2007-02-15
WorkChoices – Unemployment Figures
Mr MILLS to MINISTER for EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
Yesterday, the Chief Minister made much of the current unemployment rate of 2%. Prior to the introduction of WorkChoices legislation, the unemployment rate in the Northern Territory was around 6.4%. Is it the position of the Territory Labor government that AWAs and WorkChoices changes have not added to the reduction in unemployment?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I really do welcome the question from the member for Blain. The reason why unemployment is amongst record lows here in the Northern Territory has absolutely nothing to do with WorkChoices legislation. It is about the confidence of the private sector to invest because this government has made the Northern Territory the lowest taxing jurisdiction for small businesses with 100 people or fewer. and businesses investing with record confidence because as well being the lowest taxing jurisdiction for small business with 100 employees or fewer, iIt is because of record spending by this government in infrastructure across the Northern Territory; real money, real infrastructure that is building opportunities for Territorians and Territory business.
I was staggered today when the opposition, in response to a motion bought before this parliament, indicated whole heartedly their support for AWAs which would strip away the rights ftor long service leave otfo Northern Territory workers, a right that was put into this parliament by the Country Liberal Party back in 1981 by Paul Everingham, and the official CLP policy was that every Territorian should have the right to long service leave. As I tabled in the House yesterday, Madam Speaker, in regards to definitive legal advice from our Solicitor-General, Tom Pauling QC, that is no longer the case.
Employers in the Northern Territory can offer an AWA that excludes long service leave for Territory workers, and that AWA overrides our legislation. The CLP would not stand up and support our motion calling on the federal government to re--implement the right for all Territory workers to long service leave. The only thing that WorkChoices does is take away the rights of workers in the Northern Territory.
I tabled a report from our Workplace Advocate this morning that had page after page after page of employees in the Northern Territory who were losing rights to all sorts of entitlements, and yet another one today will be long service leave.
It bringsis a s
Shame on the once great CLP that they refuse to stand up to the Commonwealth. They have just become the rump of the Liberal Party in the Northern Territory,. tThe . This is the once great Country Liberal Party that stood up for Territorians, with stood up for legislation that has had bipartisan support in this House since self--government are. N now they are just mouth pieces for Joe Hockey in the Northern Territory.
The reason why we have record unemployment is because business has the confidence to invest. A as a direct result of government policy,. iIt is great to see those unemployment figures so low. We will work hard to keep them there.
Home Affordability and First Home Ownership
Ms SACILOTTO to TREASURER
The Martin government has worked hard to put Territorians into their first homes. Despite myths being spread by the Country Liberal Party, can the Treasurer tell the House the facts about home affordability in the Northern Territory and what the government is doing to get people into their first home?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Port Darwin for her question. This gives me the opportunity to put the record straight with questions in and around home affordability. It is no secret that the economy today in the Northern Territory has more jobs, with a higher level of income than ever before. That strong economy means Territorians are ever more confident about investing in their future and are willing to invest in the Territory. We saw that in the expenditure patterns yesterday, when I talked about the tremendous retail increase, particularly in those lifestyle areas around the pursuit of leisure and recreational expenditure. Record levels in the Northern Territory tells us that Territorians are feeling good about themselves, their jobs, and their confidence for the future.
However, one of the products of an economy as strong as this one that we have at the moment is the rising value of housing. T, now that is no secret: the increaseing in prices of housing over the last 12 to, 18 months. We have seen that in all of the figures coming forward, and it is good news for those who own property, of course. However, it is also something that has to be watched by those responsible for making policy in the Northern Territory to ensure that, whilst prices are going up on the one hand, we do not lock out completely the opportunity for Territorians, and the ability for them to have their own home. It is , particularly important for young people, and it requires quite a quite careful policy balance in response from the government.
Despite those increase ing prices that we have had, housing affordability in the Territory remains the second best in Australia, bettered only by the ACT. However, eEven with , (inaudible) those figures, t. This is the Northern Territory real estate local market analysis for December 2006,: m. Median prices for houses decreased in Darwin for the first time since June 2003.
I am not suggesting that the bubble has burst, or the market is about to fall apart. Median prices for houses decreased in Darwin for the first time since June 2003. It is the first sign we have had that it might be beginning to slow, even . Even when you have, across the December quarter, there is the first sign of that the runaway pricing increases that we have seen might not be the thing of the next quarter. We need to see another quarter’s figures. We cannot put everything on the fact, this is one analysis of the December 2006 quarter, but it comes from those at the hard end of the industry, those involved in buying and selling houses all of the time. I believe, if we see another quarter with that sort of figure, we will see this moderation and stability about of house pricing levels.
To make it even more affordable over the last few years, this government has implemented two of the most generous concession schemes for home buyers in Australia: - the first home buyer tax- free threshold of $225 000, no stamp duty at all on the first $225 000,; and a principal place of residence rebate if you are buying your own home, a straight up, $2500 off your bill. Since 20 August 2002, those two concessions have assisted 14 094 Territorians home buyers to a value of $42m back into their pockets of those home buyers.
It is interesting to note that, if we had left the CLP concession scheme in place that was in place when we came into government, those payments would have been $15m less to those home purchasers than the Labor government scheme. It is a fact.
Mr Mills: That is unfair, inflation rates, Treasurer. It is a bit rich. You go and buy a used car …
Mr STIRLING: There is $15m more into the pockets of home buyers than the CLP scheme. As a result …
Mr Mills interjecting.
Mr Wood: Can you buy a house with $260 000 today?
Madam SPEAKER: Order, order!
