Housing construction the best way to beat remote unemployment says Senator Malarndirri McCarthy

Over-crowded housing is contributing to unemployment and social problems in remote communities – with up to 20 people living in a single house says an Indigenous senator.

Over-crowded housing is contributing to unemployment and social problems in remote communities – with up to 20 people living in a single house, says an Indigenous senator who visited the Far North this week.

Senator Malarndirri McCarthy, the Assistant Minister for Indigenous Health and Indigenous Australians, visited Yarrabah on April 30 where she met with the newly-elected Yarrabah Aboriginal Shire Council councillors to discuss a number of community issues.

“Jobs and unemployment certainly came up,” she explained.

“I’ve spent time in the Torres this week and Yarrabah. I met with residents at Yarrabah and the newly-elected Yarrabah council and we certainly talked about jobs and in particular housing and employment,” Senator McCarthy said.

The meeting comes as new data analysed by the Cairns Post shows five out of the top six areas with the highest unemployment are in Far North Queensland – with Yarrabah having the nation’s worst unemployment at 48% between September 2022 and September 2024.

Federal minister for Indigenous Health Malarndirri McCarthy has visited the Cairns South Medicare Urgent Care Clinic and the Gurriny Yealamucka Health Service at Yarrabah as part of her visit to Far North Queensland. Picture: Brendan Radke

“Lots of factors are causing high unemployment in those regions,” Senator McCarthy said.

“The clear one I see is the need for more housing.

“I have the area of health and I see up to 15-20 people living in a house – we all know what that means, it means that kids don’t sleep, it means that families don’t eat.

“It means when kids get up in the morning, they don’t feel like they have the best rest. We all know what it is like when we are sleep-deprived.”

Senator McCarthy said that the councillors informed her that Yarrabah would have a new housing project beginning towards the end of 2024.

“Council have informed me that they will be starting a new housing project at the end of the year,” she said.

“This will help Yarrabah residents who do have skills in plumbing, skills in construction, who do have skills in building to be very much a part of this build,” she explained.

The Northern Territory Senator also highlighted the Albanese Government’s $10bn Housing Future Fund that has promised to deliver 10,000 new houses to regional, rural and remote areas over the next five years.

Originally published as Housing construction the best way to beat remote unemployment says Senator Malarndirri McCarthy