Mr WYATT (Hasluck—Minister for Indigenous Australians) (12:22): I begin by acknowledging the Ngunnawal people on whose land we gather today and I pay my respects to their elders past, present and emerging. I also acknowledge my Indigenous parliamentary colleagues: the honourable member for Barton, Linda Burney; Senator Patrick Dodson; Senator Malarndirri McCarthy; Senator Thorpe; Senator Lambie; and Senator Cox. We are few, but our numbers are growing, and the work we do here matters enormously. And I acknowledge the members and families of the stolen generations across this nation, no matter where they are. Yesterday marked the 14th anniversary of the formal apology to the stolen generation offered by the then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd on behalf of the Australian government. For me, as a child of a mother of the stolen generation, to hear our government acknowledge the tremendous wrongs that were committed against our people was profound. The apology stopped the nation. It asked all Australians to imagine that feeling of loss, and it collectively affirmed that what happened should never happen again. Together we said sorry, and we are still sorry. The significance of being an Indigenous man delivering a ministerial statement in the national parliament to honour that apology 14 years later is not lost on me. My Indigenous colleagues and I are testament to the enduring strength and resilience of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, of 65,000 years of culture, of 65,000 years of survival. While the acknowledgement of wrongdoing can ease some suffering, it will never remove it. Today those who were taken and their descendants are rebuilding. They're having families of their own, preserving and continuing culture and protecting and nurturing country. They seek to repair the irreplaceable loss of love, community, cultural, language and identity that was brought about through the actions of the policies which created the stolen generations. I will always continue to tell my story and my mother's, the story of how she spent years in Roelands mission near Bunbury in Western Australia, how she and her nine brothers and sisters were taken from their parents and split between three different missions, hundreds of miles apart. It's a story I've heard from other survivors. Over the past two weeks, I've visited the Northern Territory, Tasmania and New South Wales, and I've been humbled to connect with survivors of the stolen generations. I sat with them and listened. Yesterday, on the anniversary of the apology, I shared breakfast up in Newcastle with survivors of the Kinchela Boys Home: No. 11, Lester Maher; No. 12, Roger Jarrett; No. 28, Richard Campbell; and No. 36, Michael Wells. They were known only by number in the boys home; their identity and culture was torn away. We yarned and we shared our truths—the truth about what happened at Kinchela. The trauma experienced is, for some, unspeakable. For others, telling their story continues to be an important part of their healing. This is truth-telling. It's personal, raw, within living memory. It's a truth that we should never forget. That's why truth-telling is so vital. The Territories Stolen Generations Redress Scheme, which will begin on 1 March, will be significant for Indigenous Australians removed from the Northern Territory, the Australian Capital Territory and Jervis Bay. As well as the financial payments, the support package includes wellbeing support to ensure it is delivered in a survivor focused, trauma informed and culturally sensitive way. This morning I announced that, through this scheme, survivors will have access to free legal advice and free financial counselling from independent support services. The scheme will be guided by an external advisory body, co-chaired by the Healing Foundation and the National Indigenous Australians Agency, and comprising stolen generations representatives and organisations and trauma specialists. I met the board this morning, and I know they will guide the implementation of this scheme with great dignity and respect for our people. Together with the schemes run by the state, it will be part of our national journey towards healing and reconciliation. The Territories Stolen Generations Redress Scheme is one way we ensure that the national apology delivered 14 years ago is not mere symbolism. Powerful words must be followed by practical action. The stolen generations lost their childhoods and their connections to family, country and culture. We cannot give back lost childhoods. Today, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are being empowered to help shape and make decisions that matter in their lives. It acknowledges that governments don't always know what's best and that our strength lies in our people—a strength that is the bedrock of the oldest continuous living culture on this planet. Throughout my time in this place as Minister for Indigenous Australians, I've been most proud of our efforts to empower Indigenous Australians. Be it through the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, the development of an Indigenous Voice or the National Roadmap for Indigenous Skills, Jobs and Wealth Creation, I have set out to change the way Indigenous Australians work with their governments not just here in Canberra but in every corner of our nation. We see this permeate through other states and territories. Last Friday I met with the New South Wales Premier, Dominic Perrottet. Like our Prime Minister, he has committed his government to taking meaningful steps—a balance of powerful, symbolic measures backed by practical action that makes a real difference to people's lives. From freeing the Aboriginal flag and flying it atop the Harbour Bridge; to building Ngurra, the new cultural precinct in Canberra; to removing barriers to economic development on Indigenous land and unlocking its potential; to creating jobs and Closing the Gap—Indigenous Australians are, and must be, equal partners sharing and driving decision-making about the plans that affect us. By doing so, we can realise the aspirations we hold for ourselves, for our children and for our communities—for their health, growth, education, employment, economic independence and flourishing cultural wellbeing. For the stolen generations, there is still more to be done. As I've travelled the country over the past two weeks, I've heard similar stories of stolen generation survivors still disconnected from their culture, from their land and from the people. Through no fault of their own, these people and, subsequently, their descendants were removed—culture interrupted and families disrupted. When they return to country and return to their culture, often without any proof of their removal, they've been subjected to questions from our own mob about who they are, what their heritage is and what place they have in the local community. We need to accept that that sense of place for some people may be where they were born, where they were taken from or where they were taken to, or where they have chosen to put their roots in the ground since. Everyone has a place. Everyone has a home. It may be of our choosing; it may not be. The task for us, no matter their place, is to bring them home and welcome them home. Yesterday, Lester, or No. 11, shared with me his journey and his loss of identity and place and how it affected him, his children and his grandchildren. He told me about how, when he reconnected with his family after years away, he was told that he 'spoke funny'. He told me how he found it hard to rebuild his family structure. He's still on that journey; his family are still on that journey. We need to do more to help Lester and survivors like him. Our organisations need to support them, not shun them. Our people need to support them. We need to include, more than exclude, and to celebrate, not denigrate nor question. Rather than push them down, we need to embrace them, give them love and welcome them home. Turning to parliament, there is great power in this place—this institution. Over the years, decades and generations to come, it must be used for good. Our people must be empowered to engage with the parliament and with government and to follow in the footsteps of Neville Bonner, as I and my Indigenous colleagues have done. In federal parliament, state and territory parliaments and local government, we must work together and in partnership. This parliament said sorry 14 years ago. Since that day, we have strived to meet those words with actions. We will not always get it right, but the more we listen, the more we engage and the more we appreciate the better our actions and outcomes will be. Many more of our people will leave their songlines here. Future generations will be in this place, and they will bring their voice to the cabinet. Their experiences, knowledge and understanding will continue to contribute and guide this great nation and its people. When we walk together, we have limitless potential. When we are one, we are strong. Again, I acknowledge all those who are still with us from the stolen generations, their families and all Indigenous Australians who aspire to a better future and better opportunities. Your survival makes us remember. Your strength makes us better.