Attorney-General delivers blow to flood affected residents
03-May-2011
Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton received a response from the Attorney-General Robert McClelland today that confirmed the areas that experienced flooding that did not originate from Queensland would not be able to access the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment (AGDRP).
The letter from the Attorney General states:
“… all claims for AGDRP will be assessed on whether the claimant was adversely affected by floodwaters emanating from Queensland.”
Mr Coulton said “This means that nine LGAs were announced eligible for the payment even though individuals in these areas would never meet the criteria.”
“It seems the Attorney-General thought this would be a good PR project, making it look like he was extending the flood payment to all areas in the Parkes Electorate that experienced flooding,” Mr Coulton stated. “However, the only LGAs that meet the criteria for the payment are Bourke, Brewarrina, Walgett and Cobar.”
The Local Government Area’s (LGAs) that will not be able to access the payment are Bogan, Coonamble, Dubbo, Gilgandra, Mid-Western Regional, Narromine, Warren, Warrumbungle and Wellington. This is despite the fact that people in these areas suffered severe inconvenience over a prolonged period from the flooding that occurred in December.
“What is confusing is the fact that the Attorney-General drafted the determination himself and why he declared that the other nine LGAs would be eligible when he knew the water had to come from Queensland really baffles me.”
The letter from the Attorney General states:
Even though the latter group of LGAs would not ordinarily be affected by floodwaters from Queensland, our intent in drafting the Determination in this way was the ensure that an administrative boundary did not impinge on a person’s ability to test their claim. However I understand that this approach has caused some confusion among your constituents and this is regrettable.
Mr Coulton has slammed the response from the Attorney-General and states this letter highlights the Gillard Government’s complete “mishandling and misunderstanding of rural issues.”
The response from the Attorney General also fails to address why people in the Bourke, Brewarrina, Walgett and Cobar LGAs are having their applications for the AGDRP denied.
“The Attorney-General has caused this shambles on his own and he now needs to make this payment accessible to all areas that experienced flooding; the areas he announced would be eligible.”