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| Closing the Gap progress has been 'mixed, says Malcolm Turnbull – politics live | Closing the Gap progress has been 'mixed, says Malcolm Turnbull – politics live |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| 2.27am GMT | |
| 02:27 | |
| Plibersek gets a follow up question on the Palestine debate at the NSW Labor conference. She repeats what she said before about trips being beneficial, and hoses down the idea that this will be a big noisy stoush. (If this follows usual practice, there will be a significant amount of arm twisting and bartering and a joint motion with cross factional support will ultimately be put and carried. But maybe this one will be different.) | |
| 2.23am GMT | |
| 02:23 | |
| David Speers from Sky News invites Plibersek to have a crack at Russia in the current airstrikes in Syria. She ponies up on that one. | |
| I think that moderate groups are deliberately being targeted by the Russians to strengthen the hand of the Assad government. I think the Russians would prefer the West to be making a choice between the Assad government and IS with no middle way. | |
| Q: Would she support partition? | |
| No, she would not. | |
| Where would you even begin to draw the borders? | |
| 2.20am GMT | |
| 02:20 | |
| Mark Kenny from Fairfax invites Plibersek to disavow Australia’s current military contribution in Iraq. Unsurprisingly, she declines to disavow. | |
| I think we have a monstrously complex situation but I continue to believe that the threat from IS or Daesh in attacking civilians across the border into Iraq justifies our engagement. | |
| 2.17am GMT | |
| 02:17 | |
| Peter Hartcher, Sydney Morning Herald. | |
| Q: Should the Australian navy and air force conduct and announce regular freedom of navigation exercises within the twelve nautical-mile territorial limit on disputed territories and reefs in the South China Sea? | |
| Well, Peter, as you would know, the Australian navy has often sailed through these areas and we urge the Australian navy to continue the practice that it has followed in this area. | |
| Q: Announcements, though? | |
| We don’t think it’s useful to raise tension s in the sense that sometimes announcements can be perceived as deliberately provocative so you’d have to take a case-by-case approach depending on the mission you were talking. | |
| (Sail by quietly? Not entirely convincing, that answer.) | |
| 2.13am GMT | |
| 02:13 | |
| Into questions now. | |
| Andrew Tillett from the West Australian. | |
| Q: I want to ask you about at the Labor party, your branch of the Labor party’s conference this weekend there will be a debate on Israel and Palestine including a motion that MPs and other Labor identities be banned from taking sponsored travel to Israel. Could it be a compromise that if you go to Israel you have to spend half the time also in Palestine? TheWA Labor party branch has had a motion of its own put up through its channels that if an MP takes a visit to Palestine the MP has to spend 50% of their time in Israel. I was wondering what’s your take on all this? And also, too, if you could explain what your response is to the view that Labor policy on the Israel-Palestine questions being more overly influenced by electoral considerations in Sydney? | |
| Thank you for that question, Plibersek says, not meaning that in the slightest. She says she expects “a reaffirmation of our position from the national conference which says that we support, of course, a two-state solution.” | |
| Then on the trips: | |
| The second issue, the one that you’ve raised specifically, is about trips to Israel and Palestine. Look, I think it’s a wonderful opportunity for members of parliament and for others to visit Israel and the Palestinian territories. I think it’s great. I don’t actually think you can really understand the geography, how close people live, how intertwined the communities are until you have visited so I’m a great supporter of people visiting. | |
| 2.04am GMT | |
| 02:04 | |
| Daniel Hurst | |
| Some context around this announcement from Plibersek. Timor-Leste last year announced it would resume a formal challenge against a 2006 oil and gas treaty that became mired in controversy following claims Australia bugged the cabinet room in Dili to gain the upper hand in negotiations. | |
| But the government of Timor-Leste withdrew an International Court of Justice case against Australia relating to evidence it said was wrongly seized by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (Asio) in raids in Canberra in December 2013. | |
| Plibersek has now called for a resolution, noting Timor-Leste had suffered decades of war and starvation and Australia’s role in securing the country’s independence was “a proud moment for many Australians”. | |