Mr STIRLING: Just to demonstrate the effectiveness of those schemes, Madam Speaker, if I get an opportunity over the member for Blain, we have the highest number of first home owners in the market, proportionately, compared towith anywhere in Australia. Interestingly, in the Northern Territory, first home owner numbers have increased over the last couple of years, up from around 750 to about 870 at the moment. In addition to those two concessions, the government has a strong HomeNorth Sscheme, responsible for putting many Territorians into their own homes, and that has been particularly successful for young, single Territorians and thoseTerritorians on single incomes.
So wWe will continue to analyse all of the issues surrounding home affordability, because we have to ensure, Madam Speaker, that whatever policy direction this government takes into the future, we do not, want to, on the one hand, push up and inflate prices even more, and , that we do not, on the other hand, destroy the values of existing home owners’ assets. That is what responsible governments do and that is the job ahead of us.
WorkChoices – Flexibility of AWAs
Mr MILLS to MINISTER for EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
You will be aware of the relatively recent ABS survey in respect tof the wages of people on AWAs versus award wages and those on collective bargaining agreements, which shows that people on AWAs were better off on average by 100% versus the award, and 13% on collective agreements. Is it the position of the Territory Labor government that people should not have the flexibility of the option of signing up to an AWA?
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for his question. I am looking forward to Question Time today. because wWhat the Labor government will advocate for is that there should be a statutory set of minimum terms ofand conditions of employment across the workplace. Those minimums have been in place for many years.
When the member for BlainLeader of the Opposition, echoing the words of hiser federal mates in Canberra, talks about flexibility, what that means is pay cuts for people, by in signing away conditions such as long service leave, – as we have debated already this morning in this House, – penalty rates, public holidays, and trading themose away for a couple of dollars extra an hour, if that, in an individual AWA.
In May 2006, the federal government’s Employment Advocate, Peter McIlwain, told a Senate Estimates Committee that a sample of AWAs showed that every AWA registered under the new laws had taken away at least one protected award condition. Annual leave loading had been erased in almost two-thirds, 64%, of Australian workplace agreements lodged under the new laws. So 64% of all new AWAs had scrapped annual leave loading. Penalty rates had disappeared in almost two out of three of those agreements. So, no penalty rates; 63% of those signed away. Shift allowances have been removed so, when you used to get time-and-a-half working night shift, 52% have been scrapped.
What we are seeing consistently is that these AWAs take away rights that workers have had in this country for many years. Is it any wonder? Is it any wonder that the Howard government has now stopped access to the details of these AWAs? They are being done in secret;. No one can see what is in them now. It is certainly very clear that people are worse off. I urge Territorians to get a copy of the interim report from the Northern Territory Workplace Advocate because it is full of specific examples of the impacts of the Howard government’s WorkChoices regime here in the Northern Territory. It is not very pretty reading.
The cat is out of the bag. We know now that if a Country Liberal Party was ever returned to government here in the Northern Territory, 16 000 public sector workers would be on AWAs at the drop of a hat. - at the drop of a hat - All of those public servants should be very nervous.
Bombing of Darwin – Commemoration
Mr BONSON to MINISTER for ARTS and MUSEUMS
As all members would know, Monday, 19 February marks the 65th aanniversary of the first bbombing of Darwin. What is the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory doing to commemorate this event?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Millner for his question. As we all know, 65 years ago comen Monday, 188 Japanese planes flew over my home islands, the Tiwis, to attack Australia and to destroy Darwin. This was the first of 64 raids over 18 months, and hundreds of people, and we should take that time to remember that, both military and civilian, died and many more were wounded. One-quarter of Darwin’s buildings were destroyed, including its major facilities: the wharves, air depots, air fields, Post Office and hospitals, and great damage was done to shipping in the harbour.
Sixty-five years later, some of the signs of attack on Darwin remain, including the Post Office wall preserved within this building. The memories also remain, and it is important that they do. We should never forget this time, nor should we ever forget other wars and other lives lost.
This evening, I will have the honour of opening and exhibition at the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory commemorating some of the memories ofrom the time that Darwin was at the frontline against enemy forces.
Australia Under Attack 1942-43 is an Australian War Museum travelling exhibition funded through the federal government’s cCommemoration pProgram, sSaluting tTheir Service, which honours the contribution to their country of Australia’s servicemen and women.
I commend MAGNT, and all the staff involved at the museum, and the persistence of one young gentleman in Darwin, about whom we have all and all here has heard him, and that is young Zac Menzies. The exhibition includes that flag. , and Zac has been persistent in lobbying a many people. This is the flag which flew over the Administrator’s Rresidence at the time of the first bombing of Darwin, and it ,bears the marks of those attacks. I am sure all members of this Assembly will welcome it back to the Territory. I urge you to take the time to visit the exhibition during the next five months and view not only the flag, but many of the other memories that are there of the time Australia was under attack.
WorkChoices – Long Service Leave
Mr MILLS to MINISTER FOR EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
Prior to the drafting of a motion the Chamber is in the process of debating, were you aware of the fact that since 1996, Territorians have been able to cash- out long service leave for increases in other entitlements such as a higher hourly rate of pay in an AWA agreement? Were you aware?
ANSWER
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order! Honourable members, order.
Mr HENDERSON: Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for his question and leading with his chin. Of course! The difference between 1996 and 2006 is people could negotiate changes to those agreements if they were better off. If they were better off, Madam Speaker. If they were financially better off. And, tThe Industrial Relations Commissioner, as an independent umpire, would have to certify that was the case. The difference between 1996 and 2006, and if people who are listening to this broadcast are not inclined to believe me, I will quote from legal advice that we have received and provided to the opposition, from a very eminent counsel, Mr Graham Nicholson, who states:
- … however, because if the award or workplace agreement expressly provides for no long service leave to be payable, …
Not ant increase, none:
- … no long service leave to be payable, then under section 17 of the Workplace Relations Act that award or workplace agreement will in that respect almost certainly be inconsistent with the Long Service Leave Act and the former …
that is, the Workplace Relations Act:
… will prevail over the latter.
