2002-10-08
Office of Territory Development - CEO
Mr BURKE to CHIEF MINISTER
Chief Minister, during the election campaign you told Territorians that Bob Collins was going to be the head of the Office of Territory Development and you scoffed at allegations that this was a case of jobs for Labor mates. Yesterday, you announced the appointment of Mr David Malone as the head of the Office of Territory Development, an appointment that I welcome. However, it raises the question: is this another broken election promise? Is Bob Collins the head of the Office of Territory Development, or is it Mr David Malone?
ANSWER
I welcome the question, Madam Speaker. What a terrific first question. It is recognition that we have a very fine new Executive Director of the Office of Territory Development in David Malone, a man born in the Territory with enormous experience here, the last six years as the boss of the Territory Construction Association. He is someone who will bring to the job a real understanding of both private and public sector. He has a real passion for the Territory which is, I think, the best thing about Dave Malone’s appointment. He has a real passion for selling the Territory, for understanding jobs and jobs growth, and the importance of getting investment into the Territory.
It was a very proud announcement I made yesterday, and I thank Geoff Farnell for his time as Acting Executive Director of the Office of Territory Development. Bob Collins, who did a very good job, was never the Executive Director of the Office of Territory Development. I thought that the then government was listening to our advertisements. Bob Collins was always described as our Investment Ambassador.
Members interjecting.
Ms MARTIN: Ah, memories! The Territory’s Investment Ambassador, and that is definitely the position that we talked about, that has been honed now to a senior advisor for government, which is Bob’s choice and I respect that, and his real focus for this government is on education. He has a very important role outside his work with the Office of Territory Development as the co-chair of the Indigenous Education Task Force, and his work within OTD is very much focussed on issues of desert knowledge, tropical knowledge, working to build the knowledge capacity of the Northern Territory and working in education in the Indigenous Education Task Force.
So two great appointments in the Office of Territory Development. A new Executive Director in Dave Malone, and it really is terrific to have him on board. He starts that job on 4 November. Bob Collins will continue, as he always has, as a consultant to this government, initially - and I am glad you now remember - Investment Ambassador and now senior advisor to this government and a consultant. Two very strong appointments in that office. I challenge anyone in this House to say that both those men will not do and are not doing a fantastic job for the Territory.
Freedom of Information Legislation
Dr BURNS to CHIEF MINISTER
The Information Bill before the parliament today marks an historic occasion for the Northern Territory. Would you like to comment on this occasion?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, it is a pertinent question because today is an historic day for the Northern Territory.
Members interjecting.
Ms MARTIN: It shows the real contempt that we saw for 27 years from the former government, the Country Liberal Party, about freedom of information. For 27 years it was raised as ‘what are you doing about freedom of information’. We had more weasel words from the then government about freedom of information saying essentially Territorians did not want it, Territorians did not need it, it was an invasion of privacy and that, ultimately, Territorians needed to trust their government. Needed to trust their government, and the only open and accountable mechanism we needed was an election every three to four years, just using the words of the Opposition Leader.
This is an important and an historic day for the Territory. This Information Bill we have before the parliament at the moment fulfils a major election commitment by the Labor Party. We lobbied for years for freedom of information. We were strongly supported by the community. We were the only place left in Australia, the only territory or state, which did not have a freedom of information bill. This is a freedom of information bill that incorporates privacy it incorporates record-keeping laws, and it really is state of the art in terms of being able to combine those three aspects, very important complementary aspects, when you are dealing with that whole access to information. This is the first time in Australia that those three have been combined into one.
I am still trying to work out whether the opposition is going to support this important bill. We heard 50 minutes from the shadow Attorney-General this morning and he had not had a briefing. We had a shadow Attorney-General who came into this parliament to speak about such important legislation and he had not ever sought a briefing on it. For 50 minutes he gave ignorant, ill-informed and inaccurate comments about this important legislation.
Is disappointing for such a poor performance from the Opposition. I can only hope the debate gets better. But I do say again, it is an historic day for the Territory and one, as leader of this government, makes me very proud along with other members in this House.
Arafura Sports and Community Club Inc - Decision to Wind Up
Mr BURKE to CHIEF MINISTER
Chief Minister, your government appointed the accounting firm Ernst and Young as club managers and investigating accountants to report on the future viability of the Arafura Sports and Community Club. In April this year, the accountants reported the club was insolvent, had debts totalling $513 000 that had to be paid, and should be wound up. Given these recommendations, when did the government decide to wind up the club, and why weren’t the members informed of this until you met with them on 29 September 2002?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, let me just inform the former Attorney-General about some of the legalities here. The government did not wind up the club. The government did not play a part in the winding up of the club. Let me just take the Opposition Leader, who seems to think he has all the details, through what are the details of what has happened.
