Mr AH KIT - 2000-11-29
The Auditor-General’s report tabled yesterday highlights that the government underspent yet again its own capital works program by $14m. At a time when the Territory construction industry is suffering the worst downturn for years, with 1000 construction workers laid off over the past year, firms screaming out for the government to expedite capital works, you underspent on your own capital works by $14m. How does the Treasurer justify yet another CLP broken promise, yet another year of underspent capital works, when the construction industry is crippled with not enough work?
ANSWER
I do not know who wrote that for you, but you should be a bit smarter and read them before you stand up and ask the question. I think you have been set up.
Mr Speaker, to avoid the poor member for Arnhem being made too much of a goose, I will explain it to him. One would expect that, at the time a particular budget and overall capital works program is announced, the program must necessarily vary. It must vary for a number of reasons. It can vary for climatic reasons, for example, although not so much as it did in the past, because we have moved the budget back from July/August introduction to May, so that at the commencement of the financial year capital works activities can commence immediately and greater advantage can be taken of the dry season. That was implemented, of course, a number of years ago. Previously, departments did not know what funding they were getting and they lost most of the dry season in terms of benefit.
There are other reasons. There may be design problems. There could be reasons for buildings or some other form of capital works being delayed, rolling from one financial year over to another. I dare say the circumstances are somewhat more transparent to others than they would be to the honourable member opposite.
Only a couple of weeks ago, I turned the sod for the commencement of the forensic laboratory at the Berrimah police headquarters, the Peter McAulay Centre - a $6m project. And what is happening? The work is in progress. The straining fence is up and around, the foundations are being dug and it is employing people in the construction industry. There is an enormous amount of work being undertaken as we speak at Alice Springs Hospital and also Royal Darwin Hospital.
We have had discussions with the construction industry to ensure that we can maximise opportunities in the capital works program to generate activity in the building sector. Yesterday in the Great Hall, after the swearing-in of the new Administrator, I was asked a member of the construction industry: ‘How you going?’ He said: ‘Things are looking pretty good.’ That is a demonstration of confidence. The construction industry has heaps of confidence, but the Labor Party, the seven dwarfs, have no confidence. To complete my story, this person said he was talking to the owner of a pre-stressed concrete manufacturing plant here in Darwin who has received a request to tender for, I think it was, 800 pre-stressed beams for the railway. They won’t be required until March but the tender process is already in place.
All that is happening on the railway at the moment is the works being commenced at Katherine, clearing for the construction of the sleeper plant. It is very early stages, but already businesses are saying there are enormous opportunities that are only a couple of months away. They are already tendering on them. Just imagine, with 800 pre-stressed concrete beams required from one factory, the enormous level of activity by that company.
The mining of the sand, the production of the aggregate, the trucks that have to cart it there, and all of the other flow-on benefits that happen to be required to keep the trucks on the road - the tyres, the diesel mechanics, the front-end loaders - are just one small part of the railway project. That is why we have confidence in the Territory. That is why we have confidence in Territory business. That is why Territory business has confidence in us. And that is why, when the gleeful member for Fannie Bay, the Leader of the Opposition with the sickly grin on her face, quoted from that document this morning, did not say which government, according to that same report, is the most popular with business in Australia. The answer is the Northern Territory government. She did not want to tell Territorians that because she is deceitful. But she cannot continue to be deceitful because Territorians now see through her.
She misled the police by withholding information in relation to her staffer who gave a wrong name, with her encouragement, on ABC Radio at the behest of the former Deputy Leader of the Opposition …
Members interjecting.
Mr TOYNE: A point of order, Mr Speaker! The inference is that she is a liar. I would like it withdrawn.
Mr SPEAKER: I did not hear it. Where did it come from?
Mr TOYNE: From the member for Araluen.
Mr SPEAKER: I won’t rule that there is a point of order. I did not hear it. But I ask members to refrain from using unparliamentary language such as ‘liar,’ if in fact it was used.
Mr REED: She then had the temerity to dodge the media and to not disclose what the honourable member for Arafura had done with his vehicle - that is, wrecked it. She concealed that from the people of the Northern Territory in a very deceitful way. We find out in the press today that the member for Arafura has wrecked yet another vehicle. Did she come forward and say that?
