Mrs BRAHAM - 1995-03-01
I refer the minister to recent grandstanding by the Territory's federal member on the matter of funding for Aboriginal housing in the Northern Territory. From the media, I am aware of a letter to the minister in which the federal member seems to imply that the Territory government contributes little to this vital area of Aboriginal needs In light of Mr Snowdon's comments, can the minister inform the Assembly how the Territory compares with the states in terms of its contribution to Aboriginal housing?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I thank the honourable member for her question. I noted the discussion on the MPI yesterday wherein a great deal of information was provided in relation to this matter. Allow me to make a couple of points.
Mr Ede: Own source funding for housing.
Mr HATTON: You made a fool of yourself yesterday. Don't repeat the exercise this morning.
Mr Ede: You weasled out, didn't you?
Mr HATTON: Mr Speaker, yesterday we discussed a definite matter of public importance relating to remote area housing. I welcomed that discussion. Interestingly, in the federal parliament yesterday afternoon, there was an MPI on Aboriginal health and housing. I noted that the member for the Northern Territory commented in his usual style. He contributed nothing positive, but said merely: 'It is not my fault. It is the fault of the states and territories. It is their problem yet they are doing nothing'. In particular, he said: 'Ever since I have been in this House, I have been on about this issue of Aboriginal health'. This morning, we undertook a little research and we are still searching. I accept that he has been in the federal parliament for only 8 years but, so far, we have been unable to find any comment that he has made in those 8 years on this matter of significance to the Northern Territory.
We will keep looking. Perhaps we will find some obscure comment from him on this subject. Clearly, this man is doing nothing to represent the interests of the Northern Territory. His only interest is in bagging the Territory government and what is occurring in the Territory. As the Leader of the Opposition knows, his only interest is in following the policies of the left-wing faction in the ALP. The Leader of the Opposition came unstuck on the exercise in relation to the 3-mine uranium policy.
Mr Ede: Don't be cruel.
Mr HATTON: You know very well that it is true. In that exercise, he was working against us and you. He shot you dead in the water.
Page 477
Mr Speaker, I believe the Northern Territory is doing pretty well in this regard. Let us put some facts on the record that the federal member and his colleagues opposite are all too willing to ignore or bastardise for their own political ends.
Fact 1: the Northern Territory spends all of its Aboriginal Housing Program funds on residents of rural communities. Unlike the states, the Territory is the only place in Australia where all of that funding is directed to housing projects in Aboriginal communities. In the states, substantial proportions of it vanish into the maws of their Housing Commissions to fund the provision of assistance for Aboriginals in the normal Housing Commission accommodation. We do not spend a cent of it on that. Fact 2: in addition to that funding, the Territory will be contributing more than $2m to the 1994-95 Aboriginal Housing Program. That is a great deal more than the 'not a cent' that the federal members and the members opposite were talking about yesterday. Fact 3: the extra $2m does not include the Power and Water Authority's capital works or operational budget for Aboriginal essential services Fact 4: more than a quarter of our public housing, our Housing Commission properties, are housing Aboriginal people and the vast majority of those people are on rental rebates. That means that they are receiving subsidised accommodation funded by the Northern Territory government. With a quarter of our Housing Commission accommodation, in per capita terms, we are making 4 times the public housing effort.
Whilst 22% of houses in the Northern Territory are Housing Commission houses, the average in Australia is between 5% and 6%. What that means per head of population is that our effort in housing Aboriginal people through the Housing Commission would be equivalent to New South Wales housing Aboriginals in every Housing Commission house in New South Wales.
Members interjecting.
Mr HATTON: 5% of the total housing in the Territory ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HATTON: ... is housing for Aboriginal people.
Mr Speaker, members opposite do not like it, but it is a fact. The Territory government took over in 1978 after 70 years of total neglect by the Commonwealth. There were virtually no houses anywhere, no water and no sewerage. The members for Arnhem and Arafura will remember the difficulties. The Commonwealth provided nothing. We have not done too badly in terms of the growth and development that has occurred. As I said yesterday, there is still an enormous task in front of us. None of us denies that. However, let us not deny the effort that is being made today.
The member for Braitling referred to a letter that was sent by Mr Snowdon. I table that letter. I received the letter in my office on 6 February. It was written on 3 February. Hon Warren Snowdon asked a series of questions about the ATSIC housing needs report. Interestingly, on the same day that the letter arrived in my office, Michael MacKenzie from the ABC telephoned me asking me to comment on it. I presume that the ABC had inadvertently obtained a copy of the letter at about the same time as I had. Members can imagine how
Page 478
impressed I was by the strategy adopted by the federal member for the Territory. I was told that I and Warren Snowdon would talk about the matter on the ABC. I said that I would be happy to talk on the subject. I have been talking about it for two nd a half years and pushing the cause. Lo and behold, however, Mr Snowdon was a nonstarter for the program. Rabbit Warren went into hiding again.
Mr BAILEY: A point of order, Mr Speaker! The member for Nightcliff is well aware that members of other parliaments must be spoken of by their correct title.
Mr SPEAKER: That is correct. I ask the minister to withdraw his comment.
Mr HATTON: Mr Speaker, I withdraw and I will refer to him as the honourable member for the Northern Territory.
Mr Bailey: Is this your campaign speech? Is that what this is?
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I remind the member for Wanguri that he has been warned.
Mr HATTON: As I said yesterday, Aboriginal housing is in no way a new issue. In fact, one could be cynical in the extreme in relation to recent comments by federal Labor ministers aswell as the federal member for the Northern Territory. They claim it is bigger than Mabo and that at least $3000m is needed. I say to them: 'Welcome to the debate'. All members opposite do is bitch about the Northern Territory government. They make no offers to lobby their federal colleagues and we hear no constructive comments from them in this debate.
