2014-08-19
Magistrate Maley – NT Bar Association’s
Call for Inquiry into Appointment
Call for Inquiry into Appointment
Ms LAWRIE to CHIEF MINISTER
At the mid-point in your term this shambolic CLP government has been rated the worst government ever. With crippling costs of living, rising unemployment and cuts to crucial services, such as education and health, your priority has been taking care of your mates.
Your Attorney-General took a $5000 political donation from Peter Maley, and then brought a submission to Cabinet to appoint magistrate Maley. Against judicial conduct, Maley has continued political campaigning.
Will you now, in the interests of the integrity of our independent judicial system, heed the calls of the NT Bar Association and the Law Society NT, stand aside your Attorney-General and instigate an inquiry into this grave matter?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, question one into the gutter.
First, I pass on my thoughts and prayers to the family of the victim of last night’s crocodile attack. It is the third crocodile attack this year and the community sends condolences to the family and friends.
The Opposition Leader is very quick to throw mud about Peter Maley, but she has some serious questions to answer about her conduct and that of those who have been defending her over her dodgy Stella Maris deal.
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. The question went to an independent inquiry into the Attorney-General and magistrate Maley.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Fannie Bay, it is not a point of order. The Chief Minister has three minutes.
Mr GILES: She has some serious questions of her own to answer about the dodgy Stella Maris deal. The member for Karama, through some of her proxies in the legal fraternity, has been engaging in a political witch hunt, plain and simple.
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. It was a very direct question. Will you have an independent inquiry into these serious allegations?
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Nightcliff, please be seated. It is not a point of order. Opposition members, the Chief Minister has three minutes to answer the question and he is doing it in the time appropriate to him.
Mr GILES: The Opposition Leader is running an orchestrated campaign to destabilise a sitting magistrate, aided and abetted by Labor apparatchiks in the legal ranks. Let me spell it out for you, the lawyer acting for the members for Karama and Barkly in their defence over the Stella Maris case is Cathy Spurr. To quote her website:
- Cathy’s been an active member of the Northern Territory branch of the Australian Labor Party since she was 19 …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. The Bar Association and the Law Society are calling for the inquiry.
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order, sit down. Chief Minister, you have a reasonable amount of latitude in answering the question, however, I ask you to err on the side of caution in mentioning people in parliament who do not have any right of reply.
Mr GILES: I am reading from a public website, Madam Speaker.
To quote Cathy’s website:
- Cathy’s been an active member of the Northern Territory branch of the Australian Labor Party since she was 19 and has been elected its President on numerous occasions.
The barrister for Delia Lawrie and Gerry McCarthy, in this case, is Alistair Wyvill SC. Mr Wyvill is also the Deputy President of the Northern Territory Bar Association. Mr Wyvill acted for Mr McCarthy during the inquiry and has accused the commissioner of acting in a biased way. I understand that both lawyers are working for the Labor leader and her deputy, personally and pro bono. This has not been disclosed in either of the MLA’s conflict of interest registers, despite the work having substantial financial value. Both MLAs need to come clean about what free services they have been donated and by whom, but here is the crux of it all …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. The Bar Association and the Law Society are calling for an inquiry …
Madam SPEAKER: Opposition Leader, please be seated. Chief Minister, if you could get to the point of the question please.
Mr GILES: The Northern Territory Bar Association is the organisation publicly pushing for an inquiry into magistrate Peter Maley, and its deputy president is the Labor leader’s lawyer.
Let me join the dots for you so it is clear. First, we have the Deputy President of the Northern Territory Bar Association donating his services to two former Labor ministers; now his organisation is leading a political witch-hunt against a magistrate who was a former member of the Country Liberal Party. It stinks.
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Despite the defamation of two very upstanding Territorians …
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order, Opposition Leader. Chief Minister, get to the point of the question please.
Mr GILES: This stinks, like the original Stella Maris dodgy deal done by Labor. You are bringing the judiciary and the Bar Association into disrepute; you should be ashamed of yourselves and check your conflict of interests register, because you are dodgy in the work you are doing there too.
Government – CLP Plans
Mrs FINOCCHIARO to CHIEF MINISTER
The month of August signals the halfway point of the four-year term of our government. We came to government two years ago with a long list of things we wanted to do as a priority to help get the Territory back on track after Labor’s 11 years of mismanagement. Our vision was to build a future for northern Australia and put the Territory back on the road to recovery.
Ms Fyles: Cost of living, education …
Mrs FINOCCHIARO: Madam Speaker, I cannot get my question out because of the gibbering from the member for Nightcliff.
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 68: anticipation of subject.
Madam SPEAKER: No, that is not a point of order.
