Jennie George (Throsby, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Environment and Heritage) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the House:

(1)

notes that:

(a)

on nearly any night there are around 100,000 Australians who are homeless and that nearly half of these people are under 25, with young people aged 12-18 making up a quarter of all those who are homeless; and

(b)

the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) is often the last resort for people who find themselves without, or at risk of being without, safe, secure or adequate housing;

(2)

expresses concern at the recent findings of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), which show that:

(a)

SAAP is able to accommodate 12,335 people on an average day;

(b)

SAAP is unable to accommodate all who request immediate accommodation, with an estimated 304 people (193 adults and unaccompanied children and 111 accompanying children) turned away on an average day;

(c)

over half (56 per cent) of the people making valid requests for immediate accommodation on any given day were turned away;

(d)

family groups had more difficulty in obtaining SAAP than individuals; and

(e)

a large proportion of the homeless population do not receive SAAP accommodation; and

(3)

urges the Government to:

(a)

recognise the immense pressure under which SAAP funded services are operating, with reduced real funding levels under the current agreement;

(b)

provide additional funding to meet unmet demand; and

(c)

develop strategies and work co-operatively with other levels of government to reduce homelessness.

On any night there are almost 100,000 men, women and children who are homeless. Homelessness affects people of all ages, with nearly half of those who are in this category being under 25. Not only are people who experience homelessness a diverse group in terms of age, gender and circumstances but the profile of homeless people has broadened from predominately older, lone men to now include more women, young people and families. Homeless people are among the most marginalised people in Australia.

The studies on homelessness in Australia show that there are different levels of homelessness ranging from people who live on the streets to people who are in temporary shelter or crisis accommodation through to residents of boarding houses who have no security of tenure. The factors that contribute to homelessness are diverse, complex and often interdependent. Personal factors such as family breakdown, domestic violence and mental health problems contribute to the underlying structural causes, which include poverty, unemployment and an inadequate stock of affordable housing.

The Supported Accommodation Assistance Program provides funding to around 1,200 agencies throughout Australia that work tirelessly to provide support for homeless people. A recent Australian Institute of Health and Welfare study showed some of the limitations in the current levels of support that are able to be provided through this program due to inadequate levels of funding. Despite the best efforts of the service providers, a large proportion of our homeless population is not able to be accommodated through SAAP. Though around 12,335 people are catered for on an average day, at the same time an estimated 304 people are turned away—people seeking crisis accommodation. Additional funding by all levels of government is desperately needed to meet this unmet demand. I speak on behalf of local providers such as the Southern Youth and Family Services, which provides a comprehensive range of programs for homeless youth, and the Warilla Women’s Refuge. Both organisations are often in the position of having to turn people away due to inadequate resources and funding.

A few years ago in the publication Counting the homeless 2001, statistics were published on both a national and a state basis, based on the outcomes of the 2001 census. It was estimated back in 2001 that there were 26,676 homeless people in NSW, and in my own region an estimated 1,530 people faced homelessness every night. Most of the homelessness in the Illawarra region is in fact hidden, with nearly 46 per cent of the recorded homeless population living temporarily with friends and relatives and 22 per cent of the recorded homeless in assisted accommodation. The extrapolation of the figures showed that 19 per cent of these people were in private boarding homes, but in the Illawarra 13 per cent of our homeless population were indeed living in improvised dwellings and on the streets. It makes you wonder in an economy that is burgeoning and a country as rich as ours how we continue with this national problem.

We need to develop a more effective national strategy in a coordinated and integrated manner, bringing in all levels of government to address the range of factors that contribute to homelessness. Very importantly, access to regular, stable employment and an increase in the stock of affordable housing would have a major impact on reducing the high levels of homelessness in our communities. I want to take the opportunity to commend the efforts of those who work in SAAP funded services and recognise the pressures on them which require additional levels of support and funding to help address a serious national and regional problem.

