Payments for March flood victims

The Australian Government will provide additional financial assistance to people still affected by the 2009 March floods in the Mid North Coast and Northern Rivers region of New South Wales.

A one-off, ex-gratia payment of $1,000 per household is available to people who are still experiencing hardship following the March flooding on or after 29 September 2009.

This financial assistance to homeowners will be provided to households that still need to undertake repairs at an estimated cost of $1,000 or more as a direct result of the March floods.

It is hoped this assistance will go some way towards helping residents who are still experiencing hardship.

Applications for the one-off, ex-gratia payment open today, and people can claim the payment until 18 December 2009.

This is a one-off measure in response to the information provided recently by the Mayors of Coffs Harbour and Bellingen, which highlighted the community’s need for assistance.

The Northern Rivers and Mid North Coast communities have been hit hard over the past year by a number of severe storms and flooding, with more flooding in the region earlier this month.

This payment is over and above the support being provided by the Government under the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA), including personal hardship and distress assistance and concessional loans to small business operators and primary producers.

Under the NDRRA, around $650,000 has been provided in personal hardship and distress assistance to people affected by the March floods.

The Government has also provided more than $1.1 million under the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment for people adversely affected by the 5 November floods in the Mid North Coast and Northern Rivers region.

We would like to thank the Mayor of Bellingen, Cr Mark Troy, and the Mayor of Coffs Harbour, Cr Keith Rhodes, for their hard work and willingness to work constructively with the Government to achieve this outcome for the residents of the Mid North Coast and Northern Rivers regions.

Homeowners still experiencing hardship following the March flooding on or after 29 September 2009 should call Centrelink on 180 22 55 or visit their local Centrelink office.

More information on Federal Government assistance is available at Disaster Assist website(www.disasterassist.gov.au)