Mrs FINOCCHIARO: Can you report to parliament on how we are fixing Labor’s mess and mismanagement and providing certainty into the future?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Drysdale for her question. She knows …
Members interjecting.
Mr GILES: … unlike those shouting from the other side, that when we came to government we had a plan to fix Labor’s $5.5bn debt legacy which they left the Northern Territory and the Country Liberals when we came to government. We had a plan that kept Territorians safe by providing additional police numbers, giving police the tools and resources to deal with crime in the Northern Territory. We had a plan to make the Territory more affordable, releasing land and driving down the cost of living through rapid land release. Our most recent budget, which sees a commitment of $132m for the release of 6500 new blocks in the Northern Territory, will help drive down the cost of living.
We have a plan that builds a brand new, state-of-the-art public hospital to help alleviate waiting times and bed shortages in our health system. Those on the other side do not support the new regional hospital in the Holtze area.
We have a plan to invest hundreds of millions of dollars into roads in the Northern Territory, regional roads - $400m to connect the bush.
We have a plan to provide permanenency in the public service, taking people off temporary contracts and giving them permanent jobs, something Labor failed to do.
We have a greater focus on education for our students, putting in place the Wilson review, the focus on outcomes, not inputs, and driving forward our economic reforms through our education system.
We have a plan to expand our recreation infrastructure so we can bring first-class sport to all parts of the Northern Territory.
That is the difference, when we came to government we had a plan. When you look back on the two years of what has been achieved, with crime and debt going down and the economy going up, you see positive signs of a government doing the job.
That is what Territorians want. They do not want division, negativity and always looking into the gutter, like Labor. Eight members on the other side cannot be united;they are divided, so much so the member for Casuarina is walking out, like the former member for Wanguri walked out.
We are receiving our first question upon returning to parliament, and it is about Labor getting into the gutter. I call on the Leader of the Opposition to talk about what her conflict of interest is,which is not listed on her register, with representatives of the Bar Association and the pro bono work being undertaken over the dodgy Stella Maris deal which she orchestrated from her office.
Magistrate Maley – CLP Link
Mr GUNNER to CHIEF MINISTER
Since 4 June, the NT Bar Association has been calling on the Attorney-General to establish an independent inquiry into the conduct of magistrate Peter Maley and his very public, inappropriate links to the CLP. Last week the President of the NT Bar Association, John Lawrence, stated:
Mr Elferink’s the Attorney General, he’s the first law officer, he has responsibility for the maintenance and the integrity of our legal system. He has to forget now that he’s a CLP Cabinet Minister, his duties now lie pursuant to these same ethics to now look after the integrity of our legal system …
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thought the leader of opposition business would change the question after the last answer I provided, where I spoke about how Alistair Wyvill and Cathy Spurr, acting on behalf of the former deputy leader of government, now the Leader of the Opposition …
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. We listened to the Chief Minister rabbit on previously. Will he answer the question and hold an independent inquiry?
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order. The Chief Minister has three minutes to answer the question.
Mr GILES: In his question the member for Fannie Bay used the word ‘public’. Peter Maley has been quite public that he was a member of the CLP. We are not afraid to show it. We are proud of the fact we have a competent man as a member of the CLP, and he happens to be a magistrate. Describing Peter Maley, Russell Goldflam said he is:
- … able, astute, affable, efficient, sensitive and fair
Russell Goldflam is one of their own in the judiciary.
I will get back to the point. Let us join the dots. The Leader of the Opposition, when in government, undertook a dodgy deal in taking a Territory government asset and giving it to her union mates. She did not tell anyone, and gave it to her mates. We have held an inquiry in parliament under the Inquiries Act. It was undertaken by John Lawler, who we all know. He has provided a range of recommendations throughout the process of the inquiry …
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, please pause. In reference to Stella Maris, you may be in breach of the standing order referring to anticipation of debate, because I understand that will come up at some time during sittings.
Mr GILES: I am only making reference to the inquiry, not the details of it.
The Leader of the Opposition and her deputy were provided with pro bono legal advice by senior representatives of the Bar Association who are now calling for Peter Maley to be sacked.
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Why will you not hold a judicial inquiry into the actions of magistrate Peter Maley?
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order, Opposition Leader.
Mr ELFERINK: A point of order, Madam Speaker! That is now the eighth Standing Order 113 call from the members opposite, and not one of them has been ruled in accordance with standing orders. They are abusing Standing Order 113 simply to use it as a vehicle to make statements in this House. I urge you to restrain them from doing so.
