Gilmore MP Fiona Phillips questions government’s stimulus direction

A South Coast MP has hit out at Scott Morrison’s HomeBuilder scheme saying more cash should directed to the communities hardest hit by the devastating bushfires.

Fiona Phillips delivering her maiden speech in the House of Representatives Chamber, at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture Kym Smith

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A South Coast MP has blasted the Federal Government’s much-hyped stimulus package, saying the money should be going to bushfire-affected communities and building more affordable housing.

Gilmore federal Labor MP said Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s Commonwealth Government’s HomeBuilder scheme could be better directed to meet the needs of families facing “extreme hardship”.

The $688 million coronavirus-fuelled package will involve cash grants to eligible Australians to be used for the construction of new homes or substantial renovations on existing ones worth less than $750,000. It can also be put towards renovations worth between $150,000 and $750,000 that will result in the property being priced at $1.5 million or less.

It’s all part of a plan to help Australia’s economy get back on track in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and to prop up the housing sector, which is facing a looming drop-off in the months ahead.

However, Mrs Phillips said the much-need cash injection could be better directed to meet needs of families facing “extreme hardship”.

“I'm really disappointed that it hasn't included stimulus for social and affordable housing. I think that there is a massive need for affordable housing in this electorate,” she said.

She said organisations like Salt Care, a not-for-profit community support centre in Bomaderry which has been supplying more than 1000 food packages a week due to the impacts of bushfires and then COVID-19, was a perfect example of where the money should be directed.

Hundreds of cars were lined up along Bendalong Road in Manyana on January 3 waiting to be escorted by police and RFS out of the fire ravaged area. The South Coast town was cut off for days and tourists and residents were without power. Picture: David Swift.

“That's one community organisation and there's multiple organisations across the electorate,” Mrs Phillips said. “That indicates that there is extreme hardship so we do need more social and affordable housing, there's no doubt about that.

“The other thing I would really like to have seen as well is (stimulus for) our community evacuation centres.

“For example, the one at Manyana. The villages that had one way in and one way out, they had to go to their local community centre. I would have liked to have seen stimulus for those community centres so that they had better fire mitigation measures and they also have stand-alone power systems and communication systems.

“This happened here (in Gilmore), but this could happen anywhere in those bushfire-prone areas and we need to be learning the lessons from what's come out of this here to help other areas as well.

“So if the government's going to put money into stimulus, why not put money into supporting our community evacuation centres get ready.”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said all levels of government are responsible for social housing. Picture: Mick Tsikas

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said rebuilding communities wasn’t the sole responsibility of the Federal Government.

“The states are actually investing in social housing and as they should, that’s their job, and we've supported them through programmes like the National Housing Finance Investment Corporation,” he told reporters.

“But these are the things that we can do and so we all work together. The Federal Government doesn't have to do every single part of the process.

“States do their bit. We do our bit. It all comes together and they're important projects and I agree and our support for housing projects at state level continues and we’ve got an ongoing agreement on homelessness and we have the National Housing Agreement.”

NSW south coast clubs performed vital evacuation assistance during the recent bushfire crisis. Picture: NSW Surf Lifesaving/supplied.

The South Coast has received Commonwealth funding to rebuild since the fires. The Shoalhaven and Eurobodalla local government areas received $1.41 million, to spend on “whatever they, as the local leaders in their community, deem appropriate for community recovery”, a spokesperson for the National Bushfire Recovery Agency said.

“This could include the refurbishment or building of evacuation centres.”

In addition almost $70 million in grants and $6 million in loans have been accessed by small businesses in the Eurobodalla and Shoalhaven regions.

This includes approval for more than $7.8 million in 129 primary producer grants, 107 concessional loans amounting to $5.6 million, 4870 $10,000 small business grants and 515 $50,000 small business grants.