The Mornington Peninsula Shire Council remains extremely concerned about the imminent closure of the Mornington Centrelink office.
The Federal Government announced recently it would close the Mornington Centrelink Office on the 27 March 2020 - this office also includes Medicare services. This is to be replaced with a 15 hours per week Services Australia Agency.
In light of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and with the Commonwealth Government declaring a "human biosecurity emergency" and the Victorian Government State of Emergency, Council is worried how the reduction of services will severely impact our community during these uncertain times.
Mornington Peninsula Shire Mayor Councillor Sam Hearn said we have seen queues of people lining up at Mornington Centrelink in recent days due to the current COVID-19 situation, seeking assistance to access the support packages that have been announced.
"We are very concerned our residents will struggle to access these important assistance packages with the closure of Mornington Centrelink."
"Mornington Peninsula Shire urges the Federal Government to postpone the closure of the Mornington Centrelink and Medicare office for at least six months to ensure our community can access the services they need during this unprecedented time of uncertainly and concern."
The people who need access to this important local essential service are some of our more vulnerable and disadvantaged community members who may not be able to access online services.
The Mornington Peninsula has:
- a much higher older population than Greater Melbourne and the State average
- more people with a disability
- more unemployed young people
- more people without an internet connection.
