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

In regard to Warren Mundine's view that was put in the paper, I have had a discussion on that. I am not sure you can take it as read. We have certainly had that discussion and, as read, yes, I disagree. There is a case in point here. You have to learn—in this place I certainly have, and luckily I have some terrific people to learn from on the other side of the chamber. We need to ensure that a significant change, with the motivation of making it better, actually delivers that.

With regard to the Remote Jobs and Communities Program, somebody on the other side—not through mischief; I suspect through political expediency—just before the last election made a decision, 'No, no, we've got to roll it out.' Some organisations had four or five days to employ staff, get vehicles, put everything in place, which is why 60 per cent of the Aboriginal people going from CDEP to RJCP disconnected. And now we are having to put them back. So I am hardly likely to repeat the sins of those on the other side. There was no mischief, but it is a learning, and we have taken that on board. We just need to ensure that those small businesses who are Aboriginal businesses who may not have had the capacity to put in quite a sophisticated application—but they are very capable of providing a service; I want them to be able to do the job—are in place to do that.

When it came to my attention—and I have said in this place there is not going to be any change to front-line services—why would I march on, when I knew that 75 of those providers had not actually applied in their own name or had thought, 'This is too daunting,' or were in fact organisations that decided they could not employ Aboriginal people? So we have gone back. To ensure that there is no impact on front-line services, we have taken it out for six months. We as a government, unsurprisingly, are determined to get it right.