Senator Malarndirri McCarthy Appointed New Minister for Indigenous Australians

Senator Malarndirri McCarthy Appointed New Minister for Indigenous Australians

Senator Malarndirri McCarthy has been announced as the new Minister for Indigenous Australians, taking over from the retiring Linda Burney. A proud Saltwater woman from the Yanyuwa Garrawa people, McCarthy was previously the Assistant Minister for Indigenous Australians and the Assistant Minister for Indigenous Health. Senator Malarndirri McCarthy Appointed New Minister for Indigenous Australians

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, in announcing the appointment, highlighted McCarthy’s suitability for the role amidst widespread speculation. “Malarndirri McCarthy was the obvious person to move into that portfolio, building on the legacy of Linda Burney, while bringing her own lived experience and advocacy to the Cabinet table,” the Prime Minister said.

McCarthy’s appointment marks a historic moment as she becomes the first Indigenous MP from the Northern Territory to be appointed to Cabinet. This reflects the Territory’s significant population percentage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Notably, the Shadow Minister for Indigenous Australians, CLP Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, is also from the NT.

Victorian Senator Ged Kearney has been announced as the new Assistant Minister for Indigenous Health. However, there has been no announcement for a new Assistant Minister for Indigenous Australians, leaving McCarthy as the sole First Nations MP in the Cabinet.

McCarthy has served in the Senate since 2016, elected during the same election as Linda Burney, and replaced the retiring Nova Peris. Before her time in the Senate, she was a member of the NT parliament and a journalist.

Elected to the NT Legislative Assembly for the seat of Arnhem in 2005, McCarthy won re-election in 2008, serving in the Paul Henderson ministry under several portfolios. After losing her seat in 2012 during a Labor landslide defeat, she took up roles with NITV and SBS News, having previously worked for the ABC, and co-established Borroloola’s first community radio station in 1998.

Throughout her career, McCarthy has served on various parliamentary committees and has recently been a prominent figure in announcements concerning Indigenous health, advocating for closing the gap and Indigenous-led health responses.

In a speech last week, McCarthy praised her predecessor, Linda Burney, calling her a “quite extraordinary” colleague. “She has fought the fight with grace and dignity. As the first Indigenous woman to enter NSW parliament and then Federal parliament. She has blazed such a trail. And we all share the responsibility to keep blazing it,” McCarthy said.

The Prime Minister has recommended that the swearing-in of the new ministers take place at 9 am on Monday.

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Source: https://nit.com.au/28-07-2024/12753/malarndirri-mccarthy-announced-as-new-minister-for-indigenous-australians

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