2006-10-11
REDIRECTION OF QUESTIONS
Minister for Local Government
Minister for Local Government
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, the member for Barkly and Minister for Local Government and Housing is unable to attend Question Time due to his speaking at the LGANT Annual General Meeting in Alice Springs. For today I will be taking questions on his behalf.
Medical Services Amendment Bill – Conscience Vote
Ms CARNEY to CHIEF MINISTER
The ALP constitution provides that when members debate the issue of abortion ALP members have a conscience vote. Considering the obvious passion that arises about this issue, some of which was expressed passionately on ABC radio this morning, CLP members will exercise a conscience vote today. Why will you not allow your members a conscience vote on this issue?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, if this was a debate about whether we should have terminations, whether there should be abortions available in the Northern Territory, we would have a conscience vote. Very clearly, that is something to which the Labor Party is committed. That is not what we are discussing today.
This is moving the provision for terminations from one bill to another. It is technical. It is not about whether we have terminations in the Territory or not. Despite the protestations from members opposite that this is very different, it is not. It is technical, …
Mr Mills: It is not.
Ms MARTIN: … despite the member for Blain protesting ‘it is not’. It is technical. We will treat this exactly as it is, as a technical change, moving from one bill to another. That is why there is no need for a conscience vote. Every single member of the Labor Party is absolutely convinced of that and committed to that. As I say, if it was about whether there should be terminations, then we would have a conscience vote. As it is not, we will not.
Masonic Homes Aged Care Facilities, Tiwi
Mr KIELY to CHIEF MINISTER
Today, you helped announce a major upgrade to the Masonic Homes retirement and aged care complex at Tiwi Gardens. For the benefit of the senior Territorians in the seat of Sanderson and, I am sure, for all senior Territorians and their families across the Territory, can you update the House on progress being made at the complex?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I would be delighted, and I thank the member for Sanderson for the question. Earlier today, I, along with local member, Kon Vatskalis, and Minister for Senior Territorians, Marion Scrymgour, visited the Masonic Homes the retirement and aged care complex at Tiwi Gardens to check on the progress being made.
I am delighted to announce a $7m upgrade to the original proposal that I announced with Masonic Homes in May this year. The upgrade means even more beds, better facilities and better services for residents of the home. When I was there in May, we said there would be 45 aged care beds; now there will be 85 new aged care beds in addition to the 50 beds currently at Tiwi. There will also be 35 new retirement homes and, very importantly, 12 new low-cost housing units. That is terrific as it recognises that seniors have different levels of affordability when it comes to homes and those low-cost ones will be very important.
Masonic Homes is also expanding their day therapy and rehabilitation services, and increasing their focus on dementia support facilities and services. I can certainly inform the House that Darwin Nursing Home residents will be relocated to these new facilities in 2008. This is great news for the Top End and gives us the quality aged care service we need to look after our senior Territorians.
As you know, we granted 2.4 ha of vacant Crown land to Masonic Homes earlier this year in an effort to meet the aged care needs of the community. Today, we saw the plans and the artist’s impressions for the now $25m complex and it is very impressive. It will take five years for these extensions to be completed. The complex will then be the largest retirement and aged care facility in the Northern Territory.
The critical part of this is that, for too long, Territorians have reached retirement age and headed south. It almost seems as though everyone heads to the Sunshine Coast or the Gold Coast. Facilities such as this means there is every reason for Territorians to stop doing that. We have seen great signs of that not happening as much as it did in the past. Facilities like this assist in doing that and enable senior Territorians to be confident of the care they need as they get older.
I congratulate a number of people who have been instrumental in making this expansion a reality. Our thanks to David Brooks and the board of Masonic Homes Inc, and to Doug Strain, who was there today, and his management team at Masonic Homes. From all of us, congratulations.
Members: Hear, hear!
Sexual Abuse in Aboriginal Communities - Inquiry
Ms CARNEY to CHIEF MINISTER
You wrote a memorandum to the Police minister in November 2004 describing, ‘social dysfunction surrounding the substance abuse epidemic resulting in human rights abuses, self harm, violence against others, sexual abuse and neglect’, in Mutitjulu. You also said that there were children as young as five who have contracted STDs and young girls were being prostituted for petrol. The day after a Lateline interview exposed these issues, you announced an inquiry into sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities. If you knew about these issues in November 2004, why did you not announce an inquiry then?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, there is a story in today’s Australian which needs a context to it. It mentions a memo that I wrote to the then Police minister in November 2004. It is a snapshot of our concern about the community of Mutitjulu. There is a whole series of memos about Mutitjulu and it probably starts, most critically, at the beginning of 2003. As everyone in the House understands, Mutitjulu is, in Territory terms, a unique community. It is predominantly run by the Commonwealth government, but we provide some level of service to that community. I was very concerned particularly about things like petrol sniffing, some of the social dysfunction in Mutitjulu, and started working with the Commonwealth in 2003 to tackle the problems in the community.
We took a number of actions well before that memo was written, there were lots of other memos written. One of the key actions was establishing a project called Working Together, between the Territory and federal governments to really focus on Mutitjulu. That came into place in mid 2004. Also, in June 2004, after I had spoken to the Police minister, and he responded very quickly, two officers were tasked to focus on the problems of Mutitjulu. We had discussed some of the concerns raised in that particular memo before, and it was no secret that there were serious problems in Mutitjulu. So, from June 2004, we had police officers focused on Mutitjulu. That focus was for a particular six month period. It did not mean it stopped after that, but those two officers were tasked to look at those problems.
