Lidia Thorpe (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the minister acting for the Minister for Indigenous Australians. My question is regarding First Nations people targeted by Youpla funeral insurance. Many now cannot afford to bury their loved ones, many of whom are sitting in morgues. We've had elders sitting in morgues for two months because of the scam insurance company. The Albanese government, through the Minister for Indigenous Australians, committed to providing a resolution to those impacted by this scheme. The October budget did include some money but only affected a small percentage of people, which is now going to run out on 30 November. When will the Labor government end the trauma and suffering of tens of thousands of Aboriginal people who have been ripped off by this scheme? I understand it is not in the May budget. Why not?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

ALLAGHER (—) (): I thank Senator Thorpe for the question about Youpla and the situation that thousands of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families were left in the lurch when the funeral insurance scheme collapsed. We have been working through all the issues around providing support to those that have been affected. As at 17 March 2023 the program has received 220 applications, with 186 of these being approved, and the program has paid out $1.5 million in grants to 170 recipients to support First Nations families in conducting sorry business.

There are a small number of applications currently being processed or awaiting payment. The average processing time for an application from lodgement to payment is about six weeks. They are taking six weeks on average as we are dealing with a company that has collapsed and there are significant record-keeping issues. I would say to Senator Thorpe that we are working as fast as we can. We recognise the awful situation many people have found themselves in with the collapse of Youpla, and we are trying to work as hard as we can to make sure that we can resolve it for all of those that have been placed in this terrible position by the failure of this business.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Thorpe, first supplementary?

Lidia Thorpe (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Minister. That's some small, if any, comfort to the elders sitting in morgues right now. There are 170 people you've supported. We've got more than 10,000 to 20,000 people that have been affected. What solutions are you actually pursuing to get elders out of these morgues and ensure that a fair, enduring and culturally appropriate resolution is reached for all of those impacted?

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We are working as fast as we can, and we are acutely aware of the need to resolve this as fast as we can. I would say to Senator Thorpe, if there are particular families or individuals that you would like to advocate on behalf of, who are experiencing a situation which we could assist with, then I extend that offer on behalf of the minister responsible. But I can absolutely tell you the government has had a number of conversations about Youpla and the collapse and what it means for those who have passed and their families. That is why we moved as quickly as we could to provide assurance that we would deal with the families involved, including those that had passed away and were in morgues. (Time expired)

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Thorpe, second supplementary?

Lidia Thorpe (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you for the invitation; I will take that up. What do you say to those First Nations people who have lost their hard earned money? We heard today $25,000 is gone from one family. Some of them are now living in debt due to Youpla's collapse—debts that have been enabled and ignored by successive governments for over two decades.

Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That's why the government has sought to put in place arrangements to provide security to those families, acknowledging that we won't necessarily be able to deal with all of the trauma and difficulty and cost associated with the money that has gone into those arrangements. I know that the Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services is looking at other issues that led to the spruiking of these arrangements and how it has been marketed.

I would say again that I think immediately on coming to government, upon getting the full briefing and understanding of what was happening and the fact that there hadn't been arrangements put in place to deal with it, the priority was to deal particularly with those who had loved ones or family members who had passed and to make sure we put in place a suitable arrangement to deal with that. I would say that the average number of days between an application being lodged and a payment being made is 28 days now. (Time expired)