Closing the Gap: Years of polic stagnancy under Morrison Government

Excerpt from speech from Linda Burney to House of Representatives on Closing the Gap - Monday, 9 August 2021

Years of policy stagnancy under Morrison Government

Last week, the Prime Minister delivered the latest Closing the Gap update. Sadly, and unsurprisingly, the data shows that disparity and disadvantage remain. It has been more than two years since the Prime Minister promised the new approach to closing the gap that Minister Wyatt spoke about. There were three targets—target 13, family violence; target 14, suicides; and target 17, Indigenous inclusion—that do not have any comparison data for non-Indigenous populations. Even if the adult incarceration goal were to be met, a reduction of 15 per cent by 2031—a goal that Labor has consistently argued needs to be more ambitious—the rate would still be more than 11 times higher than that for the non-Indigenous population. Even if the youth incarceration goal were to be met, a reduction of 30 per cent by 2031, the rate would still be more than 12 times higher than for the non-Indigenous population. And even if the out-of-home-care goal were to be met, a 45 per cent reduction by 2031, the rate would still be five times higher than for the non-Indigenous population. We can't allow ourselves to become desensitised to this deprivation. Hearing Minister Wyatt's story of his own family brings that home. These are not just statistics; these are people's lives.

This week Labor has sought to break this cycle of policy stagnation. Our leader charted a practical and sensible way forward for closing the gap through empowering First Nations people.