Responses to this question were almost uniformly positive. Many commented that the grant of $3,000 had been both welcome and timely: "invaluable", "much appreciated", "very generous", "excellent"and "a remarkably supportive program - both easy and fast"were among many similar comments made. There was positive comment in particular on the speed of the Government's response and the relative absence of "red tape"in the processing of applications; in some cases a contrast was drawn with the corresponding process being employed at federal government level. BusinessACT was commended by several owners for its competent and professional handling of the assistance program.

Minor reservations were mentioned by some respondents, but in the context of general support for the program and appreciation of the assistance provided. Some of the owners whose businesses had suffered flow-on effects, rather than direct damage, as a result of the fires commented that there was some initial uncertainty and conflicting advice as to their eligibility for assistance. One owner queried the decision to provide a uniform grant to all businesses affected by the fires, despite wide differences in the scale of their business activities and in the damage which had been inflicted by the fires. Several commented that the grant of $3,000 had fallen a long way short of "filling the gap"; at the same time, however, they readily acknowledged that limits had to be set to the amount of government assistance provided and that complete compensation was not the objective. Only one respondent was wholly negative in his comments, complaining that there had been "a lot of talk but not much action".

A number of owners took the opportunity to raise wider issues regarding the Government's handling of the fires and the assistance it had provided to the households and businesses affected. Several commented on what they saw as deficiencies in disaster management planning before the fires, while others criticised the differences in the assistance provided to households which were insured and those which were not. One owner expressed his strong dissatisfaction with the Government's handling of a lease renewal application which was critical to his future business plans.

In the area of business support, a few owners put the view that the support provided to businesses had been inferior to that provided to households; one commented, for example, that it would have been helpful if businesses, like households, had been provided with a "roadmap for recovery"to guide their business planning and decision-making in the period after the fires. In that regard, the same businesses commented that they had an ongoing need for expert advice and business assistance (in areas such as