| Timor-Leste has said it remained willing to resolve the dispute directly with Australia even as it launched new arbitration proceedings in September last year. Australia’s foreign affairs minister, Julie Bishop, and the attorney general, George Brandis, have previously said they were disappointed with the decision and they would prefer to resolve the issue “through dialogue rather than legal action”. | |
| 2.02am GMT | |
| 02:02 | |
| Plibersek flags submission to international adjudication to settle the maritime boundaries between Australia and Timor | |
| Picking up this theme, some news on Timor-Leste. | |
| Tanya Plibersek: | |
| Australia regularly calls on other countries to abide by international laws and to settle disputes in line with the rules-based system. If we want to insist that other nations play by the rules, we also need to adhere to them. | |
| We have a good record of doing so but not a flawless one. | |
| Timor-Leste suffered decades of war and starvation before gaining independence. Australia played a key role in securing that independence, a proud moment for many Australians. | |
| The maritime boundary dispute has poisoned our relations with our newest neighbour. This must change for their sake and for ours. | |
| A Shorten Labor government will redouble our efforts to conclude good-faith negotiation with Timor-Leste to settle the maritime boundaries between our two countries. | |
| If we are not successful in negotiating a settlement with our neighbour, we are prepared to submit ourselves to international adjudication or arbitration. | |
| (That one gets applause in the room.) | |
| Updated | |
| at 2.07am GMT | |
| 1.59am GMT | |
| 01:59 | |
| Plibersek is currently outlining her view of the key difference between conservatives and progressives on foreign policy. She frames this difference around the concept of being a good global citizen. She says moral global citizenry is a duty at the heart of Ben Chifley’s timeless definition of the Labor mission: working for the betterment of mankind. | |
| 1.52am GMT | 1.52am GMT |
| 01:52 | 01:52 |
| On China, the relationship, the AIIB and disputes in the South China Sea. | On China, the relationship, the AIIB and disputes in the South China Sea. |
| Tanya Plibersek: | Tanya Plibersek: |
| We’re proud that Gough Whitlam reached out to China when people said it was folly. We’re proud that Bob Hawke and Paul Keating fostered inclusive cooperation in our region through APEC when their critics mocked it as vanity and an elitist obsession. | We’re proud that Gough Whitlam reached out to China when people said it was folly. We’re proud that Bob Hawke and Paul Keating fostered inclusive cooperation in our region through APEC when their critics mocked it as vanity and an elitist obsession. |
| We’re proud of the work Julia Gillard did to establish regular and formal leader-level meetings between China and Australia, a foreign policy achievement which will only be enlarged over time. Our history with China means a Labor government would have acted differently when it came to the Asian infrastructure investment bank. This was a way of positively working with China to reduce the infrastructure deficit in our region. | We’re proud of the work Julia Gillard did to establish regular and formal leader-level meetings between China and Australia, a foreign policy achievement which will only be enlarged over time. Our history with China means a Labor government would have acted differently when it came to the Asian infrastructure investment bank. This was a way of positively working with China to reduce the infrastructure deficit in our region. |
| Instead, division around the Coalition Cabinet table and botched public diplomacy led to it being seen as a great US-China power struggle with Australia caught in the middle and China coming out on top. And now it seems that Australia will miss out on a position as one of the vice presidents of the AIIB due to our perceived reluctance at the period of sign-up. We should have gotten in early, we could have had more influence in setting the rules. | Instead, division around the Coalition Cabinet table and botched public diplomacy led to it being seen as a great US-China power struggle with Australia caught in the middle and China coming out on top. And now it seems that Australia will miss out on a position as one of the vice presidents of the AIIB due to our perceived reluctance at the period of sign-up. We should have gotten in early, we could have had more influence in setting the rules. |
| Our close economic and diplomatic relationship with China binds us but it does not blind us. On the question of relations between China and the United States and between China and the rest of the region, we are clear-sighted. | Our close economic and diplomatic relationship with China binds us but it does not blind us. On the question of relations between China and the United States and between China and the rest of the region, we are clear-sighted. |