So the difference between 1996 and 2006 was that you could negotiate an increase, get it certified and ratified by the independent umpire, but in 2006, you can have it plonked on the table, sign it away all together, and it will be gone. No independent umpire, no scrutiny, take it or leave it. That is the difference between 1996 and 2006.
The Country Liberal Party used to, at every turn, support the legislation of this parliament, stand up and say the legislation of this parliament is supreme. That is what the Country Liberal Party used to fight for. Now they just roll over and let John Howard tickle their tummies, give them their lines. All the questions will have come from Joe Hockey’s office today. Here you go, this is how you fight that. They do not have the capacity to write their own questions any more. They get Joe Hockey’s office to send them lines, write back, here is your Question Time strategy.
I wonder what Paul Everingham would be thinking. I wonder what Marshall Perron would be thinking. I wonder what Ian Tuxworth would be thinking. They just roll over. The federal government can overturn any legislation in the Northern Territory. It used to be bipartisan. They are nothing but apologists for Canberra, and reducing the rights and entitlements of Territory workers to decent pay, conditions and long service leave.
Cyanide Spill - Stuart Highway
Mr HAMPTON to CHIEF MINISTER
Can the Chief Minister inform the Assembly how the government intends to respond to the cyanide spill north of Tennant Creek following the initial clean- up operation?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, the cyanide spill last week is an incident we all deeply regret. Fortunately, to date no one has been injured as a result of the incident, and we are grateful for that. I personally thank Northern Territory Emergency Services personnel on behalf of government and everyone here for their hard work in the cleanup. They have been working under extremely trying and difficult conditions. The temperatures have been 40C-plus in the area north of Tennant and they have to work in protective Hazchem suits, which makes it even hotter than.
I also acknowledge the patience and understanding of business and the general travelling public who have also been affected. The highway has been able to be opened for limited periods at night when traffic has moved through.
It is important that, when a major disruptive and potentially dangerous incident like this spill occurs, government takes stock of our response and gains an understanding of how this sort of event can be limited or eliminated in the future. For this reason, I have asked my department’s Risk Management Services to conduct an appropriate review of the regulatory regime surrounding the transport of hazardous goods.
That transport needs to occur to support industry right around the Territory, but it needs to be done in safe and responsible conditions. I have asked for the review to occur in conjunction with investigations that are currently being carried out by police and WorkSafe in relation to the incident. The review will consult with industry and other stakeholders, including the relevant road transport groups.
Madam Speaker, I am advised that the Stuart Highway will be clear for normal operation, thankfully, by the end of the week.
Wildlife Rescue Program
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for PARKS and WILDLIFE
Recently, your government made some changes to the Wildlife Rescue program. I have been approached by Wildcare and a vet who say they have a number of concerns about the changes and feel that the process which gave Wildlife Rescue to one particular veterinary practice was unfair. I have also met with staff from that veterinary practice who say that the allegations against them are unfounded and untrue.
Could you please tell the House what changes the government has made to the Wildlife Rescue program? Was funding cut from previous years? What processes were used to select a private service provider? Were other groups allowed to tender if that was the process used? Who pays for Wildlife Rescue advertising? What, now, are the roles and responsibilities of the veterinary clinic, and the roles and responsibilities of the government in relation to Wwildlife rRescue?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, that was certainly a long question from the member for Nelson, and I will go through it. I have had some letters forwarded to me by different people on this issue, member for Nelson.
The rescue and care of injured or orphaned wildlife is not required under any legislation or government policy or regulations, nor is it a function undertaken by any other state or Tterritory government in Australia.
However, this service has been provided in the past by the Parks and Wildlife Service.
There is an agreement between Parks and Wildlife Service and the Palm City Veterinary Hospital for the vet hospital to coordinate wildlife rescue in the greater Darwin area in return for a grant to cover some of the related operational costs that are involved. The grant includes $20 000 per annum, a mobile phone, a laptop computer, legal and administrative oversight of permits, data, and help with getting the wildlife back to the bush once it has recovered. In return, the veterinary hospital provides drop off points for injured or orphaned wildlife.
A similar grant operates in Alice Springs. The member for Greatorex has written to me in relation to Wildcare down there. They have got a similar grant. It is the same operation where they manage and care for rescued animals.
This arrangement has been run quite successfully in trial form and has now been formalised.
It allows Parks and Wildlife to redirect resources to activities more closely aligned with core business.
In reference to some of the other issues, particularly the tender, which was also mentioned to me by Wildcare, I have asked the department to investigate all of the allegations that have been made. We , and we will be responding to the organisation in due course once the department has looked at some of the issues raised in the letter. Of course, I will inform you of what happens as a result of that.
WorkChoices – NT Public Sector
Mr MILLS to MINISTER for EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
Has the Territory government used any of the provisions provided by the WorkChoices legislation in either negotiations, such as the one under way with NT nurses, or within any agreements made with employees or contract workers of the NT Public Service?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for a very curious question. Is he really saying that we as the Territory government should act illegally in terms of the enterprise agreements that we are currently negotiating? We have to comply with the federal law. We cannot ignore it. We have to comply with the federal law as an employer.
