Alan Eggleston (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I think I finished by saying, ‘for example’! In employment and business since the introduction of the Indigenous Employment Program in July 1999, some 70,000 Indigenous people have been placed in employment and/or training through Indigenous employment programs.

The number of Indigenous people commencing new apprenticeships has increased by 350 per cent from 2,080 in the 12 months to 11 March and there are now more than 9,340. (Quorum formed) In the health area, which is much discussed, there have recently been falls in infant Indigenous morbidity and mortality rates in New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

Education is an area where we can be particularly proud of the record of Indigenous participation. In 2005, more than 6,600 Indigenous people were studying for a bachelor’s or higher degree, and more Indigenous kids are staying at school—40.1 per cent stayed on to year 12 in 2006, which is up from 29.2 per cent in 1996. The number of Indigenous people in vocational and technical education has more than doubled since 1996 from 32,000 to some 68,000 in 2006.

The mining industry has committed to training and employing Indigenous persons. For example, at the Argyle Diamond Mine in the Kimberley around 25 per cent of the workforce is from the Indigenous community. Argyle is a Rio company, and its record in employing Indigenous people is certainly worthy of recognition and praise.

On the issue of housing, some 15,700 houses have been bought, built or fixed under the Community Housing and Infrastructure Program between 1995-96 and 2005-06. Housing is very important to Indigenous people. Indigenous Business Australia’s homeownership scheme has assisted around 12,000 Indigenous Australian families to own their own homes since its inception.

In the area of law and justice, the rate of Indigenous deaths in prison custody has decreased from six per 1,000 Indigenous prisoners in 1995 to 1.2 per 1,000 Indigenous prisoners in 2005. These are still very sad statistics, but the improvement is notable.

Around 70 per cent of Indigenous people live in the cities and towns of states such as Queensland, Western Australia and New South Wales. While many of theses urban Indigenous people live ordinary family lives, as members of their local communities, accessing the usual benefits and services available to all Australian citizens, no doubt their number includes fringe dwellers living in deprived circumstances on the outskirts of country towns. However, when public discussion about our Indigenous people occurs, it is usually in relation to those Indigenous people living in isolated communities in the north of Australia, particularly in the Northern Territory and in the north-west of WA.

As we have heard in recent times, there are very serious problems in some of these remoter communities and towns which include alcoholism, drug abuse, glue sniffing and physical and sexual abuse. Indeed, in some of the towns in the north, Aboriginal children are too frightened to go home at night until their families have retired, or they find their way to safe houses, if they happen to live in towns such as Kununurra, where this kind of facility is available.

These are problems which just should not be happening in modern Australian and arise from the sense of hopelessness and meaninglessness these poor people have about their lives, as I referred to in my remarks in the Senate at the time of the Northern Territory intervention. Hopefully, with the leadership given by the Howard government in the Northern Territory intervention last year, these problems will be overcome now that public attention has been focused on the difficulties faced by Indigenous people in such communities.

In conclusion, while indeed the Parliament of Australia yesterday apologised to our Indigenous people for events in the past, I think it is more than fair to say that as a nation we are doing much to overcome Indigenous disadvantage so that our Indigenous citizens can take their rightful place in our society, as indeed they should and as I believe they will.