2011-05-05
Budget 2011-12 – Increasing Territory Debt
Mr MILLS to TREASURER
In parliament this week, you used the examples of budget deficits racked up by the Victorian and ACT governments to justify your descent into debt; however, there is a difference. In Victoria, the deficit is $287 per person this financial year, going to $234 per person next financial year. In the ACT, it is $401 this financial year, growing to $944 per person next financial year. By contrast, the Territory’s per person deficit is $1283 per person, growing to a whopping $1663 per person next financial year. If you put that onto one of your flash little graphs, you would see quite a different looking graph.
It is not fair that Territorians are being lumped with substantial debt to pay for your election promises. How can you claim that your government’s decision to spiral the Territory deeper into debt is, in fact, responsible?
Madam SPEAKER: Your time has expired.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. He simply does not get it. The Territory is a developing jurisdiction. We ran eight consecutive surpluses in a row under Labor. We inherited, of course, a zero flatline economy; zero growth under the CLP - it was flatlining. Construction workers were leaving town in their droves and we had to come in and turn it all around. We turned economic growth around. We were tracking at in excess of 5% economic growth by the time the global financial crisis hit. This place was a boom town. We delivered eight consecutive surpluses in a row, taking $582m off the debt. We have driven debt downwards by $582m through our eight consecutive surpluses in a row.
Over the same period, total private investment in the Territory was $38.9m, inflation adjusted, delivering the waterfront development, Bayu-Undan, the LNG plant, the Alcan expansion, Blacktip, the pipeline, Montara and GEMCO.
The opposition would have you believe that, no, nothing happened; we did not use GST revenue appropriately - we did. We used GST revenue to improve critical services in health, education, housing, police - bearing in mind they had frozen police numbers for four years; not one additional policeman in four years. We reduced the debt by eight surpluses in a row, despite improving dramatically the numbers of doctors, nurses, teachers, police officers and child protection workers. We attracted significant private investment, some $38.9m.
The global financial crisis hit. We were in surplus, tracking well and driving debt down. We did the responsible thing. The International Monetary Fund said at the time that governments need to step up the public spend to support growth in their economies and to support jobs …
Mr MILLS: A point of order, Madam Speaker! To assist the Treasurer, she obviously has the wrong take on this. It is really by way of assistance, I would like to table this …
Madam SPEAKER: You cannot table something in a point of order, Leader of the Opposition.
Mr MILLS: I offer this to the Treasurer so she can add that to the pack so people can get a proper understanding.
Madam SPEAKER: Treasurer, you have the call. It is not a point of order.
Ms LAWRIE: What you do need to look at is where jurisdictions are at. Victoria was tracking at significant surpluses pre-GFC and has plunged into cash deficit as a result of its step-up and spend post-global financial crisis. It is a very developed economy; it has the manufacturing sector and the like. We are a developing economy. I am pointing out that, as a result of the global financial crisis, all jurisdictions in Australia deliberately went into deficit to save jobs and to create economic growth. That has worked. We have created 12 000 jobs in the Territory.
Explain to the Master Builders that you would slash the infrastructure program to stay in surplus, to send their businesses bust, and to send Territorians into the unemployment queues.
Alcohol-Related Crime – Government Commitment to Tackle
Ms SCRYMGOUR to CHIEF MINISTER
Can you please outline to the House the government’s commitment to tackling alcohol-related crime?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arafura for her question. In the Northern Territory, 60% of all assaults are alcohol-related. It is very clear: if you are not tackling alcohol, you are not tackling crime. It is not just crime; the scourge of alcohol--related violence and neglect of children hits the health budget, stops kids going to school, and increases the vulnerability of children throughout the Northern Territory. In fact, every aspect of our society is adversely affected by the abuse of alcohol. The figures show - and they are somewhat dated now – it costs us over $640m a year. That is why we are introducing the toughest alcohol measures this nation has ever seen; a five-point plan to tackle alcohol and crime. These are the toughest alcohol laws in the country.
The reality is, if you do not break the law, if you are not a nuisance, nothing is going to change. Under our reforms, if you commit alcohol-related crime, or you are repeatedly taken into protective custody, you will be banned from accessing alcohol. Treatment will be mandated, with services expanded with $67m invested over five years. We will be introducing a banned drinkers register to ensure the bans on purchasing alcohol will be enforced. Nothing changes unless you have a ban.
Perversely, the CLP oppose the banned drinkers register. The CLP wants to see people continue to have access to alcohol. People who abuse alcohol will continue to have access to alcohol under the CLP plans. The CLP opposes enforcing alcohol bans on people who commit alcohol-related crime. If they oppose the register …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
Mr HENDERSON: If they oppose the register, they oppose the ban on people, and people will keep drinking. Who can forget …
Mr ELFERINK: A point of order, Madam Speaker! It is incumbent upon the Chief Minister to represent the facts honestly. He is not doing so. I ask that you instruct him to do so.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Port Darwin, resume your seat.
Mr TOLLNER: A point or order, Madam Speaker! If the Chief Minister is ignorant of the Country Liberals’ position then he should seek a briefing.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Fong Lim, resume your seat. That is not a point of order, member for Fong Lim; you know that. Chief Minister, you have the call.
Mr HENDERSON: It is a fact that the CLP opposes the banned drinkers register. If you do not have a register, how can you be banned …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, order!
