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

I rise tonight to speak on issues currently impacting First Nations children and young people in Australia. Like all children, First Nations children have the right to live in safety, free from abuse and neglect, and in stable and supportive family environments. Sadly, two reports have been released recently that demonstrate how we as a nation are failing First Nations children. Today I would like to table The family matters report 2019. I've tabled this particular report each year for a while now, and I'm aware that the whips have agreed to its tabling. I seek leave to table the report.

Leave granted.

This report highlights the urgent and escalating crisis for First Nations children in Australia's child protection system. First Nations children are now 10.2 times more likely than other children to be removed from their families. First Nations children now make up 37 per cent of the out-of-home-care population. If we don't do anything to address this, the number of First Nations children in care will double in the next 10 years, which is highlighted in this report.

I find it deeply concerning that between 2017 and 2018 there was a significant drop in the rate of First Nations children in out-of-home care being placed with First Nations carers. This means thousands of First Nations children are at risk of not having their cultural needs met. First Nations children are significantly more likely than other children to be on long-term permanent care orders. This is problematic, as permanent care orders risk breaking cultural connections. In many jurisdictions, there are no legal mechanisms to ensure ongoing connection to family, community and culture, especially for children placed with non-Indigenous carers. Current practices are failing to include First Nations peoples in decision-making, which means that many decisions are being made without addressing the cultural needs of the child or identifying safe care options. Connection to culture is a human right and it has proven to be crucial to the safety and wellbeing of First Nations children across the world, yet we are seeing statutory agencies failing to comply with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle. The rate of First Nations children being placed with family and kin has continued to drop over the past decade, and there are problems with cultural support plans being completed.

The trauma that is associated with child removal has a ripple effect across generations. Children who are living in a household with members of the stolen generations are more likely to experience the impacts of intergenerational trauma, through higher rates of poor health and poverty. Family support programs are essential for strengthening families and helping them to provide the best possible environment for children. In 2017-18 the vast bulk of funding was invested in child protection services and out-of-home care, with only 17 per cent of funding going towards family support services. Until we get serious about providing adequate early intervention and prevention programs, we are going to continue to face problems with the child protection system. It is important to note that supporting families to care for their children also goes beyond child protection policies and programs. It depends on income support, wages, tax policy, health, housing, justice, education and other social programs. Both the government and the community agree that there is a problem. Now it's time to actually look at and implement the solutions that have been so clearly articulated by many.

So let's look at The family matters report 2019, which shows that we need substantial and coordinated action to eliminate the overrepresentation of First Nations children in out-of-home care by 2040. Some of the key solutions put forward to achieve this goal are to: increase investment in universal and targeted early intervention and prevention services; prioritise investment in service delivery by community controlled organisations; end legal orders for permanent care and adoption for First Nations children; and establish state based and national First Nations children's commissioners.

I strongly support the implementation of a national commissioner for First Nations children and young people to advocate for the needs, rights and views of First Nations children. Too often First Nations children are falling through the gaps and don't get the attention of our federal system. A national commissioner would provide oversight and accountability for systems and services to improve the protection of First Nations children and young people. They would also facilitate effective collaboration and coordination between and with governments. The appointment of a national commissioner should form part of the Australian Human Rights Commission and be established in conformity with the United Nations benchmark guidelines for national human rights institutions.

One of the clear recommendations of the report is to end legal orders for permanent care and adoption for First Nations children. First Nations organisations have been clear that adoption will never be appropriate for First Nations children in out-of-home care. In recent years, a number of states and territories have undergone policy changes to increase the numbers of and to shorten time frames for long-term permanency orders. These changes are having a disproportionate impact on and causing a disproportionate risk to First Nations children's sense of identity and cultural connection. Instead, First Nations peoples must be provided with opportunities to design alternative policies to support stability for children in connection with kin, culture and community.

The family matters report 2019 also highlights the critical importance of First Nations led service delivery in improving outcomes for children. Community controlled organisations are important for effective service delivery and building local governance, leadership and social capital. It is essential that services are strengthened and supported so that First Nations people can lead the service design, delivery and decision-making for their children. In order to achieve these outcomes, organisations must have adequate roles, resources and funding.

The end of the National framework for protecting Australia's children 2009-2020 presents an ideal and important opportunity to identify and implement new approaches to improving the safety and wellbeing of our First Nations children. We as a nation must work harder to ensure that First Nations children grow up in safe and loving environments. We need to offer First Nations children safety and stability without repeating the mistakes of the past or, in fact, continuing the mistakes of the past. Together we can co-create a future where First Nations children can thrive.

I urge all governments to commit to a national strategy and generational target to eliminate the overrepresentation of First Nations children in out-of-home care and to address the causes of First Nations child removal. The Commonwealth has an important role to play here in leadership and ensuring that the national framework for the protection of Australia's children as it goes into the future after next year is fit for purpose, that it has the recommendations from this vital report at its heart. We cannot let this opportunity go by. We need to take action. We need to ensure that we invest upfront in early intervention and prevention and in very good-quality family services and ensure that they are designed, developed and delivered by First Nations communities. I urge senators to read this very important report. Look at its startling facts and take on board the solutions that it is recommending.