2013-10-09
CLP Government – NT Regions
Ms LAWRIE to CHIEF MINISTER
Yesterday, you told us how things were good in the bush under your leadership. According to the most recent test of your performance, you have lost Arafura, Arnhem, Stuart, and Namatjira. Add to that the loss of Sanderson and you would be on the opposition benches. Your predecessor, the member for Blain said:
- We gave the bush hope and they gave us trust. That resulted in us winning government, but that transaction is incomplete and appears to have been abandoned. The government is now centralised and focused on the agenda and interest of its senior leadership.
If this is what your own colleagues say about your performance, is it any wonder Territorians have lost faith in you to lead them, or is the member for Blain wrong?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for her question. People in the Northern Territory will be under no illusions that we are not firmly committed to driving improvements and performance in regional and remote areas of the Northern Territory. That also includes urban locations across the Northern Territory.
We have a range of initiatives we are pursuing, including eroding Labor shires. I said yesterday that by 1 January next year the shires will be formulated into regional councils, fulfilling our election commitment. We are working to ensure roads and maintenance contracts and housing maintenance contracts go to local people. We are continuing with our remote transport strategy and initiative.
Recently we launched the new Tiwi ferry service for Tiwi Islanders. The member for Arafura, who was on that initial trip, was very excited, as were Tiwi Islanders. We have more than $1m committed by Infrastructure Australia to undertake a feasibility study on upgrading road works on the top road through Jabiru to Oenpelli and out to Maningrida and Ramingining, looking at what we can do there.
We are looking at how we can better support community-controlled health centres in remote areas.
We are providing an era of decentralisation to a regional capacity to give people a greater say in the way they do business, and confidence is significantly growing out there.
We made a call a while ago to support economic growth in regions to drive jobs and economic advancement creating businesses. A number of communities have come to us seeking to work to provide economic growth. The Tiwi Islands have been in the newspaper, but there are some fantastic outcomes we are working on in that area. We are working in Wadeye to get some improvements in that frame, and a range of other communities which I will not mention at this point in time. There is a range of initiatives coming through local members about how we can drive growth.
We have already seen, through the mining minister, the creation of three mines in the Roper region. A range of local people in the Arnhem region is working in those mines. We are looking at supporting Ngukurr …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Your colleague said the transaction is incomplete and appears to be abandoned. Is he wrong ...
Madam SPEAKER: Opposition Leader, it is not a point of order. Chief Minister, you have the call.
Mr GILES: There is a range of things we are doing. Recently in Tennant Creek we opened a Chief Minister’s office to start dealing with and coordinating strategic issues and how we can respond to some of the social demands, and drive economic improvements in the region.
One of the important things to look at if you want to look at statistics is the latest Sensis report. It shows that the Territory recorded the highest regional business confidence in the nation, at 47%. If anyone wants to talk about confidence in leadership, you only have to look to the member for Fannie Bay, because clearly he does not have confidence in your leadership.
Economy Strength
Mr HIGGINS to CHIEF MINISTER
Could you please outline for the Assembly what recent evidence has emerged on the strength of the NT economy? Can you also outline how this contrasts with the economic shambles left by Labor?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Daly, who has inherited a fantastic electorate but one which has been held back by lack of economic growth transport infrastructure to be able to connect people. Connecting people is about driving economic growth, delivering on jobs, and getting sustainable life opportunities and hope for people. That is what the member for Daly is interested in. He knows we are encumbered by the $5.5bn worth of Labor debt.
Picture the buck’s party when someone is walking along carrying a ball and chain. For us, as government, we have this humongous ball on this humongous chain with $5.5bn worth of debt which has been built up over 11 years of irresponsible spending.
Small to medium businesses consider the Northern Territory government the most supportive government of any jurisdiction in the nation, and that is from the latest Sensis Business Index. Support for the government rose by 10 percentage points in the last quarter, the largest increase of any state or territory government. Overall, Territory business confidence grew by 6% to 26%. That is the second-highest result in the nation and well above the national average of 17%, which declined five points over the quarter.
The retail sector has shown signs of recovery after a prolonged period of weakness. Retail trade volumes in the Territory have increased over the last five consecutive months. In August 2013, retail trade increased by 0.9%. The recent Deloitte survey found almost a fifth of businesses in the Northern Territory expect growth of over 30% within the next 12 months.
Members interjecting.
Mr GILES: Doom and gloom from Labor, but these are the facts. We are leading the nation on all economic indicators and all prospective economic indications. Engineering construction activity in the 2012-13 financial year increased by a whopping 83.5% to $3.5bn – the highest annual level on record. The latest ANZ job advertising figures showed average weekly newspaper advertisements were up in the year to September. Residential building approvals in the year to August increased by 29.9% to $2096 - the news is buoyant - compared to a national increase in building approvals of just 11.6%.
Member for Daly, when we talk about the $5.5bn worth of debt, it is a legacy we carry. It is not doom and gloom, the future is bright, including in the bush, and we will deliver on those economic outcomes.
