PM: It's good to be here in Walgett today we've visited St Josephs school, we've visited also the local state school, the primary school, we have been to two Aboriginal communities at Namoi and at Gingi. And also a good and long discussion convened by the local council officers here involving many representatives from local indigenous organisations.
Our reason for being here is to get out among indigenous communities on the ground to find out what they have to say about how we can improve things. Remember the government's policy commitment is to close the gap. We've, in the parliament, a week or so ago, dealt with the question of a national apology.
Now we are dealing with the question of closing the gap. The practical question on infant mortality, on other health outcomes, on education outcomes, employment opportunities and housing.
In our discussions today, housing has been an important problem raised both in terms of the availability of housing, but also different forms of home ownership and housing tenure - whether it is community housing or private home ownership, and there are a range of views expressed on that.
On the question of education, obviously challenges raised with us was how to encourage and ensure that we have maximum attendance and enrolment on the part of indigenous children. And on top of that again, to make sure that when indigenous children are through their schooling, that they have an opportunity for further training and work, real jobs and employment.
Health services were also raised and the adequacy of local GP services for this general community out here in Walgett. I think the important thing that we have come here to talk to the local community about it is what practical things can be done, in partnership with local communities to improve housing, health and education outcomes for them.
One of the things which has been raised is the importance of community sport and that is, many indigenous children as we are advised, big interest in rugby league, big interest in netball. I have just been here with the year six's and half of them put their hands up for rugby league, the other half for netball and there was one lone person who put their hand up for rugby union.
No one for AFL, I noticed. But -
JENNY MACKLIN: We are a long way from Melbourne.
PM: We are a long way from Melbourne. But the point we are making is that, when it comes to encouraging indigenous children to have full participation in education opportunities, investing more, long term in indigenous sport is a possible pathway to the future as well. Within schools and beyond schools.
And when you are dealing with regional and remote communities, that also raises some practical questions about how you get around in a local competition, if that local competition exists.
Why is that relevant to school outcomes? If there is a good sporting program in schools, and there's a good community competition operating, it can help ensure that young people are making the most of their school study opportunities as well. And that I think is an important step forward.
On the housing front, we obviously have many more consultations to do yet. We'll do that. And this is one of many visits on the part of Jenny and myself to local communities. Did you want to add Jenny? Any questions before we zip?
JOURNALIST: What will you take back to the commission from this - the bipartisan commission?
PM: Well we're still working on the formation of that commission with Mr Nelson. I have had a couple of sessions with him already. As indicated in parliament yesterday, ill try and do another session with him in this coming week. Once we've worked out structure and how it would operate, I would then hope to travel out to communities with him fairly soon, assuming we can get that agreement.
But for us today on this first visit, Jenny and myself, one of the key things that we are picking up is this: there is no such thing as a one size fits all solution for indigenous housing. The idea that there can be a total uniform, national indigenous housing type, actually doesn't fit the circumstances of each community. It may be that in the 300 to 400 remote indigenous communities in Australia, that we will end up with lots of different housing models, from full private ownership through to leasehold through to community ownership. And this whole spectrum of possibilities is what we will be examining. So if there is one take out it is that a one size fits all approach wont work.
JOURNALIST: What is your personal impression of the housing? How would you feel if you found yourself living in some of the accommodation there?
PM: I would just be blunt about it. The standard of indigenous housing in some parts, is not good. Not good at all. That's why we are here. Let's not pretend there is not a problem, there is a problem. That's why we are here, we are trying to do something about it.
But I am not here with a magic wand to say it will be fixed up by next Thursday afternoon at five o'clock. But what I am here to say is, we want to look at the problem, look at options for dealing with the problem, and it wont be one size fits all and then getting on with the business of making sure that these things are dealt with in a reasonable time frame.
JOURNALIST: Home ownership has often been called the great Australian dream, what's your great Australian dream for Aboriginal Australia?
PM: My dream, my vision, my mission in government for indigenous Australia, is to close the gap. When you have, in this country in the year 2008 little children under the age of five who are three or four times more likely to die before their fifth birthday if they are indigenous as opposed to them being non indigenous, that is a disgrace in the year 2008.
So what is my mission? Close the gap. Infant mortality, child mortality, education outcomes, health outcomes and within a fixed time frame.
JOURNALIST: Is it a bit fickle then to be arguing about home ownership and models for housing when such problems exist? Do you think that that argument should be left behind for the time being while -
PM: No not at all. The discussion we had this morning at the Walgett Council what with 20 or 30 representatives of indigenous organisations. Housing relates to school, relates to the physical safety of children, relates to nutrition, relates to whether kids are getting enough sleep at night, relates to whether there are decent health facilities and then also what you do when it comes to kids leaving school. Quite apart from the basic problem of overcrowding.
All these things actually relate together. If there is another take-out message it is this: we have multiple levels of government dealing with indigenous policy in Australia and indigenous communities have multiple organisations. Maybe it is time for us to start to look at much more of a whole of local community focus, whereby you have around the one table, not just all the representatives of indigenous organisations and groups but the various levels of government too so there is a complete, from the ground up, community driven response to the challenge which closing the gap represents. One more then I have got to go.
JOURNALIST: Ok, just quickly Fred Chaney said at the indigenous housing conference in October last year that the Commonwealth, no matter who was in power wasn't equipped, public officers weren't trained to deal with Aboriginal communities. Would you agree with that?
PM: I haven't read Fred's comments. You know, I have worked in state government before, I have worked in business before, I am the Prime Minister now, you know there are talents and abilities right across the system and structure of government and beyond government as well. There are first class philanthropists out there who want to invest and provide their expertise in how you develop better forms of indigenous housing. There are first class people who are working with various state housing agencies. Are there failures? Of course there are failures.
What's our job? Summon forth the talents, bring forth the best ideas in the country and get on with fixing these problems. That's one of the reasons why the Australia 2020 Summit to be held in the middle of April has a future for indigenous Australia front and centre. Because we don't believe that government has all the answers.
That is part of the reason why we are out here talking to people in the community today. And I'd like to thank St Joseph's for hosting us as we fly to Mackay.