| On the South China Sea we are not disinterested observers. We have a national interest in defending freedom of navigation and in upholding the international system of laws and accepted behaviours. | On the South China Sea we are not disinterested observers. We have a national interest in defending freedom of navigation and in upholding the international system of laws and accepted behaviours. |
| 1.46am GMT | 1.46am GMT |
| 01:46 | 01:46 |
| Plibersek outlines her thoughts on the US alliance. Close, but not supine. | Plibersek outlines her thoughts on the US alliance. Close, but not supine. |
| We have never sought for Australia the tinny badge of deputy sheriff. We believe that we are a more valuable ally if we have the maturity and confidence to speak frankly and act independently within the alliance. Australia will disagree with the United States on occasion and we should have disagreed in 2003. The decision to invade and occupy Iraq was a terrible mistake. | We have never sought for Australia the tinny badge of deputy sheriff. We believe that we are a more valuable ally if we have the maturity and confidence to speak frankly and act independently within the alliance. Australia will disagree with the United States on occasion and we should have disagreed in 2003. The decision to invade and occupy Iraq was a terrible mistake. |
| The cost in lives, money and the reputational damage to the United States and other members of the Coalition of the Willing was not matched in gains for Iraq, for the United States or for the world. | The cost in lives, money and the reputational damage to the United States and other members of the Coalition of the Willing was not matched in gains for Iraq, for the United States or for the world. |
| Labor opposed the decision to join the invasion of Iraq. I spoke against it, I marched against it, when George W. Bush visited our parliament in 2003, I presented Condoleezza Rice with a letter signed by 41 Labor MPs explaining why Labor opposed the invasion of Iraq without UN approval. | Labor opposed the decision to join the invasion of Iraq. I spoke against it, I marched against it, when George W. Bush visited our parliament in 2003, I presented Condoleezza Rice with a letter signed by 41 Labor MPs explaining why Labor opposed the invasion of Iraq without UN approval. |
| If I was presented with the same set of circumstances, I’d do that again. | If I was presented with the same set of circumstances, I’d do that again. |
| But none of this diminishes Labor’s support or commitment to the alliance. As two nations with shared histories, mutual interests and common values, as believers in and defenders of open economies, free societies and individual liberties, there is so much that Australia and the United States can achieve together which is why the US-Australia alliance will always be an important element of Labor’s foreign policy. | But none of this diminishes Labor’s support or commitment to the alliance. As two nations with shared histories, mutual interests and common values, as believers in and defenders of open economies, free societies and individual liberties, there is so much that Australia and the United States can achieve together which is why the US-Australia alliance will always be an important element of Labor’s foreign policy. |
| 1.40am GMT | 1.40am GMT |
| 01:40 | 01:40 |
| Tanya Plibersek: | Tanya Plibersek: |
| I don’t think you’ll be shocked to hear that I’ve never been a big fan of the great man theory of history: the story of the world written as a tribute to an immortal few, deserving to command, taking their citizens by the scruff of the neck and driving them on to glory. | I don’t think you’ll be shocked to hear that I’ve never been a big fan of the great man theory of history: the story of the world written as a tribute to an immortal few, deserving to command, taking their citizens by the scruff of the neck and driving them on to glory. |
| The history that interests me is the more complex story, the ebb and flow of events, the spark and slow burn of resurgence and decline, the shifts in power and influence that see nations rise and fall. | The history that interests me is the more complex story, the ebb and flow of events, the spark and slow burn of resurgence and decline, the shifts in power and influence that see nations rise and fall. |
| Reading about this is one thing but living through it is another. | Reading about this is one thing but living through it is another. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 1.53am GMT | at 1.53am GMT |
| 1.38am GMT | 1.38am GMT |
| 01:38 | 01:38 |
| Daniel Hurst | Daniel Hurst |