Bush Jobs Losses and Unemployment
Mr McCARTHY to CHIEF MINISTER
You claim there are no indicators of things trending badly in the bush, and that you are building up jobs in remote communities. Sadly, the reality for you is the exact opposite. Jobs are being cut in bush schools and lost in health clinics. Community people are losing their jobs in schools and health clinics. Shire jobs are under threat with your new repairs and maintenance tender. In the face of compelling evidence of job losses and rising unemployment, tell us again how good things are under your government in the bush.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the current Deputy Leader of the Opposition. It would be very interesting if there was a local government policy from Labor regarding where they stand. Do they still stand by the shires or do they support our approach to build and develop regional councils and give voices back to people? Do you support our policy or are you going to come up with a policy?
Going to the question from the member for Barkly about jobs in the bush, I was in Tennant Creek last week. I am a fantastic supporter of Tennant Creek ...
Ms Walker: Did you let people know you were coming?
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Nhulunbuy!
Mr GILES: I will get to you in a minute, member for Nhulunbuy. You are a disgrace.
We were in Tennant Creek looking at the economic indicators in Barkly, and Tennant Creek in particular, some of the social issues such as alcohol consumption, law and order, domestic violence, and the fact that in the eleven-and-a-half years of the Labor government …
Members interjecting.
Mr GILES: I pose a test. How many public houses did Labor build in Tennant Creek in eleven-and-a-half years? Houses are a very important issue. We talk about cost of living. How many houses? Zero. Not one house in eleven-and-a-half years …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Town camps in Tennant Creek are full of new houses.
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order, sit down!
Mr GILES: I encourage the Leader of the Opposition to talk to her colleague, the member for Barkly, and ask how many new houses were built out of the $36.5m SIHIP money that went into Tennant Creek. In fact, there was one house built in 2010 under the building economic revolution money, which replaced a burnt-out house. Not one house, not one extra bedroom for $36.5m.
Let us get to the heart of the question. We will go straight to Tennant Creek and the Barkly. The real question is what is the economic future of that region? This is part of putting the Chief Minister’s office there to coordinate with all of our agencies, start addressing those issues, coordinating strategies, and working out what the economic strength can be.
I have already spoken to the Minister for Mines and Energy, and Primary Industry to get some topographical mapping, look at the ground and surface water, and the best horticultural opportunities there. Let us look at the mining opportunities. We are already talking to Blue Energy …
Mr McCARTHY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. We talked about clinics and schools, and repairs and maintenance ...
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order, member for Barkly! Sit down!
Mr GILES: If the member for Barkly wants information, the Wiso Basin will be opened for exploration opportunities for gas by Blue Energy. These things present an opportunity for jobs in the region. The Country Liberals will deliver on jobs and economic growth; something you completely forgot about in your own electorate ...
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, your time has expired.
Framing the Future - Feedback
Mr KURRUPUWU to CHIEF MINISTER
In August, you released your draft blueprint called Framing the Future, setting out the government’s priorities for the next three years. Could you please advise the Assembly on the feedback you have received on this document, and how the blueprint will guide the government’s work over the years ahead?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arafura for his question. We talk with colleagues about the importance of individual members having a vision and a future plan for each electorate and where they want to head. The member for Arafura’s electorate is made up of beautiful communities - Jabiru, Oenpelli, Maningrida, the Tiwi Islands and all those in between. I said to the member for Arafura, ‘Work out what you want and what that economic vision will be’. That is for everybody in our ministry and the Labor electorates, although, clearly, Labor has never done that.
What we are doing to coordinate and facilitate these three areas is to build it through the Framing the Future document which sets out some core strategic principles about how we want to govern in the future and how we want to drive economic growth across four key principal areas of a prosperous economy, a strong society, a balanced environment, and a confident culture.
The document we released was a draft document. We put it out for public comment and we have received more than 50 submissions to date. We will review those submissions and see how we can harness the information we have received and build it into a final document to explain to Territorians this is how we are driving growth; these are the four pillars we will use to drive growth in that area. The feedback we have received to date has been astronomical. People are telling us it is good to see a foundation document.
We have not publicised it, promoted it, and politicised it like the 2030 vision document you guys created. We are not going to set those specific targets that hold you back. We will provide a visionary platform statement about how we will move forward. That is where we have plans for the future in the Northern Territory. That is how tourism, alcohol management, horticultural development, agriculture, primary industries and fisheries fits in. That is what supports what is happening on the Tiwi Islands. That is what will happen with road construction in the future out through the top road. That is what is happening with the Pillars of Justice reform.
Framing the Future is about setting the direction of government and letting the community know where we are heading.
One of the important elements that could have been included in this question is: are there any alternate approaches to setting a vision for the Northern Territory?
I do not know of any policies the Labor opposition has. When we were in opposition we had the opportunity of going through Labor policies and seeing everything they stood for. Now they do not have a policy, apart from denying the fact there is a $5.5bn debt. We are repaying their debt, and we are encumbered by making tough decisions so we can be financially responsible for the good governance of everyone in the Northern Territory now and into the future.
Madam Speaker, I commend Framing the Future to Territorians. I ask them to have a good look at it and to provide a submission and some commentary. I look forward to updating the House in the future about the final document.
