{"id":78739,"date":"2014-08-20T13:02:48","date_gmt":"2014-08-20T03:02:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=78739"},"modified":"2020-08-25T17:45:28","modified_gmt":"2020-08-25T07:45:28","slug":"centrelink-forms-too-complex","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2014\/08\/20\/centrelink-forms-too-complex\/","title":{"rendered":"Centrelink Forms ‘Too Complex’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>
Member for Maranoa Bruce Scott<\/figcaption><\/figure>August 20, 2014<\/strong><\/p>\n

Member for Maranoa Bruce Scott has slammed the current application process for drought-stricken farmers trying to access help from Centrelink.<\/p>\n

“The application process to access Centrelink support is too complex and many are giving up as a result,” Mr Scott said.<\/p>\n

“Currently families must wade through a complex 60 to 70-page document to apply for the Farm Household Allowance, turning many away in what should be a straight-forward application to keep food on the table.<\/p>\n

“Centrelink offers farm business support and the Farm Household Allowance but these are based on income and asset tests. <\/p>\n

“Many farming households are in a dire cash-flow situation and some applications for assistance are being knocked back because of assets or a meagre off-farm income.<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Constituents are phoning my office despondent after Centrelink deemed a few thousand dollars \u2013 set aside to buy seed when conditions improve \u2013 cash that needs to be exhausted before being eligible for support. <\/p>\n

“This means they will be unable to plant a crop next season. <\/p>\n

“Even State Government water infrastructure grants are being considered income, making them ineligible for assistance.<\/p>\n

“Remote constituents, who live hundreds of kilometres from the nearest Centrelink branch, are waiting hours for their phone call to be answered.<\/p>\n

“Others have been told to lodge their application online, only to have their access time out before completion. Many have given up, overwhelmed and frustrated by the process.”<\/p>\n

Mr Scott said he had invited Cabinet Minister Ian Macfarlane to visit the Maranoa electorate last week to see first-hand the reality of the severe drought. <\/p>\n

“He was overwhelmed by the despair and gobsmacked by the stories he heard,” Mr Scott said.<\/p>\n

“I am working with my colleagues and, during the next parliamentary sittings, I will work to change the current guidelines. <\/p>\n

“Changes need to be made so farmers can feed their families during this extreme drought and I will take this strong message to Canberra.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Member for Maranoa Bruce Scott has slammed the current application process for drought-stricken farmers trying to access help from Centrelink.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":50587,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3,36],"tags":[1134],"yoast_head":"\nCentrelink Forms 'Too Complex' - southburnett.com.au<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2014\/08\/20\/centrelink-forms-too-complex\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Centrelink Forms 'Too Complex' - southburnett.com.au\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Member for Maranoa Bruce Scott has slammed the current application process for drought-stricken farmers trying to access help from Centrelink.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2014\/08\/20\/centrelink-forms-too-complex\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"southburnett.com.au\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-08-20T03:02:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-08-25T07:45:28+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/brucescott2.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"300\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"181\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Anne Miller\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Anne Miller\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2014\/08\/20\/centrelink-forms-too-complex\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2014\/08\/20\/centrelink-forms-too-complex\/\",\"name\":\"Centrelink Forms 'Too Complex' - 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