Revealing the dire financial situation of the centre, SV Partners administrator Richard Cauchi said placing the centre into liquidation would allow the Federal Government to pay the more than $3 million debt of residents’ bonds and up to $1 million of debt of workers’ entitlements.
“After continuing discussions with the department in this case, we are looking at a prospect of some sort of transitional funding and for me to attempt to find further interest,” Mr Cauchi said at the meeting.
“Given the entity is in liquidation it crystallises the process by which the accommodation bonds can be covered under the (government's) warranties scheme.
“Unless this entity is in liquidation the warranties scheme doesn’t cut in, I’ll be very clear on that."
He said placing the company into liqudation would also allow the Fair Work Employment Scheme to pay workers’ entitlements.
Mr Cauchi said following the meeting he would be looking to place the home in a “holding pattern” so the facility could continue to run in the short term, with the view to having a longer-term solution for the centre.
“I can’t give you any guarantees, I will not give you any guarantees,” Mr Cauchi said.
“I will do everything I can to make this work and going forward from here it is all going to be up in the air.
“The department is very keen to make this work.”
Although the company is being placed into liquidation, the other assets, including the neighbourhood house, will continue to operate until told otherwise.
Member for Nicholls Damian Drum said it was a "fantastic result" for Murchison.
“It looks like the administrators are taking the necessary steps to do everything they can to keep the nursing home open,” Mr Drum said.
“If going into liquidation triggers the payments of funds going back into the bonds, triggers the payments going back into workers’ entitlements, if that’s the case we go down this path.
“We’ll have to take the administrator on his word that this is the best way forward.
“Ultimately the administrator has now made it very clear that he is under instruction from our government … to ensure what he is working for is an option that will keep the facility open.”
But Mr Drum said there was still a lot of work to be done.
“We still have to continue to negotiate with whoever this next provider will be,” he said.
“Capital funding will be negotiated between apparently three providers who are looking to see if they might have a future to run the Murchison aged care facility.
“What we need to do is to make sure whoever that provider is, they are given the assistance they need so that the future of this facility is guaranteed and we aren’t back here in two or three years trying to salvage what is an in effective business case.”
Thirteen of the original 34 residents remain at the facility.
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