The Arafura Sports and Community Club is in my electorate and is an organisation I have been involved with for a long time now. The fact that this club has had to be wound up is extremely disappointing for me and is a very sad occasion. If we look at the facts of how we have dealt with the situation confronting us, and compare that with what the previous government did not do, then there is a very stark contrast here.
Earlier this year, the Registrar of Associations responded to concerns of club officials and of creditors about outstanding debts and, quite properly, started an investigation to determine what the financial position of the club was, and Ernst and Young were appointed to do that. Ernst and Young did a very diligent job and provided a detailed report to the Department of Justice. They looked at a number of options for the club and looked at what their exact financial situation was.
The key recommendations of that report, done by one of our most respected accounting firms, Ernst and Young, said quite clearly that the club was trading insolvently and should be wound up, that the club should be placed in judicial management, which we did, and the government should acquire the club’s land and buildings for fair value. That was in April.
With the agreement of club officials, we appointed Ernst and Young as judicial managers. They then took over the club’s running because the Dry Season is a chance that the club had to trade itself out of its problems. It had a chance. The Dry Season is when we get a lot of bowlers from interstate into town, and it is the most active time of the year. So under the judicial management of Ernst and Young, the club continued to trade. What we found towards the end of the season was that they weren’t able to continue trading, that they were going backwards. We worked very closely with them.
The appointment of Ernst and Young as judicial managers meant that the club’s committee members were protected from the consequences of trading insolvently, and that is a very serious thing to be faced with as club officials. When you look at the debts that were accumulated, from financial mismanagement, of over $500 000, the fact that we took that very diligent action of appointing judicial managers meant that those club officials were protected; a very important step to remember.
Mr Burke: You know you had legal advice to say they weren’t personally liable. Tell the truth.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, I think the Opposition Leader’s ignorance is on show here. I am demonstrating the due diligence that has been taken by this government in appointing an accounting firm to look at the situation, then appointing them as judicial managers, and having that whole process go through that ended up with the Supreme Court recognising the fact that the club had to be wound up.
Quite properly, we followed through what Ernst and Young advised us, and we did put an offer in for the club. We sought an AVO valuation of that: $550 000. So we put that to the court and said we were prepared to acquire the land, and that was accepted. That is the situation. Let us compare that with how the previous government acted towards the Arafura Sports and Community Club. It is a very stark contrast.
Mr Burke: Remember they are listening to you. They know what was said.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Oh, yes, and I certainly welcome the presence of bowlers here today because the bowlers know about the letter that was sent in April 2001. The Opposition Leader has very conveniently forgotten to mention, when he goes out and makes his public statements, that as Chief Minister - I take you back to April 2001 when he received a letter. It starts: ‘Dear Chief Minister’. It comes from the then Arafura Bowls and Social Club and is signed by the Secretary/Treasurer, and it is just after the then Chief Minister has granted the Palmerston Golf Club $165 000.
Mr Stirling: How much?
Ms MARTIN: $165 000.
Mr Burke: They’re still trading.
Ms MARTIN: It comes just after that …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Members!
Ms MARTIN: … essentially, Madam Speaker, I will table this letter.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, cease for a moment. Members, I do think the people in the Gallery would like to hear the answer without interruption.
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, the letter indicates that there are financial troubles with the club, and says to the then Chief Minister $190 000 will get us out of trouble and set us up for the future. There was no response. Not a skerrick of response came from the then Chief Minister. So April 2001, a club saying we are in trouble, a club indicating they need some kind of direction. And what does the club get from the then Chief Minister, the member for Brennan? Nothing. No response. No response at all.
If the then Chief Minister had done what he says was not diligent action from us, he would have taken a look at the club’s financial situation. He might have decided, based on that, that there was support due to the club and he might even have replied to the club’s letter. But he did nothing, he did nothing. There was some level of meeting, I believe, with the club, or some indication, before the election, enough indication that maybe it’s the wink and the nod, but the club then, obviously very injudiciously, went ahead with building and redevelopment based on a wink and a nod from the then Chief Minister that it would be funded later on. So the club spent the best part of $160 000, as I understand it, on a promise from the then Chief Minister that he might help them out or would help them out. A disgraceful episode. $160 000 that simply tipped the club over into financial mismanagement and debt that they could not escape from. We have a man who is standing in here being sanctimonious, pretending now to care about the club, yet 18 months ago didn’t care, made false promises when he did do something. A disgraceful episode.
It is very sad that the Arafura Sports and Community Club has been wound up, but the debts were high. Their financial situation was unsustainable, and we have done, as government, a fair thing. The Disabled Sports Association will be paid out. The business people around Darwin who are owed tens of thousands of dollars by the club will be paid out. All those debts will be met. We will work with the lawn bowlers to make sure that their important sport not only at the elite level, but at the community level, will be sustainable in the future because it is very important for us to make sure that these community facilities, community sports, are well supported. That is what this government will do. Compare that very starkly with the disgraceful behaviour of the then Country Liberal Party government and look at the great difference there is. I table this letter, Madam Speaker.