Aboriginal Land Permit System
Ms WALKER to MINISTER for COMMUNITY SERVICES referred to CHIEF MINISTER
In our national newspaper on 16 March, your current Chief Minister said the permit system for Aboriginal land was a trade barrier that needs to be lifted. You are the Minister for Community Services now with responsibility for securing land tenure for all Northern Territory government infrastructure. You have also supported these comments, saying people need to be able to use community land for construction and economic reasons. Please outline the steps you have taken to implement your Chief Minister’s policy of removing the permit system.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I refer the question to the Chief Minister.
Mr GILES (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I know members on the Labor opposition find it difficult to work hard. They are all unionised people who could not work in an iron lung. I encourage them to research the Administrative Arrangement Orders. They will find that Economic Development is within my portfolio. Do some research and find out to whom you should be directing that question.
Going to the point of permits as trade barriers, we are working very hard with, as a good example, the member for Arafura, on how we can drive economic growth ...
Members interjecting.
Mr GILES: If you want to have a serious answer to this question, I am happy to give you one. If a tourist arrives on the Tiwi Islands, whether by ferry or by plane, and they want to go to a fishing lodge, they have to be able to get from Point A to Point B with ease of access so they can support the jobs, the fishing lodge, and all of those things. One of the issues with that is the trade barrier, as I call it, of the permit system. No one wants to travel through our culturally sensitive land; that is not what it is about. It is about having a permanent access route without that trade barrier to drive economic growth. That was the point of your question and how it was asked.
Getting to other points about economic development, member for Nhulunbuy, you stand here and occasionally ask a question. You are getting more …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! It was a very specific question. Standing Order 113: relevance. Please outline the steps you have taken to implement your policy of removing the permit system. What steps have you taken?
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, Opposition Leader. The Chief Minister has three minutes to answer the question. Come to the point, Chief Minister.
Mr GILES: Madam Speaker, we talk about driving economic development and growth and we are facilitating some of those things. I have had a good chat with the member for Namatjira, who is trying to facilitate some growth in a particular area of her electorate. We are doing things with the members for Arnhem, Stuart and Daly around a range of areas, including all the urban electorates. You stand in this Chamber, you get on radio, you bleat …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. What steps have you taken to remove the permit system?
Madam SPEAKER: Opposition Leader, please be seated. The Chief Minister has time to answer the question as he sees fit.
Mr GILES: We will work with land councils on major arterial routes.
You stood in this Chamber yesterday speaking about teachers at Yirrkala School. Let me quickly go through the staffing ratios. In primary years …
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. This is not about you cutting teachers; it is about a permit system.
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order. Member for Nightcliff, sit down!
Mr GILES: Madam Speaker, preschools years, 40:1 ratio, no change; early years, Transition to Year 2, 20:1, a reduction from 22:1; primary years 22:1, the same as it was before - no change ...
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr GILES: You talk about teacher reduction in those - listen and you might learn, member for Nhulunbuy.
If you want to keep teachers in bush schools, get kids to school ...
Ms WALKER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. My question was very specific around the permit system and steps being taken to dismantle it. I did not ask a question about education.
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order. The Chief Minister is answering the question as he sees fit.
Mr GILES: You should lead in your electorate. Work with us. If you want more teachers in bush schools, get school attendance up. When no one goes to school, you cannot have more teachers than students ...
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, your time has expired.
Major Projects - Update
Mr HIGGINS to CHIEF MINISTER
Can you please update the Assembly on progress of some of the major projects under way around the Territory?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Daly for his question. We have been doing some work with the member for Daly on how we can drive economic growth in the Daly region. We are looking at what a new regional council will look like. We are talking about land councils. We are looking at what tourism investment can occur in that area.
Going to the point of the question, this is the first time in a long time, probably twelve-and-a-half-years, the Territory has been open for business. That is the message we spread around the country.
The member for Katherine, the Minister for Mines and Energy, and I were in Adelaide last week talking to the APPEA conference about opportunities for shale gas and exploration in the Northern Territory. Everybody wants to come to the Northern Territory; they are all looking at setting up offices. They all want to support investment here. Local people are looking at what development they can do in the Territory. The doorbell upstairs is ringing constantly regarding how people can drive economic growth and where they can invest.
We have a major project facilitation process, continued from the previous government. One of the most recent announcements about major project status was TNG. TNG has an investment 50 km to the west of Barrow Creek for a rough geographical explanation. They are looking at vanadium and titanium, what they can extract and what they can process on-site. This is not like the old days under Labor where they wanted all the processing to go offshore or interstate. They did not want to do it in the Territory. We have provided this open-for-business environment so companies like TNG can start having better investigative analysis about how they can support regional growth development in the bush.
Look at Barrow Creek and the community of Barrow Creek. There is job potential for the people of the community of Tara, just up the road.
We have a lengthy legacy to play catch-up on getting development, but the work in some of these areas is quite exciting. We have just had the opening of the accommodation village for the Ichthys gas project development with INPEX, another major project that is an opportunity to drive economic growth. It currently accommodates around 350 people, with the opportunity to go up to 3500.
The opportunities in the Northern Territory with major projects are really exciting. We spoke at length about the Roper region with Western Desert Resources. It has more than 400 employees, many of them local people from Ngukurr. What a fantastic outcome for jobs for local people. There is Sherwin Iron. Shell has now set up a supply base here.
