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TSRA Chairperson congratulates first Indigenous Minister of the Indigenous Australians Portfolio

First Indigenous Minister of the Indigenous Australians Portfolio

The TSRA Chairperson, Mr Napau Pedro Stephen AM, on behalf of the Torres Strait Regional Authority (TSRA) Board, sends his congratulations to the Hon. Ken Wyatt AM, MP the Federal Member for Hasluck,on his appointment as Australia’s first Indigenous Ministerof the Indigenous Australians Portfolio.

“The Board members and I look forward to working with Mr Wyatt and his team to build upon the strong and successful partnership that we enjoyed with the outgoing Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Senator the Hon Nigel Scullion,” Mr Stephen said.

Minister Wyatt’s predecessor, Minister Scullion was a dedicated champion for the people of the Torres Strait region with his support for developing our economy, particularly through the fishing industry.

“Minister Wyatt’s achievement as the first Indigenous Australian to hold this portfolio truly marks a profound and historic milestone in the journey of Indigenous Australia, of which we are all rightly proud.

“We welcome the opportunity to meet with the Minister at his earliest convenience to provide a comprehensive briefing on the priority issues for our region and to continue our successful partnership, particularly in economic development and regional governance reform.

“We also look forward to the Minister’s support to progress Native Title issues in our region as well as concluding the appointment process for a substantive Chief Executive Officer for the Authority.

“Congratulations to Mr Wyatt on his appointment as our new Minister and we wish him every success for your next term of government.

“I also extend the invitation for Minister Wyatt to visit the Torres Strait region, as I would be honoured to host the visit and provide him with the opportunity share the successes of our ongoing partnership and also to see firsthand the issues and challenges facing our region.”