The Amateur Fishermen’s Association had to get her to withdraw what they said were lies in terms of what she attributed to the Amateur Fishermen’s Association. That woman is deceitful in her approach to the job. She cannot be trusted. In quoting the Yellow Pages report, why isn’t she truthful enough to include the fact that the government in the Northern Territory was seen by business to be the one they supported most in Australia? Because it is damaging for her story.
ANSWER
I do not know who wrote that for you, but you should be a bit smarter and read them before you stand up and ask the question. I think you have been set up.
Mr Speaker, to avoid the poor member for Arnhem being made too much of a goose, I will explain it to him. One would expect that, at the time a particular budget and overall capital works program is announced, the program must necessarily vary. It must vary for a number of reasons. It can vary for climatic reasons, for example, although not so much as it did in the past, because we have moved the budget back from July/August introduction to May, so that at the commencement of the financial year capital works activities can commence immediately and greater advantage can be taken of the dry season. That was implemented, of course, a number of years ago. Previously, departments did not know what funding they were getting and they lost most of the dry season in terms of benefit.
There are other reasons. There may be design problems. There could be reasons for buildings or some other form of capital works being delayed, rolling from one financial year over to another. I dare say the circumstances are somewhat more transparent to others than they would be to the honourable member opposite.
Only a couple of weeks ago, I turned the sod for the commencement of the forensic laboratory at the Berrimah police headquarters, the Peter McAulay Centre - a $6m project. And what is happening? The work is in progress. The straining fence is up and around, the foundations are being dug and it is employing people in the construction industry. There is an enormous amount of work being undertaken as we speak at Alice Springs Hospital and also Royal Darwin Hospital.
We have had discussions with the construction industry to ensure that we can maximise opportunities in the capital works program to generate activity in the building sector. Yesterday in the Great Hall, after the swearing-in of the new Administrator, I was asked a member of the construction industry: ‘How you going?’ He said: ‘Things are looking pretty good.’ That is a demonstration of confidence. The construction industry has heaps of confidence, but the Labor Party, the seven dwarfs, have no confidence. To complete my story, this person said he was talking to the owner of a pre-stressed concrete manufacturing plant here in Darwin who has received a request to tender for, I think it was, 800 pre-stressed beams for the railway. They won’t be required until March but the tender process is already in place.
All that is happening on the railway at the moment is the works being commenced at Katherine, clearing for the construction of the sleeper plant. It is very early stages, but already businesses are saying there are enormous opportunities that are only a couple of months away. They are already tendering on them. Just imagine, with 800 pre-stressed concrete beams required from one factory, the enormous level of activity by that company.
The mining of the sand, the production of the aggregate, the trucks that have to cart it there, and all of the other flow-on benefits that happen to be required to keep the trucks on the road - the tyres, the diesel mechanics, the front-end loaders - are just one small part of the railway project. That is why we have confidence in the Territory. That is why we have confidence in Territory business. That is why Territory business has confidence in us. And that is why, when the gleeful member for Fannie Bay, the Leader of the Opposition with the sickly grin on her face, quoted from that document this morning, did not say which government, according to that same report, is the most popular with business in Australia. The answer is the Northern Territory government. She did not want to tell Territorians that because she is deceitful. But she cannot continue to be deceitful because Territorians now see through her.
She misled the police by withholding information in relation to her staffer who gave a wrong name, with her encouragement, on ABC Radio at the behest of the former Deputy Leader of the Opposition …
Members interjecting.
Mr TOYNE: A point of order, Mr Speaker! The inference is that she is a liar. I would like it withdrawn.
Mr SPEAKER: I did not hear it. Where did it come from?
Mr TOYNE: From the member for Araluen.
Mr SPEAKER: I won’t rule that there is a point of order. I did not hear it. But I ask members to refrain from using unparliamentary language such as ‘liar,’ if in fact it was used.
Mr REED: She then had the temerity to dodge the media and to not disclose what the honourable member for Arafura had done with his vehicle - that is, wrecked it. She concealed that from the people of the Northern Territory in a very deceitful way. We find out in the press today that the member for Arafura has wrecked yet another vehicle. Did she come forward and say that?
The Amateur Fishermen’s Association had to get her to withdraw what they said were lies in terms of what she attributed to the Amateur Fishermen’s Association. That woman is deceitful in her approach to the job. She cannot be trusted. In quoting the Yellow Pages report, why isn’t she truthful enough to include the fact that the government in the Northern Territory was seen by business to be the one they supported most in Australia? Because it is damaging for her story.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016