Mr GUNNER: Speaking to the point of order, Madam Speaker. The points of order for relevance are referring to the Chief Minister not answering the question. We ask the Chief Minister to answer the question. We continue to call on the Chief Minister to answer the question.
Mr Elferink: He is answering the question in a more fulsome way …
Madam SPEAKER: Attorney-General, every member here has the right to call a point of order.
Mr GILES: There is a conflict of interest between the people who provided the pro bono legal advice to the Leader and Deputy Leader of the Opposition over the dodgy, dirty, stinky, smelly Stella Maris deal, who are now leading the Bar Association in calling the inquiry ‘wrong and inept’. It was a proper inquiry. They are also calling for Peter Maley to show cause and explain his actions.
There is a conflict of interest here. You did not have the pro bono work done by your Labor apparatchiks who are running the Bar Association on your register. You have defrauded the Northern Territory by not registering that conflict in …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. With 35 seconds left on the clock, will you go anywhere near answering why you will not hold a judicial inquiry into the actions of …
Madam SPEAKER: Opposition Leader, there is no point of order.
Mr GILES: There is no need for a judicial inquiry. Peter Maley was a member of the CLP; it is factual. He is no longer a member; there is no need for a judicial inquiry. There could be a need for a judicial inquiry into how you have misled this parliament by not registering your conflict of interest ...
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I ask him to withdraw ‘misleading’.
Madam SPEAKER: Yes, Chief Minister, please withdraw ‘misleading parliament’.
Mr GILES: I withdraw.
There could be a need for a judicial inquiry into how you have defrauded the Northern Territory by not registering your conflict of interest …
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, I ask you to withdraw ‘defraud’, too.
Mr GILES: I withdraw.
Northern Territory Economy – Update
Mr BARRETT to TREASURER
On a lighter note, can the Treasurer please provide us with an update on how the Northern Territory economy is travelling?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for the question. I know how important the economy is to the member for Blain. I am delighted to answer his question, because people on this side of the House are delighted about the way our economy is heading. There is a lot to be positive about; our economy is growing at more than twice the national rate. It is growing at 5.6%, which is well above the national growth rate of 2.6% …
Ms Walker: Thanks to Labor’s measures.
Mr TOLLNER: Thanks to Labor? Thanks for the $5.5bn projected debt. Thank you for the more than $1bn budget deficit, but I will get to that.
The big picture looks good for the Territory. I will go into more detail on some of the smaller figures. Retail growth in the Territory has recorded its fourteenth consecutive increase in retail trend turnover. Turnover increased by 6.7% in June this year, compared to the same period last financial year.
Engineering construction activity in the Territory is at record levels; $4.6bn worth of work is in the pipeline.
This activity is underpinned by our unemployment rate, which is the second lowest in the country at 4.8%, and Darwin’s unemployment rate is sitting at just above 2%. The trend number of people employed in the Territory in July was approximately 3700 higher than this time last year.
Members opposite should understand that our economy has become a job-creating machine. Trend employment grew in July by nearly 3%, in comparison to the national figure of only 1%. The ANZ job advertisements survey found that the weekly number of job advertisements in the Territory is growing by 3.4% per month, and nearly 33% compared to the same time last year. They are the highest monthly and annual trend figures in the country.
Our population is increasing; 240 000 now call the Territory home, a growth rate of 1.7%. The CommSec State of the States publication found the Northern Territory leads the way in economic growth, business investment, unemployment and construction work. CommSec ranked the Territory as the best-performing jurisdiction in the country, with an average of 36% above the average level output of the last decade for construction work. The Territory was ranked second-highest amongst the jurisdictions in retail
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! His time has expired.
Madam SPEAKER: My apologies.
Magistrate Maley – Appointment
Mr GUNNER to CHIEF MINISTER
Justice Thomas, in the third edition of Judicial Ethics in Australia, states a magistrate:
… should not be an active member of any political party, should not fraternise with those in the echelons of political power, and should not actively support causes which produce partisan reaction in the community.
Political cronyism is a more serious problem than it looks …
Magistrate Maley handed out how-to-vote cards in the Blain by-election and was photographed with you doing so. This is a test of your leadership. Will you stand aside your failed Attorney-General and instigate an independent inquiry into magistrate Maley’s appointment and conduct?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, there is a tad of confusion in the question. There is only one failed Attorney-General in this room and she is sitting there as Opposition Leader. Anyone in the legal fraternity knows she is the worst Attorney-General the Territory ever saw. It is a common joke in the legal fraternity about how poor she was. You have a …
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. The question was about this Attorney-General, the appointment and conduct of magistrate Maley and having an independent inquiry. It is not a laughing matter. On behalf of the legal fraternity will you take this seriously?
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, can you get to the point please.