The memo that is published today was informed by the work of Greg Andrews, who was employed as the coordinator in the Working Together project between the Territory and the federal government at Mutitjulu. One of the things that I have had to recognise in the appointment of Greg Andrews to that position is that he was very disappointing. He made many allegations about Mutitjulu that we have seen since he appeared as the ‘anonymous youth worker’ in that Lateline program. Much to his enduring shame, many of the allegations that he has made have had no substance.
Ms Carney: What about what Jane Lloyd, your advisor, had to say?
Ms MARTIN: Many of the allegations that he made have had no substance at all.
Ms Carney: What about Jane Lloyd? Are you calling her a liar?
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: I am referring to the information in that memo which came from Greg Andrews. Anything Greg Andrews presented to us we said: ‘You report to the police straight away. If you are saying there are issues of child abuse, that must be reported’. As it subsequently emerged, he did not report anything. The only report that Greg Andrews - in that very responsible position at Mutitjulu - reported to police was an anonymous fax after he left the position.
One by one, disappointment in the work of Greg Andrews has emerged. He made claims of old people at Mutitjulu abandoning the community and living in the hills - it was a sorry camp. The allegations he made, very sadly, have had very little substance. The fact that he appeared on the Lateline program supporting the Indigenous Affairs minister in his claims of paedophile rings, when there was never any evidence of that, has really disappointed me about the work of Greg Andrews, and the trust that we, as a Territory, had in him to do a very important task at Mutitjulu.
I say to the people of Mutitjulu that we have been working hard with you for a long time now. We have had national exposure to many issues to do with the community, and many of those are justified. I do not believe the people of Mutitjulu would back off that. However, they do not need things of fantasy said about them. That community needs a lot of respect, which we have not seen from many players.
I do not back off the issues of Mutitjulu. I do not back off the fact that we have also established a child sex abuse inquiry. The issues that we face, not only in Mutitjulu but across the Territory, need a next level of investigation. We have a task force, child protection workers, and police but, despite those efforts, we are still finding that we have that silence surrounding these issues. We will keep working until we can find a way of ensuring that we can break through that barrier of silence.
I have no apologies about the work we have done in Mutitjulu; about the efforts we have made. We will continue to do that.
I congratulate that community. When I was there a couple of months ago, they said to me: ‘We do not have petrol sniffing any more’. Fantastic! What a great achievement for a community that has been dysfunctional for many years now because of petrol sniffing. That is a tribute to the work of the community, of our police force and, importantly, the new volatile substance abuse laws that give police the powers to do effective work, along with the federal government and the roll-out of Opal fuel.
There are some keen factors in this, and we will continue working with the Mutitjulu community, which had very difficult times over many years. They are now administered from Perth because of the decisions of the federal government. How can you possibly administer a community from Perth, and pay that administrator $60 000 a quarter? It is outrageous! How can you put their funding on hold, which has been done since July, for key programs in that community? Again, something I challenged the federal minister about and said: ‘Go and visit the community, Mr Brough. Go and visit that community and find out what is happening. Find out the reaction you have made, as a minister, to the media focus that was on Mutitjulu. It is not constructive’.
We need to work together. That project had a good title about working together with Mutitjulu. However, we have made some mistakes about the key players we put in place, and that has been a great disappointment.
Violence and Child Abuse Issues
Mr HAMPTON to MINISTER for POLICE, FIRE and EMERGENCY SERVICES
I am proud to represent a bush electorate. Around 85% of my constituents are indigenous. Like all Territorians, my constituents are appalled by crimes of violence and child abuse that occur throughout the Territory. Could you inform the House of current initiatives to address the issues of violence and child abuse?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Stuart for his question. It is his first question and it is an important question. Right across the Territory, decent people are appalled by crimes of violence against women and children, and sexual abuse. As a government, we are addressing those issues. We are doing it in collaboration and in partnership with the Commonwealth government.
One important development that has happened under this government is the establishment of the Child Abuse Task Force earlier this year, which comes under the auspices of FACS, but also has very strong input and collaboration with Education, Police, and Territory Housing. The Health department also feeds information to that particular body. That body is monitoring the situation, and will be reporting any instances or suspicions that might come to the relevant authorities.
Last week, a further step was taken with the Australian Crime Commission announcing a new office in Alice Springs, and it was my pleasure to be there. This is the National Indigenous Violence and Child Abuse Intelligence Task Force. Senator Chris Ellison was there, and I look forward to a collaborative relationship with the senator. I also had discussions with him in Canberra the previous Friday to that, where we talked about placing two AFP officers within the Territory’s Child Abuse task force. We are currently finalising those arrangements.
The National Indigenous Violence And Child Abuse Intelligence Task Force will be primarily an intelligence gathering body. The Alice Springs office will contain seconded officers from Northern Territory Police, the Australian Crime Commission, the South Australia Police and the Federal Police. I also understand that the Western Australia Police are also considering their role in this. Intelligence gathered by the task force will be analysed and shared with the relevant law enforcement agencies. The establishment of the National Indigenous Violence and Child Abuse Intelligence Task Force results from a resolution of the Australasian Police Ministers’ Council in July this year. I acknowledge my predecessor, the member for Wanguri who, as Police minister, had carriage of this.
It sends out a clear warning, Madam Speaker: for those who commit crimes of violence against indigenous women and children, you will be identified. Evidence about your activities will be obtained - you will be charged and prosecuted. There will be no mercy in this. I am glad to be collaborating with the Australian government, with Senator Ellison, and I know the Northern Territory Police Force is very focused on this. I look forward to reporting further on these initiatives to parliament in the future.
