Draft Review of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap says governments at risk of breaking their commitments to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
The Productivity Commission today released a draft of its first review of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap (National Agreement). The Productivity Commission has been commissioned by Australian governments and the Coalition of Peaks to undertake three yearly reviews of the implementation of the National Agreement with a focus on analysing progress of government commitments against the four Priority Reforms.
The four Priority Reforms are a commitment from governments to:
Share decisions with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander representatives on matters that have a significant impact on us
Support and strengthen our community-controlled organisations to deliver expanded services and supports for our people
Ensure mainstream organisations and institutions funded by governments are safer for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, more responsive to our needs and contribute much more to Closing the Gap
Share data at the regional level to help inform decision making on community priorities.
The Productivity Commission notes that although the Priority Reforms are described as a new approach in the way governments work, they are not new ideas – most of what has been committed to reflects what many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have been saying for a long time is needed if we are to close the gap.
“It is clear from the Commission’s engagement across the country that there is strong support for the Agreement’s Priority Reforms. They are seen as prerequisites for governments adopting a fundamentally new way of developing and implementing policies and programs that affect the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people,” the draft review also notes.
Despite this, the draft review concludes that implementation of the Priority Reforms has, “for the most part, been weak and reflects a business-as-usual approach to implementing policies and programs that affect the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people”.
The draft review goes on to say that “current implementation [by governments] raises questions about whether governments have fully grasped the scale of change required to their systems, operations and ways of working to deliver the unprecedented shift they [governments] have committed to”.
The draft review states that without accelerated and improved implementation of the Priority Reforms, there is a risk that the commitments from government in the National Agreement become “another broken promise to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people”.
“The Coalition of Peaks have been saying for a long time now that governments need to do much more to implement their commitments to the Priority Reforms, that progress has been patchy and not as intended. I hope this review is a wakeup call to governments to get on with the job they have all agreed to do”, Ms Patricia Turner AM, Lead Convenor of the Coalition of Peaks said.
“We know the full implementation of the Priority Reforms is an ambitious, far-reaching agenda for governments, but that is what is needed if we are to make the changes to the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people so desperately needed.
The Coalition of Peaks and governments are charting historic waters and we know it is not easy. The National Agreement and its Priority Reforms provides the right map to bring about the changes we all want to see; we now need all governments, and all departments within each government, to follow the map and implement the Priority Reforms in full.”
“We know that when governments have implemented the Priority Reforms, we have seen real change. We have seen our organisations and communities have agency where they have shared in the decisions that impact on them, and we have seen policy changes as a result. We have seen our community-controlled organisations being better supported to provide the supports needed by our communities and we have seen better uptake in services as a result. We can see what is possible when the Priority Reforms are implemented in full,” Ms Turner said.
The Productivity Commission draft review notes that stronger accountability mechanisms should be considered to ensure governments implement their commitments in full and suggests that the Voice could help in holding governments to account.
Ms Turner said, “The work to implement the National Agreement would be strengthened by a constitutionally enshrined Voice, enabling greater independent oversight of governments and a voice to the Commonwealth Parliament on progress. However, governments need to get on with implementing the National Agreement in full now.
The Voice won’t change what governments are required to do under the National Agreement and the commitments they have made on the Priority Reforms. Neither will the Voice change the necessary role of community-controlled peak bodies and organisations to deliver services and supports for our peoples and to advocate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the areas we have expertise.”
“The Coalition of Peaks will be working with governments over the next seven years to make sure we do all that we can for our peoples and to ensure the full implementation of the National Agreement,” Ms Turner added.
Download the draft review from the Productivity Commission at www.pc.gov.au