An email released today shows that a heavily pregnant woman awaiting placement in public
housing was left to live in overcrowded conditions with frequent visits from a sexual predator.
A child protection worker has resorted to pleading with Aboriginal advocacy groups to find
housing for their client as the Department of Communities had been unable to find a placement.
“This latest revelation is just another appalling example of the Labor Government’s lack of care
for suffering from a lack of safe housing,” said Shadow Minister for Housing, Steve Martin.
Mr Martin has slammed the Labor Government’s mismanagement of the dysfunctional
Department of Communities saying, “It is this Government’s great shame that people in a state
as wealthy as Western Australia are left to live in conditions like this.”
A Department spokesperson has said that Communities “works to support families who are at
imminent risk of their children coming into the CEO’s care.”
“This is simply not good enough,” said Mr Martin.
“Why is the Government waiting until the last minute to intervene in cases where the safety of
children is in question?
“Children and families are languishing on the waitlist while the Government stands idly by. The
Department of Communities is in crisis.
“The Government must take immediate action to ensure the safety of vulnerable people on the
public housing waitlist,” Mr Martin said.
Housing advocates have also spoken out against the mismanagement of the Department
of Communities and have called for reform within the Department to cope with the
caseload appropriately.
An October 2021 report into the State Government’s rollout of COVID-19 stimulus
initiatives found that just 2% of the Department of Communities’ social housing initiatives
budget was spent.
“It has taken the Labor Government far too long to respond to the housing sector’s cries
for support,” Mr Martin said.
“After five years of inaction, Labor have yet to make a real difference in the lives of the
most vulnerable people in our community.
“A large portion of Western Australians still cannot find a