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

My question is for the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Senator Scullion. What did the minister mean when he said his capacity to consult with the remote communities was limited and 'has been exacerbated by the comments of our Prime Minister'?

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

Again I am pleased to be able to put that in context, because I said it. It was part of an interview that I gave where I indicated that there was a lot of noise and a lot of conversation around this but the conversation that was not being had was with the people of the potentially affected communities. As I have just indicated with answers to my previous question from Senator Sterle, what I have been constantly saying to those involved is this is a matter entirely for the Western Australian government. The Western Australian government are currently starting off a consultation process on 30 June which I understand will take place for a year. They have said that in that period of time there will effectively not be a lot of changes to services. That is as I understand it; but, as I move around the communities, that does not seem to be the case. They do not understand that. So my attempts to get the communities' voice out there have been somewhat mollified by the noise of other people having other conversations around Australia.

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

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Is native title lawyer Nick Llewellyn-Jones correct when he says 'there is no doubt that, if Aboriginal groups leave their country, it can dramatically reduce the possibilities of them successfully having their native title recognised'?

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

Not being a native title lawyer, I would want to make that acknowledgement, but knowing a fair bit about a number of determinations I have say that actual contact now today—because many peoples, as you would know, particularly in the context of Northern Australia move between homelands and other places—between homelands as a consequence of most of these processes in Northern Australia is very clear. I guess that when native title comes into play it is usually in places where there has been a fair bit of displacement over a very long period of time, and those aspects are harder to tell.

I have had a conversation with a couple of people who know more about this. I said, 'Is there any legitimacy to this process—that somehow, because you are moving them off country, this is somehow going to be a more difficult deal?' They certainly did not seem to have the same opinion as the lawyer that you quoted.

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

Is Mr Matthew Cooke, head of the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation, correct when he says:

It seems we are a long way off reconciliation if even our Prime Minister doesn’t know that Aboriginal people living on country is not a ‘lifestyle choice’ but an integral part of identity and culture.

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

Again, these are just quotations. We have quoted somebody who is an eminent Australian. We can find plenty of them, and they have indicated that they have found a challenge with a particular word. I am not going to get dragged into this. This whole conversation is primarily about Aboriginal Western Australians who live in a whole range of communities that are provided services by the Western Australian government. The best thing we in this place can all do is ensure that we answer the single call from those Australians, and that is: 'If you are talking about the fundamentals of our future, please engage us in that conversation.' That message is specifically for the Western Australian government, as it should be. So, to avoid distractions, the message from them is to stop talking about the distractions and start allowing them to be involved in this conversation rather than those people we can select out of the media. (Time expired)