David Hawker (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Dick Adams (Lyons, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am pleased to rise to support parts of the motion that have been put forward by the member for Throsby, in particular to acknowledge the true problems that our nation faces with respect to homelessness and the need to deal with homelessness. There are some aspects of this motion, though, that I believe may be more party political than bipartisan. Having said that, in the short time I have available I would like to put on the record some of my observations about the importance of the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program as well as observations from actually working in street outreach.

A number of years ago, before I came into this place, I had the opportunity to work with Rosies Street Outreach in Brisbane and to deal directly, on Friday and Saturday nights, with some of the most destitute people in Australian society. My wife and I would spend several hours on Friday nights in the Brisbane mall handing out cups of coffee and biscuits and basically just enjoying friendship with those who were living on the streets at the time. Having spent about a year doing that, the overarching observations that I would make from my experience are that there are a large number of people whom homelessness is thrust upon. There are also, though, a number who choose to be homeless, and that choice is perhaps motivated in many respects by a form of psychiatric disability. In fact, that may be the cause of all of it; I am not certain. It is also clear that there are a number of services available that reach out to people who are destitute and homeless which are not utilised. But there can also be no doubt that there are insufficient services to meet the demand were all these people to reach out for assistance at the same time.

Having said all of that, I do believe that the Howard government, in collaboration with state governments around the country, have made a very definite impact on addressing homelessness in the Australian community. A real solution to this problem is multifaceted. It is simply not the case that, if we were to pour more money into the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program, that would reconcile the problem. It certainly would not. In addition to that, there needs to be funding that goes into psychiatric care to ensure that, where possible, we prevent people moving into the streets in the first place. It requires a holistic approach and it certainly is my belief that through, for example, the SAAP as well as Commonwealth-state housing agreements and other like programs we will take very measurable steps to minimise the risk of Australians becoming homeless and improve the lot of those who do become homeless so that they can move back off the streets.

This problem is particularly pronounced on the Gold Coast. On the Gold Coast we have a very sorry situation, and I have been exceptionally critical of the state government’s nonperformance in this area in the past. The fact is that in a city of some 550,000 people we have an appalling situation where, over the last 17 years, we have seen very little investment by the state government. The consequence is that on the Gold Coast today there are approximately 15 beds available for a population of 550,000 for crisis and emergency accommodation. It is simply not enough.

I have taken the time to look at exactly what the Commonwealth is doing. Under the SAAP, the Commonwealth is providing a total of $145 million over five years in the joint Commonwealth and Queensland government SAAP. This year, 2006-07, we are providing $39.3 million and we hope that by the end of this, the fifth iteration of the SAAP, the Queensland government will match the Commonwealth’s contribution dollar for dollar, because at this point they do not. That is part of the reason why in Queensland we see that some services are not at an appropriate level. Under the Commonwealth-state housing agreement, the Commonwealth is providing some $940 million, with the Queensland government contributing some $344 million for the same period—again, a significant contribution from the Commonwealth.

From my perspective, we certainly should measure the money that is going towards the program, but we also need to look at other steps being taken, as I said, such as Medicare rebates for psychiatric counselling, and make sure that we are servicing these people who are often among the most destitute of all Australians.

Dick Adams (Lyons, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I commend the member for Throsby, Jennie George, for bringing this motion before the House. I concur with the last speaker, the member for Moncrieff, that some of the mental health issues that he spoke of lead to homelessness and certainly need to be addressed. Of course, he just went down the same track that this government always does of blaming the state governments. It is a constant rise from that side of the House: always blame the state governments.

Homelessness may not appear to affect the largest percentage of the population, but hidden homelessness could double the figures that the member for Throsby stated. Those she did mention represent some of the neediest in our community. Homelessness is not having a roof over your head, but it means much more than that. Anglicare’s submission to the inquiry, which called for more funds, defines homelessness as:

• the lack of access to an adequate material standard of living (in terms of food, shelter, clothing and health) resulting primarily, but not only, from inadequate income; and
• the lack of opportunity to participate fully in society (for example through employment, education, recreation and social relationships).

The submission further cited:

“Adequacy” is defined in relation to community standards and may change over time, as do standards of living for the community as a whole.