We are working with Woodside trying to get them to set up a supply base here for their potential floating facility. We have been lobbying hard to say it is cheaper to come to the Northern Territory than build a floating facility, but we will see what their economics are.
Madam Speaker, a range of people want to come to the Territory; major project status is important. We will continue to drive economic growth, not just in Darwin but right across the Territory.
Banana Freckle - Eradication
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for PRIMARY INDUSTRY and FISHERIES
You recently announced there will be eradication of all bananas within 1 km of nine banana plant sites infected by banana freckle in the Howard Springs and Batchelor areas. Could you please explain where these nine sites are, how many parcels of land will be affected by the eradication program, including any compensation details, how those affected landholders will be notified that plants will be removed, what will happen to those banana plants, and when will landowners be able to grow bananas again?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Nelson for a very sensible question. It is probably the most sensible question we have heard from that side this morning.
The banana freckle is a disease that is exotic to the Northern Territory in the way it has attacked Cavendish bananas. It has been detected on other banana varieties in the Northern Territory previously, but now it is on Cavendish. Moves will be made to eradicate it because this government is serious about protecting the commercial banana industry in the Northern Territory. The government is moving swiftly and decisively to deal with the incursion of banana freckle and its effect on Cavendish.
The member for Nelson rightly pointed out there are nine affected properties, six of which are in the Howard Springs area, and a further three in the Bachelor region.
In answer to some of the specific questions the member for Nelson raised, I cannot give you the exact number of properties that will be affected by the eradication campaign. There will be 1 km radius around each infected premise which will be subject to an eradication order. However, there will be communication with each and every property owner who will be affected by it. If they have not been contacted already, they will be contacted in two ways; there will be a letter and a phone call made to each property to advise them their property if subject to eradication.
The effect of the eradication will be that each banana tree within that 1 km radius will be cut down. The stump will be painted with a herbicide, and the affected material will be bagged and removed to a site where it will be buried.
The member for Nelson did not ask it in the question, but mentioned previously to me the powers that inspectors have. Those powers exist under the act to enter, search, and remove material and issue all sorts of orders about the treatment of these pests.
As I said, we take this incursion very seriously. We need to protect not only our $400m banana industry in the Northern Territory, but we also need to be cognisant of our responsibilities to the broader banana industry across Australia, noting that Queensland and New South Wales have significant banana industries and our commercial crop here is also exported into South Australia. We are taking this incursion extremely seriously and working with the affected landowners to deal with it.
Infrastructure Projects Delivered by Federal Labor Government
Mr McCARTHY to MINISTER for COMMUNITY SERVICES
Yesterday in the House, you boasted about the value of projects delivered by your infrastructure branch at a value of $478m across the bush. What percentage of the projects delivered by your infrastructure branch was funded by the Labor Commonwealth government? Was it 85%, 90% or even more?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Barkly. I will take the question on notice.
Tindall Limestone Aquifer –
Water Allocation Licences
Ms LAWRIE to MINISTER for LAND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Indigenous Territorians want to be part of sustainably developing the north and managing their lands and water sustainably. Mataranka traditional owners have expressed concern that a water allocation licence for 5800 ML has recently been approved from the Tindall limestone aquifer, and 9000 ML more has been applied for.
Why did you abandon the Mataranka water allocation plan? Why did you abolish the strategic reserve policy that would have shared the water on an equitable basis, something stakeholders spent six years developing? Why are Indigenous Territorians second-class citizens in their own back yard under the CLP?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I am delighted to take that question. First, the premise and a number of specific points within the question are completely wrong. Once again, the Leader of the Opposition has it wrong.
She suggested in the question that we have abandoned some policy around Strategic Indigenous Reserves. Under the former Labor government there was no policy of Strategic Indigenous Reserves. Go figure! What happened with Strategic Indigenous Reserves was an ad hoc approach to applying this reserve to some water allocation plans. If you look across the water allocation plans that have or were considering it, the level of the Strategic Indigenous Reserves was different in all cases. It was left as an ad hoc approach by water planning committees to try to deal with this issue.
You also said that Indigenous people are being treated as second-class citizens, and I refute that strongly. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Indigenous people today, Leader of the Opposition, have every right that non-Indigenous people have to take water. Not only that …
Ms Fyles: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Why did you abandon the water allocation plant?
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Nightcliff, you must wait for the call. You are on a warning. Minister for Land Resource Management.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE: As per usual, the Leader of the Opposition has it wrong. She obviously has not been briefed. She has never been to my office or department to have a briefing on any of this stuff and, frankly, she would not have a clue.
As I said before, if Indigenous people are landowners within a water allocation area, they can apply for water just like anybody else. If Indigenous people want economic development and to bring water to their land so they can grow things and create jobs - I know that concept is foreign to you. You would not have a clue about jobs in remote areas. They can have that water now if they apply, they have a plan, and want to get economic development happening. They are not second-class citizens, they are Territorians, just like the rest of us.
US Marine Deployment
Ms FINOCCHIARO to CHIEF MINISTER
The second rotation of US Marines to the Top End has just left Darwin. Could you please update the Assembly on the success of this deployment, in particular, the positive contribution the Marines have made to the community and economy during their stay? Are you aware the Opposition Leader has reflected on the Defence Forces’ contribution to the Territory economy?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Drysdale for her question. She has quite a strong interest, being from Palmerston, and I know she has a lot to do with the Defence Force there.
