Labor has pledged to re-open the Centrelink and Medicare offices at Warrawong if the party wins government in May.
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The Warrawong Centrelink and Medicare office, located inside Warrawong Plaza, closed last July.
The move left one of the region's most disadvantaged communities "out in the cold", Illawarra Labor MPs said at the time.
A petition to fight the closure garnered more than 1000 signatures - but didn't persuade the Department of Human Services to keep the centre open.
The department said the closure was the result of a drop in customer foot traffic over recent years, as more people opted to use digital services.
On Wednesday, Labor pledged to re-open the Centrelink and Medicare Offices at Warrawong if the party wins the May federal election.
The election pledge was made by Shadow Minister for Human Services Ed Husic, Cunningham MP Sharon Bird, and Whitlam MP Stephen Jones, who is also the Shadow Minister for Regional Services, Territories and Local Government.
A statement from the trio said the closure has impacted on many members of Warrawong and the surrounding suburbs of Port Kembla, Cringila, Lake Heights, Primbee, Kemblawarra and Berkeley.
"These suburbs are home to some of the most disadvantaged people in the Illawarra, and many of these people have English as a second language which makes phone and internet contact difficult," the statement said.
"This local Centrelink will provide a crucial service supporting Cunningham's 18,000 recipients of the age pension; 7000 recipients of the family tax benefit; and over 4000 recipients of carer's allowance and Whitlam's 22,000 recipients of the age pension; 10,000 recipients of the family tax benefit; and over 5500 recipients of carer's allowance."
Brendan Crabb
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
I'm a member of ACM's national property team, covering the Illawarra and South Coast. Based in Albion Park, NSW, I write about exciting, interesting or just downright quirky properties that have been listed for sale, major sales, market trends, auctions and more. One of my favourite aspects of being a journalist is I believe everyone has a story to tell. What's yours?