What we can guarantee all 16 000 Northern Territory public sector workers is that we will continue to collectively negotiate agreements for increases in pay and conditions through a formal certified agreement with a union. That is what we can guarantee our 16 000 employees, very valuable employees. I am not pretending that these negotiations are not difficult or complex, and certainly we are going through a difficult negotiation now, but we must comply with the law of the Commonwealth.
We will certainly commit to our public servants that we will continue to negotiate collectively and enter into a certified agreement with the the relevant union unlike members opposite who would drop AWAs on the desk of those 16 000 public servants if they were ever to return to office.
Northern Territory Economy - Mining Sector
Mr KNIGHT to MINISTER for MINES and ENERGY
Mining is clearly a significant contributor to the economic development and jobs in the Northern Territory, in . In particular in my electorate with developments in the Pine Creek, Adelaide River with GBS Ggold, Franceis Creek, Maude cCreek, Mt Todd, Toms Gully and the Browns Oxide project at Batchelor. How strong is the growth in the Territory’s mining sector, and what are the flow-on effects to the Territory’s economy?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his question and recognise the interest that he has in the mining industry and the developments in his electorate, as he mentioned.
Browns Oxide is a success story between Compass Resources and Hunan Nonferrous Metals(inaudible) at Batchelor. It has created a lovely little economy with jobs in Batchelor. The other one he mentioned was obviously GBS Gold. Their introduction to Pine Creek and developing that area has seen an economic boost for that town and into Katherine as well. They have opened an office in Katherine and they are starting to expand their operations and create more employment in that area.
The mining industry, including petroleum, now accounts for more than 26% of the Territory economy. , and the mMining production for 2005-06 increased to $3bn. That is up from from $2.3bn on the previous year, which is a substantial increase, as I have just said. The good part about all this is there seems to be no slowing down. The mining industry is really going ahead. The economy and employment are boosted off the back of this industry and that is fantastic for the Northern Territory.
Vast tracts of land in the Northern Territory are virtually unexplored. Much of it has been surveyed but has not been developed. What we are trying to do, through the government and through the department, is open the eyes of the world to the Northern Territory and introduce the Northern Territory to the marketplace to foster an investment in exploration. Exploration expenditure in the Northern Territory is now 6% of national exploration expenditure and it continues to grows as I have just said.
Commodity prices are obviously playing a big part in that, and they are creating a lot of interest in the Northern Territory, especially with the base metals we do have. Government assistance through the department, through the geological survey the department has put together is quite groundbreaking stuff, and we are trying to get that out through Australia and overseas as much as possible so that the interest is created.
The Martin government’s initiative Building the Territory’s Resource Base has played a big part in yielding those results. I have witnessed this program working. On my trip to China last year, we took much of that information to Beijing and to Hunan. The interest shown by the Chinese has been fantastic. That has been further developed with the visit last week of a delegation from the China Chamber of Commerce, Minerals and Mines. We had a Japanese contingent here last yearyear who are also very interested. Interest internationally is really starting to grow and the Territory is becoming a focal point for the world’s mining industry.
The Territory economy grew 7.5% in 2005-06, which is the highest growth in Australia. Mining is making a big contribution to this growth, along with the sound economic management of the Martin government. It is also creating job growth and, importantly, fostering regional employment and development.
Australian Workplace Agreements
Mr MILLS to MINISTER for EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
A considerable number of workers on the waterfront development site are engaged under an AWA. Do you believe that they should be forced to move to a collective agreement or award conditions? If that is the case, why did you, as a consortium partner, allow them to be employed in this way? If not minister, can you explain whether or not the Territory Labor government does support AWAs, giving employees and employers the flexibility needed in today’s workplace?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, there are two issues here. The first is the Territory government does not employ workers on the waterfront development; we are not the direct employers of any of those workers. I am advised that of the five consortia partners on the waterfront, four consortia partners engage their workforce through a registered enterprise agreement. One uses AWAs, which they are entitled to do under Commonwealth employment laws that provide them with that option.
What we are saying, as the Northern Territory government, is that we do not believe that AWAs should be used to strip away wages and conditions of Territory workers. In relation to the long service issue, I do not know why this is such a difficult issue for the County Liberal Party. I would have thought they could have come in here and supported the Northern Territory government saying: ‘Put the floor back in for everyone in the Northern Territory for long service leave’ because the peak business body …
Mr Mills interjecting.
Mr HENDERSON: This is so how out of touch they are with peak groups in the Northern Territory. The . The policy of the Chamber of Commerce, to to their members is:
- Please note: Chamber policy is that agreements under WorkChoices should not be used to reduce or extinguish long service leave entitlements.
The peak employment business lobby group in the Northern Territory does not believe that AWAs should be used to reduce or extinguish laws. The Territory government does not believe that is the case. It used to be the will of this Territory parliament. Workers in the Territory have had minimum entitlements to long service leave going back to 1965 …
Mr MILLS: A point of order, Madam Speaker! This goes to the point of relevance in reference to the question about this minister, as a consortium partner, supporting the notion of AWAs on a waterfront development in which they are partners. He is the minister for Employment. Relevance.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Blain, there is no point of order. Minister, continue to answer the question as closely as possible to the …
Mr HENDERSON: Thank you, Madam Speaker, I thought I had answered that part of the question.
The position of the Northern Territory government is that we do not believe employers should use AWAs to reduce conditions and entitlements of Northern Territory workers - full stop. We do not employ people directly on the waterfront. Of the five consortia partners on the waterfront, four have registered enterprise agreements; one does not, as they are entitled to do under Commonwealth law.
