Rachel Siewert (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask that the name of Senator Lines be added to general business notice of motion No. 1243 standing in my name for today. I, and also on behalf of Senator Lines, move:

That the Senate—

(a) acknowledges:

(i) the work that the Jacaranda Community Centre does through their Aboriginal Family Support and School Inclusion Program, including supporting First Nations families through early childhood development, care education and school readiness programs; providing support and referrals for external counselling and health services, such as alcohol and substance abuse assistance; supporting families in court, schools and hospitals; and undertaking outreach and home visits and liaising with local Elders,

(ii) that the Jacaranda Community Centre's Aboriginal Family Support and School Inclusion Program was funded under the Indigenous Advancement Strategy, managed by the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, since 2017;

(b) notes that:

(i) the Jacaranda Community Centre has run this program for over 9 years, under various funding arrangements and, most recently, under the Indigenous Advancement Strategy, employs First Nations people under the program, and is currently supporting over 50 First Nations children and their families,

(ii) on 21 November 2018, the Jacaranda Community Centre was given 5 weeks notice from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet that their funding would not be continuing without providing justification and with no transition plan for the families currently being assisted and the First Nations peoples employed, and

(iii) the Federal Government approved grants of $150,000 to the Northern Territory Seafood Council, $170,000 to the Amateur Fishermen's Association of the Northern Territory, and $165,000 to the Northern Territory Cattlemen's Association out of the Indigenous Advancement Strategy funding; and

(c) calls on the Minister for Indigenous Affairs to reinstate funding for this important program.

Question agreed to.