Flood aid ‘not getting to those who need it’

Only one-fifth of the $1.6bn promised to flood-ravaged communities in the Northern Rivers region of NSW has been paid out by the Perrottet government, new data reveals.

Flooding in Lismore in northern NSW in October 2022. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Danielle Smith

Only one-fifth of the $1.6bn promised to flood-ravaged communities in the Northern Rivers region of NSW has been paid out by the Perrottet government, new data reveals.

Eleven months ago, an unprecedented deluge swept across the eastern seaboard, inundating towns across southeast Queensland and northern NSW, in one of the worst recorded flooding disasters in the nation’s history.

With communities such as Woodburn, Kyogle and Nimbin in the northeastern corner of NSW facing a monumental rebuild, NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet vowed not a dollar would be spared in the recovery effort, saying those who had lost homes were a primary concern.

But of the $1.6bn promised by the government in May last year, Service NSW data reveals only $322.2m has been distributed eight months later.

Inordinately high numbers of grants had been ruled ineligible by the government, with more than 67 per cent of small business grants rejected.

South Lismore cafe owner Tony Zammit said his experience in the aftermath of the floods had been positive, but he had faced issues applying for the small grants program later on, with multiple applications green-lit by Service NSW staff before being subsequently rejected.

“Early on they were helpful but as time went on it became daunting. By the end, honest claims and applicants were treated as criminals,” Mr Zammit, the owner of The Sassy Bean cafe, said.

One near-$50,000 claim was deemed ineligible by Service NSW because assessors could not verify an $1100 electrician’s bill, he said. When he attempted to resubmit his claim, Mr Zammit was told he could not submit any of the same receipts as they had all been deemed fraudulent.

More than 80 per cent of rental support applications have been declined, while of special disaster grants available to farmers and primary producers, only $116m of $302m claimed has been paid out, despite 86 per cent of applications being approved or rejected.

Emergency Services Minister Steph Cooke warned in May last year the government had an “obligation” to ensure the proper processes were in place to filter out fraudulent grant applications. The NSW government’s independent 2022 flood inquiry noted concerns among flood-impacted farming communities that there were “onerous processes for accessing grants, and for submitting development applications”.

An upper house inquiry reached similar conclusions, finding a lack of streamlined grants processes meant applicants were repeatedly interviewed, “leading to frustration and trauma”, while a lack of assessors on the ground “delayed the rollout of grants”.

Opposition emergency services spokesman Jihad Dib said there had been a “huge gap” between flood funding announcement and delivery from the Perrottet government.

“It’s clear flood-affected communities have been let down by the government.

“Flood-affected communities are sick and tired of politicians showing up, making promises to help and not delivering when the cameras turn off.”

A state government spokesman provided the total amount paid to people impacted by flooding across NSW over the past 12 months. “More than $877m worth of individual grants have been approved and paid to households, primary producers, rural landholders and small business owners impacted by flooding,” he said.