She has been working hard building relationships with the Marines in the local community, securing an MOU with her old school, Gray Primary School. The Marines have been working with Year 5 students there doing sport, fitness, reading, and mentoring of students. I understand they were also building a garden there. It is great to get that local personal relationship. That is just one of the many examples of the way the Marines have been contributing to the local community during their stay and building relationships in their temporary Dry Season home.
Earlier today I had the opportunity to meet with the most senior US Marine in the Pacific to discuss the success of the recent rotational deployments in the Top End. It was a pleasure to meet Lieutenant General Terry Robling, Commander of the US Marine Forces Pacific, and senior Australian Defence Force officials to discuss how we can maximise the benefits flowing to the Territory and the United States from the Marine deployment here.
Lieutenant General Robling was extremely positive about the current cooperation between the two military forces and thanked the Australian and Northern Territory governments for their support. The latest rotation of around 200 Marines has just left Darwin after a successful deployment which included unilateral training, bilateral training with the Australian Defence Force, and training with regional partners.
Bilateral training exercises provide a great opportunity for Australia and US forces to learn from each other in the field. We look forward to the next rotation of 1100 Marines arriving in the Top End next Dry Season. The benefits to the local economy are quite significant. I am sure you will see great economic and further infrastructure investment flow from the 1100 Marines.
An economic impact assessment released by the Department of Defence in May this year estimated that the rotational deployment of 1100 Marines in the Top End next year will contribute to the GSP of around $5.6m for 2014. The Australian Defence Force presence in the Top End is also a huge boost to the local economy.
This government, on this side of the House, welcomes the Marine deployment and we work hard to encourage a cultural interaction with the Northern Territory and ensure a seamless transition.
In contrast, the Leader of the Opposition, Delia Lawrie, has chosen to attack the hard-working ADF members, blaming returning Australian soldiers for the Territory’s housing crisis. When she was the acting Chief Minister, the member for Karama bizarrely suggested that soldiers returning from overseas and leaving their unhappy relationships were adding to the Territory’s housing shortage.
Madam Speaker, I table a copy of a newspaper article by Nick Calacouras and Alyssa Betts from Saturday 16 January 2010 which explains how the Leader of the Opposition attacked the Defence Force troops for coming back from Afghanistan and making the housing crisis worse.
Homelands Extra Grant
Ms WALKER to MINISTER for COMMUNITY SERVICES
Prior to last year’s Northern Territory election the CLP did a sudden about turn and promised to support homelands residents with better housing – not new housing, but better housing. How many homelands residents in your, or any other electorate, have received a Homelands Extra grant and started improving housing on homelands and outstations?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, Labor asking about homelands – they did not do anything for the homelands while they were in government for 11 years, and now they want to know what we are doing. How dare they! I was there when I heard there would be nothing for homelands. I was on the Indigenous Affairs Advisory Committee and nothing happened for the homelands whilst we were there. There were important people on that committee and you never took any advice from them. Shame on you!
You ask me how the homelands are going …
Ms WALKER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. It was a very specific question. This is an area which sits within the purview of the minister. How many grants have been issued?
Madam SPEAKER: The minister has three minutes to answer the question; it is up to her how she answers it. Minister, you have the call.
Ms Walker: Take it on notice if you do not know the answer.
Mrs PRICE: Thank you, member for Nhulunbuy. There is a review happening, so we will let you know when it is completed.
Special Purpose Leases in
Aboriginal Town Communities
Mr WOOD to the CHIEF MINISTER
My question is about the Aboriginal town communities in the Darwin region. I received a copy of an e-mail from Larrakia Nation to the Aboriginal Development Foundation the other day which said the following:
- I am advised that Mr …
A public servant:
- … Ministerial Chief of Staff, is available to meet on Monday 30th at 9 am at Finlay’s Restaurant to relay the NT government’s position on the special purpose leases 454, 463 and 578. Also present will be a senior policy advisor for the Indigenous MLAs.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, it is a good question. It highlights the fact we are doing things. We are trying to help some of the town camps with how they can economically progress in their land tenure arrangements to move towards greater levels of home ownership and economic development capacity.
There is a review under way by the minister for Lands and Planning of how we can assist town camps transition to a range of opportunities, or stay the same. We are working out how we can do that at the moment.
I am unaware of the process you spoke about in that meeting, but I know there is a range of people here - ministers and local members - who are working together with local people on how to make change in this area ...
Mr Wood: Why am I not allowed to be involved? I was rejected by the previous minister for being involved.
Mr GILES: I do not understand the point of your question. If you have something you want to talk about at the meeting, see me after Question Time.
I believe what you are talking about, member for Nelson, is the progressive change we want to see in town camps. We are trying to provide equity to those residents. We are trying to provide further long-lasting housing opportunities for those people.
This is something that has not happened for so long. Many town camps across the Northern Territory are fenced off, like Soweto, living in Third World, sometimes Fourth World, conditions. We want to be in a position to help transition and change that. Some town camps are in a better state of repair than others. Some of those town camps have better housing maintenance schedules, rental payment scheduling, and leadership. However, there are opportunities in the Darwin region that are being progressed to try to make change.
