Three strikes and you’re…..

The Commonwealth decision on remote housing

In a number of posts over the past seven weeks, I have discussed the way the Commonwealth was positioning itself in relation to an announcement on the future of the National Partnership on Remote Housing. Just two days ago in a post on MYEFO, I commented on the likelihood the Minister would deliver an acceptable remote housing program for Indigenous remote citizens, and noted: ‘whether he has the capability or intrinsic motivation to ensure something substantive is done about it will become clear over the coming six months’. Little did I know that the question would be answered within two days, and on both counts, it appears to be a resounding ‘no’.

Information emanating from both South Australia and Western Australia indicates Commonwealth officials have informed the state governments of WA, SA and Queensland that Cabinet has decided to cease any funding for remote social housing from July 2018 when the current National Partnership ceases. The fourth jurisdiction currently part of the National Partnership, the NT, is apparently going to continue to receive funding, though it is as yet unclear at what level and over what terms.

The West Australian Minister for Housing has issued a media release on the matter (link here) and the South Australian social housing minister has made public comments critical of the decision.

This decision will be a disaster for remote Indigenous citizens, will place at risk the current asset stock of housing in remote communities, will effectively waste the previous Commonwealth investment in remote housing as housing asset lifespans are reduced, will exacerbate the demographic shift from smaller remote communities to larger towns, placing further pressure on the states’ mainstream social housing systems, and other social support structures.

Questions which remain to be answered include what is the rationale for maintaining funding in remote NT communities, but not remote housing in adjacent jurisdictions? What is the total allocation going forward for remote social housing, and will it be over a ten year term or some shorter period?

This decision represents a watershed in Commonwealth policy towards remote Indigenous Australia. The Commonwealth is turning away from seeing a role for the public sector in underpinning investment in basic infrastructure. While its rationale will be that these are areas where the states should step up, this ignores the reality that the Commonwealth has the most significant tax base, that the GST distribution system provides no incentive to the states to invest in remote Aboriginal regions (notwithstanding the existence of an Indigenous relativities factor in the equation), and that the Commonwealth has been involved in remote housing for at least forty years precisely because the response from the states was inadequate.

Most importantly, the decision ignores the reality that the most, repeat the most disadvantaged sector of the Australian community are remote Indigenous citizens. For all the rhetoric about refreshing the Closing the Gap metrics (link here), this decision represents a deliberate and deeply tone deaf decision to further marginalise remote residents.

The political calculus underlying this decision includes the Government’s overarching focus on addressing the budget deficit, the fact that because it is a renewal of a longstanding National Partnership, there are no forward estimates allocated and there is no requirement for Parliamentary approval to harvest these savings. Moreover, remote citizens have limited political influence, particularly in the states where the relevant Federal seats affected are dominated by towns servicing non-Indigenous mining populations. In the NT where Aboriginal votes are more significant, the Commonwealth has backed off. In other words, the Government is punishing remote Indigenous citizens because they can.

The Government’s extreme sensitivity over this decision is patently obvious, reflected in the fact that it has been dropped out two days before Christmas, and that there has been no ministerial announcement or correspondence to the relevant state governments.

This decision completes the trifecta for Minister Scullion. He has overseen the disaster of the roll out of the inherently non-transparent Indigenous Advancement Strategy (refer to the ANAO critique of the IAS here, and my post on the topic here); he has driven the rolling disaster associated with the Community Development Program (see the ANAO critique of the program’s establishment here, and my post on the issue here, and a media report on a recent Senate Committee report on the scheme here). And now we have a fundamentally retrograde and highly damaging decision to cease funding the remote housing program in three states.

Three strikes, and you’re ……Minister for Indigenous Affairs.