Minister Macklin's response to children report card reeks of “no child will live in poverty” promise

21-October-2008

Australian children, particularly indigenous children, will be left behind if the Rudd Government continues its approach of setting arbitrary targets and creating “reviews and inquiries”, Shadow Minister for Early Childhood Education, Childcare, Women & Youth Sophie Mirabella said today.

“I welcome the Report Card launched today by The Australian Research Alliance for Children & Youth (ARACY), which highlighted the unacceptable gap between children living in the general Australian population and those in indigenous communities,” Mrs Mirabella said.

“Indigenous Australians have an infant mortality rate more than double that of the general population, they have the highest teenage pregnancy rate in the OECD and more than 19% of indigenous children have fewer than 11 books in their home, compared with 7% in the general community.”

“Yet Minister Jenny Macklin’s response was to talk about targets, timelines, COAG Agreements, and research. Setting arbitrary targets and timelines does not bring about change – it gives the illusion of doing something,” Mrs Mirabella said.

“What our children, particularly our indigenous children, need is action and real outcomes – otherwise nothing will improve. The Minister’s rhetoric today was akin to Bob Hawke’s empty promise that “by 1990 no child will live in poverty”. Our children deserve much better than that.”

Mrs Mirabella said she was surprised that the ARACY Report omitted any data on child abuse and neglect in indigenous communities, but included a measurement for non-indigenous Australians.

“Child abuse is a significant factor affecting both health and well being – and it prevents children from being the best they can be. I am surprised this was not included when there is a great deal of empirical data about the extent of this problem in the “Little Children Are Sacred” Report,” Mrs Mirabella said.

“The Howard Government responded to that Report with intervention measures that included practical and direct programs of assistance aimed at helping these women and children. One of the big disappointments and legacies of the Rudd Government is that they have watered down those measures.”

“Part of the problem is that the issue of child abuse in indigenous communities had been swept under the carpet for too long. The ARACY Report ranks our biodiversity against Greece based on the percentage of threatened bird species, but fails to even mention abuse and neglect in indigenous communities. I’m not sure that is helpful in a practical sense for our most disadvantaged children.”

“The welfare of our children should be the paramount concern for Governments at all levels. As any parent will tell you – actions speak louder than words. The Minister has an obligation to follow up on her rhetoric with positive programs that make a real difference.”