Mr HENDERSON: If you do not have a register, you cannot be banned. The opposition likes to talk about crime, but it is soft on alcohol, therefore it is soft on alcohol-related crime. The CLP will continue to see people who should be banned …
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, your time has expired.
Mr HENDERSON: … from accessing alcohol continue to drink and continue to commit crime …
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, your time has expired!
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Visitors
Visitors
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I draw your attention to the presence in the gallery of the father of the member for Drysdale, Mr Gordon Bohlin, who is here from Port Augusta. On behalf of honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
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Budget Deficit
Mr MILLS to TREASURER
You have spent the last few days playing down the severity of the Territory’s debt position, confirmation that you are a deficit and debt denier. You have these cute little graphs. The other day, you told us, and anyone who would listen, that we are doing really well compared to Greece, Ireland and Portugal. When you compare that with per-capita debt …
Ms Lawrie: And Japan.
Mr MILLS: Yes. Ireland and Greece are not doing as well as the Territory, but we are not doing as well as Portugal.
With our per-capita debt only marginally behind the economic basket case of Greece, given that you have no money and the Commonwealth is about to slash assistance further, and you have no plan for budget surpluses, will you follow your normal practice and make Territorians clean up your mess?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, he is getting excited because his budget reply made page 13 of the NT News. It just goes to show how excited people were about what he had to say. His one-shot-in-the-locker, that ‘we will scrap the prison’, does not make any economic sense at all. He needs to listen to the expert committee advice – the one-shot-in-the-locker was canned pretty widely.
Very clearly, the opposition still does not understand, despite the fact the Chamber of Commerce, the Master Builders and the independent economist from the National Australia Bank have all said modest deficits are the thing to do at this time in the economic cycle. You need to keep Territorians in a job because private sector investment has fallen away as a result of the credit constraint following the global financial crisis. Industries are doing it tough. Without the higher public spend through that infrastructure spend, without the support we have flowing through the budgets in tourism initiatives and the like, you literally would have unemployment start to soar in the Territory. You would have businesses go to the wall and go under. You would start to drive down economic growth.
We know that is where the CLP was. We had zero per cent, and we were flatlining in economic growth when they were last in government. You had workers leaving the Territory in droves because construction did not have the cash to meet their capital program. Construction had nose-dived.
Modest deficits, manageable levels of debt going forward - even the economist at NAB said that to the media. You are never going to understand it because you are economic vandals.
For your own vanity, you would post a surplus in a budget at a time in an economic cycle where you need to be bold, responsible, and responsive to needs. Step up, take the pain of having to announce a modest deficit, because you will get a political slap like you are trying to do now, but it is the responsible and responsive thing to do.
Listen to industry - Master Builders, Chamber of Commerce, the economists are saying that manageable modest deficits, and manageable debt is the right thing in the economic cycle to do. GST revenues are down, the high public spend is up as a result of the global financial crisis. All the jurisdictions in Australia are into cash deficit country. Why? Because they did the responsible thing to step up the spend to support jobs in their jurisdictions. That is why our nation and the Territory missed the very worst of the global financial crisis. We responded swiftly with stimulus packages. We are continuing the stimulus in this budget. Because Commonwealth stimulus is dropping out, our infrastructure percentage spend is 70% of the infrastructure budget now.
Budget 2011-12 – Alcohol Reforms
Mr GUNNER to MINISTER for ALCOHOL POLICY
Can you please outline to the House the resources directed to tackling alcohol-related crime and increasing rehabilitation options to support the alcohol reforms in Budget 2011-12?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Fannie Bay for his question. In his electorate he understands that people are absolutely fed up with public drunkenness. They have said enough …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms LAWRIE: They truly are a rabble. You start to answer a question and they all start to arc up with their interjections. They are divided, they spend their time in the backrooms arguing with each other, coming in here, rowing each other. They truly are a rabble.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms LAWRIE: Sixty per cent of all assaults in the Territory are alcohol fuelled, 67% of domestic violence incidents across the Territory directly relate to crime.
As a government, we know if you are going to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour, you have to tackle grog. The alcohol reforms are targeted. They will turn the problem drinker off tap to stop the violence. We are targeting drinkers who are taken into protective custody three times in three months, or who commit alcohol-related crime and violence.
We have backed up the reforms with significant new funding to roll out the ID system, to support police to implement the bans, to establish an Alcohol and Other Drugs Tribunal and the SMART Court and, importantly, to increase treatment options. We have committed $67m over five years, including $34m for treatment options. Budget 2011-12 delivers the first tranche of that, $10.9m, including $5.2m to boost treatment capacity as these reforms roll out.
We will spend $3.2m to install the banned drinker register ID scanners in every takeaway liquor outlet across the Territory. The ID scanners are a critical tool to stop the flow of alcohol to banned problem drinkers, to ensure where a person is banned in one community they are banned Territory-wide. They are banned everywhere; they are off tap everywhere. There is $1.5m for police to implement the bans; $5.2m will go to more treatment and rehabilitation services across our regional centres for more treatment beds, counselling, after care, and outreach services to remote areas.