If you want to have a meeting with someone you can, but the point is - we go back to the comments by the member for Nhulunbuy in her previous question. She was talking about the member for Stuart, ‘You are the minister now’. Let us cast ourselves back to the previous government. You, as the kingmaker in that government, had more power than the member for Nhulunbuy, and you are talking about town camps in your electorate which you could have changed. You could have sat in these meetings. You could have chaired these meetings. You could have driven these reforms. You did not do it, the member for Nhulunbuy did not do it ...
Mr WOOD: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Why is he only talking to Larrakia?
Madam SPEAKER: No, it is not a point of order.
Mr GILES: We are talking to a range of people, member for Nelson. The question is: who did you talk to when you were the kingmaker? What change did you make? What change did the member for Barkly make in Tennant Creek? What change did the Leader of the Opposition make? What change did the member for Nhulunbuy make? What change did the previous advisor for the Housing minister make in this frame, the member for Wanguri? They did not make any changes.
If you want a meeting arrange one, member for Nelson. You could have done this under your watch, but you did not.
October Business Month
Mr KURRUPUWU to MINISTER for BUSINESS
October Business Month has well and truly established itself as the Territory’s biggest business event. How has this year’s event been received by Territory businesses?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arafura for his question. It should be apparent to everyone that the member for Arafura has a huge interest in business. He wants to see his electorate develop economically and he keeps holding me to account as to what is happening in these areas. Good on you, member for Arafura, I will keep trying to answer your questions.
He asked about business confidence and what business thinks of October Business Month. The Sensis Business Index was released recently and shows support for government rose by 10 percentage points in the last quarter, the largest increase of any state or territory government. Overall, Territory business confidence grew by six percentage points to 26%, the second-highest in the nation and well above the national average of 17%, which declined five points over the last quarter.
The Territory, as the Chief Minister said, recorded the highest regional business confidence in the nation. It flies in the face of everything we are hearing from the opposition about people leaving the bush in droves and that they do not like us. The fact is, we have the highest business confidence in the bush of any other jurisdiction in the nation at 47%. It shows things are working.
The Territory economy, according to Treasury forecasts, is set to grow at 5% this year, which would put us near the top economically-performing jurisdiction in the country. Treasury predicts next year growth will be around 7% which will mean we will be the top performing jurisdiction in the country.
This government has made no secret of the fact we are dead keen to drive economic development across the Northern Territory and that we want a diversified economy. We do not want a one-business economy, we want a diversified economy. We want agriculture, tourism, mining, and things such as education services to prosper and grow. The fact is, we are having some success at that. We are working on fixing the failed finances we inherited from the previous government. We are cutting red tape. We are learning to say yes to a range of proposals and are drumming up business for the Northern Territory. Every minister is travelling interstate and overseas, talking up the Territory, telling people how it goes.
Madam Speaker, we want Territorians to be the first to share in the fruits of this. That is why October Business Month this year is so important. It is a County Liberals initiative going back years. It has proved very successful, and we are seeing the fruits of that success in things like the Sensis Business Index …
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired.
Member for Arnhem –
Repayment to Jawoyn Association
Repayment to Jawoyn Association
Mr McCARTHY to CHIEF MINISTER
Following the investigation of ORIC, the Commonwealth regulator, the campaign donation given to your member for Arnhem by the Jawoyn Association was found to be unauthorised. Today, under direction of ORIC, Jawoyn is meeting to decide whether to retrospectively approve the donation to your member of some $8700. It is simply wrong that scarce resources were used to fund CLP political campaigns. Yes? It is time for you and the member to do the right thing. Yes? Will you finally require your member to repay the donation to the Jawoyn Association regardless of the outcome of the board’s vote today?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I will tell you what is wrong. It is wrong that only the Leader of the Opposition’s supporters get a question. The poor member for Fannie Bay has not had a question today. That is just wrong …
Mr McCARTHY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: blatant irrelevance. Please answer the question.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, if you could get to the point.
Mr GILES: I will, Madam Speaker, it is a three-minute answer. The member for Casuarina has not had a question today and we know how he votes. That is wrong. The member for Wanguri has not had a question. As a new member, you would think she would. We talk about the cost of living and Labor bleats on. You would think the member for Wanguri would get a question ...
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The Chief Minister has been asked a question. If he could answer it, please.
Madam SPEAKER: That is not a point of order. Chief Minister, you have the call.
Mr GILES: Thank you very much. Maybe the member for Nightcliff is a Michael Gunner supporter. Maybe she supports the member for Fannie Bay because she did not get a question either. After yesterday’s standout performance by the member for Johnston - the member for Johnston stood up with his fourth question in over 12 months – you would have thought today he might have been the one to get up and ask another one ….
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113. Clearly, this is not relevant at all to the question of whether $8700 should be repaid to the Jawoyn by the member for Arnhem. We know the Chief Minister has no leadership qualities. We know the number has been done, but answer the question ...
Madam SPEAKER: Sit down, it is not a point of order. Chief Minister, if you could address the question, please.
