TRANSCRIPT
The government has allocated a further $178 million over five years for what it calls social cohesion measures in its 2025 federal budget.
There's further support for security at both Jewish and Muslim places of worship, and African and Chinese communities will also receive some funding to restore museums and other programs.
Ten million dollars is to be provided for independent multicultural media outlets, and two million dollars for the Holocaust Institute of Western Australia.
The Federation of Ethnic Communities' Councils of Australia, or FECCA, welcomes the new funding.
FECCA's Chair, Peter Doukas, says it's a timely reminder of how diverse our society is, and the need to work with that.
"Well, social cohesion and multiculturalism is central to our way of life in Australia. More than half the people in this country have at least one parent born overseas. And we think that it is becoming a more central part of governing Australia. So, much more investment in multiculturalism and social cohesion is what we would expect, more broadly. But we do welcome this announcement as part of this budget."
Mr Doukas says with the federal election so close, FECCA expects more policy announcements in this broad area soon.
The government is also allocating $3.5 million to embed the Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Program which aims to support refugees arriving in Australia.
With the election looming, FECCA does see some dark clouds on the horizon, though.
Mr Doukas says there's more room for further investment when it comes to things like reforming the overseas skills and qualifications recognition system.
And he says he's worried about the politicisation of some aspects of immigration, particularly with the current state of the housing market.
"Well, I am concerned. And we have already made representations to both sides about it. We are hopeful that it doesn't occur. But we will continue to remind the major political players that Australia is the most successful multicultural society in the world. And we all have the stewardship of that in our hands as part of this campaign, and more broadly. So, I am hoping for the best."
The budget contains more than half a billion dollars in funding for better outcomes for First Nations people under the National Closing The Gap agreement.
There's boosted funding for First Nations businesses, easing cost of living pressure in remote communities, and improving health outcomes.
SNAICC is the biggest national non-governmental body advocating for Indigenous children.
Chief Executive Catherine Liddle says the funding for early education and care in this budget is especially promising.
"If you are drilling the uglier side of things, you'll see that children who have had access to early education and care, and families who have had access to those services, are far less likely to come into contact with tertiary interventions, which are things like child protection and youth justice systems. And, again, that means, if we are investing at the right time, we are also seeing an improvement in community safety."
But Ms Liddle says the government has missed an opportunity by not committing more funding for the Safe and Supported program, designed to help children and families stay together.
"What we know is that one of the most horrific statistics in the Closing The Gap targets is that statistic that relates to the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care. That target is increasing at a rate that can only be called a national disgrace. And what we haven't seen is any commitment into the investment for that plan. Because that is the plan that works alongside communities to develop the programs and the responses that communities need to keep their families strong, to keep their children safe, and to ensure that no one is removed from their families."
It's also a crucial budget for Australians with a disability.
Catherine McAlpine, from Inclusion Australia, says the best part of this budget is the reform of the Information, Linkages, and Capacity-Building program, which funds projects aimed at building connection between Australians with disability and their communities.
She also welcomes more funding for apprentices with disabilities.
She says the main downside of this budget comes in the decreased funding for the National Disability Insurance Scheme, or the NDIS, as a result of expected slowdown in its growth.
Ms McAlpine says politicians need to be wary of the downstream effects of reduced NDIS funding.
"I don't think it's that easy for politicians to cut the NDIS when they know how many people rely on it, and the marginalisation of the people who rely on it. I do think that there's a rush to bank the savings without making sure that the supports that people need in the community are in place. So, it feels like there is a really fast move towards: oh yes, we're down to the eight per cent growth... without saying: have people got the right supports in place? If there are people who are not getting on the scheme, are they able to get supports into the community as promised by national cabinet? Or, are we doing this whole process too fast?"
One area set to benefit many disabled Australians is the nearly one billion dollars in additional money allocated to stop family violence.
Ms McAlpine welcomes the funding, but says special provision should be made so that disabled Australians are able to access these services.
"One of the things that we want to see in all of those what you might call mainstream programs to reduce violence is that making sure people with disability, including women and girls and non-binary people with disability, are a focus of those programs. So, what we see, for example, is you can get more money into programs, but the supports that they fund are not accessible for people with disability. Or that they forget that people have children with disability who might be looking for shelter. Or they don't understand the complexities of the situation for people who might live in a group home. It's my understanding that some focus on people with a disability is emerging, and we would like to see that continue."