Child Abuse - Mutitjulu
Ms CARNEY to CHIEF MINISTER
When the member for Arafura was Minister for Family and Community Services, she said in the parliament on 24 August 2004 that, in relation to child abuse, she did not need any more information before taking action. She said that her department currently had in front of it over 20 different reports about understanding and addressing child abuse in Australia. She went on to say: ‘… that while information is important, it is action, not information, which is needed now’. Did you provide a copy of the memo you wrote to the then Police minister in November 2004 to the then Minister for Family and Community Services? You and your Police minister knew what was going on and you failed to act until you announced an inquiry in June. Do you agree that that was a shallow and opportunistic response?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I took time in the House to answer in detail the first question about Mutitjulu. I believe I demonstrated pretty clearly that we have been taking action on a range of issues at Mutitjulu. Mutitjulu has a long history of being a very difficult community. It attracts people from around that Central Australian region. Certainly, petrol sniffing is a key issue. I do not believe there is any secret about the problems facing Mutitjulu.
We have put additional resources into police. We had a discussion about that yesterday – 165 additional police officers on the ground in the Territory; there will be 200 by the end of the financial year, and significant additional resources into child protection. We knew the issue was a very significant one for us. Every other jurisdiction has put considerable resources into child protection in an attempt to tackle what is an insidious problem. We are not Robinson Crusoe in this. It is a problem right across Australia.
We put those resources in. There was action being taken, working with the Commonwealth, and we were not hiding that action. I stood in this House talking about the Working Together project, saying we were working together on Mutitjulu because of the problems. We have taken that action.
I do not back off the decision to have an inquiry. We had a lot of national attention on Mutitjulu. If you read a newspaper such as the National Indigenous Times, the assessment is that the Lateline program was really an attempt to justify a statement made by the Indigenous Affairs minister. Mal Brough went on television and said: ‘There are paedophile rings in the Northern Territory’, and when asked to justify it, could not.
So we had the disgraceful episode of a program like Lateline, which had a reputation, and lost it, I believe, very substantially over that program, by creating a story about Mutitjulu with a number of people who had not lived there for up to five or six years. We had the likes of Greg Andrews, in his disguise as a former youth worker, which he never was, with his hat pulled down over his head and in the darkness, supporting comments made by the man who employed him, the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Mal Brough.
Mr Stirling: What a set up!
Ms MARTIN: What a set up it was. I responded, quite appropriately, to the national discussion that was going on around child sex abuse, a quite legitimate discussion, despite efforts right across Australia, and realised that it was an appropriate time to have an inquiry to look at how we get through the problems of not having witnesses, of people feeling fearful of stepping forward and saying: ‘That’s the perpetrator. I want him to go to court’.
It does not mean that we took no action before this. That is simply rubbish. It does not mean that we did not take action. What we did was to add another level of inquiry to this very important issue. Protecting our children is of the highest importance, and I do not make any apology. I say again, much of the information passed to me by someone I trusted, that is the project manager of Working Together, Greg Andrews, has been unsubstantiated. He did not, as an employee of the federal government working in the Territory, pass on issues that he was instructed to do to our police. He did not do that - only an anonymous fax after he left employ and left the Territory.
I am very disappointed over what happened, but it does not undermine the fact that Mutitjulu is a community with a range of problems. As I said to the Mutitjulu community, I am committed to working with them. We do have runs on the board, and I want to be able to work with the Mutitjulu community, and hopefully with the Commonwealth government if they will stop taking punitive action at Mutitjulu, and look at a much brighter future.
Construction Industry Outlook
Mr BONSON to TREASURER
The construction industry is an important economic driver in the Territory which has been bucking national trends. Can Territorians be confident that the construction industry will be sustained over the medium term, or is it a boom/bust cycle?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, traditionally, the Territory has had a history of boom and bust cycles, however we should have every confidence that the current fairly robust construction industry will be sustained for some time, certainly into the medium future.
We have evidence for that, both in work in progress and work in the pipeline. If we look across the Territory, in Alice Springs, the government’s commitment to the Alice Springs Hospital; associated health buildings; the Mereenie Loop; the Desert Knowledge Precinct; private investment in projects such as the Yeperenye Shopping Centre; residential allotments; extensions to Old Timers; and additional serviced apartments. From around September onwards, we would anticipate, in public sector infrastructure alone, a roll-out of around $30m in addition to that work. Alice Springs and nearby will be cranking up across the construction industry.
In the Katherine district, with expenditure on the Victoria Highway, a large bill looming. There are healthy prospects in construction over the coming 12 months from Northern Territory government spending. There are healthy prospects from proposed spending by Defence as well. Next year, enormous expansions of RAAF Base at Tindal, my old base, alone are valued at around $80m.
In Darwin and Palmerston, the education projects around creating the middle schools program; expenditure on roads; the work on the ship loader; the Marrara home of soccer; and the fire station will keep builders, subcontractors and developers pretty happy looking forward. In addition, investment by the private sector in the economy in projects will go well into the future and also drive construction and employment.
The Darwin Waterfront and Convention Centre, a joint public and private project, is likely to sustain construction up to the next 10 to 15 years. The development of projects such as the condensate facility; the construction of the Darwin Business Park; Synergy, at around $30m; Chinatown, at around $100m; the Pandanus Outrigger 26-storey is a $50m project. All are there to sustain the industry over the next few years.
Residential building has moderated in growth but is still at high levels. Dwelling commencements are up around 1.1% in 2005-06; that is off the back of a record year in 2004-05. So if there is some moderation in the growth rate, that is not surprising given the record high levels that we have been seeing. Housing finance for owner occupation is growing at a rate of 22.3% compared to a national average of 12.2%. Our continued commitment to those very high levels of cash in the infrastructure means that the construction industry can have, and should have, confidence of continuing government support over the next few years and beyond.
We looked at the rule of thumb: every $110 000 spent in infrastructure by the government drives one job in the construction industry. On that basis, the Martin government’s construction budget probably holds up 4500 to 5000 jobs directly in construction. Yes, the construction industry is an important engine in the economy, an important driver of growth and, on those figures and projects alone, there is growth there to be sustained for some years to come.
