Mrs HICKEY - 1998-11-24
Before the last Territory election, the Country Liberal Party made no mention at all of its desire to privatise our public hospitals, to dismantle or privatise the Power and Water Authority, or institute a review of the public service, threatening the conditions and jobs of thousands of public sector workers. Your election win in August 1997 was achieved by keeping secrets. Your hidden agenda was to shaft public sector workers and the services they deliver. Will you hold an election and seek a proper mandate from Territorians based on your real intentions before you seek to implement your disastrous privatisation agenda?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I welcome the question. When I went to Territorians in August of 1997, I did so on a very clear commitment to create 15 000 new jobs in the next term of government. I stand here proudly and I say to Territorians that one year on there are already 9700 new jobs.
I say proudly, too, that the Territory today is one of the leading economies in Australia with the lowest unemployment rate of 4.1%. The reason that there is good economic growth, the reason that Territorians wake up in the morning knowing they have jobs to go to, and they know that their kids have jobs to go to, is because of the sound structural policies that are in place…
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: The opposition, having asked the question, will not allow me to provide the answer. Those sound structural policies and strategies include government being prepared to ask the hard questions about whether we can do better. I say to the employees of PAWA, I say to the people who work in our health system: ‘Shane Stone and the Country Liberal Party are not about getting rid of jobs. We are in the business of creating jobs’.
We have said over and over again that that is our priority. And what do we have? We have the Labor Party walking around, trying to whip up a campaign of fear and loathing with its union mates to try to create the impression that we will take these jobs away.
You will recall the leaked document from the ALP following their disastrous performance in 1997. Point 12 of the Labor Party document said:
Mr TOYNE: Point of order, Madam Speaker! This has absolutely nothing to do with the question.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, keep your answer relevant to the question.
Mr STONE: It is very relevant because what it demonstrates is that the Labor Party, hand in glove with its union mates, has gone out and mislead the people who ...
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Nhulunbuy.
Mr STONE: Planning for Growth is about growth.
Ms Martin: It is about pruning.
Mr STONE: It is not about pruning. It is not about saving money. It is about how you grow the system to deliver better electricity prices for Territorians. Do you want to argue with that? It is about how to deliver a better health system for Territorians. Do you want to argue with that? Madam Speaker, people listening to this broadcast here this morning will not have the opportunity to hear it, but the Minister for Mines and Energy will be delivering a Ministerial Statement on new initiatives in growing the resource sector. The reason he can do that …
Ms Martin: He has had every opportunity to.
Mr STONE: The reason he can do that, if the member for Fannie Bay would be quiet, is because we are using taxpayers’ money in different ways. But we are not paying costs and we will continue to grow the resource sector.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr STONE: The Leader of the Opposition can continue this farce of going out there and trying to scare the people. Territorians be warned: Labor lies! It has been doing it for the entire period that it has sat on that side.
Mrs HICKEY: A point of order, Madam Speaker. Would you please direct the Chief Minister to withdraw that remark. It can only be made by way of a censure motion and he knows it.
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order. It was not against an individual. We have had our first question. Let us all settle down and get on with the job.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I welcome the question. When I went to Territorians in August of 1997, I did so on a very clear commitment to create 15 000 new jobs in the next term of government. I stand here proudly and I say to Territorians that one year on there are already 9700 new jobs.
I say proudly, too, that the Territory today is one of the leading economies in Australia with the lowest unemployment rate of 4.1%. The reason that there is good economic growth, the reason that Territorians wake up in the morning knowing they have jobs to go to, and they know that their kids have jobs to go to, is because of the sound structural policies that are in place…
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: The opposition, having asked the question, will not allow me to provide the answer. Those sound structural policies and strategies include government being prepared to ask the hard questions about whether we can do better. I say to the employees of PAWA, I say to the people who work in our health system: ‘Shane Stone and the Country Liberal Party are not about getting rid of jobs. We are in the business of creating jobs’.
We have said over and over again that that is our priority. And what do we have? We have the Labor Party walking around, trying to whip up a campaign of fear and loathing with its union mates to try to create the impression that we will take these jobs away.
You will recall the leaked document from the ALP following their disastrous performance in 1997. Point 12 of the Labor Party document said:
- The Secretary is to convene a meeting of affiliates and a separate meeting of non-affiliates to develop an ongoing campaign among union members and non-members.
Mr TOYNE: Point of order, Madam Speaker! This has absolutely nothing to do with the question.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, keep your answer relevant to the question.
Mr STONE: It is very relevant because what it demonstrates is that the Labor Party, hand in glove with its union mates, has gone out and mislead the people who ...
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Nhulunbuy.
Mr STONE: Planning for Growth is about growth.
Ms Martin: It is about pruning.
Mr STONE: It is not about pruning. It is not about saving money. It is about how you grow the system to deliver better electricity prices for Territorians. Do you want to argue with that? It is about how to deliver a better health system for Territorians. Do you want to argue with that? Madam Speaker, people listening to this broadcast here this morning will not have the opportunity to hear it, but the Minister for Mines and Energy will be delivering a Ministerial Statement on new initiatives in growing the resource sector. The reason he can do that …
Ms Martin: He has had every opportunity to.
Mr STONE: The reason he can do that, if the member for Fannie Bay would be quiet, is because we are using taxpayers’ money in different ways. But we are not paying costs and we will continue to grow the resource sector.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr STONE: The Leader of the Opposition can continue this farce of going out there and trying to scare the people. Territorians be warned: Labor lies! It has been doing it for the entire period that it has sat on that side.
Mrs HICKEY: A point of order, Madam Speaker. Would you please direct the Chief Minister to withdraw that remark. It can only be made by way of a censure motion and he knows it.
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order. It was not against an individual. We have had our first question. Let us all settle down and get on with the job.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016