Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Australia's arts community has been waiting a long time for a government that values its work. The Albanese government's new National Cultural Policy, Revive, begins to repair the damage caused by the neglect and contempt of the previous government. Revive invests an extra $286 million in Australian creativity. This reverses the devastating Brandis cuts. It helps people in the sector breathe again.

Revive also demonstrates increased respect for the contribution creative people make to our society: the Australia Council will be strengthened and extended; Creative Australia will have a First Nations body giving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders autonomy over decisions and investments; a centre for arts and entertainment workplaces will help address bullying, sexual harassment and problems with pay and conditions; and Music Australia and Writers Australia will provide strategic leadership and support for the music and literature sectors. We'll introduce quotas for Australian content on streaming platforms. We'll almost double the investment in the Regional Arts Fund. We'll legislate to ban fake Indigenous art. We'll establish the position of poet laureate, the first since Governor Lachlan Macquarie, who my seat is named for, created that role.

I thank every artist and organisation I met throughout the policy's development. Your insights and aspirations are the foundation of this policy.