Page 479
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I thank the honourable member for her question. I noted the discussion on the MPI yesterday wherein a great deal of information was provided in relation to this matter. Allow me to make a couple of points.
Mr Ede: Own source funding for housing.
Mr HATTON: You made a fool of yourself yesterday. Don't repeat the exercise this morning.
Mr Ede: You weasled out, didn't you?
Mr HATTON: Mr Speaker, yesterday we discussed a definite matter of public importance relating to remote area housing. I welcomed that discussion. Interestingly, in the federal parliament yesterday afternoon, there was an MPI on Aboriginal health and housing. I noted that the member for the Northern Territory commented in his usual style. He contributed nothing positive, but said merely: 'It is not my fault. It is the fault of the states and territories. It is their problem yet they are doing nothing'. In particular, he said: 'Ever since I have been in this House, I have been on about this issue of Aboriginal health'. This morning, we undertook a little research and we are still searching. I accept that he has been in the federal parliament for only 8 years but, so far, we have been unable to find any comment that he has made in those 8 years on this matter of significance to the Northern Territory.
We will keep looking. Perhaps we will find some obscure comment from him on this subject. Clearly, this man is doing nothing to represent the interests of the Northern Territory. His only interest is in bagging the Territory government and what is occurring in the Territory. As the Leader of the Opposition knows, his only interest is in following the policies of the left-wing faction in the ALP. The Leader of the Opposition came unstuck on the exercise in relation to the 3-mine uranium policy.
Mr Ede: Don't be cruel.
Mr HATTON: You know very well that it is true. In that exercise, he was working against us and you. He shot you dead in the water.
Page 477
Mr Speaker, I believe the Northern Territory is doing pretty well in this regard. Let us put some facts on the record that the federal member and his colleagues opposite are all too willing to ignore or bastardise for their own political ends.
Fact 1: the Northern Territory spends all of its Aboriginal Housing Program funds on residents of rural communities. Unlike the states, the Territory is the only place in Australia where all of that funding is directed to housing projects in Aboriginal communities. In the states, substantial proportions of it vanish into the maws of their Housing Commissions to fund the provision of assistance for Aboriginals in the normal Housing Commission accommodation. We do not spend a cent of it on that. Fact 2: in addition to that funding, the Territory will be contributing more than $2m to the 1994-95 Aboriginal Housing Program. That is a great deal more than the 'not a cent' that the federal members and the members opposite were talking about yesterday. Fact 3: the extra $2m does not include the Power and Water Authority's capital works or operational budget for Aboriginal essential services Fact 4: more than a quarter of our public housing, our Housing Commission properties, are housing Aboriginal people and the vast majority of those people are on rental rebates. That means that they are receiving subsidised accommodation funded by the Northern Territory government. With a quarter of our Housing Commission accommodation, in per capita terms, we are making 4 times the public housing effort.
Whilst 22% of houses in the Northern Territory are Housing Commission houses, the average in Australia is between 5% and 6%. What that means per head of population is that our effort in housing Aboriginal people through the Housing Commission would be equivalent to New South Wales housing Aboriginals in every Housing Commission house in New South Wales.
Members interjecting.
Mr HATTON: 5% of the total housing in the Territory ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HATTON: ... is housing for Aboriginal people.
Mr Speaker, members opposite do not like it, but it is a fact. The Territory government took over in 1978 after 70 years of total neglect by the Commonwealth. There were virtually no houses anywhere, no water and no sewerage. The members for Arnhem and Arafura will remember the difficulties. The Commonwealth provided nothing. We have not done too badly in terms of the growth and development that has occurred. As I said yesterday, there is still an enormous task in front of us. None of us denies that. However, let us not deny the effort that is being made today.
The member for Braitling referred to a letter that was sent by Mr Snowdon. I table that letter. I received the letter in my office on 6 February. It was written on 3 February. Hon Warren Snowdon asked a series of questions about the ATSIC housing needs report. Interestingly, on the same day that the letter arrived in my office, Michael MacKenzie from the ABC telephoned me asking me to comment on it. I presume that the ABC had inadvertently obtained a copy of the letter at about the same time as I had. Members can imagine how
Page 478
impressed I was by the strategy adopted by the federal member for the Territory. I was told that I and Warren Snowdon would talk about the matter on the ABC. I said that I would be happy to talk on the subject. I have been talking about it for two nd a half years and pushing the cause. Lo and behold, however, Mr Snowdon was a nonstarter for the program. Rabbit Warren went into hiding again.
Mr BAILEY: A point of order, Mr Speaker! The member for Nightcliff is well aware that members of other parliaments must be spoken of by their correct title.
Mr SPEAKER: That is correct. I ask the minister to withdraw his comment.
Mr HATTON: Mr Speaker, I withdraw and I will refer to him as the honourable member for the Northern Territory.
Mr Bailey: Is this your campaign speech? Is that what this is?
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I remind the member for Wanguri that he has been warned.
Mr HATTON: As I said yesterday, Aboriginal housing is in no way a new issue. In fact, one could be cynical in the extreme in relation to recent comments by federal Labor ministers aswell as the federal member for the Northern Territory. They claim it is bigger than Mabo and that at least $3000m is needed. I say to them: 'Welcome to the debate'. All members opposite do is bitch about the Northern Territory government. They make no offers to lobby their federal colleagues and we hear no constructive comments from them in this debate.
Page 479
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016