Alice Springs – Alcohol Management Plan
Ms ANDERSON to CHIEF MINISTER
Yesterday, we heard the alarming statistics associated with alcohol--related harm in the Northern Territory. Can you update the House on the impact that the Alcohol Management Plan is having on Alice Springs?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I know that the member for Macdonnell is very concerned about the problem of alcohol and antisocial behaviour in Alice Springs, and the changes we have put in place and how they are making a difference to the problems that we have seen.
The Alcohol Management Plan came into force last October. T and there was public consultation for a number of months before that. I set up an alcohol task force that had oversight of those consultations. The task force was made up of two members of council, a member from the business community, and two members from the combined Aboriginal organisations. They were a good group and worked hard to make ensure good community consultation about that the Alcohol Management Plan, but were also going to tackle what is a very long-term problem for Alice Springs.
We have figures from the first three months of the Alcohol Management Plan being in place, and I can say there are some positives and negatives. The positives are that from October to December, we saw the consumption of pure alcohol go down by 11%. That is not a bad start for the first three months. Police are reporting that their protective custodies for the three months were down 50%. That is a great start. I make the point again that this is a start. Serious assaults were down as well.
Hospital reports of alcohol--related presentations are down and also the sobering--up shelter had fewer people attending. They are the positives. I would add that some areas of Alice Springs which have had a lot of antisocial behaviour reported quieter times.
The negative, the big one for Alice Springs, is the litter. What we have seen is a change in what is being drunk. It has gone from casks to cans and to bottles, and, even though they are lower in alcohol content, they are making more of a mess. We are working with council, and we have our low security prisoners putting much greater effort into cleaning- up. No one wants to put up with litter and the community is being very strong about saying that.
There are also, wWhen I say that some areas, shopping areas particularly, have had less antisocial behaviour, we have some in Alice Springs that are experiencing more. What we have to do is work out strategies. I will not name those areas, but they are well known, where we have antisocial behaviour happening for the first time. Again, we are working with police, working council aworking nd with the Aboriginal organisations to see how we can tackle those problems.
I think oOverall, Madam Speaker, the first three months have been heartening. I say to the community of Alice Springs: work with us. There is not going to be a change over night. The measures that we have seen to reduce supply …
Mrs Braham: Do you support a dry town?
Ms MARTIN: The efforts we are making to reduce supply, the work we have done with the retailers, the work we are doing with council is all a good start. Currently, there are consultations on the dry areas legislation and we have seen meetings over this week in Alice Springs about that. The Liquor Commission will hear that dry areas legislation application from council on 8 or and 9 March. We are making a very concerted effort. The entire community of Alice Springs wants alcohol tackled. the entire community of Alice Springs does, Aboriginal people in Alice Springs certainly are very loud in their voices that they want it tackled, too.
The work we are doing with town camps with the task force being overseen by Barry Chambers working together with the Alcohol Management Plan is a good start. Hopefully, we will have strong support from the community. It is not easy and it is not going to happen over night, butbut I think the first three months show that we are heading in the right direction.
Alice Springs - Alcohol Management Plan
Mrs BRAHAM to MINISTER for POLICE, FIRE and EMERGENCY SERVICES
Following on from the Chief Minister’s remarks about the alcohol problem in Alice Springs, could you give me an indication of whether the police in Alice Springs, under the two kilometre 2 km law, just tip out the alcohol or do they take away unopened alcohol? Can you give us some idea of how much they have tipped out over the last three months? How much have they collected? U? Under the Summary Offences Act, they are able to tip it and take it away.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Braitling for her question. I do not have those figures here with me today, butbut I undertake to get them to the member for Braitling as soon as possible.
Mrs BRAHAM: Supplementary question, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: No, there are no supplementary questions in this Chamber, member for Braitling.
Rural Darwin - Water Management
Mr WARREN to the MINISTER for NATURAL RESOURCES, ENVIRONMENT and HERITAGE
First, at what stage is water allocation planning for the rural area, and, second, when will volunteers be called to have meters installed on their bores?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Goyder for his question. He has certainly shown a keen interest in water management in the rural area, as have the members for Daly and Nelson. I am pleased to provide a quick update on this important project.
We are about to enter Stage II2, which is distributing surveys on attitudes to water management and patterns of water use, and calling for volunteers to have meters installed on their domestic bores so that we can gather information about water use that will inform our water allocation plans for the rural area.
There will be a campaign launched at the end of the month to encourage people to complete the survey, and they have not been without controversy, and for volunteers to put a meter on their bores. The surveys will be distributed to about around 1200 households around the rural and Daly areas. Kits will be available from the electorate offices of both the members for Daly and Goyder. I encourage the members for Nelson and Katherine to put some of these surveys in their electorate offices,, too.
My department will hold a couple of public forums to explain the project to interested residents. They , and they will have until the end of March to submit their surveys, but we will continue the call for volunteers to have the meters installed. That will be ongoing until the project is fully subscribed.
Given previous interest in this project, I am hopeful we will get a good number of people volunteering to have a monitoreded bore on their property. We need at least 300 representing a range of land holders and properties, and we will be ready to install the bore meters in April. We will monitor the bores over 12 months to try to gather as much data as we can on current and future domestic water requirements and stock users of rural water supplies, which is a critical step in planning for the continued growth of our rural area.
This is a great project and will give government and the wider community, for the first time, a clear picture of water use in the rural area to allow us to properly plan for the future.
Minister for Employment, Education
and Training – Conduct
and Training – Conduct
Mr MILLS to MINISTER for EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
In answer to athe previous question I asked, you said that the government would work collectively with unions to achieve agreement with Northern Territory public servants. Can you explain how the ballot undertaken by your government through the hands of Ken Simpson, Acting Commissioner for Public Employment, of the nurses just a few weeks ago is collectively working with unions to achieve agreement? Is it not n’t it the case that you just misled the House?