Compare this to the CLP which first believed there was a negligible link between violence and alcohol. I remind the member for Sanderson of that absolute corker. The CLP wants to open the rivers of grog in Alice Springs, despite their federal leader Mr Tony Abbott supporting alcohol restrictions …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
Ms LAWRIE: As recently as last week, the CLP stated it does not have an alcohol policy. I quote from the shadow Health minister, Matt Conlan, on ABC TV:
- The Country Liberals at the moment as we approach the next election are formulating a rock-solid, watertight alcohol policy.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Treasurer, your time has expired. Order! Your time has expired.
Budget 2011-12 - Public Housing Program
Mr MILLS to TREASURER
At this morning’s Master Builders’ breakfast, you were asked a question about why you have not accelerated the public housing building program to encourage private investment. To the dismay of many listeners, you failed to answer the question. If residential development is critical to boosting levels of private investment, why has your budget so badly missed the mark?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, he has a bit of form, because he is misquoting the question. Those who were there know he is. He has form on that because he tried to misquote and mislead yesterday in Question Time …
Mr ELFERINK: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The Treasurer well knows that if she wants to accuse him of misleading this House, she can do so by way of substantive motion or she withdraws it.
Madam SPEAKER: Treasurer, can you just withdraw that comment, thank you, and reword?
Ms LAWRIE: Yes, he was in furphy land yet again. We are used to that ….
Madam SPEAKER: If you could just withdraw the comment though, thank you.
Ms LAWRIE: I withdraw, Madam Speaker. Another furphy from Terry, but I withdraw.
The Master Builders Association members were quite pleased with the amount of funding in the budget for public housing. In relation to stimulating the market with the BuildBonus, I was asked what could be done to accelerate that spend. I stated it was a good question. I pointed out that the Minister for Public and Affordable Housing had a track record of accelerating the construction activity, particularly the R&M activity of the department of Housing. I am sure the minister is well on top of any opportunity to accelerate the actual construct.
What do you need to accelerate a construct? First, you need the money in the budget; that is what we have delivered. Second, you need the land on which to do it; that is what we have delivered. We have spent tens of millions of dollars, budget on budget, rolling out headworks across those all-important Palmerston East suburbs. That is where the house and land packages will be available. Of course, you need the blocks and the sites on which to do the construct and builds.
Sites have been identified in Palmerston East and across suburbs in Darwin for the construction of one- and two-bedroom units. I do not have the figures with me, but it has been the most comprehensive increase in public housing stock through the national partnership stimulus dollars with the Commonwealth that we saw significantly in the 2010-11 budget. New stock has been coming online at a rapid rate across our urban centres as a result of that stimulus partnership agreement with the activity of the department of Housing, driven by our Housing minister. He is also turning stock around at a rapid rate regarding when stock is vacated, doing a total refurbishment and bringing it on for tenancy.
We have new accommodation for transitional public housing. At Crerar Road there are 78 beds. There are 70 beds at Percy Court in Alice Springs, which is new stock. In Alice Springs, the figures are around 520 additional public housing beds in this calendar year. That accelerated construction of public housing is unheard of in the Territory over the last few decades.
Rural Village Development Discussion Paper
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for LANDS and PLANNING
Your department recently ventured out into the rural area with a document titled Rural Village Development Discussion Paper. My Macquarie Dictionary defines village as ‘a small assemblage of houses in a country district’. How does your government reconcile the normal definition of the word ‘village’ with this discussion paper, which proposes over 7000 urban-sized blocks of land, doubling the existing number of blocks in the rural area? Villages will be 10 to 20 times bigger than they are now; villages could be up to 7 km long; suburban development where there are no villages, such as near Wallaby Holtze Road; and an increase in population of over 35 000.
I emphasise that I support increased development in our existing villages, but still retain rural living. However, is not the use of the word ‘village’ deceitful when this paper is really about the suburbanisation or densification of the rural area?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Nelson for his question. No, it is not deceitful; it is a concept …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr McCARTHY: This is the Rural Village Development Discussion Paper. The discussion paper is about opening the dialogue with 19 000 people living in the rural area. I ask the member to table the document he was reading from, because I would like to include it as legitimate input from a concerned rural resident. The member for Nelson is a very important rural constituent.
Mr Wood: Madam Speaker, I am happy to table the minister’s own document.
Madam SPEAKER: Resume your seat, member for Nelson. Keep going, minister.
Mr McCARTHY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. I was hoping you would table the question, member for Nelson, because it has some interesting information …
Mr Wood: Happy to table the question too.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Nelson, resume your seat. You can hand it to the minister later.
Mr McCARTHY: We will include that in the consultation with 19 000 other rural residents.
We value the input of the member for Nelson as an important rural constituent, and we look forward to all the feedback. I have personally taken this on the road, the first one at Berry Springs. It is about a good, positive, open land use strategy. A real strategy ...
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr McCARTHY: If we can talk about the principles without the interjections ...
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
Mr McCARTHY: We are looking to accommodate growth and we want to ensure affordable housing …
Mr WOOD: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The question was in relation to the word ‘village’. Why was it called village when it is not about village?
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Nelson, that is not a point of order. Minister, you have the call.
Mr McCARTHY: It is about villages and it is about the densification of a very small village node. The concept of a village in relation to new urban thinking is walkable, liveable and sustainable. The people from Berry Springs were very interested in the concept. They were also concerned about the bigger picture of the rural area. That is when we got into the discussion about buffer zones and about how an intensification area would create services for walkable, sustainable living. They were also interested when I raised the point about their children - their Gen Y children may choose to live in a rural area but may choose to live in a different concept.