Seniors Advisory Council
Mrs BRAHAM to MINISTER for SENIOR TERRITORIANS
Four weeks ago, you were in Alice Springs, where we met and discussed a number of issues. I must commend you on the quickest decision I have known regarding the Central Australian Art Society shed which burned down. I was amazed; we received an answer within two weeks.
However, I am still waiting on the answer to the other matter I raised with you at the time, and that was the Seniors Advisory Council. I believe no expressions of interest have been called, that you were going to nominate replacements, they will be selected. They met in January and have not met since. A number of people decided they do not want to nominate again because they see it is fairly pointless as they have been told they will only meet once a year. I am not quite sure what value that is to you, that you would have an advisory committee that would meet only once a year. Can you clarify for me exactly what is going on with the advisory board, who is going to be on it, and when are they going to meet next?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Braitling for her question. We have had a number of exchanges and discussions about seniors. I know her commitment to it and its planning for the future. There was a review of the Seniors Advisory Council, which is now complete. Members who were on the Seniors Advisory Council, that membership has expired. Expressions of interest were called for. I have just signed off on a number of prospective appointees to the new council. Those letters have now gone out. I could provide you with a list of those members.
In terms of meeting once a year, that is not true. There have been a number of different rumours and innuendos being implied out in the wider community about that. That council will meet just as regularly as the Seniors Advisory Council. However, following that review, there was a very clear change in the terms of reference and moving forward with the Active Ageing Strategy, which is now being finalised and will go towards the implementation of that new council. A review has also commenced to look at planning for the future for Seniors Month.
Mrs Braham: Why are you bothering, you are not even meeting?
Ms SCRYMGOUR: The surveys that have been done with housing needs and all of those issues will all come together with a new revamp. The membership is not as big as what it was because that was following part of that review.
Mrs Braham: It is October.
Ms SCRYMGOUR: Well, you asked me the question, member for Braitling.
Mrs Braham: Yes, I know. I am just waiting on your answer.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, member for Braitling!
Ms SCRYMGOUR: The council is smaller, a lot more workable, so we get better focus, particularly with the Active Ageing Strategy, so that we can start working towards the implementation of a fantastic strategy which will benefit all senior Territorians.
Mrs Braham: So, in plain words, they have not met, have not done anything?
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Braitling!
Sexual Abuse in Aboriginal Communities - Inquiry
Ms CARNEY to CHIEF MINISTER
The day you announced an inquiry into child sexual abuse in Aboriginal communities you said that we have to be able to break through the fear, the shame and the silence about child sex abuse in our communities.
Why did you not think it was necessary to establish an inquiry in 2004, but only after significant public pressure was heaped upon you in June 2006? Do you agree that you were complicit in the silence about what was happening at Mutitjulu?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, this is a very serious issue. For the Leader of the Opposition to attempt to play politics with it, or point score, is really counterproductive. I have gone through what we were doing. We had police targeting the community of Mutitjulu; it has not stopped, of course, but there was a particular focus from police between June 2004 and the end of the year, and it continued after that. There were two officers looking at those issues in Mutitjulu and following up. It was not simply that we had not put resources there.
Everyone who made comment at the time talked about the frustration of not being able to get people to come forward. Following that Lateline program, there was considerable work done by the police in following up every allegation that was made - and nothing, Madam Speaker. The police put considerable time into the Mutitjulu community and could get no evidence on any of those allegations that were made.
Should I just walk away from that and say that is enough, we will not do that? Or do we say there has to be a way? If those events did happen and they were not just allegations, then we have to find a way of breaking through that. I do not back off. We had put a lot of resources in. We had given a focus to those issues of policing and of child sex abuse in Mutitjulu. We had not been able to bring prosecutions forward from that community. Therefore, why not let us move it a step forward? I do not back off that.
I do not back off the fact that, from 2003, we have put a lot of activity into working with the Commonwealth on how we could make Mutitjulu a more functional community. Interestingly enough, we did not have any representations from the previous member for Macdonnell about Mutitjulu. If this was such a key issue for the CLP, I would have thought a stack of letters, a stack of representations, might have come from the previous CLP member for Macdonnell, which takes in Mutitjulu.
Ms Carney: You flicked it to the Police minister.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, order!
Ms MARTIN: To stand here in the House now and ask: ‘Why did you not take this action?’ We were taking action. I have gone through in detail what kind of action we took. We now have a police post in Mutitjulu, which will be open in the next month or so. We now have effective control of petrol sniffing in Mutitjulu - and I praise that community for their support in the action that was taken there. We will continue to work with Mutitjulu and try to persuade the Commonwealth to work more constructively for a community that they 75% fund, that they administer under their legislation, and also run the health clinic. We have to find a more coherent way of administering Mutitjulu. Certainly, that is a high focus for me and the Minister for Local Government.
Mandatory Code of Conduct for Wholesale Horticultural Markets
Mr KNIGHT to MINISTER for PRIMARY INDUSTRY and FISHERIES
Despite some early confusion and backflips, the federal government now seems to be supporting a mandatory code of conduct for wholesale horticultural markets. Can you advise the House why a mandatory code of conduct will be needed in the wholesale sector and what benefits it will bring to Territory growers?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Daly for his question. I am pleased to be asked the question today. The Territory’s horticultural industry is a vibrant one and provides many jobs and economic development opportunities throughout the Territory, particularly in the regional and remote areas.
Over the last few weeks, I have had the pleasure of getting out and about and meeting many people from various sectors of my portfolio. I am seeing what my department is doing to assist the horticultural industry throughout the Territory. I have also been pleased to meet a number of key players and people involved in the industry.