| The deputy Labor leader, Tanya Plibersek, is addressing the National Press Club and laying down some markers about her desire to adopt a “broader” approach to foreign policy. | The deputy Labor leader, Tanya Plibersek, is addressing the National Press Club and laying down some markers about her desire to adopt a “broader” approach to foreign policy. |
| She says she wanted to serve a foreign minister in a Shorten Labor government because she believed there was much more that Australian ideas and values could offer the world. | She says she wanted to serve a foreign minister in a Shorten Labor government because she believed there was much more that Australian ideas and values could offer the world. |
| Australia can be a better international citizen, a more active player in our region and a more creative, more confident presence on the world stage. We should choose this path of energy and activism, knowing that it serves our national interest. We see ourselves as a good international citizen and we measure our actions against that. | Australia can be a better international citizen, a more active player in our region and a more creative, more confident presence on the world stage. We should choose this path of energy and activism, knowing that it serves our national interest. We see ourselves as a good international citizen and we measure our actions against that. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 1.47am GMT | at 1.47am GMT |
| 1.30am GMT | 1.30am GMT |
| 01:30 | 01:30 |
| Don’t worry fellow politics tragics, I’ve been looking for a break in the weather too to catch up with the primary in New Hampshire. According to our live coverage – Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump are the projected winners. | Don’t worry fellow politics tragics, I’ve been looking for a break in the weather too to catch up with the primary in New Hampshire. According to our live coverage – Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump are the projected winners. |
| 1.26am GMT | 1.26am GMT |
| 01:26 | 01:26 |
| Politics this lunchtime | Politics this lunchtime |
| Just while the going is good – let’s pause for a lunchtime summary. This will give me a chance to stretch to treasury estimates which I’ve thus far neglected to cover. | Just while the going is good – let’s pause for a lunchtime summary. This will give me a chance to stretch to treasury estimates which I’ve thus far neglected to cover. |
| And so it goes. | And so it goes. |
| 12.50am GMT | 12.50am GMT |
| 00:50 | 00:50 |
| Defence estimates is rolling back round to Stuart Robert. The defence secretary Dennis Richardson has unearthed a letter between chiefs of staffs on August 13 – Tony Abbott’s and Stuart Robert’s – approving travel, I think. It’s not entirely clear. | Defence estimates is rolling back round to Stuart Robert. The defence secretary Dennis Richardson has unearthed a letter between chiefs of staffs on August 13 – Tony Abbott’s and Stuart Robert’s – approving travel, I think. It’s not entirely clear. |
| Dennis Richardson: | Dennis Richardson: |
| It was a letter, one seeking approval for the minister to travel from Beijing to Singapore, to attend the Singapore Australia joint ministerial committee meeting, which was held in Singapore on 21/22 August. | It was a letter, one seeking approval for the minister to travel from Beijing to Singapore, to attend the Singapore Australia joint ministerial committee meeting, which was held in Singapore on 21/22 August. |
| That would seem to imply the then prime minister’s office knew that Robert was in Beijing. Richardson said he was in Singapore for the official part of Robert’s visit. | That would seem to imply the then prime minister’s office knew that Robert was in Beijing. Richardson said he was in Singapore for the official part of Robert’s visit. |
| Q: You didn’t go via Beijing? | Q: You didn’t go via Beijing? |
| Dennis Richardson: | Dennis Richardson: |
| No. | No. |
| Labor senator Stephen Conroy is fishing for information about another trip, a delegation, which he evidently suspects Paul Marks was on. | Labor senator Stephen Conroy is fishing for information about another trip, a delegation, which he evidently suspects Paul Marks was on. |
| 12.40am GMT | 12.40am GMT |
| 00:40 | 00:40 |
| A few more lovely shots from the chamber. | A few more lovely shots from the chamber. |
| 12.24am GMT | 12.24am GMT |
| 00:24 | 00:24 |
| Daniel Hurst | Daniel Hurst |
| Richardson told the hearing the department became aware after he got back to Australia that Robert had met a Chinese vice minister while in Beijing in 2014. | Richardson told the hearing the department became aware after he got back to Australia that Robert had met a Chinese vice minister while in Beijing in 2014. |
| It seems there were some disclosures made internally at the time. | It seems there were some disclosures made internally at the time. |
