Drought Concessional Loans

Mr PEDERICK (Hammond) (14:31): Are people getting frustrated with the government, minister, because there are stricter criteria and more forms to fill out for South Australian farmers to apply for this funding than for interstate farmers?

The Hon. L.W.K. BIGNELL (Mawson—Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Tourism, Minister for Recreation and Sport, Minister for Racing) (14:31): Thank you again to the member for Hammond for the question. There might be frustrations with the forms, but it's the same forms that you have to fill out in every state. As I mentioned before, in Victoria, you have to go and do your business case after you have been given the tick by the government. Here, you have to do that beforehand, so I guess there is some more work to be done before you go through the approvals process as set out by the federal government and as administered by the state government.

Mr Pederick: Sounds like a different process.

The Hon. L.W.K. BIGNELL: Slightly different. As I said in my first answer, every other state and territory, as South Australia does, puts that part of the process first; in Victoria, they put it second. Does that have an influence on how many people get the loans? I don't think it does. I have looked at the percentage of people who have applied for these loans and how many people have got them in each state and territory, and it seems to me that we are on around the average when you work out the number of applications we have had compared to the number of applications that have been approved.

The SPEAKER: A supplementary, member for Hammond