Mark Furner (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, my question is to the Minister for Small Business, Senator Sherry. Can the minister outline to the Senate how the government is assisting the recovery of small businesses from the natural disasters that struck wide areas of Australia earlier this summer? How is the government showing its commitment to providing ongoing support for small businesses during the recovery process?

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Minister for Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to update some aspects of the assistance being provided due to the devastation as a consequence of recent floods and Cyclone Yasi. This remains an important ongoing priority for the government and we have made our commitment clear to rebuild these disaster affected communities. In this regard I want to commend the role of the business enterprise centres in providing assistance to small business and the farming community. The government provides some $42 million for the business enterprise centres to help support small business growth and sustainability, and they have excelled during the flood crisis, not only those centres located in affected areas but other centres throughout Australia, by providing support and lending staff. They have done a fantastic job.

The 36 small business advisory centres are located throughout Australia in rural, regional and suburban areas. We are to open our 37th shortly in Cairns and I want to acknowledge the work of my colleague Senator McLucas, who has argued very long and hard for an additional new centre in Cairns. Just this morning the Australian and Queensland governments announced that the state’s tourism industry will receive an additional $2 million in flood and cyclone recovery assistance. This adds to the $10 million marketing fund announced on 28 January. Unfortunately there is a perception, not just in some areas of Australia but overseas, that the tourism industry has been shut down in parts of Queensland. This is just not the case. I want to reiterate that the tourism industry in Queensland is open for business. We are determined to correct the perception that has unfortunately arisen. The federal government today also announced details of a $1.4 billion boost— (Time expired)

Mark Furner (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Can the minister outline to the Senate what easy-to-find support services the government has put in place for small businesses to turn to for advice on flood recovery assistance?

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Minister for Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have mentioned the role of the BECs but there are a wide range of Australian government support services on hand and I would urge small businesses and those in the farming sectors affected by the flood crisis to contact these services. They are free of charge and they are easy to access. A good start would be the Small Business Support Line. Its agents are highly trained. They come from small business backgrounds and they will be able to point small businesses to the form of financial assistance they can access as well as a range of other support services. For example, the disaster income recovery subsidy is available to those who have experienced a loss of income as a direct result of the flooding. In addition, the Australian government and state governments have partnered to provide emergency clean-up and recovery grants and my colleague Senator Ludwig has provided an update of the increased grants in respect of Queensland. (Time expired)

Mark Furner (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. In addition to the immediate assistance being provided, how is the Gillard government taking a long-term approach to helping Australia recover from the recent natural disasters?

Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern and Remote Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Ask him about the Asian honey bee. We only need $2 million for that, Nick.

Nick Sherry (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party, Minister Assisting the Minister for Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As serious as the Asian honey bee issue is, I am not sure it is a direct consequence of floods, Senator Macdonald. It is a serious issue but I think you are interjecting in the wrong debate. There is a massive task ahead to rebuild large parts of Australia. This will be ongoing and a long-term process. This was one of the largest, if not the largest, natural disaster in Australian history. We have estimated the costs involved for government at all levels—local, state and Commonwealth—will require some $5.6 billion in rebuilding flood affected regions, with more than $5 billion being required for rebuilding essential infrastructure. We are determined to follow through for those Australians directly affected by recent disasters and we are determined to revive economic community for the regions and for the benefit of our economy as a whole. (Time expired)