Sophie Mirabella (Indi, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is addressed to the Minister for Human Services. Would the minister inform the House how service delivery by his department is helping those affected by drought in regional and rural Australia?

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Indi for her question. It was only a few weeks ago that my colleague the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry was able to launch the first Australian government drought bus—and that has been well received out in the bush. It is very important that we get essential services that are provided through Centrelink and Medicare out to communities that do not have ready access to those sorts of services.

In the case of the worst drought in 100 years, it must be recognised that it is very hard for some farmers who have never accessed welfare to walk into a Centrelink office; it can be extremely dispiriting. It is vitally important that we be prepared to make a contribution to their welfare during the worst drought in 100 years by taking services out to them—to go and visit those towns that do not have Centrelink offices or Medicare offices; to go to those places with social workers, with advisers to help them get exceptional circumstances certificates on the spot that allow them to get some money in the bank at a time when they are unable to sell their crops or have to slaughter their sheep in some cases for 25c each. If I were the member for Wills, I would not be joking about this. It is a very serious issue.

Kelvin Thomson (Wills, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Public Accountability and Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I’m not joking; it is a serious issue.

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Minister for Human Services) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Australian government has committed an additional $1 billion for drought this year, over and above the $1.2 billion that we had committed. I was very pleased to announce with a number of my colleagues today that we are launching a further two drought buses. Drought buses allow us to extend services into Queensland, into the member for Maranoa’s electorate and, importantly, into the member for Indi’s electorate, covering towns such as Wangaratta and Benalla. It is also vitally important to recognise that these services have to go out to these communities during the summer, at a time when Christmas pressures could have a severe impact.

We are now covering—and I am happy to table this document—almost the entire south-eastern seaboard of Australia, covering southern Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, and the electorates of Riverina, Farrer, Indi, Murray, Mallee, Bendigo, McEwen, Gippsland, Eden-Monaro, Calare, Parkes, Gwydir, New England, Groom, Maranoa and Grey. Mr Speaker, if you want a telling indication—and for some people in the city it is very hard to understand the real impact of the drought—in the member for Hume’s electorate is the little town of Gunning. In the 1950s and 1960s, Gunning was the fine-wool centre of Australia. As a young boy, I spent a lot of time out at Gunning. Mr Speaker, I can tell you that everyone in Australia has to work hard to ensure that these sorts of towns, which kept Australia going during the 1950s and 1960s, are not forgotten in 2006 and 2007 during the worst drought in 100 years.