If the village is an offensive word, then we can deal with that. The concept, member for Nelson, stands. It is about delivering affordable options. It is one part ...
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired.
Palmerston and Rural Region – Health Services
Ms WALKER to MINISTER for HEALTH
Can you please update the House on what this government is doing to make it easier for families in the Palmerston and rural region to access health services?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, that is a very good question. Yesterday, as Minister for Health, I was pleased to assist the Chief Minister, the federal minister Warren Snowdon and Senator Crossin announce something very significant for the Territory, in particular for Palmerston. Yesterday, the federal government announced $150m up-front for health infrastructure for the Territory. This is a first for the Territory; it is nearly 10% of the total funds allocated around Australia by the federal government.
The most important issue, apart from the fact there will be seven clinics constructed in rural and remote areas - the money being spent in Nhulunbuy, Tennant Creek and Katherine - the most important one was the announcement of the new 60-bed hospital in Palmerston. The federal government allocated $70m and our government contributed $40m. We have already done the scoping study for the hospital. A hospital will be built in the next two years that will include a 24-hour emergency department and other specialist suites.
We promised a hospital and we are delivering a hospital. In 2008, the CLP promised a 130-bed hospital in Palmerston without doing any planning at all and, if you look at the fine print, it says the hospital will be built in 15 years and, as a first payment, $6m. That must be a real bargain hospital! I will take three of those hospitals ...
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Greatorex! Order! Order!
Mr VATSKALIS: There will be a 24-hour emergency department at the Palmerston hospital. The member for Greatorex misses his turntable. He is getting a brand new emergency department in Alice Springs Hospital, with construction starting in June - $19m. Your birthday came too.
Madam Speaker, this is what we are delivering for people in the Northern Territory, and in Palmerston. We also delivered the Super Clinic in Palmerston, the one the member for Blain did not want. Yesterday, there was consultation in Darwin for a northern suburbs super clinic. I offered the Leader of the Opposition an opportunity to go with me to listen to what people had to say, and to put his position of why he does not like super clinics. He did not even respond to my letter. This is the attitude of the CLP: promises, promises, promises, but deliver nothing.
BuildBonus Scheme – Application for Low-income Territorians
Mr CHANDLER to TREASURER
You have announced a scheme to give Territorians $10 000 to build a new home. Is it not the case that the $10 000 will not help low-income Territorians who are struggling to save for a deposit because of the high costs of housing? In fact, it is more likely to increase the price of a home. How will your temporary scheme provide any lasting relief for struggling families trying to build a home?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I am glad the opposition is bagging BuildBonus, because they are out there on their own, apart from Trevor Dalton, of course, who does not seem to understand it.
I will put it pretty simply. There is currently a $7000 grant to assist the first homeowner trying to get into the housing market. The $10 000 BuildBonus will turn that $7000 into $17 000. Ask the first homeowner if they want to be given $17 000 from the taxpayer to help them buy a home. The answer is going to be yes.
Ask the person looking for a principal place of residence purchase - that is, they have owned before but often divorce occurs, they are back in the rental market and they want to buy again, so they are not eligible for the $7000 First Home Owner Grant. Ask them if they want to be given $10 000 by the taxpayer to get into a home.
Ask the person who is an investor who is looking at an opportunity to get an investment property, a rental property, to help with the family assets and help with the family prosperity - but also useful for us as help with the rental market. Ask them if they want to be given $10 000 by the taxpayer to purchase a rental property. I will give you the tip: the answer is yes.
What the government does regarding affordability to get into the housing market through the loan scenario is Homestart NT. Homestart NT is about getting the low- to middle-income earners a leg up into the property market. They are the ones the financial institutions, basically, do not want to touch; their income levels are too low. In this budget, we reset the price caps on Homestart NT: $530 000 is the price cap for Darwin and Palmerston, and there are adjusted regional price caps. We have increased the income limit for anyone going into Homestart NT, so that gives them access to 40% of the property market, but paying less than 30% of their income in mortgage. That is the affordability aspect.
If you want to look at what we have done in the past – the proof in the pudding, for example - Buildstart. That was the last payment stimulus scheme we had as a result of the global financial crisis. A total of 992 homes were purchased by accessing Buildstart. You are saying - the wise member for Brennan - that no one is going to be helped here. Well, Buildstart helped 992 people purchase into the property market. The figures were very high - and I do not have them on me - for the First Home Owners Boost scheme that operated at the same time as Buildstart. So, the proof is always in the pudding. The experience has been that 1000 Territorians are now homeowners in the property market as a result of those boost schemes.
We have backed it up with BuildBonus. It is innovative but, importantly, it also generates jobs because it goes to new construction. It will generate jobs in the housing market this Dry Season ahead of the boom times that are coming in 2012 because, as we know, we have some extremely exciting economic growth on our horizon.
Budget 2011-12 – Sport and Recreation Opportunities
Ms SCRYMGOUR to MINISTER for SPORT and RECREATION
Can you please update the House on Budget 2011-12 and how it delivers more sport and recreation opportunities for Territory families?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arafura for her very good question. Budget 2011-12 continues this government’s great record on delivering for sport and recreation in the Northern Territory. It was my pleasure to be at Gray Primary School at Palmerston today with some of the representatives from the Palmerston Football Club to look at the work being undertaken there. The new football facilities, two senior ovals and four junior ovals, are going ahead in leaps and bounds, with Norbuilt doing a fantastic job.
