Indigenous communities to receive new houses in Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania

More than 70 remote Indigenous communities in Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania will receive new and refurbished houses and housing related infrastructure over the next two years, as part of the $5.5 billion National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing.

This work will help to tackle the significant levels of housing need in remote Indigenous communities.

Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and Tasmania will deliver 629 houses and 1177 refurbishments from July 2012 to June 2014:

• Queensland: 325 new houses and 619 refurbishments in more than 14 remote Indigenous Shire Council regions in Central and Northern Queensland, the Northern Peninsula, Torres Strait Islands and the Gulf.
• Western Australia: 228 new houses and 493 refurbishments in about 42 remote Indigenous communities across the Kimberley, Pilbara, Goldfields, Ngaanyatjarra Lands and the Midwest.
• South Australia: 72 new houses and 60 refurbishments in 11 remote Indigenous communities, including a significant investment in the communities of Indulkana, Mimili, Kaltjiti, Pukatja, Amata, Kalka, Pipalyatjara in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands.
• Tasmania: 4 new houses and 5 refurbishments on Flinders and Cape Barren Islands over the next two years.

More than 1000 houses have been built and almost 3,700 refurbishments delivered since the start of the National Partnership in January 2009.

The National Partnership was renegotiated in late 2009 to provide greater incentives for performance, resulting in a renewed sense of urgency with all states and the Northern Territory either meeting or exceeding their housing targets to date.

Under the revised arrangement up to 25 per cent of a jurisdiction’s capital works funding allocation can be reallocated if agreed targets are not met.

The 2012-14 housing program for the Northern Territory and New South Wales remains on track to be finalised by mid-year.

The National Partnership between the Australian Government and the states and Northern Territory is a 10-year strategy to build up to 4,200 new houses and refurbish about 4,800 houses.

Getting housing right is critical to tackling Indigenous disadvantage. A decent house is essential for protecting children, improving health, education and employment and rebuilding positive community norms.