Mr GILES: What is the inquiry for? Is it about someone being a member? That we had a photo with someone who is a member of the party, a magistrate? You want an inquiry because someone was a member of a party; are you all there? This is your fourth question into Question Time on return to parliament and you have not asked anything about land release …
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Why will the Chief Minister not hold an independent inquiry into this matter?
Mr GILES: Into what? Someone was a member of a political party - we are proud. Peter Maley is a good man. He was a member of this Chamber.
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. As the Chief Minister knows, he is also a director of Foundation 51, a fundraising arm of the CLP. Nobody knows who is a member of Foundation 51 …
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order. Sit down.
Mr GILES: It would be good if you said that outside the Chamber, member for Fannie Bay. I ask again, an inquiry into what, someone being a member? I do not care if people are members of any party. If they are in the judiciary, if they are in the legal fraternity, wherever they are, these are the freedoms and rights we have in a democracy. People are able to express their political opinions. I do not mind whether you are Labor, Liberals, Greens or whoever, you have an opportunity.
You ask questions about him being a member of parliament. Look at your own! Look at what you have done with the conflict of interest between members who have provided you pro bono representation which you have not declared to the Legislative Assembly. These are the same people who are now putting out advice on behalf of the Bar Association, attacking the same areas. That is a direct conflict of interest and you are deliberately manipulating parts of the judiciary, part of the legal fraternity …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. What the Chief Minister is saying is a nonsense. Why will you not hold …
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order, sit down.
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! He should withdraw the accusation that we are deliberately manipulating the judiciary.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, withdraw it please.
Mr GILES: I withdraw, but let me point out the bouncing ball. They have legal advice not paid for, not detailed to parliament, from people leading the Bar Association who are also partners in the Labor Party and are now calling out issues about Peter Maley. There is a direct conflict of interest and you need to come clean.
I call on you to stand aside for misleading the parliament. Stand aside from the Opposition Leader’s job; that is a fair call.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, if you want to make the claim that there has been a misleading of this parliament then you need to make a substantive motion and have it referred to the Committee of Privileges as a breach of the Code of Conduct.
Mr GILES: Thank you, Madam Speaker, I will take that on notice.
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! If he is not taking that course of action, he needs to withdraw.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, please withdraw.
Mr GILES: I withdraw and I will go through the bouncing ball again for those opposite. They are using the Bar Association and the judiciary, or parts thereof, and the legal fraternity for political purposes, which is putting the whole legal system in the Northern Territory in a bad position. They have used parts of that legal profession to provide them with advice without declaring it to anyone. That leaves a bad taste in anybody’s mouth.
Northern Australia Development
Mr HIGGINS to CHIEF MINISTER
Could you please provide the Assembly with an update on the recent activities to promote the development of north Australia? Specifically, how does this contrast with the recent focus of the pathetic people opposite?
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 62. I find the comments the member for Daly made offensive, can he withdraw?
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Daly, as the member for Nightcliff believes it is offensive, I ask you to withdraw.
Mr HIGGINS: As the member finds it offensive, I withdraw.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, someone get these people a catcher’s mit on the other side; they are happy to throw it, but cannot take it back. I thank the member for Daly, the Parliamentary Secretary for Northern Australia Development, for his question.
The promotion of northern Australia is about sending a message to Territorians that we have a plan for how to move forward. It is about sending the message to Queensland and Western Australia that we want to be the captains of northern Australia, telling the rest of Australia of the opportunities in the Northern Territory, and how we can promote our expertise into Asia.
A range of changes has been made in the Northern Territory, mostly to the Pastoral Land Act where non-pastoral activities are now allowed to be conducted on 30% of those pastoral properties, with a time frame of 30 years, with a 30-year option.
This is providing enormous opportunities for development across the Northern Territory. We are starting to see many more people interested in becoming involved in horticulture, aquaculture, agriculture and a range of other industry opportunities.
As part of the development of northern Australia, we also see the opportunity to open the Territory to more natural gas opportunities, which can present economic benefits for our regional and remote Territorians, and a greater level of infrastructure being provided to regional and remote areas of the Northern Territory.
One area we focus heavily on is the opportunity of connecting the Northern Territory Amadeus Gas Pipeline to the eastern states. That gets us access to new markets, whether it is a domestic market on the eastern seaboard of Australia or international markets going through the eastern seaboard. It provides that market opportunity to start exploring and developing natural gas opportunities in the Northern Territory, which means real jobs, resources, benefits and infrastructure for Territorians as part of how we can open the country up, get private sector investment and provide those development opportunities. These are the messages we send to the Territory, Australia and Asia.