That is a very good example of what this government is delivering in Budget 2011-12. We are delivering on election commitments, but also the fantastic social infrastructure for our fastest-growing city in the Northern Territory.
Other great announcements include $2.6m in Budget 2011-12 to stage the Arafura Games. This Saturday is the opening ceremony at TIO Stadium. A big thank you to the 1000 volunteers supporting the Arafura Games.
The V8 Supercars, a fantastic event for the Territory, is getting some well-needed money, along with the Super Bikes; we continue to bring AFL games to the Territory, including Alice Springs; as well as the Rugby League, the Rugby Union - you name it, we bring it to the Territory.
Budget 2011-12 delivers new and improved sport and recreation facilities, not only for Palmerston but right across the Northern Territory. There is $4m for the new squash courts at Marrara sporting precinct, and what a fantastic precinct we have there, thanks to this government.
It is a great budget. It delivers for Territorians; it delivers for sport and recreation.
Budget 2011-12 – Agricultural Initiatives
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for PRIMARY INDUSTRY, FISHERIES and RESOURCES
In this year’s Budget Paper No 3, page 154, it indicates that there will be $180 000 to evaluate the potential of new rice varieties under flooded and irrigated production systems in the Douglas Daly and Katherine regions. I believe anything that expands our agricultural economy is good news. Could you please give some details of this project? How does the government balance the views that you once expressed on 5 October 2004, where you said: ‘We do not want to put added pressure on land and water resources by having broad acreage crops such as cotton’, - which I do not agree with. What is your view now in relation to rice?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Nelson for his important question. Earlier this year, I launched the Agribusiness Industry Strategy, which was wholeheartedly accepted and endorsed by the industry. It was actually written by the industry.
One of the five pillars of the strategy is profitable and productive agribusiness. That is why the department is engaged in the research. We had the experiments in the 1960s and 1980s with rice, which were flops; they did not work very well. We have now decided to undertake other research based on the industry. The advice we have from the International Rice Institute is to try some trials on dry land - to produce rice on dry land under different water conditions. We know there are new varieties and there are new methods of cultivation. We do not need rice paddies, as in Asia. We had some fantastic results in Katherine when we trialled a number of cultivars. Some of them gave up to 2000 kg/ha, and that was done in dry conditions.
We will try anything to expand the industry and to ensure there is profitable agriculture in the Territory. It is very good research. We have to do it. We do not have to have vast areas of land covered in water. I believe it is a wise use of land and wise use of our efforts to find out if we can produce rice using a different method.
For your information, I know you used the Macquarie Dictionary for the definition of ‘village’, but I would like to advise you that my parents’ village in Epirus in Greece had 2000 houses and 4000 people.
Aeromedical Contract
Mr CONLAN to MINISTER for HEALTH
Yesterday, you were asked a question by the member for Nelson regarding the aeromedical contract. You effectively said that it does not appear in the budget papers. You then said not to worry because it is there. The aeromedical contract is worth tens of millions of dollars. Can you please explain to the House how an expenditure of that magnitude does not appear in the budget papers?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, as I said yesterday, the contract has not yet been negotiated. That is why the money does not appear in the budget. The monies are held in the Central Holding Authority, expecting the contract to be finalised. The money will be available, and it will be available for a very vital service in the Territory.
Budget 2011-12 - Road Network Repairs
Mr GUNNER to MINISTER for TRANSPORT
Road repairs are under way across the Territory following this year’s record Wet Season. Can you please outline to the House how Budget 2011-12 …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr GUNNER: … will improve the Territory’s road network?
Mr Giles: Talk about the potholes.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I will pick up on the interjection, but a bit later.
I am talking about opportunities in Budget 2011-12 in the land of opportunities. That comes with a $1.5bn infrastructure budget, and I tell you what, it is being welcomed right across the Territory.
Budget 2011-12 provides $307m for roads. This represents our government’s commitment to developing and repairing that vital road transport infrastructure. There is 22 000 km of roads under this government’s care which, this year, has sustained considerable damage. I am pleased to advise the government has boosted its contribution to repairs and maintenance of our roads by $14m, a total of $74m in Budget 2011-12. When working with the Australian government, a total of $93m is invested into repair and maintenance this year.
I came to these sittings by four major highways in the Northern Territory. I am receiving very positive comments about the ads making the public aware, over the long Easter, Anzac Day and May Day holiday break …
Mr Giles: What about the pothole repairs? Are you getting any positive comments?
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
Mr McCARTHY: … I am getting positive comments from roadhouse operators, from tourists, and locals, that the government has made people aware, because people from Darwin suburbs and from Alice Springs’ air-conditioned offices do not necessarily get out there that much to know what is going on …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
Mr McCARTHY: I have had some positive comments about the education and awareness program that this government ran over some very intense holiday periods in Easter, Anzac Day and May.
Let us get down to some nitty-gritty, because there are some great stories to tell. The roads program is building on opportunities across the Territory in everyone’s electorate. This is the thing. This is what these guys do not seem to get. There is $56m for the Port Keats Road and the bridge over the Daly River; $2m for the Tanami; Umbakumba; overtaking lanes between Darwin and Katherine; bridges on the King River; Tiger Brennan Drive project, providing that incredible road transport infrastructure with safety and better travel times for families, and to deliver business to the port.
