grateful nation.
Accept them with honour.
And wear them with pride.