The mandatory code of conduct will provide transparency in the marketplace and for our growers, something that has not been available for a long time. At present, the central marketers who are handling our produce pay a price they assert to be the market price. They do not reveal to our growers what price they are paid from the markets and who bought that produce. It is believed that the wholesalers down south are actually price averaging, which is sending a very bad message and some bad signals throughout the industry. Obviously, this has far-reaching ramifications in the industry. Unfortunately, for the Northern Territory, the tyranny of distance is against us. We have a very small market and we rely heavily on our interstate markets to sell our produce. Our producers cannot just hop in their truck and drive down to the markets to sell their produce. They have to rely on the southern states.
The previous minister, the member for Casuarina, lobbied the federal government extensively to implement a mandatory code of conduct for the market wholesale places and also the supermarkets. Prior to the last election, the Commonwealth government made an election commitment to commit to a mandatory code of conduct. After lengthy delays, they did a bit of a backflip and weakened, and they undertook to take a voluntary stance. This did not go down well in the industry. After intensive lobbying from the Northern Territory Horticultural Association and the National Farmers Federation, the federal government has now committed to the mandatory code of conduct.
Transparency will now be improved, and the confidence in the horticultural industry will also be improved. It will lead to better quality for the consumer. It will also reward the producer and it will increase the premium quality in interstate markets.
Sexual Abuse in Aboriginal Communities - Inquiry
Ms CARNEY to CHIEF MINISTER
You embarrassed yourself, your party, and the Northern Territory by your handling of matters after the Lateline interview with Dr Nanette Rogers on 15 May 2006. After public pressure and the leaking of a memo by one of your colleagues critical of your handling of matters, and after a second Lateline interview about what was going on at Mutitjulu, you suddenly announced an inquiry. You knew about the issues but you failed to act. Is it not true that the only reason you called an inquiry was because of public pressure, pressure from the national media and your colleagues, and if you did not want to call an inquiry until you were caught out, why did you not consider calling an inquiry in 2004 or 2005?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I have spent a substantial amount of time on my feet answering that question. I could go through all the issues again. I do not know whether my explanation was flawed, but I believe it was fairly substantial. I do not back off the fact of calling an inquiry. I believe it was appropriate. However, I do not back off the fact that this government has put a lot of effort, a lot more effort than we saw previously, into child protection and there is a lot more effort to go. I do not back off that either and the minister certainly would agree with me.
We have put a lot more resources into police. We will have, as I said, a police post operating at Mutitjulu. We are proud of that. That community was the focus of national attention. Even though they would admit that they are a very troubled community, they did not deserve the attention they received when much of it was simply allegation. It was made up to try to support an Indigenous Affairs minister who had appeared on national television and declared that the Territory had paedophile rings, which he could not support in detail.
I am not backing off the fact that there are a number of issues that need to be addressed in the Territory. If we are going to look at what was said by Dr Nanette Rogers on Lateline, she talked about a number of cases over a 15 year period that had gone to court. In terms of the number that we had struggled to get witnesses to come forward, those were ones that we knew about. They were ones that had gone to court, probably prosecuted by Dr Nanette Rogers herself, but certainly there were people spending time in gaol. Three of those sentences were on appeal. We had taken significant action.
The Opposition Leader said: ‘You knew nothing, you did nothing’. We had. They were cases that had gone to court, where we had witnesses, prosecuted perpetrators and sentences were being served. To say nothing was done is simply flying in the face of the facts. This is going to be a good inquiry for the Northern Territory. We have two fine people heading it up, our former Director of Public Prosecutions, Rex Wild QC, and Pat Anderson who has been involved in Aboriginal health for as many years as many of us can count, and she is a person of great creditability.
An important component of this inquiry is talking to people in our communities. To allow discussion about the importance of coming forward if there is child abuse taking place, to be a witness, to be supported in being a witness, is a key part of this inquiry. We will also look at recommendations that can perhaps change the processes of police, or change the processes of child protection. I do not know that at this stage, because they are both very hard-working areas.
We need to do better, and every agency involved in government, if there are constructive solutions proposed, we will embrace them. I am not going to back off the inquiry. Every time there is a focus on an issue, it is important for government to respond and to look at the best way you can respond. We had done a lot of work. This inquiry is the next and important step.
Bus Shelters – Rural Darwin Area
Mr WARREN to MINISTER for INFRASTRUCTURE and TRANSPORT
In 2005, the government made an election commitment to provide additional and upgraded bus shelters. Can the minister inform the House on the status of the bus shelter program?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Goyder. I know he has been working very hard at the local level in Litchfield Shire. We have quite a few bus shelters sitting out at Freds Pass and the Territory government is currently working with the elected member, the Litchfield Shire, and members of the community to look at the best locations for those bus shelters in the rural area. That is great news for the people of the rural area.
As the member for Goyder said, this was an election commitment that the government is delivering on in terms of installing and upgrading bus shelters. We have committed $150 000 to the bus shelter program. Last week, I was pleased to inspect one of 15 new bus shelters being constructed at the moment. Bus shelters are important as they provide seating, shade, posted bus schedules as well as route information.
The Public Transport Division of the agency of Infrastructure and Planning determines the location on a number of factors, from public requests, to passenger numbers, frequency of the services and, importantly, the special needs of some passengers who frequent the stop. For example, if there are many elderly people in the area, it comes up the list in priority for a seated bus shelter.
A great proportion of Territorians use public transport and I am sure they welcome these improved facilities. We rolled out bus shelters in Brinkin, the Darwin CBD, Karama, Leanyer, Winnellie, Nightcliff, Palmerston and Tiwi. We have a consultative process in the Litchfield Shire to locate those wonderful bus shelters sitting and waiting for those locations at Freds Pass.
