Arabic version: تقرير للإقليم الشمالي يحذّر من تفاقم ضغوط تكلفة المعيشة

According to ABC News, a new NT Council of Social Service report finds that rising costs of housing, utilities, transport and food have made it harder for Northern Territory residents to meet basic needs than a decade ago. The study compares changes in living costs from 2016 to 2026.

Food insecurity was experienced by 46 per cent of NT households in 2025, compared with a national average of 33 per cent, the report says, citing Foodbank Australia estimates. In remote areas, a healthy food basket cost 40 per cent more in remote stores than in a supermarket in 2023.

The report found power costs had risen 18 per cent over the decade. It recorded 103,648 involuntary self-disconnections in major NT centres last year, while prepaid electricity customers faced an average of 2,284 more disconnections each month than in 2019 to 2020. Prepaid electricity prices are higher than standard postpaid billing because they account for customers not paying a fixed daily charge.

Housing and transport pressures have also increased. Rents have risen 55 per cent in the past decade, while social housing stock grew by 4 per cent between 2017 and 2025 and applications rose 37 per cent. An 80-litre tank of diesel now costs $28 more in Darwin and $88 more in Alice Springs.

NTCOSS recommends increasing income support payments, including JobSeeker, Youth Allowance, the Parenting Payment and the Remote Area Allowance. It also calls for the federal government’s low-cost essentials subsidy scheme in remote stores to cover more fresh and frozen meat, fruit, vegetables and nutrient-dense baby food. Report co-author Jonathan Pilbrow said people paying car registration monthly rather than upfront could pay $164 more because of administration fees.