Mr HENDERSON - 2000-08-08
Since he has been Chief Minister, construction activity has been in steady decline. New housing approvals were down over 40% in 1999-2000 compared to the previous year. Total building approvals were down 25%. In every other jurisdiction they rose. These trends have been evidenced for months, but the best he can do is go on radio last week saying he would talk to his ministerial colleagues about the issue. Will he tell Territorians why he convened this crisis meeting just last week, when the writing has been on the wall since he became Chief Minister?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, since I have become Chief Minister, and before, I have lived in the most rapidly growing now-city in Australia, watching new homes supported by government services coming out of the ground at a rate that is outstanding. There is no doubt we have a downturn in the construction industry. Again, if the opposition were genuine, they would accept the fact that there is a national downturn in the construction industry, compounded by the GST. We do not yet know whether or not the effect of the GST introduction on the construction industry has finished.
The government has a strong capital works program in its recent budget and very shortly we will commence construction of the largest infrastructure project that Australia has seen since the Snowy Mountains scheme. There is no doubt that in patches …
Ms Martin: And what will that do for Darwin builders?
Mr BURKE: If she consulted with the industry herself she would notice that in patches of the housing sector there are real problems and those problems are quite difficult to address. One problem is getting land available to get houses constructed at a price that is affordable by first-home buyers. The government has been thwarted by the native title claim on Rosebery for some years. In trying to settle that claim, I have had various conferences in my office. If we ever reach a stage where we could find an acceptable solution, I would be the first to embrace it. But as I said earlier, I will not be a Chief Minister who opens the chequebook and is to held ransom by interest groups simply to get a solution that caters only to one sector.
As for the consultation with the construction industry and my other ministers, that is something that we do from to time to time. I would normally take the advice of the various ministers and rely on my own casual approach in talking to various members of the construction industry on this issue. But it is worth gathering them up as a group so that we can toss a few ideas around. I had intended doing that this week. Unfortunately it can’t be done this week. They are very busy out there. There is actually a fair amount of work going on.
If there are some areas of the capital works program that could be brought forward in terms of contracts, that is something that government would look at with a view to focussing certain contracts at a certain sector of the market which is most heavily compromised by the downturn. This is something that government continues to do as it manages the economy in the robust way that it does, compared with the somewhat cloudy solutions that the Labor Party opposite have yet to suggest.
They are very big at criticising, but I have yet to see one solution they would put forward which would provide some sort of substitution in terms of how government balances the books. You can’t talk about increasing debt on the one hand and at the same time talk about government spending more money, and then refuse to nominate one project that you would stop. Tell us next time you make a criticism of this government which project you would stop. I will wait patiently.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, since I have become Chief Minister, and before, I have lived in the most rapidly growing now-city in Australia, watching new homes supported by government services coming out of the ground at a rate that is outstanding. There is no doubt we have a downturn in the construction industry. Again, if the opposition were genuine, they would accept the fact that there is a national downturn in the construction industry, compounded by the GST. We do not yet know whether or not the effect of the GST introduction on the construction industry has finished.
The government has a strong capital works program in its recent budget and very shortly we will commence construction of the largest infrastructure project that Australia has seen since the Snowy Mountains scheme. There is no doubt that in patches …
Ms Martin: And what will that do for Darwin builders?
Mr BURKE: If she consulted with the industry herself she would notice that in patches of the housing sector there are real problems and those problems are quite difficult to address. One problem is getting land available to get houses constructed at a price that is affordable by first-home buyers. The government has been thwarted by the native title claim on Rosebery for some years. In trying to settle that claim, I have had various conferences in my office. If we ever reach a stage where we could find an acceptable solution, I would be the first to embrace it. But as I said earlier, I will not be a Chief Minister who opens the chequebook and is to held ransom by interest groups simply to get a solution that caters only to one sector.
As for the consultation with the construction industry and my other ministers, that is something that we do from to time to time. I would normally take the advice of the various ministers and rely on my own casual approach in talking to various members of the construction industry on this issue. But it is worth gathering them up as a group so that we can toss a few ideas around. I had intended doing that this week. Unfortunately it can’t be done this week. They are very busy out there. There is actually a fair amount of work going on.
If there are some areas of the capital works program that could be brought forward in terms of contracts, that is something that government would look at with a view to focussing certain contracts at a certain sector of the market which is most heavily compromised by the downturn. This is something that government continues to do as it manages the economy in the robust way that it does, compared with the somewhat cloudy solutions that the Labor Party opposite have yet to suggest.
They are very big at criticising, but I have yet to see one solution they would put forward which would provide some sort of substitution in terms of how government balances the books. You can’t talk about increasing debt on the one hand and at the same time talk about government spending more money, and then refuse to nominate one project that you would stop. Tell us next time you make a criticism of this government which project you would stop. I will wait patiently.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016