We have been holding regional forums. Most recently we held them in Tennant Creek and in Katherine; I understand they were well attended. We have forums coming up soon in Alice Springs and Darwin. We will talk to the community about those opportunities.
A couple of weeks ago I was in Sydney and held a meeting with KPMG, the Australian Institute of Company Directors, as well as taking advantage of a range of other business networking opportunities to talk about how we are receiving many investment enquiries from overseas but not enough from Australia. We are trying to provide those promotional points as part of northern Australia.
The message is loud and it will go on for a long time. We are looking forward to a greater amount of investment coming into the Northern Territory, particularly to create jobs in all areas.
Tiwi Islands Infrastructure
Mr KURRUPUWU to MINISTER for INFRASTRUCTURE
You may be aware I have been trying to gain funding to fix the road on the Tiwi Islands. Three weeks ago, there was a fatal accident on the road from Wurrumiyanga to Murunatawu. When will the government properly invest in infrastructure on the Tiwi Islands that saves people’s lives and which leads to real economic development, not only empty words?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I have not seen the report into that fatal accident yet, but the government has produced a record budget for roads and infrastructure in the Northern Territory.
Departments work out priorities. Because we understand that transport, bridges and roads are the enablers of economic development, this government has put a record amount into roads and infrastructure.
The member for Arafura would like a range of things. We have a priority basis. There is a new ferry service on the Tiwi Islands, which enables workers to come and go. Those who live on the mainland can travel across. We have a road system we are looking at improving. These are the things on the forward estimates in regard to fixing roads across the Northern Territory.
We will look at our priorities as to where these roads on the Tiwi Islands are. We have a development process happening on the Tiwi Islands, as we have in other communities.
I was at Maningrida recently and they have the same issue; they want the road to be fixed. Given the $5.5bn projected debt we inherited, we do not have money to throw around like fairy dust, so we must work out priorities for roads.
I have people all over the Territory asking me to fix roads, but downstream we must fix other infrastructure first, so when we reach that road, other infrastructure is repaired in order to get there.
Ms Lawrie: Like what?
Mr STYLES: I hear members interjecting …
Madam SPEAKER: Members, order please.
Mr STYLES: We have a substantial amount of unsealed road in the Territory. We would enjoy being able to say we can do many things. If you think they have issues, talk to the member for Daly. He is constantly harassing me for roads in his electorate.
Mr McCarthy: You promised to seal it to Port Keats.
Mr STYLES: We are getting to it. I hear the member for Barkly interjecting. Look to your right at the person who left us with a $5.5bn projected debt. There she is, the Leader of the Opposition. Also look at your federal mates, who left us with $669bn debt, and when you said you would have a deficit of $1bn, it was actually $49bn.
You talk about that, but we will fix it, we have a plan and we have invested the money.
Crime Figures
Mrs FINOCCHIARO to CHIEF MINISTER
Could you please update the Assembly on the encouraging crime figures released last Friday? What do they show about the success of efforts to drive down both property and personal crime?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Drysdale for her question. Thirteen members on this side of the Chamber share the same view as her about wanting to see crime being driven down across the Northern Territory.
It is something we took seriously when we came to government. We rolled out a platform of crime response measures, including legislative reform. We have put in place new things such as Alcohol Protection Orders and additional CCTV cameras.
We have rolled out alcohol mandatory treatment and have a range of alcohol policies driving reform in the Territory.
The latest crime figures, released last Friday, confirm that. Territory-wide, the total number of offences dropped by 1886 in the year to June, compared to the previous 12 months ...
Members interjecting.
Mr GILES: I know Labor members do not like hearing these figures because it shows we are winning against crime by driving it down in the Territory.
House break-ins are down by 26% Territory-wide over the past two years. We made a commitment to bring it down by 10% per year. Police have achieved this by pursuing a group of hard-core recidivist property offenders through targeted police operations.
Labor had 11 years in power. We have been here for two years and we are already making a difference, especially in regard to alcohol-related crimes. When you look at the combination of alcohol mandatory treatment, Alcohol Protection Orders, temporary beat locations and Darwin Safe, all in operation since 20 December last year, you can see the changes in the crime statistics since then. The results are clear. In Mitchell Street alone, serious assaults are down by 24%.
I will give you some details of the June crime statistics. Assaults, Territory-wide, are down by 14%, NT-wide alcohol-related assaults are down by 18%, across Darwin by more than 3%, in Alice Springs by 27%, in Katherine down by 15%, and the member for Barkly will be interested in hearing about Tennant Creek, which is down by a staggering 47% - almost by half.