Mr GILES: Madam Speaker, I am getting to that very important question. Normally, what you would expect in opposition is that the gutter work, the nasty work, would be done by the Leader of Opposition business. The member for Fannie Bay is not getting the questions today. It is quite clear the gutter work is going to those people who support the Leader of the Opposition. That is where the gutter work goes. You can see the members for Barkly, and Nhulunbuy – that is where the gutter work is going …
Ms WALKER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113. A serious question has been asked. This is not comedy hour, this is Question Time. It begs a serious answer. By the way, it is Nhulunbuy, not Nullunboy, you goose!
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Nhulunbuy, please be seated!
Mr GILES: This is a gutter question.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Chief Minister, you have the call.
Mr GILES: I thank the member for Nhulunbuy for her interjection, Madam Speaker. The member for Nhulunbuy does not do much, but she screams, shouts, and bleats. No wonder she is going backwards in her electorate because she is not standing up for it.
Let us get to an important point about funding for election campaigns. If an organisation chose to support the member for Arnhem as a candidate, that is a matter for that organisation, it is not a matter for government. This is trying to muckrake to get into the gutter when the Leader of the Opposition is in so much turmoil on her side, with no policy. They do not have a policy.
They do not have eight votes for her, she has four votes. She knows to go to the gutter, ‘Let us go to Labor strategy and try to muckrake and bring a person down for the good work they do in their local electorate’.
Let us get back to what happens with Labor and the unions. All these people who pay union dues - nurses, teachers and many public servants - to get good representation for themselves in the future of their career, where does that money go? How much of that money goes to Labor election campaigns? Are you going to repay that money? This is for individual employees who want good representation from the unions. But, no, the money flows to Labor for elections. Do not lead with your chin! If an organisation wants to support any candidate, good on them. You start repaying the union money back to the unions so they can effectively represent public servants in the Northern Territory ...
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired
Development in the NT - Promotion
Ms FINOCCHIARO to MINISTER for LANDS, PLANNING and the ENVIRONMENT
Development is an important part of the Territory growing and moving forward. What has the government done to promote development in the Northern Territory?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Drysdale for her question. I acknowledge her staunch advocacy for getting development on the ground around her electorate.
A few weeks ago, she accompanied me to a launch of the expression of interest stage of the Maluku Views development in the Palmerston CBD. It is an exciting time for the Territory. We have an unprecedented amount of development under way and in the pipeline. Much it is happening in the Darwin CBD and surrounding suburbs. A couple of months ago, I stood on the balcony of a recently-completed development in the city and looked across the skyline to see many cranes, a sure sign of a prosperous economy; unlike what Labor would like us to believe.
As the Chief Minister said today, the Department of Lands and Planning and the Environment has been inundated with around 1200 development applications across the Territory. That is almost 200 more than we expected this time last year.
We are open for business, and the confident culture promoted by this government is encouraging developers to invest in the great Territory. Development has doubled in the CBD over the last 12 months, with a number of key projects making some impressive progress.
Stage 2 of Toga’s development, the Waterfront Precinct, is well under way, with that fantastic CDU Business School due to open next year. Scaffolding has just been erected around the old Commonwealth Bank site on the corner of Smith and Bennett Streets. A medical centre, restaurants, offices and residential accommodation will be built on the site that has been neglected for a long time. A highly under-utilised site on The Esplanade has been approved for 168 apartments in an 18-storey building. This was one of the gaps on The Esplanade …
Mr McCarthy interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Barkly, you are on a warning!
Mr CHANDLER: … and with the street level, restaurants will add to the growth ability of The Esplanade precinct.
There are a number of applications in the pipeline with the Hilton flagging an expansion of its existing Esplanade Double Tree Hotel to include two new wings and an overall aesthetic upgrade, boosting the hotel’s capacity to 100.
There is a sense of anticipation in the air as the Territory is pulling itself up by the bootstraps and looking forward to a brighter future. Look around the city and at the cranes. Many developments have been approved in the last 12 months, and that is the truth. There are probably 26 major developments in the city at the moment, 13 of which were approved in the last 12 months. That is because this government is open for business. In the first 12 months of government - 26 developments, 13 approved in the last 12 months. That is a lot of action for 12 months, because we are a government that is open for business.
Strategic Indigenous Reserves Policy Deferral
Ms FYLES to MINISTER for LAND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
With no consultation with traditional owners or Indigenous leaders, you deferred a policy on the Strategic Indigenous Reserves for three years. When respected Indigenous leader and Chief Executive Officer of NAILSMA, Mr Joe Morrison, called on you to reinstate the policy you said:
- Aboriginal people need to start thinking about generating their own wealth, their own economies and warehousing water is not the way to do it.
Yet, you actively supported the allocation of a water licence the equivalent to 2500 Olympic swimming pools to a CLP candidate for nine years.
Why do you hold the rights of Indigenous Territorians in such contempt? Did you consult with your colleagues before representing both bush electorates before you scrapped the policy on Strategic Indigenous Reserves? Will you reinstate the policy before all the water from the consumptive pools is allocated?
Mr TOLLNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The question is without fact. We know there was no policy to start with.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Fong Lim, sit down!
