On 21 May 2020, the Minister for Indigenous Australians the Hon Ken Wyatt AM MP, wrote to the chair of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Indigenous Affairs, requesting an inquiry and report into food pricing and food security in remote Indigenous communities.

The Government has now tabled its response to the report from this Inquiry which made 16 recommendations.

These recommendations included:

• a live price monitoring tool
• a national licensing scheme for remote community stores
• a focus on local distribution and food production and grants to support community stores
• consideration of a national strategy for food security and nutrition for remote First Nations communities
• other measures to address store governance and management.

The Government has supported or provided in-principle support for 10 of the 16 recommendations.

The NIAA lead the development of this Government response including consultations across governments, with many of the recommendations spanning across Commonwealth portfolio and jurisdictional responsibilities. The Indigenous Affairs Taskforce of the National Federation Reform Council has agreed to develop a national strategy for priority actions on food security, to further improve access and affordability of fresh, healthy food for remote communities. This will include consideration of a new national stores licencing regime.

The NIAA will continue to work closely with a wide range of stakeholders, including maintaining the Food Security Working Group established during the pandemic, to ensure all Indigenous Australians, regardless of physical location, have access to essential goods at a reasonable price.

To read the Government’s response, visit the Resource Centre.

The report is also available on the Australian Parliament’s website.