This is two years in government. If you want to talk about a report on two years in government, this is where we are driving change. You do not make change overnight, but if you get the legislative reform and the plan in practice, you start to see results at the back end, such as 47% in Tennant Creek, the lowest alcohol consumption in the Northern Territory since the 1990s. The Country Liberals’ alcohol policies are the best policies to ever work in the Northern Territory. We have the lowest alcohol consumption for the largest population since the 1990s. Our population is so much larger now, and our consumption is reducing all the time. We have been highly successful and the Country Liberals should be congratulated …
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, your time has expired.
Magistrate Maley – NT Bar Association’s
Call for Inquiry into Appointment
Call for Inquiry into Appointment
Mr McCARTHY to CHIEF MINISTER
Correspondence from the NT Bar Association to the Attorney-General cites numerous examples of case law and judicial ethics publications on the inappropriate and unethical dealings magistrate Maley has had with the CLP while a magistrate. On ABC radio, President of the NT Bar Association, John Lawrence, described the unethical procedures as ‘gross’. Will you now stand aside the Attorney-General pending a full independent inquiry into magistrate Maley’s appointment and conduct?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I ask the member for Barkly to refer to my previous answers. I also ask him whether any of the Bar Association correspondence has come from the same people who have been providing pro bono legal advice to the opposition without it being declared to this Chamber? I will not be …
Mr McCARTHY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. The Chief Minister is asking me questions. The question is: will you conduct a complete and independent inquiry?
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, member for Barkly.
Mr GILES: No.
Alcohol Policies – Comparison to Opposition
Mr BARRETT to CHIEF MINISTER
Following up on the crime statistics, it is interesting to see how the alcohol-related crime has changed since the full suite of alcohol policies has come into effect. Can the Chief Minister please advise the House on how this compares to the opposition’s report card on this matter?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain. I know he cares about alcohol-related crime and how it is going right down. Just like the Coles ad - down, down, crime is down.
We came to government with a plan and we got rid of the Banned Drinker Register, which took a punitive approach to everyone in our community and did not target the problem drinker, much like our mandatory alcohol treatment …
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. There were 7300 victims of violent assault last year. I do not think they would appreciate the Chief Minister’s levity about the Coles ad.
Madam SPEAKER: Sit down! You know it is not a point of order.
Mr GILES: Here we go! The member for Fannie Bay is trying to lobby himself a little media shot later in the day.
We are driving down one of the biggest problems in the Northern Territory, reducing alcohol consumption and the number of assaults and alcohol-related crimes. We all want zero. We are working toward zero. Let us look at the changes since we removed the Banned Drinker Register. Alcohol mandatory treatment is offering health-based solutions for people with an addiction, and around 400 people have been treated in the first 12 months. After we abolished the Banned Drinker Register we introduced Alcohol Protection Orders, which target those who commit crime while under the influence of alcohol. Currently around 900 are banned from purchasing, consuming or possessing alcohol for between three and 12 months under one of those orders, as well as being banned from attending licensed premises. That was not included in the Banned Drinker Register.
Our temporary beat locations have also been used intensively this year to stop people drinking in dry areas, and have had a huge impact on our regions.
Let us go through some of the crime statistics in relation to alcohol. NT-wide, alcohol-related assaults are down 18%, down 3% in Darwin, 27% in Alice Springs, 15% in Katherine and 47% in Tennant Creek. I have just referred to what has occurred in Mitchell Street since the start of the Darwin Safe strategy - serious assaults are down by 24% in Mitchell Street.
The wannabe Labor leader, the member for Fannie Bay, said Alcohol Protection Orders would not work. He said they look silly. He referred to them as foolish. He indicated that they would have no impact. All we have seen to date is him with egg on his face, looking foolish, because the results are testament to the work we have been doing.
There is no doubt the Country Liberals’ alcohol policies are working, driving down crime, reducing alcohol consumption in the Northern Territory, and are more successful than those of Labor in eleven-and-a-half years of government, particularly when it had the failed Banned Drinker Register, which targeted a punitive measure at everybody in the Territory.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, your time has expired.
Taxi Rank in Mitchell Street
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for TRANSPORT
Many taxi drivers have been booked and fined for parking at the taxi rank across the road from Shenannigans in Mitchell Street. The reason appears to be it is only a taxi rank between 6 am and 9 pm. Considering Mitchell Street is a late-night drinking venue supported by the government, why would you stop taxis from picking up people at a taxi rank in the middle of Mitchell Street after 9 pm? Was the decision to close this taxi rank influenced by any licensed venues on Mitchell Street and, if so, which one or ones, and were taxi drivers given a say in this decision?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I do not have the full facts yet, but I will take that on notice and get back to you. However, we have a successful safety program running in Mitchell Street. The Chief Minister quoted figures in this Chamber on how successful that has been.
