Julie-Ann Campbell (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

What was made clear when the member for Moncrieff spoke about those headlines that we have seen is that the focus of those opposite in this place is not on First Nations children; it's not on outcomes that deliver better healthcare, better education for First Nations children. The focus of the opposition is on themselves.

At the start of every parliamentary sitting day, the Speaker gives his acknowledgement to the traditional owners of this land, the Ngunnawal and Ngambri people. I too would like to acknowledge them in this place and pay my respects to the elders past and present from all the lands represented in this place and, in my electorate of Moreton, to the Yuggera and Turrbal people. Taking this small moment to reflect reminds us that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the custodians of the world's oldest living continuous culture, are not just part of Australia's past; First Nations people are a vital part of our present and our future. Their languages, cultures, knowledge systems and deep custodianship of country remain alive today, shaping and enriching our nation. Recognising this truth helps us think honestly about Australia's history and how it still influences the present and the part we all play in building a fairer future together. Any discussion such as the debate here today must reflect the importance of that.

So today I want to preface my speech with a further acknowledgement. Current systems still impact First Nations people disproportionately, and many families continue to feel the effects of intergenerational prejudice and disadvantage. Despite these challenges, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities show incredible cultural strength, resilience and connection. That strength continues to shine through, even in the face of ongoing barriers and adversity. But First Nations people shouldn't have to rely on their resilience. And that is what the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People Bill 2026 addresses.

This bill delivers on Labor's commitment to establish a permanent, independent and empowered national commissioner and National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People. This will give Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people the voice they need to be heard by government—a voice that deserves to be heard—ensuring the advice and recommendations given are authentic. The commission will apply a strong, coordinated national focus to systemic issues and support Australia's commitments to human rights. This national commission is urgently needed. The statistics tell an incredibly challenging story, but it's a challenging story where we have the ability to change the ending. This is reflected in the Closing the Gap data over the last decade. This has consistently indicated that progress on issues affecting Aboriginal and Torres Islander children and young people is stalling.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people are 11 times more likely to be in out-of-home care than non-Indigenous children, and they are 27 times more likely to be in youth detention. The national commission will be dedicated to improving outcomes by providing strong oversight and a clear focus on the systemic issues affecting their lives every single day. The national commissioner will help ensure governments are held to account and are supported to deliver better results that will affect our young people's lives. With more than 400,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people across the breadth and depth of this nation, this role has the potential to create meaningful, long-term change for generations to come, and it cannot come soon enough.

The national commission will build on the work of Lil Gordon, who was Acting National Commissioner from 25 January and who prepared the national commission for its transition to an independent agency. During this time, the acting national commissioner actively built relationships, identified areas for collaboration and brought together stakeholders to discuss a range of pressing issues. These coordinated efforts have helped organise priorities. At the same time, the acting national commissioner developed key internal systems and policies, including the creation of a child-safe framework. This framework will guide how the national commission engages with children and young people in ways that are safe, in ways that are culturally respectful and in ways that are trauma informed, which will set the commission up for success.

This standalone legislation is essential to ensure that the national commission can function as a truly independent body. It will enable the national commission to be a strong, authoritative voice that promotes accountability and improves outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people, and it will give the commission the mandate to advocate for their rights and the mandate to push for meaningful, system-wide reform. At present, the interim arrangements do not give the commissioner the full powers needed to carry out the role effectively. They need those full powers to ensure that this is being addressed at a systemic level, to ensure that it is being addressed in a way that understands the deep root causes and to ensure that there are fundamentally better outcomes in every facet of children and young people's lives.

Under the current set-up, the commissioner cannot conduct formal inquiries, make recommendations and report to parliament or use important information-gathering powers. These limitations restrict the ability of the commission to hold governments to account and to deliver the strong, informed advocacy required to improve the systems which are adversely impacting on children and young people. Sue-Anne Hunter was appointed to the role of National Commissioner in August 2025. The legislation's increased mandates mean that the national commissioner's role is substantial and effective. The commissioner will be responsible for promoting and protecting the rights, interests, safety, wellbeing and development of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people. The commissioner will identify the systemic barriers that continue to affect this cohort by gaining a clearer understanding of where systems are falling short and where meaningful reform is needed in order to improve outcomes.

An important aspect of the work is the recognition that strength based, culturally informed practice is central to better outcomes. This will be combined with work to increase awareness and to increase empowerment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children around their rights, around their interests and, fundamentally, around their real, lived experiences in community.

Ultimately, these efforts will work together to drive stronger accountability across governments. The goal is to ensure that policies, programs and services improve so that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people experience better, fairer and more positive outcomes. We know that so many people are doing fantastic work in our local communities to improve outcomes. In my own seat on Brisbane's south side, the seat of Moreton, we have the Murri School, which is led by a wonderful principal and a fantastic staff, who work every day with young people who are Indigenous to better their outcomes, to better their pathways towards good and secure employment, to better their lives. But they need some backup, and that's what this bill does.

The national commissioner will be empowered to strengthen coordination across Australian government agencies with the aim of developing a more consistent and effective approach to supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people. This will include all state and territory children's commissioners, guardians and advocates as well as the National Children's Commissioner and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner. This collaboration doesn't mean duplication. It means the national commissioner will be able to make and receive referrals and direct issues to the most appropriate entity. It means that we can have a system that talks to each other, that understands each other and that, in doing so, better addresses the outcomes so desperately needed.

Another important function is providing guidance to the Commonwealth on how policies, programs and services should be designed and delivered to ensure that government decisions genuinely reflect needs and realities. The role also involves researching the broader system-level barriers and challenges affecting the rights, wellbeing, safety and development. As I've mentioned, empowering children and young people is a major focus. It's the focal point. This includes offering education programs that help them understand their rights and strengthen their ability to advocate autonomously on their views, their needs, their experiences and the issues that are impacting them on a day-to-day basis.

There is also a strong public advocacy element, promoting the rights, wellbeing, safety and development of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people while amplifying their voices and highlighting their strengths. The national commissioner will be expected to engage directly with a wide range of children and young people, supporting them to lead, supporting them to speak up and supporting them to exercise their own important agency. The national commissioner can conduct inquiries, commission research, provide expert advice and make recommendations.

Collaboration is absolutely essential to this work, including partnerships with the Human Rights Commission and a wide range of organisations and research institutes and engagement with international human rights bodies, such as relevant UN mechanisms. There has been extensive stakeholder consultation from 2023 onwards. In the lead-up to the introduction of the bill, and the bill is supported by the Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care, the peak body.

These reforms have been a very long time coming. Advocates started calling for them in the 1980s, over a generation ago, at a time when the young people of today weren't even born yet. It's our responsibility in this place to work for this generation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people. In setting up this national commission, we are putting in place the structure for a better and fairer life and opportunities for generations beyond this one too.

I'll leave my final words to the new national commissioner, who said:

The introduction of this Bill is a critical moment for the future of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people. Never before has there been a Bill like this that puts our children first.

…   …   …

Statistics show that we are at risk of losing another generation to systems that have failed our people for generations. This is a bleak future, and one that we cannot allow for our children.

This is a future that, in this place, we can now change.

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