Cathy O'Toole (Herbert, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I support this motion brought forward by the member for Barton, the honourable Linda Burney. What an absolute disgrace this Turnbull government is. Not only has this government ignored the calls from the Statement from the Heart at Uluru, but now this government is making savage cuts to the national partnership on remote housing. If this government were serious about closing the gap, it certainly would not be cutting $245 million of funding over two years to a program in Queensland that is a huge success. In Queensland alone, the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Housing includes the delivery of approximately 1,150 homes, approximately 1,500 refurbishments, as well as maintenance for almost 4,300 houses over a 10-year period. This partnership has created a large number of local jobs, particularly in Queensland, for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

As outlined in the Remote housing review, Queensland leads the nation in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employment for projects funded through the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Housing—to the tune of 87 per cent in recent years. This achievement is well beyond the 20 per cent target that was set for all states under the NPARH, and it is well above the next best state's result of 47 per cent. In Queensland, 16 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander local governments and businesses delivered nearly 80 per cent of the value of all new housing construction projects in their local communities, a huge improvement on the historic norm of 10 per cent, as well as 80 per cent of minor works and repairs. And over the last 10 years, the total number of employment opportunities funded through the NPARH has been 2,640. That's concreters, plumbers, carpenters, electricians, roofers, labourers, painters, tilers and cabinet-makers. Today, the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Housing supports the ongoing employment of over 850 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees, apprentices and trainees, and seven of those apprentices live in my electorate of Herbert, on Palm Island.

These cuts will result in these seven apprentices losing their jobs, as well as thousands of jobs in regional Queensland, not to mention the impact on small business. Remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities already face severe housing overcrowding and job challenges. My life my lead, released in December 2017, cites adequate housing as a significant contributor to developing strong, healthy children who grow into healthy adults and, thus, can lead long and fulfilling lives. When we talk about housing, particularly in remote regions, it's very important to understand the cultural obligation and humanitarian need for Indigenous Queenslanders to welcome extended families into their homes. Quite simply, the shortage of accommodation in remote Queensland communities means that extended families will be homeless if their relatives cannot welcome them into their homes. Typically, overcrowding can cause or exacerbate domestic and family violence, drug and alcohol misuse, mental health problems, personal hygiene issues, risk of disease and physical injury. It makes it very difficult to get children to school and exacerbates wear and tear on houses, particularly in wet areas. Overcrowding is also a proxy indicator for homelessness as people move between relatives' houses and out of communities to regional centres.

Although Queensland has achieved remarkable success over the past 10 years in reducing overcrowding in remote areas from 46.6 per cent of households in 2007 to 24 per cent in 2017, there is still so much more that needs to be done. In my electorate of Herbert on Palm Island, there are people living in self-constructed accommodation with no electricity, no plumbing and no running water. In fact, at the end of last year, Dr Mike Freelander, the member for Macarthur, met with a local Palm Island resident who suffers from diabetes. This woman has nowhere to store her insulin, because she has no fridge. She has no fridge, because she has no home. She has no home therefore she has no electricity and her medication cannot be kept cold.

This funding is vital for Palm Island. Right now Palm Island is flooding from the effects of Cyclone Nora, and hundreds of people are desperately in need of shelter—people without a home. Palm Island does not have a cyclone shelter—something else this government has refused to fund. More homes are desperately needed. The Remote Housing Review identifies the need for 1,100 additional homes in remote Queensland communities over the next 10 years. It's a national shame that the Turnbull government will cease these funds on 30 June this year, despite overwhelming independent advice that it should continue.

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