These are all major projects that are delivered by a Labor government, delivered in partnership with an Australian Labor government, that gives that extra bang for the buck. It is a story that Territorians are welcoming across the Territory. It goes a lot further than this Chamber. You guys should get out and tell the true story about this as a proper and accountable fiscal stimulus strategy that is growing the Territory, preserving jobs and building infrastructure for the future.
Pothole Repair Advertising Campaign
Mr BOHLIN to MINISTER for CONSTRUCTION
As you are so familiar with the television advertising campaign, and you just explained how familiar you are telling Territorians that you are filling in some potholes - last month, the Chief Minister said on ABC radio he had instructed you to draft a plan to deal with the Territory’s appalling highway network. Can you table that plan and tell Territorians how much money the pothole advertising campaign is costing taxpayers? While you are at it, can you explain to Territorians how many extra potholes that money could have filled had you not wasted it on advertising?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, let us deconstruct that question from a suit in an air-conditioned office in Palmerston. First, I will talk about our team: the Chief Minister, the Deputy Chief Minister, and our team working on delivering road infrastructure to the Territory, with $93m for repair …
Mr ELFERINK: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113. He knows that the answers have to be succinct. A lecture on our team does not answer the question.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Port Darwin, there was a considerable preamble to that question. The minister has the call.
Mr McCARTHY: Never had a succinct moment in his life, but he dares get up and speak to me like that …
Mr Elferink: You are an idiot!
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Port Darwin, I ask you to withdraw, please.
Mr ELFERINK: I withdraw that the minister is an idiot.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you.
Mr McCARTHY: Madam Speaker, $307m in the budget for roads transport infrastructure; $93m into repairs and maintenance. By the way, the advertising campaign has not yet finished, but I will get you the figures as soon as it is over. I will also get you the figures about the repairs and maintenance program that is going on. If you had got out of your air-conditioned office and your suit, mate, and gone down the track and had a look, then you would understand …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr McCARTHY: … and the member for Fong Lim, a well-balanced, well-travelled Territorian, confirmed, with a whole heap of life experience he was sharing with the group yesterday - I thought that was wonderful - he got down as far as Mataranka …
Mr GILES: A point of order, Madam Speaker? The question is how much did the pothole ads cost? We want to know how much the pothole adds cost taxpayers.
Madam SPEAKER: There was actually a lot more to the question than that. Minister, if you can come to the point fairly soon.
Mr McCARTHY: I said to the member for Drysdale and the shadow for Construction, I will deliver that information when the advertisements have run their course because, at the moment, they are still making Territorians aware that …
Mr CONLAN: A point of order, Madam Speaker! We can have a 15-second preamble and he can have a two-and-a-half minute rant without answering the question. When is enough enough?
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Greatorex, resume your seat! Resume your seat! Order! Stop the clock.
Honourable members, Standing Order 51:
- No Member may converse aloud or make any noise or disturbance, which in the opinion of the Speaker is designed to interrupt or has the effect of interrupting a Member speaking.
Minister, you have the call. You have a short period of time left. Come to the point fairly quickly. Thank you.
Mr McCARTHY: This is going way out of my comfort zone; however, we had a fatality-free Easter/Anzac holiday. How much do you put on that? What price do you put on that?
I will deliver those figures. I will continue to repair roads infrastructure with a record repairs and maintenance budget.
Howard Springs Nature Park - Upgrades
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for PARKS and WILDLIFE
On page 17 of Budget Highlights, it says the government will spend $2.5m on upgrades at the Howard Springs Nature Park. You are offering a waterfall and a series of pools as a replacement for not being able to swim there. Could you please say why the depth of the pools is being reduced from 300 mm to 200 mm? Will that not simply be a birdbath or a spot for a tea bag, and actually not cool anyone down, but simply be a waste of money?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his question. Howard Springs is a very beautiful place. I have the opportunity to go there quite a bit. I know the local member enjoys that place.
This government has invested much money into Howard Springs’ redevelopment. I acknowledge the issues with the springs and the quality of water. We work very closely with the local management committee. We had the committee conduct a survey amongst the community, including at Freds Pass Show, about what they thought the redeveloped park should look like. Included in that was part of the pools that …
Mr WOOD: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The question simply was why are the pool depths being reduced from 300 mm to 200 mm?
Mr HAMPTON: I am getting there.
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, if you can come to the point when you finish that part, please?
Mr HAMPTON: I probably had about 20 seconds. My point is, we work through the local management committee. They did a survey of residents at Freds Pass Show; they put together the redevelopment of Howard Springs. What was really popular in the surveys, was what the park should look like in the waterfall area - the pools. It is not very deep, it is probably up to the middle of my shins, but that was based on their survey - what residents were saying should be done to enhance the local environment. It was a decision of the local management committee, through their survey …
Mr WOOD: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I know all that. The question was: why was it reduced? As far as I know, it has been reduced by the department, not the committee.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Nelson, that is not a point of order. The minister is answering the question.
Mr HAMPTON: The advice I have and what I am working on is what was said in the survey by residents, what the local management committee would like to see done there to enhance the natural environment. The redevelopment is based on the local management committee, their survey, and what people are telling us they want.