Northern Territory University - Government Support
Mr KIELY to CHIEF MINISTER
Will the Chief Minister inform the House of her government’s current and future support for the Northern Territory University?
ANSWER
Certainly, Madam Speaker. There is no doubt that this Labor government is very proud of its support for education and considers education very important. For a community that has such a young population and so many young Territorians who need the skills and education for jobs for the future, we are absolutely committed to getting the best education that we can offer in the Territory, right across the Territory, no matter where you live.
That is this government’s hallmark, and this government’s real commitment is to education. A pillar of that education, of course, is our Northern Territory University. We have had, all along, a very strong commitment to working with the Northern Territory University.
Members interjecting.
Ms MARTIN: A very strong commitment.
Dr Lim: You say that with a grin on your face.
Mr Stirling: You weren’t even here you, you little goose. You weren’t even here, how would you know?
Dr Lim: I was on the Council. I should know!
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Greatorex, order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, I challenge one member of the Opposition to find one word I have ever said that did not strongly support …
Members interjecting.
Ms MARTIN: Listen! Seven years I have been in this parliament. Find one word that has not been of the strongest support, recognising the great importance of our Northern Territory University.
Of course, when it comes to funding, predominantly the funding for the Northern Territory University comes from the Commonwealth. However, there is an important role for the Territory government to play. Over this year, $23m goes into the VET area at the NTU and, in the recent budget, $5m was injected from Territory funds into the NTU.
There is no pretending at this stage, as we come to October 2002, that the Northern Territory University is not faring well; that there is not the community confidence in the university that we would like to see, that the university has financial challenges - shall I put it? - and that there is a lot of work to be done on the university. Part of our commitment as a government is to establish a partnership agreement with the Northern Territory University, and that work is being done, which means that together, government and the university will be mapping out the government’s research needs, our consultancy needs, and seeking to maximise the work that can be captured by the NTU - a very successful process put in place in Tasmania with the University of Tasmania, and a very exciting partnership to pursue.
I also recognise in the House the appointment of a new interim Vice Chancellor at the university, a man with an enormous reputation, both in Australia and internationally, Professor Ken McKinnon. I would like to welcome him to the Northern Territory University and the Territory. He comes with an enormous reputation in building smaller universities after 14 years as the Vice Chancellor of the University of Wollongong. When he took over that university, it was trying to find its way and now has a most respected reputation. We certainly welcome him on board.
At the same time, we wish Ron McKay the best in his retirement, the best of health, and thank him for six years of his hard work and commitment as Vice Chancellor.
There are some hard decisions to be made with the Northern Territory University, ones I am confident that our academic community wants to make, that this community, more broadly, wants to make, and our students want to see made. I hope this government, in a bipartisan way, will put its full support behind Professor Ken McKinnon in the work he will do as the interim Vice Chancellor.
Some challenges are ahead for the NTU, but there is a strong commitment from this government that we are right there working with the Commonwealth to support the best outcome for our students.
Madam Speaker: I would like to remind the ministers that we have only had four questions in a very long time. Could we have shorter questions and shorter answers?
Arafura Sports and Community Club Inc - Decision to Wind Up
Mr BURKE to MINISTER for JUSTICE and ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Madam Speaker, I remind the Minister for Justice and Attorney-General and listeners that, in the last answer, the Chief Minister said the accounting firm was appointed in April and that government did not wind up the club. Minister, yesterday on ABC radio you said:
- With things like the Arafura Bowling Club, by the time the judicial manager was put in there, the thing was really beyond help, and all we were doing was to wind things up.
Today, minister, you said in a ministerial statement:
- By the end of August the club was no longer trading profitably and its position was unsustainable.
ANSWER
I will give you a very short answer to that: I did not decide to wind the club up at all because it is not my role to wind the club up. The Registrar for Associations, working in conjunction with the Supreme Court, will carry through a process which potentially will take a trading body such as the Arafura Club to that conclusion.
What I did was seek regular briefings from the Registrar on what intervention was being carried out according to the set procedures, and the stage at which decisions had to be subsequently made by Cabinet insomuch as the recommendations involved the issue of the land and facilities of the club. Those matters had to be presented to Cabinet. That was my role in it. My understanding of the initial time at which the club and the Registrar joined company to assess the situation and take whatever action was necessary was sought by the club. You should ask them.