Mr HENDERSON: I call a point of order before I answer the question, Madam Speaker, and ask the honourable member to withdraw the assertion that I have misled the House. He knows he can only do that by way of substantive motion.
Madam SPEAKER: I ask you to re--word the last part of the question, member for Blain.
Mr MILLS: Just the last bit? I will read the whole question so that we have the whole feel of it. Do you want the last part?
Madam SPEAKER: As long as the last part is significantly different, member for Blain.
Mr MILLS: Minister, did you mislead the House?
ANSWER
No, I have not misled the House.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Central Australia - Drought Relief
Ms ANDERSON to MINISTER for PRIMARY INDUSTRY and FISHERIES
Family owned pastoral properties in Central Australia are in the grip of one of the Territory’s worst droughts on record. What Minister, what impact has the recent scattered showers and isolated falls had on Central Australian pastoralists, and what is the Northern Territory government doing to assist these family businesses?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, this area is very dear to the member for Macdonnell’s heart, being part of her electorate. As she said, many families have a lot of history in that area. Pastoral properties around Alice Springs are in the grip of one of the worst droughts on record. The Alice Springs pastoral district accounts for over 20% of the Territory’s total beef industry performance, generating an estimated gross value product in 2004-05 of $55m. The contribution of the southern district saw a downturn in 2004-05 to $150.5m, a clear indication of the severity of the drought. The sector is a strong and vibrant part of the Territory, but , unfortunately, many families are struggling and are in need of assistance.
One pastoralist in Central Australia has told us that he has not had summer rains for five years. It is incredibly tough for young owners, being forced to find other work off the property, simply to survive. As I said, many of these young owners have family heritage in the district and their families have been on the land for many years.
The recent rains are welcome, but they did not cover the whole proposed EC declaration area. Follow-up rains will be required to make a genuine recovery from the drought, and it will take a number of years for properties to fully recover. Central Australia has made a significant contribution to the northern Australian pastoral industry and the Northern Territory economy for more than 100 years. The reason that the industry has existed so successfully for this period is that in the normal course of events, it is sustainable and profitable and manages normal seasonal variations.
The drought experienced in the south and east of Alice Springs is, indeed, an exceptional circumstance. It is beyond what we would normally expect and our businesses to plan for. It has left many producers in the position of rare (inaudible) and severe financial and social hardship. We are talking about a one-in-25 year event.
With the support of the Northern Territory Cattlemen’s Association, we have lodged an application to with the Commonwealth government for Exceptional Circumstances assistance. We placed that before the federal minister earlier this week. This application covers the incredibly dry period between October 2003 through to September 2006. It is a comprehensive and complex document, which was developed in full partnership with the Northern Territory Cattlemen’s Association. I thank them for their input and, of course, the members of my department, who have worked tirelessly to help the pastoralists in the area to get some recognition for this EC project.
If the Commonwealth supports the Northern Territory government’s application, financial assistance will be available to the affected pastoralists to apply for support, given the severe downturn in income experienced. The Northern Territory government has already extended drought assistance to the properties, and we hope the federal government will view the EC submission favourably.
NT Public Sector – Collective Bargaining
Mr MILLS to MINISTER for EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
Mr Henderson: Leave out the misleading bit and I will answer the question.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr MILLS: I cannot trust the honourable member to play this one fairly, so I will have to do the whole thing again. Sadly, it has resulted in a reduction of questions for the opposition.
Mr Wood: And the Independents.
Mr MILLS: And the Independents.
Minister, in answer to a previous question, the one before last, you said that the government would work collectively with unions to achieve agreement with Northern Territory public servants. Can you explain how undertaking a ballot is working collectively with the unions to achieve an agreement? Can you explain how that is not misleading the House?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, what is it about democracy that the member for Blain does not like? ..
He does not like the democracy of asking people what they think of the offer.
In the negotiations conducted by the cCommissioner, let us make this very clear, I, as the Minister for Public Employment, have absolutely no place in them. They are done by the employer, who is the Ccommissioner. The negotiations with the ANF, in regard to the latest EBA with the nurses has been going on for about eight months, a very long time, and the commissioner was very keen to conclude an agreement.
The advice that I have from the commissioner is that there were mixed messages coming from the workplace about the commissioner’s final offer in was in regard the negotiations so the Commissioner for Public Employment determined to conduct a ballot, a poll, of nurses across the Northern Territory in regard to this offer, as the commissioner did in the last general public sector EBA back in about about 2003, I think or 2004 prior to WorkChoices. Nothing has changed …
Mr Mills: What a convoluted answer. No, you did mislead the House.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Blain!
Mr HENDERSON: When we concluded the last EBA …
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, please pause. Member for Blain, I ask you to withdraw that.
Mr MILLS: Yes, Madam Speaker, I withdraw.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, member for Blain. Please continue.
Mr HENDERSON: Thank you, Madam Speaker, w. When the last enterprise agreement was concluded with the broader public service, the same situation arose. An indicative poll or ballot of public sector workers was taken in regard to the offer that was put by the Commissioner ofor Public Employment. On that occasion, the majority of people voted yes. The commissioner then sat down and negotiated a registered agreement with the appropriate unions at that time. That would have been the process that we would have gone down this time. The ballot went down pretty conclusively, and it is back to the negotiating table. At the end of the day, the commitment from this government is that we will not impose AWAs on nurses, doctors, teachers or any other public sector worker in the Northern Territory, and we will eventually, and I hope sooner rather than later, conclude this current round of bargaining with the Nurses Federation and reach a registered agreement.
