Upper Main Arm residents slam Scott Morrison’s flood funding snub

Residents in some of the Northern Rivers’ worst flood-affected areas are calling out the Prime Minister over his disaster payments snub, slamming the decision as “deplorable”.

Homes have been wiped out and main roads cut-off as landslides toppled from nearby hinterland - but flood-ravaged Main Arm residents won’t see any extra dollars in disaster payments just yet.

The small township in the Byron Shire was one of four Northern Rivers shires overlooked in the federal government’s much-awaited extension of its disaster relief payment.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Wednesday visited Northern NSW to announce the additional payments would be delivered in two more instalments of $1000 to flood-impacted residents in Lismore, Richmond Valley and Clarence Valley.

The devastation across Upper Main Arm.

The Tweed, Byron, Ballina and Kyogle shires were not mentioned.

An air of disappointment was rife among the devastated Upper Main Arm community less than 24 hours after Mr Morrison declared the floods a national emergency, some slamming his funding snub as a “kick in the teeth”.

Volunteer Simone O’Brien was unaware of the decision until she was asked about it on Thursday.

She described it as “deplorable and unacceptable.”

“The politicisation of people’s pain, particularly in the greatest flood catastrophe that Australia has seen, to exclude people from support is deplorable,” she said.

Volunteer Simone O’Brien says the exclusion of flood-affected Byron Shire residents from additional disaster payments is “deplorable and unacceptable”. Picture: Kaitlyn Smith

“When you’re coming up for an election you would think you wanted to win people over.

“I wish such attitudes were all washed away in the floods rather than innocent people’s livelihoods.”

Resident Mark Ascot, who last week was pulling his neighbours to safety amid the record-breaking deluge, said the lack of boots on the ground and additional financial support was a “joke but not surprising”.

“We’ve got a Hawaiian shirt here for Scott Morrison if he wants to make an appearance,” he said.

“It’s not good enough, the entire response has been woeful,” he said.

Lismore City Mayor Steve Krieg, National Recovery and Resilience Minister Bridget Mckenzie and Prime Minister Scott Morrison in Lismore City Council Chamber. Picture: Nicholas Rupolo

But the frustrated residents could soon become eligible for payments, according to Mr Morrison who addressed the matter while speaking in Brisbane on Thursday.

Mr Morrison said the National Recovery and Resilience Agency would continue to undertake assessment of possible additional local government areas that also met the catastrophic impact assessment.

“Just like in any natural disaster you define the hard hit areas,” he said.

“As the damage assessments come in you will add others to that list.”

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