Relocation of Power Poles Leonino and Reedbeds Roads
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for ESSENTIAL SERVICES
I welcome the announcement in the press recently that the government has decided to fund the relocation of power poles on Leonino and Reedbeds Roads, Darwin River. Considering that the previous government and your own government did not support funding the relocation of the poles, could you say what changed the government’s mind and what are the finer details of this proposal?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his question. I have to admit that what changed our minds was your intense lobbying about changing the realignment of the poles. I also point out that when the poles were originally put in place, Leonino Road was a four-wheel drive track, and when further development took place in the area the new poles were not aligned with the old poles and the Litchfield Shire Council decided not to bituminise the road because the poles were so close to the edge of the road as to present some safety problems.
The government again had a look at the road safety issue, and thanks to your intense lobbying, PowerWater has now committed to remove the poles for realignment within the next two or three years.
New Drug Laws – Police Action
Mr BONSON to MINISTER for POLICE, FIRE and EMERGENCY SERVICES
Can the minister inform the House of whether the police have made use of the government’s new drug laws to target drug dealing operations?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for his question because I can assure him that indeed they have. You will recall that these laws have been subject to some criticism from some quarters of the Northern Territory. We on this side of the Chamber, whether we were in Opposition or since we formed government last year, have had a very clear view of the strong links that exist between property crime in our suburbs and towns carried out in the majority of cases to feed illicit drug habits.
The member for Wanguri and I stood in here on numerous occasions and prosecuted those links, and the headlines continue today, as recently as the end of last week where a pharmacy was attempted to be held up with a person waving a syringe around. Now, if that does not indicate, prima facie at least, a link between a drug habit and property crime or attempted crime, I will go he.
The government’s new drug laws are very much about tackling what we see as the problem at the source, and the source is the dealers. Police have advised me that these new drug laws have indeed become a very important tool in the fight against these drug dealers. They began operation FireFox on 14 August specifically to target premises under the amendments to the Misuse of Drugs Act, and these are the amendments which have been roundly criticised in some quarters.
The amendments give police the power to execute search warrants and serve notices on suspected drug premises. As a result, police have been able to identify a number of residences in both Alice Springs and Darwin as probable drug houses. Nine first notices have been served in relation to premises in the greater Darwin area, and two notices similarly in relation to premises in Alice Springs. I understand a further two notices have been served in the past 24 hours alone; one in Darwin and one in Alice Springs.
One landlord threw the drug dealers out, evicted them, after the third notice was served on him. Of course, that leads to the process, eventually, after a magistrate’s order, of a drug sign ‘This is a drug house’ being located outside the property.
That was the clear intention of this government. We thought that if enough pressure was applied, landlords would act and, very clearly, they have, and they have thrown these drug dealers on the street.
Operation FireFox has seen a total of 19 search warrants executed, five arrests, two summonses and 30 infringement notices. We think this makes an absolute mockery of the Opposition Leader’s recent assertions that …
Ms Martin: Miniscule, he said.
Mr STIRLING: Well, he did refer to drug problems in the Northern Territory as ‘miniscule’ some years ago, but recently he claimed that drugs in the Northern Territory were a government invention, that we had invented the drug problem to somehow cover up about mandatory sentencing. No such thing. No invention here. These figures speak for themselves.
This idea that we have invented the drug problem is certainly not an opinion shared by people of the Northern Territory. It is not an opinion shared by police who are putting these laws to good effect. I am sure the people living next door to these types of residences didn’t see it as a government invention either. Those people who, as recently as a week or two ago, were having to live next door to an illicit amphetamine laboratory in Karama, they don’t think the problem was invented.
Police will continue to gather intelligence on these drug houses and the people who operate them, and because of the early success with Operation FireFox, the police have advised that they will continue that operation until the end of October. Targetting drug houses will also become part of the everyday duties of both uniform and plain clothes police because we think, and certainly the police have the view, that for too long these people have been allowed to flourish in the community to a point where every cab driver in Darwin could tell you where to go to obtain your drugs. We are putting an end to that through the good work of the police putting these amendments into operation.
As Minister for Police, I am very pleased to see that the new drug laws are helping police to get on top of these drug dealing operations and shut them down for good.
Arafura Sports and Community Club Inc - Proposed Land Use
Mr BURKE to MINISTER for LANDS and PLANNING
Minister, in your interview with Fred McCue on ABC Radio on 1 October, you said:
- In the end, the government is going to take the land and use it for other purposes.
You went on to say:
- It could be a housing development, it could be an R1 or R2 development.
When Fred McCue said:
- The future looks fairly limited.
You said:
- Well, for this site, for this particular club, yes.
Minister, is a development proposed for the site and if so, can you tell us the details of that development? Also, will the government be subdividing land so that the units can be put up for sale? If so, why did the government refuse the Arafura Club a similar option to allow them to restructure their debt?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question and, yes, that is what I said on Fred McCue’s program. I have to say first that whatever is going to happen with that site, we will keep in our sight the future of sporting clubs in Darwin. What is going to happen to this site, the final outcome, is going to benefit community and sporting clubs in Darwin. On the other hand, we just paid $550 000 on the Valuer-General’s valuation to acquire that land. We cannot just throw the money away. We have to recover the money. It is not my money, it is not your money, it is Territorians’ money and somehow we have to recover it.