When you hear the statistics the Chief Minister mentioned across the Territory, you realise the Country Liberals have a great success story …
Ms ANDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Has the Chief Minister made sure the Minister for Tourism is down as a statistic at Shenannigans too for …
Madam SPEAKER: No, that is not a point of order, member for Namatjira.
Mr STYLES: Madam Speaker, you can now walk down Mitchell Street with far more confidence than you could two or three years ago. This government has stood behind our police force. We have changed the legislation and given them extra tools and the confidence to do the job. Problems at taxi ranks and the previous crime rates were atrocious. You just heard the Chief Minister quote some fantastic figures and results. There is a 47% reduction in alcohol-related assaults in Tennant Creek. What a great success story.
It is amazing when you sit on this side of the House and listen to the opposition trying to bag success. If that is what they did when in government, imagine what was coming up from departments about issues in Mitchell Street and taxis. They must have been bagging the public servants for trying to come up with solutions. They did not have any solutions, it must have been the public servants. They want to bag everyone for being successful.
You are a disgrace to the people you represent. Look at the success stories. I wish I had those figures in front of me; I would requote some of them so you could hear them again. They are successful and fantastic figures. Assaults, since last Christmas, are down 14% Territory-wide.
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 255. I ask the minister to table the document he is reading from.
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, do you wish to table the document or is it your private notes?
Mr STYLES: Sorry, Madam Speaker, I cannot because they are not my notes; they belong to the Chief Minister.
NT-wide, alcohol-related assaults are down 18%, in Darwin they are down 3%, in Alice Springs 27% …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. The minister said he would take the question and get back with the answer later because he did not know the answer. Let us get on with Question Time.
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order.
Mr STYLES: What I said – if the Opposition Leader listened she would know – is I take that issue on notice about the 6 am to 9 pm taxi rank. I have made some notes and I assume my staff are trying to get an answer for you. I will get an answer for you on that as soon as I can.
I will go down the list; alcohol-related assaults are down 15% in Katherine -- something we were on about when we were in opposition, and now we are in government, we have fixed it – and a staggering 47% in Tennant Creek, what a fantastic result.
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired.
Correctional Precinct at Holtze
Mrs FINOCCHIARO to MINISTER FOR CORRECTIONAL SERVICES
You will soon open the new Darwin Correctional Precinct at Holtze. Was a new prison of this magnitude necessary for the Northern Territory?
ANSWER
The shorter answer is no. It was not required because a prison is two things. Unfortunately, the former Labor government in the Northern Territory believed that a prison was one thing. A prison is a building, which is as far as the former Labor government’s attention went in relation to building prisons. They thought prisons are all about constructing buildings. As a consequence, we now have in our possession the prison Mahal, which will soon be transferred to us.
The second component to a prison is what you do inside them. Since we have come to government, we have done a number of things that are fundamentally different to what the former Labor government would have done.
According to the former Labor government’s projections, I should have 1725 prisoners in custody today. In fact, the figure is around 1500 prisoners. On an annual basis, that is a saving of $17m to the taxpayer, simply by changing what we did in the old prison, because we are not yet in the new prison.
Imagine what we could have done with that $17m, as a government, in other areas, including paying off some of the debt legacy that has been handed to us. Moreover, by the time we finish paying off the Labor Party’s new spectacular prison, it will cost the Territory taxpayer $1.8bn in today’s dollar terms. The glorious achievement of the former Labor government, their massive infrastructure project, was to build a new prison to the tune of $1.8bn.
I ask the members opposite …
Mr McCARTHY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. The minister neglected to tell Territorians that it is for the repairs and maintenance budget over 30 years.
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order.
Mr ELFERINK: I pick up on the interjection. Yes we are paying off your prison debt for 30 years, congratulations. Great work, mate, beautiful.
Imagine what we could have done with that $1.8bn; we could have sealed a road on the Tiwi Islands perhaps, sealed Port Keats Road, perhaps built a hospital in Palmerston or done more work in remote communities for the delivery of health services. But, no, what we had to build was a gaol to lock up lots of people, because this government simply was not possessed of the imagination required to bring about true reductions in the custodial rates of the Northern Territory. We have achieved it and we will continue to achieve it proudly for the true welfare of the people of the Northern Territory.
Magistrate Maley – NT Bar Association’s
Call for Inquiry into Appointment
Call for Inquiry into Appointment
Ms WALKER to ATTORNEY-GENERAL and MINISTER for JUSTICE
In its letter to you of 25 June, the NT Bar Association cites the inappropriateness of magistrate Maley lobbying the Minister for Land Resource Management about his commercial interests. This is a clear breach of the doctrine of the separation of powers. Magistrate Maley should never have been appointed as magistrate.
