Scott Morrison (Cook, Liberal Party, Prime Minister) | Hansard source

I thank the member for Richmond for her question and I commend her for the work she's been doing in her local community over the course of the floods, as I remarked in my earlier statements on indulgence. I don't agree with the views of Ms Cusack. I've known Ms Cusack for a long time. I don't agree with her views, but I do understand that, in the middle of floods and the terrible circumstances of what occurred in the Northern Rivers, people were under enormous stress. But, as the member for Richmond would know—because I spoke to the member for Richmond when I was in the Northern Rivers—what was being referred to was the extension of the payments from the three local government areas in Lismore, Clarence Valley and Richmond Valley, which were given triple payments on the disaster payment. I spoke to the member for Richmond on the day that was announced and I told her that further assessments were being done on other local government areas in that region and that once those assessments were complete then a further decision would be made.

That was before the statements made by Ms Cusack. She may not have been made aware, even though that position had been made public. I spoke to the mayor of Ballina on that same day, after I'd been speaking to the member for Richmond, and I made it very clear that these other assessments were being undertaken. Those disaster payments—the triple payments—are very rare; they've never been done before. But in recognition and because of the strong work done by members, particularly the member for Page, we extended those payments to seven local government areas. In the member's electorate, the local government area of Ballina and Byron, some $33 million in payments have already been made to some 20,000 people.

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