Drought

The Hon. N.J. CENTOFANTI (Leader of the Opposition) (14:26): My questions are to the Minister for Primary Industries on the topic of drought:

1. How many applications did the department receive for the On-farm Drought Infrastructure Rebate Scheme in January?

2. How many of these grant applications received in January have been approved?

3. How many of those grant applications have been declined, and, of those declined, how many have been notified that they were not successful?

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development, Minister for Forest Industries) (14:27): I don't have the numbers to hand. I am happy to take that on notice in terms of the figures that were received in January. We have certainly had a very strong uptake and a number of applications for the on-farm drought infrastructure grants. Clearly, that shows that they are valued, and that's not surprising given they came about as a result of the various engagement and round tables.

In terms of the processing times, because of the high number of applications there has unfortunately been delays in processing those claims, or those applications. On occasion it may be that not full information has been provided and that, of course, will further delay, but PIRSA has doubled the size of the processing team to try to deal with that backlog.

The honourable member, I believe, referred to applications being declined. It is probably worth pointing out that it's not a competitive grant process. If an applicant is eligible, then they will be able to receive the grant. If they are not eligible, then clearly they won't.