Will you now stand aside as Attorney-General and allow Cabinet to establish an independent inquiry into his appointment and conduct?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I am grateful for this opportunity, and I will start with the answer to the question, which is no. We will not go down this path because the current executive of the Bar Association is far too close to you folk. I found it astonishing that the first question I received in relation to a letter from the Bar Association was from Paul Toohey, noted journalist, before I even received the letter. Clearly, when the Bar Association was sending the letter - as much as Alistair Wyvill chooses to deny this - it went to a journalist first. Why? Because the intent was always to cause political damage. That is all you were interested in.
I draw honourable members’ attention to the letter to the Bar Association from the former President of the Bar Association, Jon Tippett QC, who goes out of his way to point out that the whole argument being run by the Labor Party and the current executive of the Bar Association is hokum.
Do you know how to get three opinions? Ask two lawyers a question. What you have is lawyers chatting amongst themselves about the appointment of Mr Maley, being driven by the Bar Association. I note the letter from Mr Goldflam says in some detail that it is generally considered on the bench that Mr Maley is
- … able, astute, affable, efficient, sensitive and fair.
He went on to say it can be argued amongst his legal colleagues that:
… this is a storm in a teacup, and no useful purpose is served by picking an un-winnable fight over a properly appointed, well-regarded and competent judicial officer.
- Throughout this imbroglio, no-one has suggested that Mr Maley has not been true to his oath of office.
There is a mechanism within the court system, well established over years on how to deal with matters of apprehended bias within the court system, and this is recognised throughout Australia. The seminal case in this matter is the case of Ebner, quoted by Mr Wyvill and Mr Lawrence.
If there is a problem with magistrate Maley, I will leave it with the courts to make that determination. In the first instance, a judicial officer confronted with a position of bias should remove themselves. If not, the mechanism exists within the courts, and it does not need me to listen to a bunch of lawyers arguing amongst themselves to run an independent inquiry, in breach of the separation of powers …
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. The Attorney-General knows the judicial system cannot start an independent inquiry. Only the government can do it.
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order.
Medi-Hotel Treatment and Accommodation
Mr HIGGINS to MINISTER for HEALTH
Can you inform the Assembly about the announcement that the Royal Darwin Hospital will soon be able to treat patients in the short-term accommodation, previously known as the medi-hotel, immediately relieving pressure on the hospital?
Members interjecting.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I can tell the opposition is so excited about this news. The rabble has commenced already.
I thank the member for Daly for his question. Yes, we are honouring our commitment to make the medi-hotel, or the short-term accommodation facility, at the Royal Darwin Hospital available for its intended purpose. This will commence as of the end of September. In a few weeks we will start to move out the alcohol mandatory treatment services which are currently occupying that spot, and will be setting up a low acuity step-up, step-down facility. It is a purpose-built facility, as people know, with 100 beds, ideally suited to look after people who need a low level of care.
We are very excited because this means we will be taking the pressure off the Royal Darwin Hospital. During 11 years of Labor, they watched this hospital reach its capacity several years ago. They knew we needed not only low-acute beds, we needed more acute beds. All we got from Labor in 11 years was a couple of documents stating they will build a hospital - nothing else. We are getting on with the job of opening up the short-term accommodation facility in approximately six weeks’ time, and building more acute beds.
Yes, we are getting on with building the Palmerston Regional Hospital on a 45 ha piece of land adjacent to Palmerston. The news is very good ...
Ms Walker: Robyn, will you get the funding back for the medi-hotel at Gove that Dave gave away?
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Nhulunbuy!
Mrs LAMBLEY: I can tell the member for Nhulunbuy is extremely excited about this, because not only are we doing those things, we are also spending $22.2m on expanding the emergency department at the Royal Darwin Hospital. This includes extra bays within the emergency department and extra operating theatres.
The news is good. Finally, we will be taking the pressure off the Royal Darwin Hospital which reached capacity several years ago. Under Labor, the medi-hotel, or short-term accommodation facility, was completed in May 2012. They did not have any operational costs to run this facility. It sat there vacant for over three months under their reign - three months it sat there idle, 100% completed. The opposition is hypocritical when they call us out for not having the facility up and running as soon as we came to government.
Instead, we have made the facility available for alcohol mandatory treatment. We make no apologies for that. We have turned around people’s lives. Today we celebrate that the facility will be open for its intended purpose in a few weeks.
Mr ELFERINK (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Written Question Paper.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016