According to Andrew Hall, chief executive officer of the Insurance Council of Australia, it’s time to take serious action to avoid climate disasters, and better planning and investment would be a good start.

Hall spoke after the inaugural meeting of the National Industry Roundtable: Land Use Planning and Resilience on Thursday alongside leaders from the Planning Institute of Australia and Master Builders Australia, the Australian Local Government Association and about 60 other related industry observers.

Today’s roundtable set out the actions governments must take to ensure future financial losses to homeowners, businesses and the community are avoided, and better government planning and investment are taken seriously.

With a housing crisis at the forefront for many communities and a growing population, we must ensure that our planning laws are fit for the future and take an appropriate risk-management approach.

Planning is a critical tool for influencing future disaster risk, and our changing climate means we must act now to limit the impact of extreme weather on our communities.