Indigenous Affairs Minister Meeting Communique
Release Date:
Statement
The Commonwealth, State and Territory Ministers responsible for Indigenous Affairs met via videoconference on Monday 16 June to consider ways of working together to embed real and meaningful change for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and communities.
The Ministers welcomed the West Australian Minister, the Hon Donald Punch, to his first Indigenous Affairs Ministers Meeting. The Victorian Minister was represented by the Parliamentary Secretary for First Peoples.
Ministers noted the upcoming meeting of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap to be held in Darwin on Friday 20 June 2025. Ministers look forward to receiving a briefing from the Coalition of Peaks about the Closing the Gap Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led Independent Review at the Joint Council meeting.
In her opening address, the Federal Minister for Indigenous Australians Malarndirri McCarthy spoke about the recent deaths in custody in the Northern Territory and the need for greater action by all jurisdictions to reduce deaths in custody.
Ministers discussed Target 11 of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap – Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people are not over overrepresented in the criminal justice system – and their efforts to coordinate actions across portfolios within their jurisdictions to improve youth justice outcomes.
Ministers discussed the ongoing work to address food security in remote First Nations communities, with Minister McCarthy providing an update on the National Food Security Strategy and the subsidy scheme for 30 essential items, which comes into effect on 1 July 2025.
Ministers discussed progress made by jurisdictions in providing redress to Stolen Generations survivors and noted the launch of the Western Australian Stolen Generations Redress Scheme. Redress for Stolen Generations survivors was a key recommendation from the landmark Bringing them Home report.
State and Territory Ministers also provided an update on treaty and truth telling processes in their jurisdictions.
Ministers agreed to report back outcomes of this meeting to the upcoming meeting of the Joint Council on Closing the Gap.