Traffic Act - Review
Mr WOOD to MINISTER for POLICE, FIRE and EMERGENCY SERVICES
Anti-hoon legislation, or the Traffic Amendment Bill, was introduced in parliament in 2004 with the promise that it would be reviewed in 12 months. It is my belief that only one car has been taken off the road under this legislation and we know that hooning is still a major problem in some areas of Darwin and the rural area. Your government promised a review. When will this weak legislation be toughened up, like the legislation I introduced but your government rejected, so that a real dint can be made in this antisocial and dangerous behaviour?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Nelson for his question. I believe it is a question that he asked of the previous minister about six months ago and he was given the figures then. I am not sure whether he also asked that question during the Estimates process. However, you have raised it here today and I will respond to you formally about it. I have had quite a lot to get across in the new portfolio areas - hooning legislation, to date, has not been one of them, but you have put it on the agenda.
Education Outcomes in Remote Regions
Ms McCARTHY to MINISTER for EMPLOYMENT, EDUCATION and TRAINING
Can the minister update the House on what work is being done to improve educational outcomes in the bush?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arnhem for her question. Of all the issues in education, one of the stand out priorities of this government, established by my colleague, the former Education minister, is to improve education outcomes in the bush, learning outcomes, and also infrastructure. We all know the legacy of lack of investment in education in the bush. We have seen that in at least two generations of indigenous people very significantly under-achieving in terms of education outcomes, and a structure and infrastructure across the Northern Territory that has seen under-investment for many years. We are turning that around. The budget is just not big enough to wave a magic wand and see great improvement overnight, but we are seeing significant improvement.
Over the last five or six weeks that I have been in the portfolio, I have had the fortune to visit a number of bush communities and, very importantly, open a couple of new homeland schools, which was an absolute joy. I was at Emu Point School a few weeks ago with the member for Daly. Driving into that community, I could not believe it when I saw where the kids were being taught before. It was nothing other than a bark humpy, with no electricity, no water, a couple of tables and chairs, and that was the community school. I have huge respect for the teachers trying to teach in that school. I pay tribute to my colleague, the member for Nhulunbuy, who really worked to see that that school put on the program and funded. I had the fortune to open it.
Recently, with the member for Arnhem, I opened the new school at Manyallaluk, which was a fantastic community day. The community totally embraced that school and there was 100% attendance. It was the most significant thing that has happened for many, many years. The teachers are passionately committed. The Jawoyn Association representatives were there on the day, saying how important it was for the future of the Jawoyn people to have people coming out of that school, being able to read and write, so that they could participate in economic opportunities in the region with the infrastructure at Pine Creek. At the moment, we have a new $5m secondary facility to start construction at Wadeye, and a new school at Beswick to replace the school that gets flooded every year.
There is significant investment going into infrastructure into our bush schools. We are being caught, along with everybody else who is trying to build a house, build a new apartment, build an office block, across the Northern Territory, with rising costs. However, I give my commitment that I will keep driving these programs through to the best of my abilities. I look forward to reporting to the House in the not too distant future on what we are doing to improve those learning outcomes in the bush. The effort is there, the policy work is being done, and the money is going in. There is nothing more important than education in the Northern Territory.
Protection for Young Girls Allegedly Prostituted for Petrol
Ms CARNEY to CHIEF MINISTER
After becoming aware in 2004 that young girls were being prostituted for petrol, what specific steps did you take to protect them?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, any allegations that were made were investigated. At that time those allegations were put to me in that particular memo, they were investigated as well as appropriate action taken. As I said before, the officer was also told to report; he did not, but we carried out proper investigations of those issues. Unfortunately, with the particular officer involved, as I said before, many of the reports made, when investigated, did not have substance. There were also areas that we knew we had to find a way to break through and get the evidence, and I have gone into that in detail. We were taking the action. That does not mean we had success. The action Nanette Rogers talked about in her Lateline interview, that was all the action that was taken, and there were prosecutions by police and Child Protection. We will continue to do that.
I will give an example. This is an important issue. When I say that we have put considerably more resources towards tackling these issues, we have. If you look at the Child Protection budget in the last year of the CLP government, it was just under $8m. We now have a budget that is four-and-a-half times that – four-and-a-half times that! It is more than $31m. When you put those resources in, you actually …
Ms Carney: Needs commitment and leadership.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, you can talk all you like about, if you are a member of the CLP for an area like Macdonnell as we had before. We had a good change to the Labor member. You can talk all you like but, unless the resources are there and you have a local member also advocating for a community, you are not going to achieve the outcomes you want. We are working with the Mutitjulu community. We believe that some important steps have been taken. We have a very strong advocate in the member for Macdonnell.
I appeal to the Commonwealth government to work with us more effectively. The fact that we have an Indigenous Affairs minister who upbraided me and the Minister for Local Government for daring to go to the Mutitjulu community and talk to the community, I found absolutely astonishing. I just cannot believe that you would have a federal minister saying: ‘How dare you talk to your constituents’. I am saying to the federal government, it is time for a constructive working together. We had a project which did not work out as I was hoping. The person we chose was not up to the task. That is a sad fact of life. Much trust and hope was put in that person to provide solutions, and we have been sadly let down.
We are going to work with the Mutitjulu community. A lot of change needs to happen; their governance arrangements have to change and who runs the health clinic has to change. We have to get back to focusing on the job opportunities and the educational outcomes for that community. The scourge of petrol sniffing is now under control because of the additional resources we put into petrol sniffing. The CLP went to the last election saying they rejected $10m going towards petrol sniffing, saying it was a waste of money. I believe it was described as ‘a dumb way’ to spend money. Well, let me say, for the Mutitjulu community, it was not a dumb way to spend money and we have taken some important steps forward.
