Indigenous housing program on agenda

A popular but defunct housing program for remote Indigenous communities has been thrown a lifeline in a Senate report on the effectiveness of the government’s northern Australia agenda.

Senate select committee chair senator Murray Watt in Cairns. Picture: Peter Carruthers

A popular but defunct housing program for remote Indigenous communities has been thrown a lifeline in a Senate report on the effectiveness of the government’s northern Australia agenda.

Among the 29 recommendations in the report, tabled on Wednesday, is a push to re-establish the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing and to generally improve “severe socio-economic disadvantage” faced by Indigenous people living in the country’s north.

The long-running program was rolled out by the states and territories from 2008 until 2018 when it was axed by the Turnbull government.

The end of the program came despite pleas from leaders in Indigenous communities — where it is common to have between 15 and 20 people living in two and three-bedroom dilapidated homes — for it to be continued.

Queensland’s Indigenous mayors and councillors passed a resolu­tion in November calling for a revamp of the scheme.

A 2017 review found the $5.4bn program delivered 11,500 homes — 4000 newly built and 7500 refurbished — across Australia and cut overcrowding from 52.1 per cent in 2008 to 41.3 per cent in mid-2015.

The select committee on the ­effectiveness of the commonwealth’s northern Australia agenda has worked on the report for two years and based its recommendations on public submissions and hearings involving community leaders from northern Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

It analysed the effectiveness of the government’s 2015 strategy to develop the north.

An interim report tabled last year found widespread issues with the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility, prompting the government to announce changes to the loan program.

The committee recommended the government “refresh” its northern Australia agenda in light of the COVID-19 pandemic to tackle newly posed challenges and opportunities. It also called for the government, in partnership with states and territories, to outline a long-term strategy of road and rail funding in northern Australia and to “expedite the completion of all announced road projects”.

The committee recommended improvements to health services in regional and remote areas, support for fledgling Indigenous businesses, and the prioritising of a response to insurance issues identified by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission in December.

Queensland Labor senator Murray Watt, who is the committee chairman, said the report showed the government’s northern Australia agenda was “stuck in the slow lane”.

“We’ve known for a long time that northern Australia isn’t being given the federal support it needs to grow,” Senator Watt said. “The groups we spoke to during the hearings have proven communities in the north are very resourceful when it comes to getting the job done, but it’s clear the government should be doing more to help.

“This is a bipartisan report, backed by senators from a wide range of political persuasions, and that gives me great hope that the Morrison government will take these recommendations seriously, and act urgently.”

Northern Australia Minister Keith Pitt said the government had already announced reforms of the NAIF program.

“The NAIF has already committed $2.8bn to 24 projects throughout the north that are supporting around 9000 new jobs,” Mr Pitt said.

“There are more in the pipeline. I have announced significant reforms that will extend the NAIF for another five years and broaden its capacity to invest in job-­creating projects for the people of northern Australia.”

Committee deputy chair Susan McDonald said the report was unable to produce a recommendation on the difficulty in obtaining finance from banks.