Without somewhere to sleep and put one’s belongings, there is little hope of seeking employment, receiving training or even having an address to have one’s Centrelink payments sent to. It means you cannot use a bank; it means getting to a doctor is harder as many doctors have full books and do not take casuals. Without funds, clean clothes are difficult to find and, of course, the list goes on. A homeless person has little option but to live on cash handouts, use soup kitchens or eat takeaway foods and they have little chance to clean themselves and their clothes. Partial homelessness has the same difficulties. In fact, a report today about interest rates and the cost of housing in Australia shows that many families are defaulting on their mortgage payments and may well be on the homeless list too very soon.

The SAAP funded services have a role to play in helping people onto the first step back into society. Supported accommodation assistance means just that—helping people to put together the necessary tools to be able to find shelter. I believe that the whole way we approach housing has been inadequate, especially since the federal government has abandoned public housing. The rental sector has become so small and so expensive that even people who are quite well off cannot find suitable rental accommodation and some of what is available can be highly unsuitable for the individuals being housed.

Even as an old age pensioner, there are problems. If you have a house that is too big but are living on an age pension, you are caught in a bind. If you sell it and go into an aged persons’ home, the home takes a large percentage of the house’s value as an entry fee, and then your pension barely covers the ‘rent’. The super you have been saving to pass onto your children has suddenly disappeared. You can give a little away but no more than $30,000 in total, so it becomes a headache to try and work out what to do at the end of your life. There is no real option to allow another pensioner without housing to share with you because then they put up the charges. Both the owner and the tenant are penalised.

So, whether you are young, a single mother, homeless through illness, from a divided family at any age or elderly, housing becomes a fundamental survival problem. SAAP therefore provides a vitally important link between all those thousands of people who need help with housing at a particularly difficult time of their lives and all levels of government. Will the federal government pick up this role if they abandon SAAP? It is unlikely, and in these current times when the national government is moving away from social intervention, it looks like we are another step closer to being the 51st state of the USA. (Time expired)

Gary Hardgrave (Moreton, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Throsby for introducing this motion in this place today because homelessness—as is the case with this sort of discussion—highlights the differences between what an Australian Labor Party government would be like and what the coalition government is like. The Labor Party love victims. They love making the point that victimhood is coming your way, that you have no means or ability to actually repair your circumstances and that the Bible was wrong when it said, ‘God will help those who help themselves.’ Essentially, they are saying: ‘Don’t try, don’t make any effort, don’t do anything, you are doomed to fail. Labor will give you some means by which to support yourself because you are a failure and you should never even try.’ That is the essence of the philosophical underpinning of all of the contributions from those opposite so far in this discussion.

On this side we very much believe that the strength of our society, our economy and our ambition on an individual level and, indeed, on the collective level has the capacity to look after those who do not have the ability to make a difference and fulfil their basic needs. As the member for Lyons said, without a place to live it is impossible to train, to learn and to take on all of the basic aspects of day-to-day life in the modern era. There is no doubt about that. But a question still begs to be asked when you see headlines in the papers in, say, the Illawarra, where the member for Throsby comes from, or perhaps in the north-western suburbs of Melbourne, where I have seen kids say they cannot get a job. They say they have all these problems and that they are not going to leave a local community to go and get a job somewhere else, and yet you go into parts of Australia where the economy is so robust and where they are crying out for young people who will show up to work on time. Guess what? Accommodation is taken care of in places like the Western Australian and Queensland mining industries.

So, before we spiral out of control in the despair of some dreadful sense of victimhood that the Labor Party would like to perpetuate—the sense that you are never going to achieve anything, so do not even try; that kind of logic in running Australia repulses me—let us understand that there is a lot of assistance possible for young people in this country to move from one part of Australia to another. They can gain government assistance to help them meet the costs of living away from home. These are allowances that never existed under a previous Labor administration because they had this view that you did not have to try; you are always going to fail, so let us support you. You are a victim, because Labor loves people feeling bad about themselves. People who feel bad about themselves vote for social welfare programs and they back governments that want them to feel bad. So I really welcome this discussion.

