QFF WELCOMES NDRRA EXTENSION

THE Queensland Farmers’ Federation welcomes Premier Anna Bligh’s decision to extend the deadline for primary producers and small businesses to access disaster relief assistance for the summer of flooding and cyclones.

The Premier today announced that the deadline for farmers to apply for concessional loans and grants under the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA) was extended to January 31, 2012. The flood assistance package was due to finish on September 30 and the Cyclone Yasi package on October 31.

“QFF and our members had been lobbying for this extension, simply because although the recovery effort is progressing well, the job is not yet done,” QFF CEO Dan Galligan said.

“Recovery is a big job for farms and businesses, and farmers need this extra time to ensure that everyone gets fair access to the assistance.

“We need to ensure that every farmer who is eligible for assistance has the time to access the recovery measures put in place. That helps drive the local economy and employment and prevent local recessions.”

Mr Galligan said this extension recognised the extent of the disaster that Queensland farmers faced this summer, almost across the entire State.

“It also recognises that it is a long road to recovery, and that farms and farmers are not there yet.”

According to the Premier’s press release today, to date more than $159 million has been approved for 12,417 primary producers, businesses and not-for-profit organisations across Queensland in the form of grants and loans to assist in recovery.