Mr Tollner: There was no policy.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Fong Lim, you are on a warning! Member for Nightcliff, please continue.
Ms FYLES: Will you reinstate the policy before all the water from the consumptive pools is allocated?
________________________
Visitors
Visitors
Madam SPEAKER: Before you start your answer, minister, honourable members, I advise of the presence in the gallery of Year 10/11 students from Darwin High School, accompanied by their teacher Jenny Jenkinson. On behalf of honourable members, I welcome you to Parliament House. I hope you enjoy your visit.
Members: Hear, hear!
________________________
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Nightcliff for her question. At least she got it right in the quote I made about Indigenous economic development. Warehousing water is not the way to bring on Indigenous economic development.
As I said in my previous answer, Indigenous people have the same rights to access water as any other landowner in the Northern Territory. Could you ask for a fairer system than that?
By way of background, people in the Northern Territory have, without the need for licensing, access to water for personal use and to water their stock. Indigenous people have an additional right to access water for cultural purposes, but beyond that they have exactly the same rights as everybody else in the Northern Territory.
We, as a government, are doing an outstanding job in bringing on economic development in the Northern Territory. I want to see Aboriginal people come along for the ride. I do not want them to be …
Ms Walker: You are taking them for a ride. That is what you have done.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, member for Nhulunbuy!
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE: I pick up on the interjection from the member for null and void. It does rhyme with Nhulunbuy, does it not, member for null and void?
The Aboriginal folk in the Northern Territory were taken for a ride by the former Labor government, which is why, on 25 August 2012, you were resoundingly removed from office by those Aboriginal people. Do not tell me about being taken for a ride, member for Nhulunbuy ...
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I asked a very direct question: did he consult with his bush colleagues?
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, you have the call.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE: I will answer the question. Yes, I did consult with my bush colleagues. Clearly you have not read the statement that is coming on later today on water resources. It was the lobbying of good members of parliament, such as the members for Stuart, Daly, Arnhem, and Arafura, that brought about the decision to review this policy after three years and go into a consultation period.
So, yes, member for Nightcliff, I did consult with the bush members. The input they had into this process helped me to determine there would be a review period. They did an outstanding job, as you would expect from good members of parliament representing Indigenous people across the Northern Territory.
Tourism Incentives
Ms LEE to MINISTER for TOURISM
While the current Leader of the Opposition has openly said in public she hates tourists, the Country Liberals government is doing everything it can to boost tourism to help local businesses. Can the minister please update the House on the government’s latest incentives to attract more tourists to all our regions and help build a more prosperous economy for our Territory?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arnhem for her question. She is very committed to economic development through tourism opportunities throughout the Arnhem region. She is constantly knocking on my door to see what we can do in that region. We have some great operators in the Arnhem region.
There has been a bit criticism lately about my non-attendance at the TCA Awards the other night. Yes, guilty as charged, naughty, naughty, I did not go. It seems the only people really offended by that were the two editors of the two newspapers, the Centralian Advocate and the NT News, and the disgruntled Labor Party across the road.
We were well represented at the awards the other night ...
Members interjecting.
Mr CONLAN: I will tell you what I did on Friday night. I picked up my kids from day care, drove them home, played with them in the back yard, cooked them dinner, bathed them, and kissed them good night. I have not done that for God knows how long - probably 12 months. I make no apology for that and would do it again in a heartbeat.
Having said that, we were well represented at the awards night. We had a pretty solid contingent from Tourism NT and, of course, our board of commissioners. Do you know who was not represented at the awards night? The NT opposition. Do you know why? Because they hate tourists. The Leader of the Opposition hates tourists. Not only do they hate tourists, we also understand today they hate Marines, homelands and tourists. You can see by the figures where they left the Northern Territory tourism industry …
Mr VOWLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. I am happy to lend the minister $10 for the cab ride to the awards.
Madam SPEAKER: Sit down, it is not a point of order. Minister, you have the call.
Mr CONLAN: Madam Speaker, it is also convenient for the story that it happened to be in my home town. They have spiced it up a little. However, it would not matter if the awards were in Tennant Creek, Katherine, Timbuktu or Mars, the story would have still got up. They could not resist the, ‘Where the bloody hell were you, Matt?’ line.
We all know a small part of the job is attending dinners and functions, but the core part of the job as minister for Tourism is to grow the visitor economy. That is what we are here to do. The awards and all that – fine, we do what we can. The core job and my core responsibility is to grow the visitor economy and market the Northern Territory as the preferred holiday destination above all others, and that is exactly what we are doing as we embark on our $30m marketing campaign.
We have injected an extra $8m into marketing the Northern Territory, unlike the Labor Party, which stripped marketing money from the NT. Is it any wonder they hate tourists? Is it any wonder the Northern Territory tourism economy was left faltering under the Labor Party?
ANSWER TO QUESTION
Infrastructure Projects Delivered by Federal Labor Government
Infrastructure Projects Delivered by Federal Labor Government
Mrs PRICE (Community Services): Madam Speaker, I took a question on notice and I have the answer for it. The answer is the majority of Labor money is under the Stronger Futures program. What will be different is I will ensure that money is spent in the best way possible in consultation with communities, homelands, and town camps
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