Budget 2011-12 – Effect on Territory Business
Ms WALKER to MINISTER for BUSINESS and EMPLOYMENT
Can the minister please outline to the House why Budget 2011-12 is good for Territory business?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, the Territory Budget 2011-12 supports Territory businesses. It does that by slashing taxes, targeting training programs, attracting skilled workers, and is also a massive investment in our public sector. It has been eye-opening for me these last few days, attending the budget forums. The Chamber of Commerce, the peak business organisation in the Northern Territory, indicated at its lunch that it supports the budget. We had two breakfasts over the last two days, the Property Council and the Master Builders Association, by and large, supporting this budget.
The lone voice of opposition against it has been Terry Mills. Terry Mills has been a …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, I remind you to refer to members by their titles, please.
Mr KNIGHT: Sorry, Madam Speaker. The Leader of the Opposition has been opposed to this budget. The peak business organisation is supporting it; the Leader of the Opposition is against it. The peak building organisation is for it; the Leader of the Opposition is against it.
This budget contains much for business …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
Mr KNIGHT: We say that businesses should pay less taxation on their payroll. We are going from 5.9% down to 5.5%, so we support businesses paying less payroll tax. The Leader of the Opposition says they should pay more; we say businesses should pay almost $7m less in payroll tax. The Leader of the Opposition says they should pay that. Cumulatively, since 2001, businesses have saved $365m, into their pockets or invested into their businesses. The Leader of the Opposition is against those tax cuts.
We are saying that $307m should go into roads; the Leader of the Opposition says no, you should not put that into roads. We are saying we should invest money in power, water, and sewerage to the tune of $375m; the Leader of the Opposition is against that. We are saying we should invest some $40m in land release, and $29m in industrial land. This is all about stimulating our businesses and making this the most business-friendly environment.
By his actions, the Leader of the Opposition is anti-business – the first conservative leader in the Northern Territory to be anti-business, anti-development. He is opposed to a budget which has been applauded by the business community throughout the Northern Territory. This is a very good budget for business. It is disgraceful that the Leader of the Opposition is descending into an anti-business, anti-development saga ...
Madam SPEAKER: Your time has expired, minister.
Mr Mills: I challenge you to a public debate in the Chamber of Commerce, brother!
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Leader of the Opposition!
Carbon Tax – Government Position
Mr TOLLNER to CHIEF MINISTER
Last night, this parliament passed, on the voices – that is, without any recorded dissent - a motion calling on the Australian government to exempt the Northern Territory from the proposed carbon tax for at least 50 years …
Dr BURNS: A point of order, Madam Speaker! On the voices it was a very clear no from this side of the House. So it was recorded, and you will find it in Hansard.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order! What is it, member for Port Darwin?
Mr ELFERINK: Speaking to the point of order, Madam Speaker!
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order, member for Port Darwin.
Mr Elferink: The minister knows full well that you can …
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr TOLLNER: Of course, it was passed on the voices, Madam Speaker. You were here, you are aware of that. It was passed without any recorded opposition.
Will this government now submit to the clear will of this parliament and publicly campaign against the imposition of a carbon tax in the Northern Territory?
ANSWER
Really, you guys have to put him in that chair over there. He is so much better than this bloke over here. He knows where the issues are. He knows where the points of debate are, and he would do you so much better by sitting in that chair. I wonder how long it will to take for the rest of you to wake up to that.
The issue of the carbon tax is one of the great hypothetical issues of our time. There is no detail around this at all. What I said, very clearly, is that I will not sign up, as Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, to any new taxation arrangement that sees Northern Territory families paying additional taxes to subsidise the coal-fired power generators in Victoria and Queensland to switch to cleaner forms of energy. I will not do that …
Mr ELFERINK: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Will he include businesses in that list?
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Port Darwin, resume your seat!
Mr HENDERSON: And the answer is, of course, business people are in families as well.
There is a furphy about agriculture - agriculture is out, as we well know. The difference between this side of the House and some of the people on the other side of the House is that we know we have to reduce carbon emissions. We have to play our part in the global challenge to reduce carbon emissions …
Mr TOLLNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The point of order is relevance. The question was: will the government submit to the clear will of this parliament and support a campaign against a carbon tax?
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, if you can come to the point.
Mr HENDERSON: Madam Speaker, at the moment we have no details. We have no details at all over the proposed tax, or what the compensation measures may be. The compensation measure may be very good for Territory families …
Mr TOLLNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The question was: will this government submit to the clear will of this parliament?
Madam SPEAKER: The Chief Minister does not have to answer with a yes or no response, as you will recall. The Chief Minister is answering the question. I cannot tell you what the Chief Minister’s answer is, I am sorry, member for Fong Lim. Chief Minister, you have the call.
Mr HENDERSON: Thank you, Madam Speaker. As the Chief Minister, I will do what is in the best interests of Territorians once we see the details of what is proposed. I am not going to play petty politics. I know when you are in opposition you have to play politics. The debate that is being run on the proposed carbon tax is exactly the same debate that was run on the GST.
I will not sign up to anything that sees Territory families subsidising power generators in Victoria and Queensland.
