A majority of good people of Winmalee voted for an Abbott Government on 7 September 2013, as did many other Blue Mountains communities....
http://vtr.aec.gov.au/HousePollingPlaceFirstPrefs-17496-1816.htm
Then this roared towards their small town one month later....
Leaving a traumatised community in its wake....
The Abbott Government response....
Then this roared towards their small town one month later....
The Abbott Government response....
ABC News 26 October 2013:
Fire-affected residents in the Blue Mountains have criticised the Federal Government for tightening the eligibility rules for disaster relief payments, as fires continue to burn uncontrolled....
Emergency services and Government officials briefed hundreds of fire-affected residents about the recovery effort at a community meeting in Winmalee last night.
Upset locals used the meeting to vent their frustration at the Federal Government for tightening eligibility rules for disaster assistance.
A disaster recovery payment is available for people who are severely injured or if their homes have been destroyed or badly damaged.
The payment is $1000 per adult and $400 per child.
However, the payment is only available for people who are severely injured or if their homes have been destroyed or badly damaged.
Unlike victims of the Tasmanian bushfires or Tropical Cyclone Oswald, the Government is not offering assistance to those who have been cut off from their homes or who are without electricity or water.
Locals say not everyone affected can get the help they need.
One resident, Leigh, said his mother lost her home in the fire and is eligible for the assistance.
But he is angry that funding will not be available for his sister, whose home was damaged, when she would have been eligible in the past.
"When I found out people were having entitlements stripped from them that they would have had previously, I was livid," he said.
"It's something I'll keep on until I get an answer from our local member Louise Markus who is supposed to be representing us."
* Hat tip to @vogrady2132 for pointing out the relationship between voting and outcomes for one community
** Photographs found at Google Images
** Photographs found at Google Images
3 comments:
What I find unacceptable is that Labor was paying the same compensation to people who had lost their homes as to those who just had to move out for 1 day or who had lost utilities for 2 days!
Anonymous 27 October 2013 06:34,
People who lost their homes can apply for other additional cash payments.
Applications are made through Centrelink.
Get your facts right! Labor were providing an immediate helping hand without discrimination. Those more seriously affected had other benefits and support, this payment was intended as a quick cash flow and the Liberals have decided that should be selectively applied with typical stinginess.
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