Ken Wyatt (Hasluck, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Health) Share this | Hansard source

It is a privilege to provide the summing up of this amendment bill which we have been debating today, the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Amendment Bill 2015. I thank all those honourable members for their contributions: the member for Blair, the member for Lingiari, the member for Brand and the member for Berowra.

This bill, which makes amendments to the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976, will empower Indigenous landowners and community members with localised decision-making about the use of their land. It offers the opportunity to resolve tenure issues and streamline land council operations to promote land owners and community members playing an integral role in fostering economic development in their communities.

By enabling the Executive Director of Township Leasing to hold a sublease of Aboriginal land and to transfer that sublease to an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation, this bill enables the settlement of a sublease at the community of Mutitjulu. This will work to resolve tenure issues and will open up the Mutitjulu community to take advantage of the unique economic development opportunities offered by its location in close proximity to one of Australia's most visited World Heritage sites, Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park.

By improving how the Northern Territory land councils delegate their functions and powers to Aboriginal corporations, this bill removes deterrents and encourages delegations to be made. This will streamline the operations of land councils and bolster localised decision-making, and it will reap economic benefits for Indigenous communities, with decisions made at a local level in commercial time frames.

By providing for a clear process to vary the administrative boundaries of existing land councils, this bill will enable the resolution of agreements between land councils to ensure the most logical and culturally appropriate arrangements for the administration of Aboriginal land are in place.

Finally, this bill meets this government's commitment to return Aboriginal land to Aboriginal people by scheduling three parcels of land. This will allow for the granting of those parcels of land to the land trusts and the resolution of three significant land claims in the Simpson Desert, in the Wickham River area, and on and around the Vernon Islands.

On behalf of the government and the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, I would like to thank the Northern Territory land councils for their partnership in developing this bill. It is a testament to our relationship and joint commitment to empower Indigenous landowners and improve outcomes for Indigenous communities. I commend the bill to the House.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

Message from the Governor-General recommending appropriation announced.

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