North Queensland open for business following floods
- Small and family businesses across flood-impacted areas of North and Far North Queensland are back open and trading six weeks after the devastating floods.
- Crisafulli Government urging insurance companies to process claims quickly to give businesses certainty moving forward.
- Recovery efforts include mental health supports.
The Crisafulli Government is rolling out the welcome mat to visitors to North and Far North Queensland, with almost all flood-affected small and family businesses reopened.
Queenslanders are being urged to spend locally and for visitors to return to enjoy the region's many tourism attractions.
A Department Small and Family Business, Customer Service and Open Data assessment six weeks after waters started to recede found 95 per cent of small and family businesses in flood-affected areas had reopened.
An initial survey found almost half of all small and family business in flood-affected areas of North and Far North Queensland had to close their doors at different stages of the natural disaster.
Efforts to provide financial and wellness support, in addition to the grants programs, will increase in the coming weeks.
The Crisafulli Government has also recognised the importance of getting the regions back up and running by doubling the grant assistance funding from $25,000 to $50,000 in conjunction with the Federal Government.
Small and Family Business Minister Steve Minnikin was briefed on progress by local business leaders and recovery coordinators.
"We promised no daylight between response and recovery, and it's pleasing to see a significant amount of work has already been undertaken to get many small and family businesses back on their feet," Minister Minnikin said.
"We've received 169 grant applications across small business, primary industry and not-for-profit sector and I want to see that number increase as businesses understand the full extent of the damage they've received.
"We've recently announced that we'll be providing an additional $34.7 million for the Too Great to Wait marketing campaign, including getting tourists back to the State's north.
"We also understand the value in delivering a high-quality concierge service to assist businesses to identify the assistance that suits their needs, and are committed to delivering our election commitment for a new business concierge service to streamline assess to government services."
North Queensland Deputy Disaster Recovery Coordinator Acting Superintendent Paul Algie said the priority was to ensure assistance was getting through to those that needed it most.
"We are continuing to work with Government agencies on the ground to make sure we target assistance to those that need it most," Acting Superintendent Algie said.
"Some of the most important work we do is connecting businesses and residents with the available services."
