While ordinary people have shown their best selves in the worst of times, the political class has shown it is out of touch - and way out of order.

From Deputy PM Michael McCormack's dismissal of climate change concerns as the "ravings of inner city lunatics" to Greens Senator Jordon Steele-John's spray at the major parties where he called them "a bunch of arsonists", this week the standard of Australian politics reached a new low point.

Barnaby Joyce put his foot in it too, saying dead fire victims "most likely voted for the Green party".

In a week in which we should have seen assurance and a steady hand from our political leaders we saw childish, self-centred point-scoring, obfuscation and some breathtaking hypocrisy.

We saw ludicrous arguments that The Greens had somehow hampered hazard reduction burns, despite the fact they're not in power. And from The Greens, accusations not enough was being done to address climate change. This ignored the fact it was The Greens who vetoed the only real climate policy put forward by the Rudd government a decade ago.

Pot, kettle, Green.

We saw the government ducking and weaving, saying now was not the time to talk climate change.

Now is the exact time we should be talking about it - ask the 23 former fire and emergency chiefs who gathered to say just that. Just ask the regional mayors who have watched entire townships razed. Just ask residents who've been in the thick of the emergency for weeks now.

In deflecting, the government has left itself open to accusations it is using the same tactics adopted by the National Rifle Association after mass shootings in America.

Yes, we need to focus on the emergency at hand but we should also be capable of discussing the role climate change has played in getting us to this point.

And if we put off the discussion, Christmas will be upon us and the issue will be shelved until the next time lives and properties are lost.

We can't put it off any longer.