Nurses - Recruitment Campaign
Mr BURKE to MINISTER for HEALTH
This government increased health spending by 64% and increased the number of nurses working in our hospitals and clinics by 270. Can you update the Assembly on the latest success of Territory Labor’s nurse recruitment campaign?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, nurse recruitment has been very topical over the last week or so and in this House. It was with a great deal of pleasure that I went to the Tamarind Centre this morning to meet one the recruits through our national recruitment campaign Nurses - Bloody Heroes. This particular …
Dr LIM: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Those are unparliamentary words.
Dr BURNS: Madam Speaker, all I can say is that if the nurses thought there were more doctors around the Territory like the member for Greatorex, we would not be recruiting very many at all.
Members interjecting.
Dr LIM: A point of order, Madam Speaker! That is a personal aspersion cast by the minister against me. He can talk about parties and all that, but this is a direct slur and he should be made called to withdraw....
Dr LIM: … say that before.
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, I like ask you to withdraw.
Dr BURNS: I withdraw, Madam Speaker.
Dr Lim: Thank you.
Dr BURNS: It was with a great deal of pleasure that I met one of the recruits through this national campaign, – obviously a mental health nurse - recruited from the northern part of Western Australia into the Northern Territory, a very experienced nurse with 15 years of experience in the mental health system and particularly with Aboriginal people and work in remote areas. It was very interesting …
Dr Lim: You got one. You got one. Yes, one. Well done.
Dr BURNS: See what I mean?
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, order!
Dr BURNS: Actually, this nurse’s partner has also been recruited into our nursing workforce and is working at the hospital. Out of the 54 nurses that have been recruited through this national program, the majority have gone into Northern Territory hospitals, approximately 45 out of the 54.
It is important that we recruit in other specialities as well. It was interesting talking with this nurse; he does have an interest in fishing. ; He is attracted to the lifestyle of Darwin and the Territory so it is a real coup that we have someone of that calibre. …
Members interjecting
Madam SPEAKER: Order
Dr BURNS: Since the $250 000 program was launched nationally in October, $25 000 program, there have been 400 inquiries directly in relation to the recruitment campaign, and 54 have been recruited. There is also a website associated with recruitment by the department. There have been over 12 000 hits on that website. That is pretty impressive as well.
I would also like to report that the next phase of the recruitment is going to look at recruiting nurses with specialties, and for those nurses to work in our rural and remote areas.
So, aAs the member for Brennan said, this is a government that is serious about recruiting nurses. We have funded 270 extra positions within our system. This mental health nurse represented , I think, approximately 15 extra who have been funded by this government within the mental health system showing we are serious about that sector. We are serious about nursing numbers, unlike the opposition who stripped out 200 of our nursing numbers in the late 1990s out of our nursing numbers.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order.
Alice Springs – Litter Problems
Mrs BRAHAM to MINISTER for INFRASTRUCTURE and TRANSPORT
This fFollowings on from the Chief Minister highlighting the problems of litter caused by the new liquor restrictions, t. There is one particular area in Alice Springs which is opposite the North Sside shops. It is the cycle path used by students going to school, by seniors on their gophers, and by many walkers. Lately, it has been almost impossible for them to use because of the amount of glass. I know that your department has been active in providing a contractor early in the mornings to sweep that path. Can I ask you: what additional cost is that contract to keep the path clean? How long this is going to last, and have you any other measures to reduce the amount of litter?.
Ms embers Martin: Isn’t that council land? It is council land.
Mrs Braham: No, no, not that path. That path is along the highway.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Braitling, you have asked the question. The minister is attempting to respond.
Mrs Braham: I was just responding to the Chief Minister, Madam Speaker.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, yes, as the member for Braitling said, we have instituted a new contract because that section of the Stuart Highway is part of the work that my agency does in terms of landscaping and maintenance. The contract was increased in January due to an identified increased need for maintenance along there. It is a period contract. In total, tThe contract in total is worth $25 000 per year.
I emphasise that it is a landscaping maintenance contract; it is not just a litter contract. The litter is only a very small component of the work that we contract.
We only increased the maintenance by approximately $2000 a month. The maintenance does include a daily litter collection, daily sweeping of the cycle path, weekly litter collections, and sweeping along the Stuart hHighway cycle path. We are also installing a 2m3 two cubic meter Wastemaster bin on the Todd River verge opposite the North Sside shops as a trial. I am also advised that Alice Springs Town Council has used our Correctional Services inmates to do a litter run in the area along the Todd recently, and some …….
Dr Lim interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms LAWRIE: I am sorry. I was distracted by the mumblings by the member for Greatorex. Some 4 tonnes of litter was collected by Correctional Services inmates.
There was a planning meeting held this week between my agency, Alice Springs Town Council, Police, Correctional Services, CATIA, the Liquor Commission and others to look at other strategies such as anti-litter -liquor advertising, a rubbish warriors campaign involving the community, and increased bins being placed around the community by the Alice Springs Town Council.
Public Transport - Middle Schools
Mr WARREN to MINISTER for INFRASTRUCTURE and TRANSPORT
It seems that there is more school buses activity in Goyder, particularly driving the new middle schools bus routes. Can you please update the House on the implementation of middle school buses please?.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Goyder for his question. As we know, this year was the first phase of changes to middle schools education, with Year 10s moving to the senior schools. I am pleased to report that the the work done by my agency last year, working very closely with the Department of Employment, Education and Training, to anticipate the movement of students met with success.
