Rod Kemp (Victoria, Liberal Party, Minister for the Arts and Sport) Share this | Hansard source

Having been the victim, on many occasions, of cheap, petty point-scoring from you, Senator Bartlett, I am astonished that you would make that comment. Governments by themselves cannot fully address many of the complex issues behind Indigenous disadvantage. The whole of the Australian community, as I mentioned, are looking for ways to make a difference. But the churches themselves need to be prepared to tackle the hard issues and what they can contribute to turning the situation around. I think that some of us would like the churches to speak out more vigorously on the issues of violence and child abuse, and that is a subject that cannot be avoided if you are talking about Indigenous poverty.

The Democrats are very good at trying to cast blame and aspersions on others. The truth is that you have been in this chamber for a very long period of time, and the contribution you have made and the initiatives you have taken to effectively address this problem have, I might say, been minimal. (Time expired)