NT rejects $6.5m to save Darwin emergency housing for First Nations people
The Northern Territory government declined federal funding to keep YiSSA emergency housing open. This forces 120 residents out on Sunday.
The Yilli short-stay accommodation complex in Darwin closes this Sunday. The NT government rejected a $6.5 million federal offer to buy the facility.
YiSSA has housed almost 400 First Nations people, including those seeking medical treatment and women escaping domestic violence. Residents will be relocated 100 kilometres away to Batchelor, a small town with limited health services.
The federal minister for Indigenous Australians, Malarndirri McCarthy, called it deeply sad. He said the federal offer remains on the table.
NT Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro previously said the funding wastes taxpayers' money.
- $6.5 million
- Federal offer
- 120
- Residents displaced
- 100 kilometres
- Relocation distance
- almost 400
- Peak occupancy
Why it mattersThe closure displaces First Nations residents already relying on emergency housing. Homelessness in Darwin is widespread.
Australia120 First Nations people in Darwin lose emergency housing; roughly 1,000 sleep rough in Darwin parks on any given night, over 90 per cent Indigenous. Closure deepens Australia's chronic housing shortage for vulnerable groups.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 1 h ago
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