When he announced small business assistance for fire-affected areas in early January, the Prime Minister said it would make it easier for people who have suffered direct fire damage or have been indirectly economically impacted to get back on their feet. Well, for too many small businesses in the Blue Mountains and the Hawkesbury it's not working out that way, and for some it is a time of desperation, with visitor numbers still a long way down and the bills a long way up. One business that was fire-affected has been successful, but they've endured weeks of uncertainty after initially being told they were not eligible. The fire burnt their property before Christmas, and here it is, more than two months on, and they're just getting some assistance now.

The experience of Megalong Valley businesswoman Glenda Lane is much more typical of the frustrating and distressing situation that people are facing. The Megalong Valley was threatened with fire for weeks on end. It was thanks to an amazing effort that no homes were lost, but properties and buildings were impacted, and business just dropped off completely. But Glenda and others like her are being told they're not entitled to grants or to any other support. Their only possible option is a loan, and the process for applying for that is another roller-coaster in itself. Remember, this is being asked of people who've been through the fear and threat of fire—for some, the fear, when they left their property as fire approached, that their property would be gone, that animals would be dead, and even that famil