Mr Deputy Speaker, let me tell you about those who cannot in fact help themselves. They are the ones we have to deal with. I have spoken to young ladies who have gone to places such as the Southside Education Centre. It is a school which receives more government assistance and subsidies than any other in Australia and is based right in the middle of my electorate. It was auspiced by the Baptist Church about 15 or more years ago and is run by Colleen Mitrow, who should receive an Order of Australia, AC, not because she is like some of those who seem to get it because of the jobs they have but because she is somebody who has done a great job. She is somebody who has taken girls who have basically been living in shopping trolleys—that way when it is cold in Brisbane they can sleep off the ground. She has taken in girls who have been expelled, sent away, from the state education system and she has said, ‘We’re going to give you a place to stay, a place to learn and a place to grow.’

She has worked with the Department of Family and Community Services, under this government, and secured the JET creche that is operating out of the Churches of Christ hall on Station Road at Sunnybank. She actually makes it possible for young people who have children to still have an opportunity to participate in the learning process. They are the sorts of practical measures that make each individual circumstance important and that back those individuals.

Likewise, the Australian Red Cross have an ambition for a Brisbane centre for young people. They tell me that, according to the 2001 census, 109 young people were sleeping rough in the inner city, and I hope the numbers are lower now. The Australian Red Cross want to not just give them a place to stay; they want to give them a place to grow and to learn so that they as individuals can get on their own two feet, pay taxes and be a part of this society in every possible way. As I said, in paraphrasing the Bible: God will help those who help themselves. I will back all of those every day, and for those who do not have that capacity I will give them my support too. (Time expired)

Martin Ferguson (Batman, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Transport, Roads and Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The House owes the member for Throsby a debt of gratitude for bringing this issue to the attention of the parliament. It focuses on issues that the Howard government, as reflected by the member for Moreton’s comments, does not want to face up to. The real issue is that the face of homelessness has changed over the last two decades from the old, derelict man on the park bench, clutching a bottle of wine or spirits wrapped in a brown paper bag, to a man who is now joined by too many of his fellow Australians.

The homeless of today now includes younger men, unemployed and hopeless, the confused and mentally ill and, increasingly, women with children, desperate to escape violent and destructive domestic situations, who now make up over 42 per cent of homeless people. But perhaps worst of all are the young people cast off by their families—people who cannot cope or do not care. Young people under the age of 25, who are part of our future generation, now make up nearly half of the around 100,000 Australians who sleep rough on the streets every night. Youth aged between 12 and 18 years of age make up a quarter of all those who are homeless and the situation, unfortunately, is getting worse.

Community service organisations and major charities are doing their best, but they all agree that current resources cannot meet the demand for services. On an average day, the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program turns away more people than they have the capacity to help—up to 304,000—and it is a similar story across the country with all service providers. It is a sad indictment on all of us. Our society has to confront this challenge. The situation is all the more depressing given that this is not a new problem. Both major political parties can improve their performances on this issue. Homelessness in Australia has been a silent smear on our national community for decades. In more recent times, the Howard government for too long has directed much needed funding to chasing votes rather than to funding providers that could help in a practical way those most vulnerable and most in need.

You may be able to avert your eyes while walking along when you come across a homeless person sheltering in a doorway, but the unavoidable reality is that too many people live in poverty and on our streets. The resources and property booms of recent times have provided well for many of us, but not all of us. These people are asking not for a handout but for a helping hand to enable them to work on breaking the vicious cycle of poverty, which can destroy opportunity—but, worst of all, hope—for many in Australian communities.

Let us be clear: these people do not want to live on our streets. They do not want to live exposed to the weather, waking every morning thankful just to be alive and on a constant search for the next meal, many of which are provided by non-charitable organisations. These people want what we want: they want to be a respected part of our community, they want to earn their own living, they want to contribute to society and they want to give something back for the helping hand.

For some, this dream will always remain just that: an unattained reality. It would be a poor statement on our society if we were to let it continue for people such as Andrew, a homeless person from the age of 14, one of the 100,000 people who each night have nowhere to call home. Andrew ran away from foster care as a young teenager and spent a despondent youth constantly getting into trouble with the law. He died at the age of 24, murdered whilst living on the streets. He had fathered three children; two were taken as infants into foster care, like Andrew. What a hopeless start in life for those young children. As of today their future is unknown.