Whatever happens, we have to make sure that the community is going to benefit, and the community will benefit. Of course there is no development proposal for that site. There was one in April 2001. It was put to us by the club, but following advice I received from the Department of Justice, I did not proceed with this development not only because the club was not viable, but also there were problems with residents, the neighbours and certainly with the type of the site which was prescribed property.
Northern Territory Economy - Improvement
Ms SCRYMGOUR to TREASURER
The government inherited an economy that is best described as pretty flat. What is the economic environment now for Territorians?
ANSWER
A very important question, thank you to the member for Arafura. ‘Pretty flat’ was a generous description of how the economy was 12 months ago in the Territory. It is still a situation where we have some patches of weakness in the economy, and I know that there are many businesses still doing it tough, but overall, I am very pleased to tell this House and Territorians that the economy is definitely improving.
If we look at some of the major indicators that we have for the economy, let’s look at State Final Demand, which is really the broadest measure of our economy …
Mr Dunham: What about GST?
Ms MARTIN: … grew in the 2001-02 year by 16.3%. It is a shame the member for Drysdale doesn’t want to hear this. It is good news for Territorians. It is very good news. The previous government left an economy that was flat.
Mr Dunham: Not true.
Ms MARTIN: I mean let’s look at the – not true? Not true! What was State Final Demand in 2000-01? It was -0.3%. What was it at 1999-2000? It was –6.5%. That was the economy in a good state, was it? This is not a competition. This is about how Territory businesses, how jobs can flourish, and when we see signs that the economy is improving, then it is good news for Territorians. So the State Final Demand figure grew by 16.3% over the 2001-02 year. The growth in State Final Demand is forecast to be not as large as that, about 4.6% for this year.
The other statistics around show also that the indicators are that the economy is on the up. If you look at things like trend unemployment, a year ago it was 7.6%, it is now 4.2%, so a significant drop in the level of unemployment. If you put that together with the trend employment, which is 100 700, up nearly 3500 from August a year ago. So it is good. We have growth in the number of people being employed.
Non-residential building approvals in the year to August rose 26.1%, again a good outcome. The residential approvals did not perform so well, but we are confident with the very generous stamp duty arrangements announced in the budget that we will see greater levels of home ownership in the Territory. Hopefully, that will be reflected in further domestic residential construction. Over the year to July, housing finance commitments rose by 4%. It was not as much as we would like to see, of course, but it is rising.
Look at figures like retail trade, increased by over 7% over the year to August, and that was just 3.4% the year before. So, again, if you look across the economy, those indicators are there for the economy picking up and what that means for Territorians is more jobs, their businesses are starting to pick up after really tough times for a couple of years. Even though the figures don’t tell the entire story, we are a small place in terms of the numbers, and those figures can be quite jumpy. If you take them right across the board, Territorians should have great confidence that this economy has turned the corner, with the government committed to jobs growth and investment attraction into the Territory, and committed to those big projects coming onboard, finishing the rail, the port, getting gas onshore, then I think the prospects for the Territory economy and Territory jobs are getting better.
Arafura Sports and Community Club Inc - Loan Amount
Mr BURKE to MINISTER for JUSTICE and ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Minister, in reference to the Arafura Sports and Community Club, and I refer to the due diligence I am sure you have been involved in with this club, we know that there was a long-term mortgage loan of $234 000 that was not required to be paid until 2011, and the interest on this loan was being adequately serviced from trading profits of the club. You gave a statement this morning where you gave details of the remaining debt which we know includes a loan from the Darwin Football Club of $40 000. Minister, can you confirm that the loan was received by the Arafura Club?
ANSWER
The information that was provided this morning in the House in the ministerial report was the information directly provided to us by Ernst and Young, who were both the organisation brought in to assess the situation of the club and subsequently to offer judicial management. Those were the figures on which Ernst and Young based its assessment. I am not a professional accountant, and Ernst and Young personnel are. They have sought the information and the financial impact of each of the financial arrangements that the club found itself in. They have assessed the overall impact on the club’s viability and they have recommended to us, as a professional organisation, that the club was no longer viable. End of story.
Defence Infrastructure Expenditure
Mr KIELY to MINISTER for BUSINESS, INDUSTRY and RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Minister, would you please advise the House on what defence expenditure on infrastructure in the Territory this year will mean in terms of jobs for Territorians?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Sanderson for his question. I am sure all of us in this parliament support the ADF presence in the Northern Territory, and we all value the tremendous contribution their presence makes to the Territory community at a social level as well as an economic level.
