While the Central Land Council has welcomed the Commonwealth’s intention to hold the Northern Territory Government more accountable over SIHIP (Strategic Indigenous Housing and Infrastructure Program), it’s surprised the Federal Government is opposing options to enshrine accountability for housing in leases it wants to sign over Aboriginal communities.

CLC director David Ross said the Federal Minister for Indigenous Affairs Jenny Macklin wants Aboriginal land owners to agree to giving a 40-year lease for no rent, but she’s not willing to hold Territory Housing to account for the quality of housing services that are provided on those leases or whether they are providing those services in an efficient and equitable way over that period.

“The Australian Government continues to resist attempts by the CLC, on behalf of the communities and traditional owners, to ensure that long-term housing leases include accountability mechanisms that don’t rely on government goodwill,” Mr Ross said.

In particular, the CLC wants the Australian Government to ensure the lease includes regular and public performance reviews of housing providers over the term of the lease.

“Checks should also be written into any leases to ensure that Commonwealth funding for Indigenous housing isn’t being syphoned off to provide a revenue stream for cash-strapped shires or any other department,” Mr Ross said. “That funding is currently being provided to the Territory Government, which takes out a cut, before forwarding it to the shires, which take out a further cut.

“This is what Aboriginal people have been experiencing for 31 years under self-government. This was highlighted in John Taylor’s report on Wadeye for the ANU’s Centre for Aboriginal Economic Policy that found that only eight cents in the dollar that are intended to be are spent on education. Where’s the accountability in that process?

“The experience on the ground is that as soon as Aboriginal housing is out of the limelight it is almost impossible to convince either the Commonwealth or NT governments to ensure that housing money is spent on good quality, value-for-money housing services,” Mr Ross said.