That is why I join with my colleagues on both sides of the House to clearly state that we can do better. I urge the government to provide additional funding to meet the unmet demand of the homeless and to develop strategies and cooperation with non-charitable organisations and local and state governments to work to reduce homelessness. Let us share the benefits of the boom that most of us are benefiting from and offer a helping hand to the homeless, many of whom are young. It is no longer just the man with the wine bottle but also the young women who are running away from desperate domestic situations. We need to confront the challenge. Here is a challenge to all of us in the lead-up to the next election. There might not be a lot of votes in it, but it gives people hope for the future. (Time expired)

Luke Hartsuyker (Cowper, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I welcome this opportunity to speak on the motion by the member for Throsby and, while I share her concerns for those who are homeless, I believe that her call for an increase in federal funding ignores many important issues in this debate. We all recognise that homelessness has a range of causes. No-one becomes homeless because they want to. Marital breakdown, employment difficulties, mental health problems, debt, gambling and addiction can all be causes and, very often, a combination of these factors lead to people becoming homeless.

I suspect that this may be one of those areas, like the health service, where we cannot control the demand for services and demand will always outstrip the resources. Like the health service, it is one of those areas where the federal government provides funding but where the state provides the front-line services. That is, after all, very much the role of our states and territories—delivering front-line services. Again, like the health service, it is one of those areas where prevention is better than cure. I shall return to that theme shortly, but first let us remind ourselves how services for the homeless are currently funded.

Under the previous Supported Accommodation Assistance Program, or SAAP, the federal government provided $833 million, an increase of 18 per cent, or $115 million, on the previous period. Under the current SAAP agreement, which runs for five years and is currently in its second year, the federal government will provide $932 million, an increase of $100 million. I am pleased to say that, within the current agreement, the states and territories will move towards making an equal contribution. I understand that the New South Wales government is in fact already making a matching contribution, and I commend it for that. But if funding is a major problem, as the member for Throsby suggests, then perhaps she will consider an approach to her colleagues in the states and territories to ask them to increase their funding too.

I mentioned earlier some of the causes of homelessness. The federal government has increased the funds available to SAAP and it is attacking the causes directly, with specific projects, and indirectly as well. One example is employment. Since March last year we have seen some 245,000 jobs created in the Australian economy. Unemployment is at a record low. We are actively involved through our skills initiatives to ensure that people of all ages can take advantage of the opportunities now available.

Mental health is an important area. I know from discussions in the backbench committee on health and ageing that the results of the trend towards removing those with mental health problems from institutions and placing them in the community have not always been encouraging and this impacts directly on the numbers of homeless. It is generally agreed that the support that should be available to make this policy a success is delivered by the states and territories, and this has been very much lacking. I acknowledge the efforts made under the mental health strategy to address this problem but, again, what is happening to the funding?

I understand that New South Wales is currently delivering only 60 per cent of its matched funding. Queensland is delivering about half, and three other states and territories are apparently not delivering anything at all. What sort of contribution to tackling one of the very important problems in our community is this? If the performance by the states and territories on matching the federal contribution on homelessness is as poor as their performance on mental health then we are clearly not going to make much progress.

Gambling is another cause of homelessness. I suggest that the states and territories consider putting a levy on their income from gambling and direct it to alleviating the problem of homelessness. I think it is vitally important that the states consider this point; it is a very important one. Rivers of gold are being provided through the proceeds of gambling, which has been attributed as a cause of homelessness, yet there is no direct link with funding. I think that would be a useful initiative that could assist our homeless.

We should always be devoting more funds to tackling problems in our community. Through its increase to SAAP, the federal government is doing that. The states have some considerable way to go. I would like to see them matching that federal government contribution. I would like to see them stepping up to the plate with more effective program delivery so that our terrible problem of homelessness is more adequately addressed and so that the plight of the homeless is relieved.

Ian Causley (Page, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.