Warren Snowdon (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for External Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Two days ago, we saw the delivery of a budget which is very underwhelming and has quite dramatic impacts on the people of the Northern Territory. There are a couple of positive elements, which I'm prepared to acknowledge and actually support. One of which was the announcement of money allocated to the budget for Western Desert Dialysis—that is the Western Desert Nganampa Walytja Palyantjaku Tjutaku Aboriginal Corporation, which delivers dialysis treatment in remote communities in the Northern Territory. As a result of the introduction of a dedicated Medicare item number providing $590 per dialysis treatment will be provided, Aboriginal people who require dialysis will, in the future, be able to have dialysis in their home communities, obviating the need for them to travel to Alice Springs, Katherine, Tennant Creek, Darwin and other places across Australia for that treatment. That will be a very, very good thing. I also absolutely support the $4.8 million for crusted scabies treatment. That's a very important element of dealing with rheumatic heart disease and other illnesses.

But, on the whole, the budget is a shocker. We have seen with much fanfare the government talk about announcements of infrastructure, including $100 million for the Buchanan Highway and $180 million for the Central Arnhem Highway. The fact of the matter is: none of this money hits the deck, in reality, for five years or more—beyond the forward estimates period. We're not going to see any real improvements in those roads as a result of this investment for over four years. That's a con, and everyone in their right mind knows it's a con. Just as it's a con, if we read the detail of the budget, that there have been significant cuts in other areas for the Northern Territory, including in cancer care and in remote Aboriginal expenditure to improve school attendance, improve school results, for workforce development, for teacher housing, for community safety, for child safety, to reduce alcohol harm, for housing works, for removing asbestos from uni buildings, and on the Aboriginal Interpreter Service. Why would you be reducing expenditure in those areas? Only the government would know. Black spots improvement funding has been reduced, Roads to Recovery has been reduced, tourism infrastructure has been reduced and there are cuts to legal aid services.

In addition, you will recall the government's support for the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory. There's not one dollar—not one!—in this budget for addressing the recommendations in that royal commission report, which this government was a co-author of! Why would you not fund those services? Why would you not? The people of the Northern Territory have wised up to this crowd.