We are about to see, for the rest of this financial year, a significant expenditure increase in this area of infrastructure, an additional $78m in Commonwealth expenditure. This expenditure is going to be maximised in terms of providing jobs for Territorians, business for Territory companies, and work for subcontractors in the building industry. It really is a collaboration between the Commonwealth Defence Department, Defence Housing Association, the Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Environment, Department of Justice, DBIRD, as well as the Australian Industry Defence Network Northern Territory which is chaired by Mark Smith and which has significant representation from Territory business to make sure that the Territory does benefit as best it can from this infrastructure spend.
The Carey Street housing development will be complete this year, a $27m project nearing completion. I congratulate Multiplex, the project managers on site at the moment. There are 170 jobs on that construction site with at least a similar amount, if not more, out in the broader economy, and an absolute commitment in terms of making sure that Territorians gain the bulk of this work. A lot of the major works on that site has been broken up into bite-size pieces to ensure that as many Territory companies as possible can benefit from that. We are working with the major primes to ensure that that type of effort in terms of supporting local small business in the Territory continues. This is significant expenditure.
I am pleased to be able to announce today that finally, that after some years of discussion, the Northern Land Council and the Commonwealth are completing the ILUA that will allow the Bradshaw field training area at Bradshaw Station to commence this year. $27m this year, a huge impact on our economy, $50m over the coming two years.
It goes to show that with goodwill and negotiation, we can get over these hurdles. The Australian Defence Force personnel and their families continue to contribute to the Northern Territory. All of us in this House support their presence. The infrastructure is continuing to be developed and we, as a government, will continue to ensure that Territory business gains the most benefit possible from this infrastructure.
Arafura Sports and Community Club Inc - Sponsorship Money
Mr BURKE to MINISTER for JUSTICE and ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Again, as part of your due diligence on this club, minister, are you or your officers also aware that, in 2001, $15 000 in sponsorship money was provided by two companies to the Arafura Sports and Community Club? Nowhere does this money appear on the club’s accounts. Minister, was this anomaly investigated by you or your department and, if so, what action does the government intend to take?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I can assure the Leader of the Opposition that we are aware of some of those questionable deals that were done by a previous manager of that club. We will be pursuing any wrongdoing with that individual, and if it is proven that any money that was due to go to the club from whatever source during the time that that person was managing did not reach the club, then he will be prosecuted.
Draft Information Bill – Public Submissions
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for JUSTICE and ATTORNEY-GENERAL
Attorney-General, in March this year you told parliament that you would provide all members of the Assembly with a summary of the 60 submissions that your government received on the original Draft Information Bill so they would have information on the issues raised in the submissions. Was that summary formulated, and may we have a copy?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I can assure you that a listing of all the submissions and an offer that the actual submission be available to members was circulated. I remember quite clearly arranging that with Madam Speaker at the time. I can make that available to you if you do not have it.
Territory Tidy Towns - Funding Arrangements
Mr McADAM to MINISTER for LOCAL GOVERNMENT
I am concerned by recent reports that the Beverage Industry Environment Council reduced the level of funding for the Territory Tidy Towns program. What level of support does the government provide to Tidy Towns and what action has the minister taken to restart negotiations between Keep Australia Beautiful and the Beverage Industry Environment Council?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Barkly for his question. Territory Tidy Towns is a terrific program. It is more than just an anti-litter program; it is a whole-of-community program. It is about capacity building, promoting healthy communities, nutrition, and raising self-esteem. In fact, I have been an ardent supporter of Territory Tidy Towns for the last seven years that I have been a member of this Chamber. Every occasion I attend the awards night is something special because what it provides is the participants coming together for the forum and then attending the awards night. You see this great mix of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people dressed up at an awards night, all proud and showing off that self-pride and esteem in what they have been able to do in terms of their contribution to the Keep Australia Beautiful Territory Tidy Towns competition. In fact, last year it was somewhat special to see the former Lord Mayor of Darwin, George Brown, and Gibson Farmer escorting each other off the stage. They have a special relationship, obviously, with the Community Government Council at Milikapiti and the Darwin City Council sister city relationship. It was great, as was the attendance that we get there and the pride people have in being able to represent their communities and to put in that hard work.
Our government supports Territory Tidy Towns on two levels. We provide $160 000 funding to the Keep Australia Beautiful committee for salaries and operational costs, and we provide assistance for the administration of the program. We provide support. In the last couple of days I have had requests for assistance from Lorna Woods at Keep Australia Beautiful in looking for venues for this year’s Territory Tidy Towns competition and somewhere where they possibly can have the forum. At this stage, we are looking at hopefully seeing if we can secure somewhere up at the Strangers Bar for the forum, and possibly either the Hall for the function for the awards night or across the road in the Chan Building. Those discussions will continue.