| Here’s Richardson: | Here’s Richardson: |
| Following his return to Australia, minister Robert asked his office to advise the department who he had met in China. | Following his return to Australia, minister Robert asked his office to advise the department who he had met in China. |
| 12.22am GMT | 12.22am GMT |
| 00:22 | 00:22 |
| We became aware of the trip ... at some point | We became aware of the trip ... at some point |
| Daniel Hurst | Daniel Hurst |
| While the chamber has been preoccupied with closing the gap, the secretary of the Department of Defence, Dennis Richardson, has been fielding a barrage of questions about Stuart Robert’s infamous China trip. | While the chamber has been preoccupied with closing the gap, the secretary of the Department of Defence, Dennis Richardson, has been fielding a barrage of questions about Stuart Robert’s infamous China trip. |
| Robert was, of course, the assistant defence minister at the time. | Robert was, of course, the assistant defence minister at the time. |
| Richardson says the department become aware of the Beijing trip “at some point”. | Richardson says the department become aware of the Beijing trip “at some point”. |
| We were aware that the minister was in Beijing simply because he was designated to represent the defence minister at a meeting in Singapore immediately after ... I’m not aware that we were advised that he was travelling to China privately ... There’s a difference between being aware he was going to China and sorting arrangements for his visit to Singapore once it’d been decided that he would represent the minister for defence in Singapore. | We were aware that the minister was in Beijing simply because he was designated to represent the defence minister at a meeting in Singapore immediately after ... I’m not aware that we were advised that he was travelling to China privately ... There’s a difference between being aware he was going to China and sorting arrangements for his visit to Singapore once it’d been decided that he would represent the minister for defence in Singapore. |
| Asked whether the defence attache in Australia’s Beijing embassy was involved, Richardson hints the officer was not aware before the trip but may have assisted with the minister’s onward travel to Singapore. “He was not aware of the visit by Minister Robert to China; in terms of his engagement in Minister Robert’s departure from Beijing, again I’ll need to take that on notice.” | Asked whether the defence attache in Australia’s Beijing embassy was involved, Richardson hints the officer was not aware before the trip but may have assisted with the minister’s onward travel to Singapore. “He was not aware of the visit by Minister Robert to China; in terms of his engagement in Minister Robert’s departure from Beijing, again I’ll need to take that on notice.” |
| As to whether Robert or his office had sought advice from the department about China-related matters prior to his visit, Richardson says: “My inquiries have drawn a blank on that, so to the best of my knowledge, no.” | As to whether Robert or his office had sought advice from the department about China-related matters prior to his visit, Richardson says: “My inquiries have drawn a blank on that, so to the best of my knowledge, no.” |
| Labor senator Stephen Conroy was preoccupied with whether Robert took his Defence Department-issued phone to China, and whether such action would have left it vulnerable to hacking and security risks. Richardson told the committee he did not know if Robert took his official phone. | Labor senator Stephen Conroy was preoccupied with whether Robert took his Defence Department-issued phone to China, and whether such action would have left it vulnerable to hacking and security risks. Richardson told the committee he did not know if Robert took his official phone. |
| Conroy successfully secured a commitment from the defence minister, Marise Payne, to raise the phone issue with the prime minister or his department. “Yes, of course … I suspect on reflection it would be more appropriate for me to refer that matter to the secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet [who is investigating ministerial standards].” | Conroy successfully secured a commitment from the defence minister, Marise Payne, to raise the phone issue with the prime minister or his department. “Yes, of course … I suspect on reflection it would be more appropriate for me to refer that matter to the secretary of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet [who is investigating ministerial standards].” |
| 12.17am GMT | 12.17am GMT |
| 00:17 | 00:17 |
| Closing the gap: some quick analytical thoughts | Closing the gap: some quick analytical thoughts |
