As ATSIC commissioner with portfolio responsibility for social justice I have taken a close interest in the government’s current welfare reform agenda. I have visited many of our communities around the country, and have seen the reliance of many of our peoples on the social welfare system. The structure of Australian welfare is an issue of critical significance for our peoples. The demographics of our population, compared to that of the general Australian population—including the higher proportion of people living in remote locations, the greater proportion of single parent families, and the greater prevalence of illness—force reliance on Australia’s social security safety net.

In recognition of the potentially negative impact of welfare reforms on our peoples, ATSIC, in consultation with welfare experts from academic and public sector institutions, ATSIC Commissioners, and Regional Councillors, drafted a response to the Reference Group on Welfare Reform’s recent report (McClure 2000). ATSIC proposed seven policy principles as a starting point for further action on welfare reform. In summary these principles emphasised the necessity for consultation and negotiation, and stressed that any welfare reform should be focused on addressing the underlying causes of Indigenous disadvantage, and that Indigenous welfare recipients should not suffer financial loss due to welfare reform.