We will continue to support Territory Tidy Towns. Many members would have heard the discussion over the last couple of weeks in respect of the Beverage Industry Environment Council pulling out their funding. I am writing to them and asking them to come to the table and to sit down with Keep Australia Beautiful and Territory Tidy Towns people and have my department chair that so that we can try to secure some organisational support from both sides because the resources they need to travel around in judging the competitions are significant and to bring people together from across the Northern Territory is also necessary. I will continue to work with both bodies to try to see if we can reach a compromise because it certainly is going to mean that they will be struggling after this year’s Territory Tidy Towns competition forum and awards. On behalf of our government, I want to look at ways in which we can continue to provide support to them so that we can ensure that they continue to conduct themselves professionally in doing a great job for the Northern Territory.
Arafura Sports and Community Club Inc - Cost of Acquisition
Mr BURKE to CHIEF MINISTER
Chief Minister, I am sure as local member and as Chief Minister, you would be aware that the Arafura Sports and Community Club owns land under freehold title, albeit prescribed land but freehold title nonetheless for which your government has offered as little as $550 000. This freehold land has on it considerable improvements, including the club house and 14 accommodation units which Ernst and Young in their report valued at $1.4m. Chief Minister, will you admit that your Labor government has purchased this facility at a windfall price and has dudded the club out of $900 000 worth of assets?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, you hope when you give answers in this House that the Opposition is actually listening. We sought, in response to how on earth we could meet the outstanding creditors of the Arafura Bowls and Community Club - $505 000 of creditors. What could we do about them? Organisations like the Disabled Sports Association, individuals, and a lot of businesses around that had done work for club because the club believed that the previous government would meet those costs.
I am not saying whether that was a commitment given by the then Chief Minister or whether it was misunderstood by the club, Madam Speaker, but it was definitely there. Here is a man who is trying to stand in here and ask questions based on ‘Where is your due diligence, government?’ There was not even a smell of due diligence from the previous government.
Dr Toyne: There was the smell of something else, though.
Ms MARTIN: There was the smell of something else. Madam Speaker, we went transparently and fairly through the proper processes, a judicial manager, an accounting firm to look at the situation, done in conjunction with the club. We then went to the Australian Valuation Office. So you don’t trust the Australian Valuation Office? Is this what you are saying? We went to the AVO and said: ‘Give us a fair valuation’.
Mr Burke: It depends on the zoning. Tell the truth. It depends on what zoning you give it. You are the government; you can zone it however you like.
Ms MARTIN: The Valuation Office recognises the zoning of the club. $550 000. Which government was it that sold it to the club for $85 000 just a few years ago? The valuation was $550 000 and it is a fair one. Those dollars, now with the judicial managers, will be used to pay off those Territorians who are creditors of that club, some of them individuals who have put considerable dollars into the club and their investment has been let down by very poor financial management. We will not let that go astray. We will pursue any individual who has ripped off that club. We will pursue that individual. We are changing the Incorporations Act - something you never did - to make sure that that will never happen again, and someone who does work for a club cannot simply walk away and go to another club and do the same thing.
My greatest concern is that we make sure that lawn bowls has a sustainable future and that those who want to be involved in lawn bowls have facilities to go to. What they have been doing, particularly for the Arafura Club over the last couple of years, is spending all their time concerned about the club surviving financially, worrying about debt. That is not why you join a club. That is my concern. My commitment, as chief of this government, is that we will work with the Lawn Bowls Association, and we have already started those discussions, to make sure that the lawn bowls future in the Territory is bright and is certainly financially hassle free. That is my commitment.
Indigenous Mental Health Workers
Ms LAWRIE to MINISTER for HEALTH and COMMUNITY SERVICES
Minister, could you please explain any initiatives in the area of indigenous mental health workers?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Karama for her excellent question, particularly given that this is Mental Health Week. I would like to draw the attention of members to a very interesting art exhibition in the main hall which I was happy to launch last Friday, which has art works by people who have mental illnesses in the Northern Territory, many are from places like the Tamarind Centre, plus there have been students from Darwin High in Year 10 who have also put special art works into this exhibition. They are for sale, and I would encourage members to go out there and buy some art works. I have brought two, and I would like to see some more of those in other members’ offices.
For too long, health issues relating to mental health have been under-recognised to the great detriment of people suffering mental health problems. It is a very important piece of information to know that one in five Australians will, at some time during their lives, suffer from a mental health problem which, if we are looking at this Chamber, will certainly include some of us, so it is something which we need to be thinking of in a very serious way.
As I have advised the House previously, I signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Beyond Blue organisation earlier this year which has been formed to highlight the extent of depression as a major illness affecting Australians. I am pleased to be able to inform the House that on 14 September, I launched a new initiative to address mental health issues affecting indigenous people in the Territory. The new initiative is in the form of a partnership agreement between the Top End Division of General Practice, Top End Mental Health Services, Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education and the Northern Territory University.
