Compare Party Responses

24. Indigenous welfare

Social justice for indigenous people remains a major issue for Christian churches. What initiatives and policies would your Party introduce to ensure not only better health, housing, education and employment opportunities for indigenous Australians, but also to facilitate long-term social inclusion and a sense of hope and purpose for the first Australians? What would your Party do during the next term of Parliament to specifically address these goals?

• A Coalition Government will accelerate action to replace the inaction of the Labor Government on Indigenous affairs.  We will end Labor’s overly bureaucratic processes and deliver the support and infrastructure that Indigenous Australians were promised but failed to receive under Labor.
• The Leader of the Opposition has introduced a private members Bill into Parliament to overturn the Queensland Government’s Wild Rivers Act as it impacts on Cape York.  The Wild Rivers legislation won’t prevent the declaration of new national parks on Cape York but aims to permit ecologically sustainable development by the Indigenous population.

When last in government, the Coalition took decisive action to end the isolation and disadvantage experienced by Indigenous people. The intervention launched in the Northern Territory was an example of the Coalition’s resolve to improve the health, education and employment outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians living in the Northern Territory.

After delivering the historic apology to Indigenous Australians there was an expectation that the Labor Government would honour their promises to build houses, reduce unemployment and address the chronic health conditions suffered by many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.

The Labor government’s two Closing the Gap Reports to Parliament have confirmed that no meaningful progress has been made by Labor on reducing Indigenous disadvantage.  The achievements of the previous government progress have been lost.

A national government which fails to become involved in a serious problem of a state government’s making, where it can, becomes complicit. Indigenous Australians cannot enjoy lives of hope and purpose if they are denied the sorts of economic opportunities available to other Australians.

• We believe Indigenous people need to be treated the same as anyone else. They should have the same opportunities, expectations, and rules as the rest of the community.
• We believe a large factor in continuing social problems in Indigenous communities is the reluctance of government agencies to respond as they would with white communities because of fear of political consequences, for example by taking children out of abusive homes.

From what we have seen, the Howard initiatives inspired and driven by the then Minister, Mal Brough, and continued with some changes in the Rudd/Gillard government, have failed to deliver. We support the notion of self-determination, property ownership and local employment initiatives such as proposed by Noel Pearson. Government imposed initiatives, well meaning as they may be, do little to inspire any sense of self-worth or self-determination. We need to work alongside local communities and associations in partnership to deliver outcomes through local representatives with the authority to act after consultation with local leaders.

• The standard of living in many aboriginal communities is far less than acceptable.
• As far as possible aboriginal culture should be preserved in a manner that is consistent with living within 21st century Australian society.

The policy regarding aboriginal communities has been inadequate for a variety of reasons, and the outcomes achieved consistently indicate that objectives have frequently not been met.  Recent measures that encourage self reliance, including the introduction of private property rights, are a beneficial development. 

Our party support indigenous welfare without the Government conditions that are currently applied.

The Greens believe greater investment into Indigenous community controlled organisations with a proven record of making a difference is the only way to deliver real and lasting outcomes on social, economic and health disadvantage. We are the only party standing with Indigenous communities (along with others including Uniting Care) to oppose to imposing punitive measures like national income management and believe you cannot separate physical, emotional and spiritual health.

• Family First was the first party to have an Indigenous Australian as its Federal Leader (Andrea Mason).
• We take our commitment on Indigenous issues seriously.
• Most recently, Family First has been arguing for a stronger role in restricting illegal alcohol and drug smuggling onto the APY Lands.

Family First was the first party to have an Indigenous Australian as its Federal Leader (Andrea Mason). It takes its commitment to Indigenous issues seriously. Family First has a regular member on the state Aboriginal Lands Standing Committee, and in recent times, has been arguing for a stronger role in restricting illegal alcohol and drug smuggling onto the APY Lands.

• Our party would support Noel Pearson’s initiatives to provide real employment opportunities and self-determination for indigenous people. 
• AFLP opposes blanket World Heritage listing of Cape York and Wild Rivers as they disenfranchise all Australians on the Cape, particularly the indigenous peoples.

The Sex Party has not yet answered this question.

We believe services should be provided to all based upon need and while we note that many in the Indigenous communities have very poor outcomes we will supply community appropriate assistance so that all Australians receive good outcomes in regard to health, housing education and employment. We would want to work with local communities enabling their membership to develop community appropriate improvements in these areas and seek to provide all assistance directly to needy families.

• The Gillard Labor Government has allocated $1.7 billion to the Northern Territory through the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing and has made major progress on delivering this commitment.
• Federal Labor has increased annual expenditure on Indigenous specific health programs to almost $1.2 billion since 2007-08, an increase of 87 per cent. 
• The Gillard Labor Government is making income management reforms in the Northern territory that target support to vulnerable and disadvantaged Australians, and will consider extending these reforms to other disadvantaged communities around Australia.

The Gillard Labor Government regards closing the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians as an urgent national priority and has committed to:

• Close the life expectancy gap within a generation.
• Halve the gap in mortality rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children under five within a decade.
• Ensure access to early childhood education for all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander four year olds in remote communities within five years.
• Halve the gap in reading, writing and numeracy achievements for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children within a decade.
• Halve the gap for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students in Year 12 attainment or equivalent by 2020.
• Halve the gap in employment outcomes between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians within a decade.

Federal Labor’s policy on income management is based on a range of evidence which shows that income management helps families and is designed to help protect children and families.

Our reforms will target support to vulnerable and disadvantaged Australians, and ensure that welfare payments are first and foremost spent in the best interest of children and families.

The stark reality is that the gap in life expectancy remains 11.5 years for Indigenous men and 9.7 years for Indigenous women. Federal Labor is turning around a decade of underinvestment with record funding to Indigenous health.