| Some initial helicopter thoughts from those two speeches. | Some initial helicopter thoughts from those two speeches. |
| Turnbull obviously had to take the opportunity of today to set out some general approaches to Indigenous affairs. He did that. He sent an important message: I will work with Indigenous leaders and with communities, not impose things. This will be a welcome message, particularly if it signals a genuine intent to broaden the sources of advice and input. Under Tony Abbott, many Indigenous leaders felt excluded in favour of voices who were more in sync with Abbott’s view of the policy terrain. That’s the good news. | Turnbull obviously had to take the opportunity of today to set out some general approaches to Indigenous affairs. He did that. He sent an important message: I will work with Indigenous leaders and with communities, not impose things. This will be a welcome message, particularly if it signals a genuine intent to broaden the sources of advice and input. Under Tony Abbott, many Indigenous leaders felt excluded in favour of voices who were more in sync with Abbott’s view of the policy terrain. That’s the good news. |
| The less good news is, frankly, Turnbull’s natural optimism. The prime minister is always that guy who thinks you get stuff done just by force of will. You get people together and you get it done. Infectious enthusiasm and sunny side up is one of the prime minister’s most charming attributes, but ebullience doesn’t work in Indigenous policy. The problems are too complex, too protracted, and have proven remarkably resistant to policy interventions of all kinds. He’s talking to a community burdened by the weight of previous disappointments, and connecting with the community requires an acknowledgement of that grief and frustration. I think the tone of today’s contribution was absolutely well intended, but ever so slightly off. | The less good news is, frankly, Turnbull’s natural optimism. The prime minister is always that guy who thinks you get stuff done just by force of will. You get people together and you get it done. Infectious enthusiasm and sunny side up is one of the prime minister’s most charming attributes, but ebullience doesn’t work in Indigenous policy. The problems are too complex, too protracted, and have proven remarkably resistant to policy interventions of all kinds. He’s talking to a community burdened by the weight of previous disappointments, and connecting with the community requires an acknowledgement of that grief and frustration. I think the tone of today’s contribution was absolutely well intended, but ever so slightly off. |
| As for Shorten? The tone was better. There was that strain of humility – the acknowledgment that the problems are real and endemic, and that all we’ve really done for generations is toss out money and walk on by, comfortably immersed in our own lives. | As for Shorten? The tone was better. There was that strain of humility – the acknowledgment that the problems are real and endemic, and that all we’ve really done for generations is toss out money and walk on by, comfortably immersed in our own lives. |
| Shorten is right that progress in this area requires truth telling. That aspiration rang like a bell in today’s parliamentary debate. | Shorten is right that progress in this area requires truth telling. That aspiration rang like a bell in today’s parliamentary debate. |
| But the major truth really is this. | But the major truth really is this. |
| The purpose of closing the gap was to impose some evidence, some benchmarks, to inform public policy making in Indigenous affairs. It was an effort to impose some rigour to counter someone’s latest theory or feeling or random prejudice. | The purpose of closing the gap was to impose some evidence, some benchmarks, to inform public policy making in Indigenous affairs. It was an effort to impose some rigour to counter someone’s latest theory or feeling or random prejudice. |
| Good thought. | Good thought. |
| We have to look at what the benchmarks are telling us. The current approach is not working. We need another approach entirely, not just fiddling at the edges. | We have to look at what the benchmarks are telling us. The current approach is not working. We need another approach entirely, not just fiddling at the edges. |
| That’s the truth, and I’m yet to really hear that from the parliament of Australia, acknowledged in those stark, unvarnished terms. | That’s the truth, and I’m yet to really hear that from the parliament of Australia, acknowledged in those stark, unvarnished terms. |
| Perhaps the task just feels too enormous. | Perhaps the task just feels too enormous. |
| To borrow from TS Eliot, if we let the human voices wake us, then we drown. | To borrow from TS Eliot, if we let the human voices wake us, then we drown. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 12.32am GMT | at 12.32am GMT |
