Help with government services
I help people having difficulties with government agencies and services, including Centrelink, aged care, health, housing, the NDIS and veterans’ affairs. This might involve advocating on your behalf, relaying your concerns to the agency or minister responsible, or suggesting another organisation that can help.
For example:
- Help dealing with Federal Government agencies including Centrelink, the NBN and the NDIS.
- Assistance with state and local government matters.
- Providing Australian, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags.
- Arranging birthday (90+) and wedding anniversary (50+) messages from the King and/or the Governor-General, the Prime Minister, and Andrew.
- Organising certificates of appreciation for those who served in the Australian Defence Force.
- Supplying copies of the Constitution and portraits of the Monarch, CDs and DVDs of the national anthem, and books of Australian flags and symbols.
- Providing notepads, calendars, no junk mail stickers and recycling guides.
- Free Tax Help service for eligible low-income earners.
Immigration Update
The Government recently changed the way family and skilled visas are processed, meaning some people applying from outside Australia may face much longer wait times. While Andrew can raise general concerns about immigration policy with the Government, he cannot speed up processing and will not request a ‘status update’ from the Department of Home Affairs on behalf of an individual. How long a visa will take to assess also depends on factors such as whether all required documents have been provided, how quickly applicants respond to requests for information, and the time needed to complete health, character and security checks. It is also important to remember that every visa application is assessed on its own merits. This means people applying for the same visa can experience different processing times, depending on their circumstances and the information required to assess their application.
Please see Skilled visa processing priorities for more information.
Visiting Parliament House in Canberra?
- For school visits during a parliamentary sitting week, I can meet students and explain how things work. If your visit is on a non-sitting week, I can visit your school before or after your trip to explain how the process works.
- For private visits, either myself or my staff might be able to show you around Parliament House and obtain tickets to Question Time.