In terms of the Opposition Leader saying: ‘You have no resources; you have taken no leadership’, we have. However, we have a big problem on our hands that we have to continue to tackle, and we have the commitment to do it. In the electorate of Macdonnell, we have the local member to do it as well.
Seniors Month
Mr BURKE to MINISTER for SENIOR TERRITORIANS
Palmerston is well served by a dedicated bunch of seniors organising activities as part of Seniors Month in Palmerston. Can you let the House know what Seniors Month included for senior Territorians this year?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, today is a great day because we have had three questions on seniors, a very important group of people in our community. To have three questions is fantastic.
Seniors Month, as we know, is always celebrated in the Territory in August. Our government sees ageing as a positive stage in our lives, and continues to support activities which promote active ageing. The theme for Seniors Month this year was Active Ageing.
I have released a discussion paper on government’s Active Ageing Strategy and the activities of Seniors Month this year. The member for Braitling has some fantastic photos from Seniors Month in Alice Springs with the ladies doing the cancan and lifting up their skirts!
The priority for this year’s events encouraged older people to live healthy and active lifestyles and demonstrated - and we do not actually have to have programs to demonstrate because, if you talk to any of our seniors, they show that older age can be fun. They can teach some of the younger ones about having fun and not taking too much on, but to take time to learn and have adventure and to be part of promoting and celebrating our cultural diversity, which is very important to older people in our community.
There was a full calendar during the month of August up and down the Territory with 150 events held in Pine Creek, Tennant Creek, Katherine, Alice Springs, Darwin and the rural area. Seniors turned up in their hundreds for some of the events. The former member for Stuart showed me the photos of his morning tea and movie event in Alice Springs. The member for Brennan passed on his views from the many events he attended in Palmerston.
Seniors Month is very important. It is about older people staying active, keeping fit, trying new things, meeting people and making friends. As well as being fun, it makes a serious contribution to enhancing the lives of our seniors and making the Territory an attractive place to be. I was with the Chief Minister at lunchtime with the Masons, and it clearly shows that more of our seniors are staying in the Territory and that is welcome news. It is about looking forward and planning for the future. As minister responsible for Seniors policy, there are some exciting things to happen.
Seniors Month would not happen without our sponsors, and I thank the many businesses involved for their support of the Seniors Month activities in August. Next year, it will be bigger and better, and it is important that members get involved in their various constituencies to celebrate Seniors Month. .
Sexual Abuse in Aboriginal Communities - Inquiry
Ms CARNEY to CHIEF MINISTER
The federal minister for Indigenous Affairs, Mal Brough, has demonstrated himself to be both passionate and unafraid in bringing the issue of violence against women and children into the public arena. You, by contrast, have feigned surprise in relation to these issues. Indeed, on ABC radio the day after Nanette Rogers’ interview, you said you were just getting briefed. How on earth could you have been surprised in May of this year when you knew about the issues that were discussed in the Lateline interview with Nanette Rogers involving a culture of violence and intimidation and child abuse?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, to specifically respond to the question from the Opposition Leader, the issues outlined by Dr Rogers on Lateline – there was a whole range of issues. I challenge anyone in this House to know immediately the circumstances she was talking about or the years that they happened. Some of them went back 15 years. Quite reasonably, I said I would get briefed on those particular issues. I did get briefed, Madam Speaker, and I will repeat again what I found out: that even though in the interview that appeared on Lateline it sounded as though no action had been taken on any of those issues, it had.
Action had been taken on every single one of them, but the perception that went out to the Australian community was that we had done nothing; that we had sat there and done nothing. Yet I know people like Dr Rogers were in court doing the important prosecutions, and I pay respect to her for doing that. But it was just interesting that we could have an interview appear on Lateline where the opposite perception was given. It was very curious. I have talked in this House before about a number of interviews I did nationally. The one that stayed with me was one with John Laws. He said to me: ‘All these cases happened and you did nothing’. I said: ‘No, that is not the case. Every single one of them has gone to court and sentences – some of them extensive sentences - are being served’. And also, that three of those cases were being appealed at the time to pursue tougher sentences. That was happening at the time and it was interesting that none of that emerged in that Lateline interview.
Ms Carney: Because it was not the issue.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: And it was the issue. That is the thing. It was the issue.
Ms Carney: No, it was not. It was about the culture of violence and intimidation, you silly woman.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, Leader of the Opposition!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, it was the issue, because what it said to the rest of Australia is that we had done nothing. It said to the rest of Australia that we had done nothing about these important issues. It gave the indication that these cases had happened and the Territory government had turned away. What an insult to our police force, our child protection workers, our prosecutors, and everyone involved in making sure that those people got to court and served time for the offences they committed - in some cases, horrific offences.
The Opposition Leader called the Lateline interview iconic, but it did not give the real situation to the rest of Australia. In fact, it gave an opposite situation. In fact, it did not represent what had happened. It was misleading. I am not blaming Nanette Rogers for that. I am just saying that the true situation was not represented.
How could it have been represented when you have someone like John Laws not knowing that there is a whole other side of this story. I have respect for John Laws, he is a smart man, but he had no idea, based on what he heard on Lateline, that any action had been taken. This was a real indictment on the Territory.
We had done some hard yards. We have a lot more to do. It would benefit the Territory if we had both sides of the House working on this, if every local member was active in working to eliminate a scourge that is not only in the Territory but in the rest of Australia as well.
So let us get on with this inquiry. We have two people heading it who are very capable, very experienced and very professional. Maybe we can take that extra step forward in protecting our children.