| 11.57pm GMT | 11.57pm GMT |
| 23:57 | 23:57 |
| I call this sequence, Malcolm in the middle. Don’t shoot. I know that’s terrible. | I call this sequence, Malcolm in the middle. Don’t shoot. I know that’s terrible. |
| 11.48pm GMT | 11.48pm GMT |
| 23:48 | 23:48 |
| Shorten has some nice rhetoric to build to his close. One day we’ll be able to say Australia is one country and mean it. One day we will get past racism. One day, there will be opportunity for all. | Shorten has some nice rhetoric to build to his close. One day we’ll be able to say Australia is one country and mean it. One day we will get past racism. One day, there will be opportunity for all. |
| And with that, this debate is a wrap. I’ll be back shortly with pictures and analytical thoughts and an update about what else is going on. | And with that, this debate is a wrap. I’ll be back shortly with pictures and analytical thoughts and an update about what else is going on. |
| Updated | Updated |
| at 11.48pm GMT | at 11.48pm GMT |
| 11.45pm GMT | 11.45pm GMT |
| 23:45 | 23:45 |
| On funding cuts and the subsequent (nonsense) rationalisations. | On funding cuts and the subsequent (nonsense) rationalisations. |
| Mr Speaker, it’s easy in the current political discourse to say that throwing money at the problem won’t solve it and if it was going to solve it, it would have solved it in the past. | Mr Speaker, it’s easy in the current political discourse to say that throwing money at the problem won’t solve it and if it was going to solve it, it would have solved it in the past. |
| This is an alibi to justify cutting funding because pretending that money doesn’t matter, pretending that empowerment through greater resources doesn’t make a difference is an arrogant falsehood. | This is an alibi to justify cutting funding because pretending that money doesn’t matter, pretending that empowerment through greater resources doesn’t make a difference is an arrogant falsehood. |
| It is generally used by people for whom lack of money and lack of power has never been a problem. | It is generally used by people for whom lack of money and lack of power has never been a problem. |
| When an Aboriginal woman is 34 times more likely to be hospitalised as a result of family violence and 11 times more likely to die, when family violence is the number one cause of Aboriginal children being removed from their family and their community, when too many women seeking help from family violence face significant legal, psychological and cultural barriers, how can repeatedly cutting millions of dollars from Aboriginal legal and specialist support services possibly be part of the solution in there is no excuse for these cuts. | When an Aboriginal woman is 34 times more likely to be hospitalised as a result of family violence and 11 times more likely to die, when family violence is the number one cause of Aboriginal children being removed from their family and their community, when too many women seeking help from family violence face significant legal, psychological and cultural barriers, how can repeatedly cutting millions of dollars from Aboriginal legal and specialist support services possibly be part of the solution in there is no excuse for these cuts. |
| You cannot cut your way to closing the gap. | You cannot cut your way to closing the gap. |
| 11.42pm GMT | 11.42pm GMT |
| 23:42 | 23:42 |
| Shorten outlines Labor’s approach to criminal justice reform, then segues to education, and the importance of needs based funding. Then to health, and high rates of vision loss among Indigenous people. | Shorten outlines Labor’s approach to criminal justice reform, then segues to education, and the importance of needs based funding. Then to health, and high rates of vision loss among Indigenous people. |
| This country is rich enough and generous enough to deal with this issue right now. So today I’m pleased to announce that a Labor government will commit $9m to close the gap in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander vision loss. | This country is rich enough and generous enough to deal with this issue right now. So today I’m pleased to announce that a Labor government will commit $9m to close the gap in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander vision loss. |
| 11.40pm GMT | 11.40pm GMT |
| 23:40 | 23:40 |
| Bill Shorten: | Bill Shorten: |
| It is a national disgrace, it’s not one which I believe anyone consciously signs up to in this parliament. | It is a national disgrace, it’s not one which I believe anyone consciously signs up to in this parliament. |
| But when we know the problem exists, to walk past the problem makes us part of the problem. | But when we know the problem exists, to walk past the problem makes us part of the problem. |