Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

And I can just continue the quote—'to front-line services.' I will maintain that there are no cuts at all to front-line services. Of course, when those opposite are peddling this sort of material, even with the basis under which they say, 'There has been this much cut,' they forget to add to the Australian people that it is useful to notice that there were also some additions in the offsets. Clontarf academy—everyone has heard what a fantastic job they have done—will receive $13.4 million. For police infrastructure in remote communities, there is $54 million—oh, sorry about that; I just forgot to mention it. How disingenuous do we have to get? There is $10.6 million for outback power. Support for the Northern Territory Child Abuse Taskforce is another $3.8 million. There will be more Aboriginal community engagement officers, with another $2.5 million—I am sorry, I left that off the list. The national congress of the first peoples will receive $15 million over three years, and $29.3 million had already been provided to 30 June. The list goes on.

The point I am simply making is that, with those opposite, you have got to be a bit cynical about what they say. You have got to listen very carefully for the parts that they simply do not put forward. As I have indicated, it is simply an inconvenient truth. Let me tell you, there is enough wrong with my portfolio from what I have invested and for what will be in the future without having to make it up. There are enough challenges in this portfolio without having to make them up. I simply refute the notion that there were that many cuts—that is simply not correct.