Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you very much, Senator Sterle. The radical expansion and simplification of the farm household allowance was as a result of a farmer-led review into the payment. You, like those of us over here that represent rural electorates, know that the farm household allowance application process was very complex and essentially too long. We've cut that down by more than one-third; we've made substantial changes to the paperwork.

One of the things the farmer-led review actually suggested was that rather than it being a payment for four years in a lifetime of hardship for a farmer, it be changed to four years of payment over a 10-year period, recognising that in a country like Australia farmers will go through more than one period of hardship in their life. We've accepted that recommendation. We've also accepted all of the recommendations made by the review, and, as such, we estimate that over 30,000 farmers and their families who currently are not in receipt of this payment, but potentially could be, will become eligible. Part of the problem with farmers accessing this much-needed support is that they self-assess and think they're not going to make it. So I urge farmers to have a crack with their rural financial counsellor.

With respect to the legislation before the Senate this week, the lump sum payment of $13,000 that you speak of is for this financial year; it's $13,000 for a couple, or $7½ thousand for a single farmer—bearing in mind, 80 per cent of farmers are partnered. The legislation also contains a rule where I'll be able to make a rule, going forward, for additional lump sum payments, when and where they're required. I've made it very public that I've committed to do that. As long as the drought goes, we'll be standing with our farmers and supporting them.