Budget 2011-12 – Infrastructure Initiatives for the Barkly Region
Ms SCRYMGOUR to MINISTER for CONSTRUCTION
Can you please update the House on the infrastructure initiatives in Budget 2011-12 to help families and businesses get ahead in the Barkly region?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arafura for her question and her interest in one of the powerhouse regions of the Territory. I also thank the Henderson Labor government for their investment in growth towns, and in spreading the equity across the Territory, that somehow you guys do not seem to get. Anyway, we hope that you will get it one day and you will celebrate with us. This budget delivers real money on the ground. It is to help people in growth towns and in the Barkly.
I will be very proud tomorrow morning when the people of Tennant Creek and the Barkly wake up to read about the more than $120m to improve infrastructure, services, support business, provide better schools and increase remote health services sprayed across the pages of their regional newspaper, to tell the story that this government is about building infrastructure.
I can give a bit of history to this House. I was around in the 1990s when the Country Liberal Party deserted the Barkly; when there was a minuscule capital works program; when people left in their droves; when our economy flatlined; when there were no jobs. I lived through this, and there are many other people who lived through it. For whatever reason they can give to that, that was the reality of not stimulating the economy. But worse, in the Northern Territory, people packed up and left and went across borders.
When we talk about this Labor government, and about building off the back of a record infrastructure budget last year that delivered services across health and education, corrections, business, roads, transport, infrastructure, bridges in the Barkly - the McArthur River Bridge - then we are looking at really developing a region that is going forward with incredible opportunities.
This is strategic, well-planned, thought-out and targeted to ensure the people of the Barkly are set up for the future. And it has not just …
Mr GILES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Perhaps the minister can explain why, for $36m in SIHIP, not one house was built in Tennant Creek.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Braitling, resume your seat! That is not a point of order!
Mr McCARTHY: Madam Speaker, there is $3.3m for the final stages of the fire safety upgrade at Tennant Creek Hospital; $3.18m for the Tennant Creek Police Station; $2m for continued delivery of major infrastructure at primary schools; $0.25m …
Mr Giles interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Braitling, cease interjecting. Member for Braitling!
Mr McCARTHY: … for the multipurpose …
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired.
Youth Worker – Alleged Negligence
Mrs LAMBLEY to MINISTER for CHILD PROTECTION
This week, a magistrate dismissed charges against a female youth worker in a remote Central Australian community accused of failing to report suspected child sexual abuse. According to the Northern Territory News, the alleged perpetrator of the sexual abuse was just five years old, prompting the presiding magistrate to say he was surprised it ever came to court. Can you explain to the House why and how the decision was taken to pursue a witch-hunt against a youth worker when, as the magistrate said, there was never any chance of conviction?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, while I cannot comment on a decision by a magistrate, it is the responsibility of every person who suspects sexual abuse or issues that involve children to report them. It is a legal and moral obligation. I cannot comment on this particular case because I cannot criticise or otherwise a decision by a magistrate. My understanding is that the Director of Public Prosecutions is reviewing the case.
I remind everyone that it is our responsibility, as citizens of this country, but also as human beings, if we suspect any issue of child abuse or sexual abuse, to report it to the authorities. I believe the department, because the person herself admitted that she had seen evidence and did not report it the first time, decided to refer it. The department does not take legal action; it is referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions …
Mrs LAMBLEY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The question was why was this person accused of failing to report, when the perpetrator was just five years old, knowing full well that …
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Araluen, that is not a point of order. Resume your seat. You have asked a question, the minister is answering the question.
Mr VATSKALIS: Madam Speaker, the member referred to a witch-hunt; there was no witch-hunt. It was simply that the department took the view that the person did not report something that should be reported under the legislation and referred that issue to the Director of Public Prosecutions which proceededed with the prosecution. The department does not commence prosecutions.
Budget 2011-12 – Benefits for Anglers
Mr GUNNER to MINISTER for PRIMARY INDUSTRY, FISHERIES and RESOURCES
What will Budget 2011-12 deliver for anglers?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, the question about anglers. One of the things our government has done is something that previous CLP governments failed to do. Notably, we have provided $4m in expenditure to revamp the Palmerston boat ramp. I recall reading a letter written by the member for Blain to the then minister for Fisheries, the member for Karama, Mick Palmer, asking for the same thing. The member for Karama told him that he would get one over his dead body.
This government has recognised that fishing in the Territory is not only a fantastic pastime in your holidays, but it is also a tourist attraction for people down south. We have provided significant investment in infrastructure; not only upgrading boat ramps and constructing new boat ramps, but looking at revamping other boat ramps. We upgraded the boat ramps at Leeders Creek, King Ash Bay, Gove, Dinah Beach, Elizabeth River, Saltwater Arm, and Corroboree Billabong. We closed areas in the sea to ensure there is plenty of fish for other people. We closed Bynoe Harbour - something the CLP opposed. They could not understand why we closed Bynoe Harbour to commercial fishers. You should speak to AFANT and find out why we closed Bynoe Harbour. We have established new artificial reefs in Darwin Harbour and other areas in order to attract more fish. The most recent is the sinking of 600 culverts outside Lee Point to provide an artificial reef.
We recognise any investment we do for fishing infrastructure is an investment for all Territorians and tourism. Hundreds of people come from down south. I believe the expenditure from people coming from other states or territories exceeds $1bn, when you take into account fuel, expenses, accommodation and the time they spend here.
Our government is committed to spending money on fishing infrastructure to make fishing in the Territory most attractive.
Dr BURNS (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Written Question Paper.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016