Her condition rapidly deteriorated in March 2018 and she slowly became housebound and by June 2018 was not able to function with household chores, shopping, dressing nor showing.

So in early June 2018 we applied for an assessment with the federal Aged Care Act (ACAT) to determine her eligibility to access aged care services.

At the end of June 2018 she was assessed as level four which is the highest level of eligibility to receive assistance. She was eligible for 10 hours a week personal help.

However we then discovered that she would not be able to access this assistance for 18 months!

Lyn's condition continued to deteriorate and she passed away on December 8, 2018.

One of the major reasons Lyn was not able to receive help at the time of assessment was that the federal government cut $700million from aged care in the 2017/18 budget. 

Norman Austwick, Mogareeka

Member for Bega Andrew Constance's assertion that everything is hunky dory in the Murrah Flora Reserve and that NPWS are fully staffed is extremely disingenuous at best (BDN, 22/2).

As Mr Constance well know his government has cut national parks funding to the bone, restructured and cut jobs including many highly-experienced firefighting staff and the season fire crews tasked with doing hazard reduction measures during the off season and fighting ever more severe bushfires during the summer.

The new Murrah Flora Reserve receives a pittance from Forestry Corp NSW that fund one NPWS field officer, the rest of its management is taken up by overstretched NPSW staff already at breaking point.

The failure of his government to give adequate funding to the management of our national parks and protected areas is not only a crime against future generations but also puts lives and property at risk from bushfire.

Sadly the people blamed when fires occur are the very staff who are trying desperately to cover the gaps caused by funding and job cuts.

Jamie Shaw, Mogareeka

Eden-Monaro MP Mike Kelly is half right to tell the Bega District News (22/2) that expanding our plantations is the industry’s “number one policy goal” this election.  

More plantations is indeed a big goal but equally important to industry is supporting the native forestry businesses and their workers in Eden Monaro, who have a great history and a big future.  

We will be demanding that both the Labor and Coalition parties recommit to rolling Regional Forest Agreements and back a policy of no more lock-ups of our native estate.

The tiny percentage of forest which is harvested in NSW each year is resown and regrown by law and the workers in these industries can feel proud of being a part of an industry which has been providing good jobs in regional areas for 100 years. 

Our native hardwood businesses operate to world’s best practice and have certification as completely sustainable operations, which is why we are now working on the next 100-year plan for the sector.

There are 132million hectares of native forests in Australia. Most of it is in national parks, reserves and on farms. Forestry is possible in about 4 per cent of that 132million hectares and we harvest and regenerate a microscopic half of one percent each year.

Australia is the seventh most forested nation on earth. We are blessed that we can afford both our huge expanse of national parks as well as one of the greatest of industries supplying sustainable timber and residues from timber harvesting to our nation and the world.

Ross Hampton, CEO of Australian Forest Products Association