The partnership has been formed to support the Territory’s Aboriginal mental health workers who provide an invaluable service in Aboriginal communities. The agreement is a significant step in fostering a cooperative partnership to support Aboriginal mental health workers, general practitioners and visiting mental health teams in addressing mental health needs in remote communities. The agreement is the result of a shared vision to create an environment of cross-cultural learning in which primary mental health care services are delivered in the context of learning both ways. That is, Aboriginal mental health workers and other practitioners working in partnership, each learning from and supporting one another with clinical and cultural knowledge based on mutual respect.
As part of this agreement, and through the support of Beyond Blue, the Top End Division has engaged an Aboriginal mental health worker coordinator to support the needs of Aboriginal mental health workers. The division will work with Top End Mental Health Services to increase collaboration between workers, GPs and the visiting mental health team to ensure education and training opportunities are shared. Batchelor Institute will support the education and training needs of the Aboriginal mental health workers, and the Northern Territory University has agreed to work with the division to develop a framework of evaluation which will enhance the model of shared primary health care in remote communities.
The program recognises that Aboriginal mental health workers are experts in indigenous primary mental health care in remote communities, and are key stakeholders in the delivery of culturally effective services, and this can only be of benefit to indigenous Territorians.
Arafura Sports and Community Club Inc - Actions of Chief Minister
Mr BURKE to CHIEF MINISTER
Chief Minister, I have listened to a tape recording of the meeting involving yourself and representatives of the Arafura Sports and Community Club on 29 September. You will recall that meeting and the coverage it received in next day’s NT News with a seven-column photograph of yourself. Your closing comments to that meeting were:
- I am very sad as local member that you have been through such tough times, but I think together we can work for the future of bowls, and maybe one day I’ll even get down here.
Chief Minister, do you believe that members of the Arafura Sports and Community Club were left with the impression that it was all over for them after 41 years, that you had closed the club and taken away their greens, or do you think they saw you as bailing them out and that they would continue to exist and continue to be able to use their greens?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, my whole presentation to the club was one of explaining what had happened and I made it very clear, as I made very clear in my last answer, that my concern is about the future of bowls. The government, as I have said, through the Department of Community Development, Sport and Recreation, quite appropriately, is working with the Lawn Bowls Association about the future of the sport. That is very important; that is the fundamental.
It is a pity that the previous government had no such concern and walked away, and really contributed, quite significantly, to the problems now facing them. There is no doubt …
Mr Burke: We did not walk away, we lost an election.
Mr Stirling: You made them a promise you did not keep, that is what broke them.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, it saddens me enormously to hear the hypocrisy from those on the other side of this parliament. The pretence that you hear from a then government who ignored a club in difficulties, who made promises that caused the difficulties not to disappear, but to grow and eventuated in a club being wound up, a club of 41 years.
Government has made no decisions about the future of that club or that land. It has been wound up through the proper processes under the Incorporations Act. It has been wound up because the club’s position was unsustainable.
Mr Baldwin: Are they going to be able to bowl at Ross Smith Avenue? That is what they want to know.
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, would you please tell the member for Daly to stop being so repulsive.
Mr Baldwin: She is not answering the question, Madam Speaker!
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Allow the member to continue with her answer so the people in the gallery can hear.
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, I appreciated your direction to this sitting of parliament that you expected a high level of behaviour. I think that is something that we should all aspire to.
My commitment, I say again, is to the future of lawn bowls, to a financially sustainable future of lawn bowls, and that is what I made very clear.
Can I make mention, while the Opposition Leader is talking about recordings that have been made, he mentioned this morning in this House that recordings are made of meetings between my staff and other people. I would like the member for Brennan to tell me where those meetings were and why they were recorded because, as I understand it, if he is not referring - I do not mind a public meeting that I am at being recorded, but if there are people recording meetings between my staff and themselves, that is simply breaking the law. I make that point: it is breaking the law.
Members interjecting.
Ms MARTIN: You are not allowed, under federal communications laws, to record conversations without telling people you are doing it. So I put the Opposition Leader on notice. You tell me who has broken those laws …
Mr Burke: Charlie Phillips. No one broke the law; he was told it was being recorded. That is one of them.
Ms MARTIN: You tell me how and who recorded those. The point I make very clearly is that, despite the hypocrisy of the other side of the House, our concern is with the future of lawn bowls, of doing what is due diligence and doing it properly. The costs of Ernst and Young, in both their accounting and judicial management role, have been picked up by this government. That is not a cost to the club. We have been scrupulous in our due diligence. I am very sorry that a club of 41 years that is in my electorate has been wound up, but we will now move forward with lawn bowls to assure its future.
Mr STIRLING (Leader of Government Business): I ask that further questions be placed on the question paper, Madam Speaker.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016