Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Kennedy for his question—and obviously he is joined by some friends down that end of the parliament! Can I take the opportunity to acknowledge some friends in the gallery from Modbury High. The member for Makin I think is particularly pleased to see them here.

But if I could now directly respond to the member for Kennedy's question. The member for Kennedy has raised this matter with me on a number of occasions privately, and I know that he is very concerned about it and it has been something that he has pursued across a lifetime of political work, not only here in this parliament but in the Queensland state parliament beforehand. I know that when he was Queensland state Minister for Aboriginal Affairs he introduced far-reaching land reforms to try and assist with this question of title. Even today these leases that he created when he was the relevant minister are known as 'Katter leases', and I think that is a great tribute to him. It was one of the first attempts to harness the land to enable economic development for Aboriginal people, and I know he is proud of it.

As the member for Kennedy is aware, the Queensland government has legislated land tenure changes on Indigenous land and is developing the necessary land administration systems in remote Indigenous communities to enable long-term leasing. In Queensland the Aboriginal Land Act 1991 and the Torres Strait Islander Land Act 1991 were amended in 2008 to allow long-term leasing of up to 99 years of community title land for private residential and commercial purposes. No 99-year leases have been entered into as yet, as the necessary survey work needs to be done.

The Queensland Department of Environment and Resource Management has released a discussion paper about the way we can potentially enhance the utility of these leases for commercial and private residential purposes. And the proposed amendments also provide measures for regularising these estates with the balance of Indigenous lands to facilitate further economic development.

So I understand that, from the point of view of the member for Kennedy, progress in this matter has been painfully slow, because he did such good work when he was in the Queensland parliament. I know that he is aware that there is a need here to work with community ownership structures but to give sufficient security to private individuals such that they are able to have homes, and have a connection to their homes in the same way Australians generally want that connection with the place they call home, and to have the ability to develop viable businesses that can then be sold so that the labour that you put into your business not only supports you in an income sense but also builds up capital for you when you want to realise that capital. So we are working through that with the Queensland government; we will continue to do so. I can understand the member for Kennedy's frustration that he would like to see quicker progress, but progress is occurring.

See this speech in context