Senator urges help for families in limbo as forced house auctions loom

Victorian senator Lidia Thorpe has joined a fight to stop Indigenous homes in a Queensland mining town from being auctioned, which threatens affected families becoming homeless.

Earlier this year, Mount Isa City Council moved to auction 25 properties owned by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporation for Welfare Services (ATSICFWS) after the organisation accrued almost $1 million in unpaid rates.

Originally slated for July, the auctions have been rescheduled for September.

If they proceed, residents living in the 15 occupied properties will have to compete for a spot in Mount Isa's tight rental market or join a social housing waiting list, which has an average wait time of two years.

Senator Thorpe said she decided to take up the fight after repeated calls to her office.

"A very strong, staunch advocate for her community and her people rang my office and asked me to assist and see what I could do," Senator Thorpe said.

"There are no other options for housing in Mount Isa, and the government response so far is sending some bureaucrats down to talk to people and provide information packs.

"It's not a lot of money for the Queensland and federal governments … Why can't those two come together, raise a million dollars and get on with it?"

ATSICFWS and its directors were contacted for comment but did not respond by deadline.

Neither the state nor the federal government has committed to covering the debt, with each maintaining that the matter falls outside its responsibilities.

A spokesperson for Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said the minister had met with Queensland Housing Minister Sam O'Connor, while her office had met with Mount Isa City Council Mayor Peta MacCrae, and that discussions were continuing.

"The situation in Mount Isa is very concerning," the spokesperson said.

"The National Indigenous Australians Agency is working closely with tenants to provide information about available support options, while also working closely with the Queensland government."

A Queensland Department of Housing and Public Works spokesperson said all affected tenants who wanted to had been placed on the social housing waitlist.

"The Queensland government's priority continues to be supporting impacted tenants and the Mount Isa HSC is working with individuals and families who reach out for housing support," the spokesperson said.

Cr MacCrae rejected suggestions the auctions had been postponed, saying the September date reflected the lack of availability of an auctioneer.

"We're not in the business of wanting people out of their houses," Cr MacCrae said.

"Legally, we have two options — either auction the property, or we can write off the rates, and we have absolutely no intention of writing off the rates.

"If someone else was to come up with a solution, we would be very happy."

She also called for stronger oversight of Indigenous corporations to avoid problems reaching crisis point.

A spokesperson for the Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations (ORIC) acknowledged community concern but rejected criticisms that the regulator had failed to act.

"It is understandable that the current circumstances have caused angst and confusion within the community, particularly regarding ORIC's role and responsibilities," an ORIC spokesperson said.

"ATSICFWS is not required to report to ORIC on the delivery of its housing services, tenancy-management practices, or housing-asset-management activities.

"A regulator intervening whenever management is performing poorly would effectively transfer responsibility from directors to regulators, which is not how Australia's corporate governance framework is designed to operate."

For tenants dotted across Mount Isa, which government ultimately takes responsibility is a technicality.

Senator Thorpe said unless something was done before September, families would lose their homes.

"We need to be talking about this as a nation," she said.

"We have a homelessness crisis. We have a housing crisis. And the more we sell off to private developers or put in the private market, where do people go?"

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