LONG lines formed outside Centrelink offices in Frankston and Mornington early last week.
Lines stretched out the door on 24 March, the same day that high usage crashed the myGov website.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced pubs, clubs, gyms, and cinemas to shut down, putting many out of work. Restaurants and cafes can only operate takeaway.
Dunkley MP Peta Murphy said “it is distressing to see so many people desperate for information and assistance.”
“When I went to Frankston Centrelink and spoke to locals lined up for hours, many had just lost their job and needed support for the first time ever. Others were desperate to know how they could get through these tough times, but couldn’t get through on the website or the phone,” she said.
“Australians should not have to line up in the cold and the rain to access emergency government support. The government needs to prioritise the delivery of social security payments.
“The government also needs to ensure that Centrelink has the resources it needs to deal with this significant increase in demand.”
Some welfare recipients will receive an extra $550 a fortnight in response to growing coronavirus concerns. Jobseeker Payment (formerly known as Newstart), Partner Allowance, Widow Allowance, Sickness Allowance and Wife Pension, Youth Allowance for job seekers, and Youth Allowance for students and apprentices are among the payments that will be supplemented.
Jobseeker recipients had previously been eligible to receive a maximum of around $565 a fortnight if they were single with no children. Single recipients with a dependent child were eligible to receive around $50 more.
A statement from the Australian Unemployed Workers’ Union read that the supplement was “a frank admission from our government that they of course always had the fiscal capacity to raise income support to a livable level.”
Mornington’s Centrelink site was set to close on 27 March, until a six month lease extension was secured last week.
The offices at 332 Main Street were slated to close and be replaced with a private, part-time “agency” running for 15 hours, three days a week.
Last week, federal health minister and Flinders MP Greg Hunt announced that the Centrelink would remain open in the short term.
“The effects of the coronavirus will not just be felt in our hospital wards and emergency rooms, we have seen that the economic impacts of this disease will tragically effect people’s jobs and their businesses,” he said. “During this time I have continued to fight for our community for services to remain in Mornington, first through an agent service, now through the continuation of the service centre through the coronavirus outbreak.
“In light of this challenge, I can announce a six-month extension has been agreed for the continuation of Centrelink and Medicare services at the current Main Street site and I thank the landlord and Services Australia for their actions to ensure this continuation.
“This six month extension of services at the Mornington service centre will ensure locals can get face to face assistance, five days a week, through these times of uncertainty. Services Australia is rapidly increasing capacity both online and in person, with 5000 additional personnel being added to the workforce.”
Dunkley MP Peta Murphy said “the announcement from the federal government to continue Centrelink and Medicare services for six months at the Mornington services centre is a great win for the local community.”
“The announcement, coming after significant community pressure, and the increased demand associated with the COVID-19 will provide support to many residents in need on the peninsula,” she said. “[This] announcement suggests that the lease could in fact be renewed. If the lease can be renewed, why has it only been renewed for six months? The fight to protect Mornington Centrelink and Medicare is far from over.”
Ms Murphy said the planned closure of Mornington Centrelink would have put the Frankston site under further stress.
“Frankston Centrelink is already overwhelmed and the federal government plans to make them take on many of the vulnerable people who currently attend Mornington Centrelink, up to 800 each week,” she said. “I’m really concerned that the government’s decision to close Mornington Centrelink and Medicare will just increase the wait times and reduce the services at Frankston.”
Updated and published in the Frankston Times – 31 March 2020