Committee holds first hearing on corporate engagement with Indigenous peoples

Best practice in fostering better engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander consumers will be the subject of the first public hearing of a new inquiry by the House Indigenous Affairs Committee.

At a public hearing today, the Committee will be hearing from the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA), the Indigenous Consumer Assistance Network (ICAN), and Financial Counselling Australia (FCA).

Committee Chair Julian Leeser MP said, ‘these are the organisations who sounded the alarm on some of the major corporate misdeeds in banking, financial services and large telco organisations in recent years, who ripped off Indigenous consumers and failed to respect Indigenous culture and heritage.

‘The Committee will hear examples of some of the most outrageous corporate behaviour with respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.’

‘The ICAN and FCA both advocate for and provide assistance to Indigenous clients experiencing financial hardships and have been integral in identifying systemic mistreatment of Indigenous people by some companies.

‘The Committee looks forward to important discussions on the gaps in the Australian corporate sector’s understanding of the needs of Indigenous peoples’, Mr Leeser said.

Public hearing details

Date: Thursday, 18 November 2021 (AEDT)

2.40pm National Indigenous Australians Agency

3.20pm Indigenous Consumer Assistance Network

4.00pm Financial Counselling Australia

A live audio stream of the hearing will be accessible at https://www.aph.gov.au/Watch_Read_Listen.

For more information about this inquiry, including its terms of reference, details of upcoming public hearings, and instructions on making a submission, please visit the Inquiry webpage. You may also track the Committee to receive email updates on the inquiry by clicking the blue ‘Track Committee’ button.