He seemed to start out wanting to defend his Government, but by the end of the tour he could not deny the appalling circumstances in which children were living.

To his credit, he parachuted one family out. He committed $2 million to upgrading this much-maligned precinct of Wollongong. He then, in turn, invited us to see what it would be like in six months.

We did return. Numerous times, in fact. And what we saw continues to disturb us - young children still living amid drug deals, prostitution and brawling.

As far as we can ascertain, the department has relocated more than 30 people since our initial reports, including eight children.

But other young families remain in conditions that even one former jailbird describes as worse than prison. Indeed, a single father of three has essentially barricaded his children in to keep the seedy world at bay.

We understand the difficulty, planning and expense involved in overhauling a large public housing estate. It will take many years for it to be raised to an adequate condition. But it is unsatisfactory that any child should live in such an environment.

Again we say, Mr Borger, throw these families a lifeline and relocate them to new housing.