Nova Peris (NT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Senator Scullion. I refer to the minister's decision to cut over half a billion dollars from Indigenous programs and merge over 150 individual programs into five streams. Does the minister agree with the assessment by an officer of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet who said, 'Staff are still unclear how the new program arrangements will be assessed and managed,' and that his takeover of Indigenous affairs is in disarray?

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

This is what it has come to: an anonymous source, deep in the Public Service, who has confessed that his or her department is in complete disarray. I am absolutely delighted to take this opportunity—

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

Stephen Parry (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Pause the clock. Order on both sides! Order on my left.

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

As I was saying, I am delighted to report that, in terms of our department, not only is morale at an all-time high but they are absolutely delighted that they are now working for a government that has some absolute outcomes in mind. From those on the other side we inherited six years—when every single year the number of Aboriginal children going to school went backwards. Every single year it went backwards, to 10 per cent—less than when you started. We are absolutely determined to change that around. In terms of adults going to work, that went backwards. On communities being safer, I do not really have any statistics on that.

When they actually did make an investment, they invested $1.7 billion on ensuring that we did not have overcrowding. What happened? Absolutely nothing. The overcrowding is as bad as when they started. There was a complete mistake about SIHIP; a complete disaster on everything. Did we appoint an Aboriginal person? Did we have a legacy of smoke-signal apprentices? No. Their legacy is one of complete, abysmal failure. I can tell you that my department are delighted to work for a government that is actually getting something done.

Nova Peris (NT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. I refer to a joint statement by six leading Indigenous organisations who say: 'This environment is one of confusion and this is causing instability, anxiety and uncertainty. Despite requests for information from many of our organisations, there are few answers.' Is this the minister's quiet revolution in practice?

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

I have written a letter to every single organisation that receives funding from this government. We have explained very carefully in that letter exactly how the AIS is going to work. So I am not sure where they got that information. You have got to be very careful with those utterances from the other side. A lot of Indigenous organisations have found themselves in a bit of hot water. As a consequence of a misleading media statement in regard to the Indigenous Tutorial Assistance Scheme, the Australian Indigenous Doctors Association put out a media release on the basis of what Labor had said. Since then, they have responded by saying they now welcome the comment from the Minister for Indigenous affairs indicating ongoing commitment to the Indigenous Tutorial Assistance Scheme. It is this sort of confusion from those on the other side that leads to the confusion in the public. It is completely unhelpful. (Time expired)

Nova Peris (NT, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. I refer again to comments by an officer of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet that there are some funds for Indigenous education projects but this will be well short of demand. Is this correct? Isn't the minister's quiet revolution nothing more than an unmitigated disaster for Indigenous Australians?

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

Another anonymous source deep in the department. I completely reject that one of my very hard-working staff would find the time to ring those on the other side and suggest that it is all a terrible mess and our quiet reform is going nowhere. I can tell you right now what Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are telling me. They are saying, 'Thank you very much, Mr Abbott, for the reforms getting our kids back to school.' Instead of going backwards in the Northern Territory we are going forward with an increase of 17 per cent of children going to school under this government who were not going to school under your government. I completely reject any inference that we are somehow in disarray. We are carefully and methodically ensuring that the lives of our first Australians are much better than they ever were under that lot on the other side.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Minister for Employment) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, after that great answer I ask that further questions be placed on the Notice Paper.