Only 4 of 19 Indigenous outcomes targets on track
The government has released its latest closing the gap report which shows that while some outcomes for Indigenous people are improving, many are not. The Prime Minister has told the parliament that since the apology to the stolen generation, only 11 out of 19 socio-economic outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have improved.
Transcript
00:00 This report goes on targets from last year's Productivity Commission report, and that's
00:07 the one where we heard that only four out of the 19 Closing the Gap targets were on
00:12 track. Outcomes had worsened for four critical targets - suicide, adult imprisonment, childhood
00:18 development and out of home care. Today the PM told the House of Representatives what
00:23 the government has done so far. They're spending $96 million to deliver domestic violence services,
00:29 improving Wi-Fi in remote communities and jobs were high on the agenda, with the CDP
00:34 program completely overhauled. And that's the Community Development Program, which is
00:39 an employment initiative in remote Aboriginal communities.
00:44 Today I announced the creation of our Remote Jobs and Economic Development Program. This
00:50 is a better approach. It will fund community organisations to create 3,000 jobs in remote
00:56 areas. Real jobs with proper wages and decent conditions. Jobs developed in partnership
01:04 with Indigenous communities. Jobs that will build skills that communities want. Jobs that
01:10 deliver services that communities want. Jobs that deliver infrastructure that communities
01:16 want. Jobs that create a sense of possibility for individuals, for families and for communities.
01:25 As for last week's Productivity Commission report, the Prime Minister acknowledged governments
01:29 haven't listened to Aboriginal communities enough in the past. That report found there
01:34 were frustrations. Governments were not being transparent about how much money Indigenous-run
01:39 organisations were getting and how much money was being funnelled into NGOs or national
01:45 non-government organisations.
01:47 The Productivity Commission has made it clear that the old ways are not working. Decades
01:55 of insisting that government knows best has made things worse. We must find a better way
02:03 and we must do it together.
02:05 The Opposition Leader, Peter Dutton, says that he wants an audit on Indigenous programs
02:11 and is asking for expenditure reviews to be released.
02:15 The government has announced a $707 million program to create 3,000 remote jobs over three
02:21 years through the funding of community organisations. It's an admirable aim. Prime Ministers successively
02:33 have made similar announcements, provided additional funding, talking about opportunities
02:40 to grow jobs, to build houses, to address health needs, education needs in many communities
02:47 but in many situations. The aspiration has just not been achieved.
02:55 The Coalition naturally wants to see more jobs available to support the lives and livelihoods
02:58 of Indigenous Australians to help turn the tide of disadvantage. We support the government
03:05 in their cause to provide more housing as a fundamental need of those in Indigenous
03:11 communities and far beyond that. But we call on the government to identify the specifics
03:16 of this program. It's too important to allow it to be an aspiration not achieved.
03:22 What many people want to know is when we will hear new data on the Closing the Gap targets.
03:28 Are we meeting them? Are we going backwards? Or is there progress being made? The ABC understands
03:33 that the next targets assessment batch will drop next month.
03:38 [BLANK_AUDIO]