Community groups have been left high and dry by the federal government scrapping funding for already-announced projects, according to the multicultural sector’s peak body.
Hundreds of thousands of dollars allocated to the inner-west under the Building Multicultural Communities Program has been stripped by the incoming government in a bid to cut costs.
Funding announced last August and since withdrawn includes $137,000 for the Australia Light Foundation in Tottenham to build a multipurpose area for emerging communities; $55,000 for the Brotherhood of St Laurence in Footscray to refurbish a hall and build a garden and children’s play area; and $41,000 for Footscray’s Vietnamese Community in Australia (Victorian chapter) to upgrade its facilities.
Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria director Ross Barnett said the cuts would have an unfair impact on groups aiming to nurture Australia’s diversity. He said groups would have invested significant volunteer time and energy already towards the projects. “What we want to see is a return to a bipartisan approach to multiculturalism and cultural diversity at the federal level.”
A spokeswoman for Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews said the government was reviewing spending “to ensure it is aligned with priorities. Following the review, and in light of the current state of the federal budget, the government decided to reduce the scope of the Building Multicultural Communities Program.”
Visiting the Brotherhood of St Laurence in Footscray on Monday, shadow citizenship and multiculturalism minister Michelle Rowland called the program funding cuts by the government “a disgrace”.
“Tony Abbott and Kevin Andrews have cruelly cut grants to organisations in the Gellibrand community, many of which work with those less fortunate, in order to maintain cohesive and socially inclusive neighbourhoods,” she said.
“The best way governments can help build inclusive, harmonious communities is from the bottom up, by supporting grassroots programs like this.”