Major Projects – Industry Participation
Ms McCARTHY to MINISTER for BUSINESS and ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Could you please inform the House on how the government is maximising local industry participation in major projects to keep the Territory moving ahead?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, it is true that the Territory economy is currently turbocharged. We have seen evidence of that. If we look around, we can see what is happening in the Top End and in other places in the Territory. My colleague, the member for Drysdale, this morning reported on gold, gold, gold, and that is true. In the past few years of the CLP government, mines were closing one after the other. I am very pleased to now see new mines opening all the time. Some new mines are operating or will commence operations soon.
Other projects are taking place in the Territory and we want to maximise input of Territory companies in these projects. We want Territory companies to be able to provide goods and services to these companies. That is the reason why our government has put in place the Industry Participation Plan requirements for private investors or developers who receive government assistance, or proponents for projects who tender for work or want to work under a public/private partnership. There is now a requirement for these companies to provide an Industry Participation Plan to show us how they are going to engage local industry.
My department is working very closely with companies currently undertaking projects in the Territory. Some of these include: Alcan with the G3 project; Techint-Semf for the bulk handling facility at East Arm Port; Natural Fuel Australia in the East Arm Biodiesel Project; Sitzler Bros with the Marrara Soccer Stadium; and ENI with the Blacktip project. My department is working very closely with ENI and the Northern Territory Industry Capability Network to maximise opportunities for local companies and to also maximise indigenous employment in the Wadeye region.
Norbuilt is a local company which is constructing the Palmerston Recreation Facility, a project estimated at $8.2m. Under their Industry Participation Plan, Norbuilt indicated that $7.5m of subcontracts and procurement will be made to local industry suppliers, and I am very pleased to report that Norbuilt’s first report on the project is that, after 25% completion, 100% of services and supplies for their project has been sourced from Northern Territory companies.
Other companies, such as Renflo, which is carrying out the rehabilitation of Darwin’s gravity and pressured sewers, despite the fact they have to acquire products from interstate that are not available locally, 95% of other supplies and services have been sourced locally. Gratis Pty Ltd, which is constructing the low security prison facility, 99.37% of the total construction cost is being sourced locally. For Alcan, with 88% of the project completed, $151m has been spent locally on goods and services, with an extra $450m total value of Northern Territory construction contracts.
We are a small jurisdiction and I know sometimes our companies cannot compete with other international or national companies, but these companies made sure that, for people who wanted to do business here, they do business with our own companies.
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I ask that further questions be placed on the Written Question Paper.
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS
Trainee Teachers – Darwin Rural Schools
Trainee Teachers – Darwin Rural Schools
Mr HENDERSON (Employment, Education and Training): Madam Speaker, I advise the House I have further information in answer to a question asked of me as minister for Education yesterday by the member for Nelson. The advice I have from the department is that the new Bachelor of Teaching and Learning Degree at Charles Darwin University prepares teachers in an apprenticeship-type model at teaching schools. This program is a major new innovation for the Northern Territory, and a similar program has had great success in Queensland where it has proved to produce highly effective and sought after graduates.
Students start with one day a week in the classroom. By the end of the course, they complete a full-time classroom internship. Phase 1 required the establishment of 10 schools situated in both Darwin and Alice Springs. Eventually, most interested Northern Territory schools will have the opportunity to become teaching schools. The 10 Phase 1 teaching schools were chosen by a panel with representatives from DEET, Charles Darwin University, the Australian Education Union, the NT Joint Council of Professional Teaching Associations, and the Association of Northern Territory School Education Leaders. For Phase 1 schools, the panel took into consideration the following points:
the quality of the submission according to the selection criteria;
the requirements for first year teaching students to travel to schools one day a week; and
the need for a project office to support all of the teaching schools.
The panel came to the conclusion that it placed an unreasonable financial burden on first year students to travel to the rural area of Darwin at a time of high fuel prices. The panel also recommended rural area schools be brought into the project as a group in Phase 2 in order to maximise resourcing and support.
The Phase 1 teaching schools for 2007 are: Anula Primary; Bakewell Primary; Darwin High; Driver Primary; Larapinta Primary; Millner Primary; Stuart Park Primary; Wanguri Primary; Parap Primary; and Palmerston High School.
Phase 2 teaching schools for 2008 will be: Jingili Primary; Alawa Primary; Humpty Doo Primary; Braitling Primary; Howard Springs Primary; Centralian Senior Secondary College in Alice Springs; and the Katherine Small Schools.
Domestic Violence Statistics
Ms SCRYMGOUR (Natural Resources, Environment and Heritage): Madam Speaker, yesterday during Question Time I responded to a question from the Leader of the Opposition about the Domestic Violence Data Collection report. I undertook to get back to the Leader of the Opposition with further information. I apologise that this was not done by the end of Question Time yesterday as I indicated. The question actually falls across a number of agencies, now that I have had a look at her question in the whole, however, I will provide the information where I can.
The Office of Women’s Policy has a Domestic Violence Data Collection Project. This was the first coordinated approach to collecting information from government and non-government agencies in Australia. The problem identified early was the difficulties caused by a number of different agencies that have different roles in the domestic and family violence area and use different methods for collecting and reporting data. Ten or more agencies and organisations can be reporting domestic violence data at any time.
A final report has now been produced. It has been reviewed by the Department of Justice, Department of Health and Community Services, Police, and by the Domestic and Family Violence Advisory Council. The report makes a number of recommendations which require me to sit down with my colleagues who have a stake in this issue. The bottom line from the Office of Women’s Policy view is that we need to ensure regular reporting to government of meaningful data collected in a consistent way.
The Leader of the Opposition needs to bear in mind that this is a report about data collection. It is not an analysis of data or statistics on domestic violence. The report will be published and made available when I have considered its recommendations in more detail.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016