Northern Territory Emergency Response (NTER)
Monitoring Report
Background
The NTER was announced by the former Australian Government in June 2007 in response to reports of abuse and neglect of children outlined in the Little Children are Sacred report. The report made it clear that child abuse in Indigenous communities throughout the Northern Territory (NT) was at crisis levels. The present Government takes the view that Indigenous children are entitled to the same level of protection and support as other children in our society.
The NTER has a wide range of measures designed to:
- protect children and make communities safe, and
- create a better future for Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory.
The Australian Commonwealth Government has publicly committed to continuing and strengthening the Northern Territory Emergency Response (NTER) to ensure the protection of women and children, reduce alcohol fuelled violence and promote personal responsibility and community norms in Indigenous communities. The legislated period of the NTER is five years. The Australian Government will continue comprehensive, compulsory income management as a key measure of the NTER because of its demonstrated benefits for women and children.
In October 2008, the Government released the report of the independent Review of the NTER which found that the situation in remote NT communities and town camps remained sufficiently acute to be described as a national emergency. For this reason, the current stabilisation phase of the NTER will continue for the next twelve months before transitioning to a long-term, development phase.
The Australian Government provided its interim response to the Review Board’s Report on 23 October 2008, accepting the Review Board's three overarching recommendations that:
- the Australian and Northern Territory Governments recognise as a matter of urgent national significance the continuing need to address the unacceptably high levels of disadvantage and social dislocation experienced by remote communities and town camps in the Northern Territory;
- Governments reset their relationship with Indigenous people based on genuine consultation, engagement and partnership; and
- Government actions respect Australian human rights obligations and conform with the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (RDA).
On 21 May 2009, the Australian and Northern Territory Governments released a joint response to the recommendations of the NTER Review Board, providing a more detailed summary of the actions agreed by governments on each of the seven NTER measures. The NTER will continue to be closely monitored by both governments and there will be a full evaluation in 2011-12.
Legislative amendments to bring existing NTER legislation within the scope of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 will be introduced in the Spring 2009 Parliamentary sittings. As part of the legislation drafting process, there will extensive consultation with Indigenous people to encourage their input into the legislation.
The broadest NTER measures are:
| Measure | Lead Commonwealth Portfolio |
|---|---|
| Improving child and family health | Health and Ageing |
| Enhancing education | Education, Employment and Workplace Relations |
| Supporting families | Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs Education, Employment and Workplace Relations |
| Promoting law and order | Attorney-General’s Department |
| Housing and land reform | Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs |
| Welfare reform and employment | Education, Employment and Workplace Relations Human Services Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs |
| Coordination | Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs |
The full suite of NTER measures have been implemented progressively in the prescribed areas specified in the Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007 (NTNER Act). These areas generally have more that 100 residents and are known as the NTER communities 2. Some of the critical and sensitive measures, such as the introduction of income management under the Welfare and Employment Reform measure, will also apply to smaller communities such as outstations and town camps in the prescribed areas. Prescribed areas include all Aboriginal land granted under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976.
The measures initiated under the NTER have continued through 2008‑09 and include: further welfare and employment reform, ongoing and strengthened health services, community engagement, early childhood, family support packages, income management, additional playgroups, youth alcohol diversion, and promoting law and order.
Data Sources
Relevant monitoring data and analysis on each measure and sub-measure is provided by the responsible Australian and Northern Territory Government (NTG) agencies.
Evaluation and Monitoring
The NTER Evaluation Strategy provides ongoing assessment to reflect the phases of the NTER and captures the whole of government effort. The NTER Evaluation Strategy has multiple elements to capture information relating to the short, medium and long term effects of the NTER. Each element provides an incremental evidence base to inform the ongoing implementation and maturation of the NTER. Elements of the strategy include monitoring reports and the NTER outcome evaluation in 2011. The NTER Evaluation Strategy is reviewed periodically to ensure it addresses emerging needs and issues.
Much of the data in this Monitoring Report necessarily focuses on output measures such as an increased police presence. The report also goes beyond this to look at incidences of reported crime. However these data are limited both because crime may be under-reported and because factors such as increasing the number of police can result in an increase in reported crime while the actual incidence of crime may have remained unchanged or have fallen.
The outcome data reported is limited as the NTER has only been in operation for less than two years - while policy interventions designed to improve the operation of communities can have a significant effect in this period, this is the exception rather than the rule. It will take a concerted multi-year effort to achieve significant lasting change. While it is generally difficult to report outcomes at this stage, some outcome data are available. Outcomes data include the number of ‘real’ jobs available in communities.
An important aspect of evaluation or assessment of the NTER is the systematic collection of community perceptions and experiences. This will form a key component of the NTER evaluation. Community members see the impacts of policy on a daily basis and it is therefore very important to seek their input. However, it is equally important that these views are collected rigorously.
This report summarises two research reports that have sought to systematically obtain community views. Both of these reports confirm that views are mixed - many of the NTER measures are seen as being positive while others elicit a much more mixed view.
- The term ‘community’ is commonly used to refer to the Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory that are located within the NTER areas in which the NTER measures apply.
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