Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I seek leave to have an answer to a question from Senator McKenzie on 20 September 2012 regarding the regional structural adjustment assistance package incorporated into Hansard.

Leave granted.

The answer read as follows—

The Government understands that some regions and communities will face more significant impacts than others from reforms like the carbon price. A central element in the Australian approach to economic reform over the past three decades has been structural adjustment assistance. The Government will maintain this approach under the clean energy plan to help to ease the transition for strongly affected regions and communities.

The $200 million Regional Structural Assistance Package will be set aside for structural adjustment assistance for regions and communities, and if required there will be other initiatives which assist strongly affected areas and sectors.

The Department of Regional Australia, Regional Development and Local Government will monitor the impacts of the carbon price on regions to determine areas where structural adjustment assistance may be required.

For identified regions, structural adjustment assistance will be delivered through arrangements that engage state, territory and local governments, community groups and unions, including through place-based investment and service delivery approaches.

Funding will support regional communities on a case-by-case basis. Examples of programs that may be supported include support for displaced workers and their families, support for affected small businesses, community development programs and economic diversification programs.