Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator McGrath for the question. Earlier this year I announced that I would be working with state governments to reform the delivery of municipal and essential services. I am pleased to be able to update the Senate today that we have reached agreements with the Queensland, Western Australian, Victorian and Tasmanian governments for these states to take on responsibility for municipal and essential services in remote Indigenous communities.

The delivery of municipal and essential services includes the supply of power and water. The management of infrastructure is, of course, a state and local government responsibility, however, the Commonwealth government has been supporting these services in remote communities for decades. The agreement that this government has now reached will ensure that the Queensland, Victorian, Tasmanian and Western Australian governments will take ongoing funding responsibility for municipal services. The only exception is South Australia which has not yet accepted the generous offer we have made to fund the delivery of municipal and essential services in remote communities in that state.

The agreements we have reached with state governments include a single up-front payment that will be used to support municipal and essential services. The state governments will then take responsibility for the delivery of these services. This is a historic agreement that we have reached and it demonstrates that this government is delivering outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities by making governments work better in a more focused way on delivering services on the ground.