There was .
There was a a very smooth introduction to Mmiddle Sschools this year. We saw students being transported through our school bus system right across the Top End and Central Australia very efficiently and effectively. I want to thank the Transport Division of the agency. They worked to collect data in parent surveys last year. We looked at projected enrolments and plans were put in place to re--work the bus routes.
We also released put in procurement for additional buses into the system to cater for the change. An extra 12 buses have been put into service across 11 new bus routes. This includes two extra buses in Alice Springs. On the first days of the school year, public transport staff were on the ground to ensure that students were aware of the new bus routes. They were also monitoring student numbers on the buses because we were prepared to change the system to meet any unexpected shift in enrolments.
Only minor issues were identified, and they were promptly addressed, including an additional bus for Taminmin High School, which had higher than anticipated enrolments, I am pleased to say. A dedicated phone line was established for the first two weeks of school to provide assistance to parents, students and the school staff about the new school bus routes.
With the extra buses now available, we’ have also been able to address some primary school needs. I want to thank the member for Millner for this because he approached me with concern about getting students to school from the Minmarama and Kulaluk communities. We have put a bus transport system in there. What we have seen is indigenous enrolments jump from 12 last year up to 28 on the first school day of this year at Millner Primary School. I applaud the member for Millner on that initiative.
I can assure members that the government has been proactive in meeting the bussing needs of our Mmiddle Sschools changes. I look forward to a continued effort and working with the Department of Employment, Education and Training for the next phase of Mmiddle Sschools in 2008.
WorkChoices – Media Release Error
Mr MILLS to MINISTER for EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
Yesterday, in a media release, you said:
- … New South Wales companies with over one million employees are immune from WorkChoices.
Could you expand on that assertion and explain to me where I can find that provision? Just in case it is n’ot there, could you perhaps apprise us that it is not, in fact, true? Will you now take the opportunity to correct your error by apologising to the media and Territorians as a whole for misleading them?.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I am seeking advice because I think believe there was a typo in that media release. The media release should have said that there are one million workers in New South Wales who are not covered by WorkChoices, that is, those workers who work for businesses that are not corporate bodies or associations. That is what the media release should have said.
Let us go back to the crux of this issue, which is whether this parliament represents the express will of the people of the Northern Territory and whether the legislation of this parliament should stand supreme in the Northern Territory. That is what this debate is all about.
I will run a quick chronology of where we have come from and where we are today. On 9 June 1981, Paul Everingham, who introduced an Annual Leave Bill, a Long Service Leave Bill and a Public Holidays Bill, said in the second reading:
- The legislation has been drafted as a minimal standard because it is considered that the interests of employees and employers are best protected if conditions of employment are prescribed by awards and determinations of arbitral tribunals or by agreements registered with them.
So the Country Liberal Party back in 1981 said the legislation has been drafted as a minimal standard. That is what we are arguing for; that our legislation provides the minimal standard beneath which you cannot go, and t. The CLP will not stand up and support that premise.
This position espoused by the CLP in 1981 is confirmed and supported by the Chamber of Commerce in the Northern Territory, which has a policy as of yesterday that agreements under WorkChoices should not be used to reduce or extinguish long service leave entitlements. There is definitive advice from a very imeminent legal counsel, Mr Graham Nicholson, backed up by the Solicitor-General of the Northern Territory that states that the consequences of WorkChoices are:
- If the award or workplace agreement expressly provides for no long service leave to be payable then, under the act, it will be inconsistent and the former will prevail over the latter.
That is not my legal advice, but advice from esteemed counsel supported by our Solicitor--General. The question before the Country Liberal Party is: given that history, given that legal advice, given that policy by the peak business body in the Northern Territory, will you stand up for the laws of this Territory parliament and call on the Commonwealth government to reinstate the primacy of our legislation over Commonwealth legislation? They have ducked, Madam Speaker. They are just nothing but the tail of the Liberal Party here in the Northern Territory, and the mantra being sent up by fax or e--mail from Joe Hockey’s office down there in Canberra is ‘flexibility’.
Let us get talking about flexibility. Well, let us talk about flexibility. We have the long service leave issue. That is a very explicit issue for the Northern Territory. Our legislation should be supreme over Commonwealth legislation Madam Speaker, and our rights have been, once again, overridden by Canberra.
Very recently, we had a report from Queensland’s Griffith Business School, which has analysed the first 10 months of WorkChoices and found overtime pay has been lost at double the rate of previous Australian Workplace Agreements. The industrial relations Professor David Peetz says women’s conditions and pay fell for the first six months of WorkChoices, especially in the private sector. The professor said real wages fell by 2% in the private sector despite a record profit share for business. This is the flexibility they talk about: w. Wages fell by 2%, - especially for women.
Professor Peetz says the retail and hospitality sectors are of greatest concern because penalty rates for nights and weekend work changed under WorkChoices. In the two quarters since WorkChoices took effect, hourly earnings growth rates in these industries have been half the rate elsewhere. It goes on to state that:
- Real wages for full-time workers have fallen by more than 1% on what is the tightest labour market for 30 years. Normally, real wages should be booming in such circumstances.
So, the flexibility that the Country Liberal Party has been told to talk about here today is about cutting wages and conditions and (inaudible) removing entitlements for Territory workers.
WorkChoices is unfair, Madam Speaker. It is unAustralian. It puts the weakest of employees at an unfair position at the table in negotiating a workplace agreement, and it is a very sad day for this parliament when the once great Country Liberal Party that used to stand proudly for Territory rights has rolled over to Canberra on such a very important issue.
Madam Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Written Question Paper.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016