Ms CARTER - 2000-06-20
Has the Chief Minister had a response to his letter to the federal Labor Party leader, Kym Beazley, seeking a guarantee that Labor would not interfere in the right of Territorians to self-government should Labor win government at the next federal election.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition was interjecting as I spoke on the last question saying that we had rolled over to the Prime Minister and the federal government with regards to the GST, well here is a good example. You can demonstrate your strength of character and show that you will not roll over to a federal Labor leader because since I have raised the issue of what I truly believe is the intent of the Labor Party if they attain government in Australia, I truly believe their intent is to roll back the Self-Government Act to the point where I believe they would install a political lackey as the Administrator, not under the conditions our present administrator operates, but to directly run the Northern Territory from Canberra. I believe that the utterances that have been made by senior Labor ministers, both Labor members …
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr BURKE: ... in the Northern Territory ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order on both sides of the House!
Mr BURKE: Mr Speaker, I did actually speak to a number of constituents last week with regards to the problems they have in listening to radio broadcasts and I have instructed the CLP wing that we have to be more conscious of the fact that all of these microphones here are live and if you are listening to this broadcast as a Territorian, you get a constant roar because the microphones are live when people interject. The easiest way to have Territorians understand what is happening in Question Time is for those that are not speaking to keep their mouths shut and then the average person might hear what the broadcast is all about.
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Mr BURKE: Interestingly in this debate, no one, apart from heaping abuse on me for my comments, has ever denied the fact that what I say is true. I have heard Beazley and Snowdon and Crossin all make comments, but not one of them has said that if a Labor government became the federal government, they would not interfere with the Self-Government Act of the Northern Territory.
I have written to the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Beazley. I have outlined in that letter the instances which led me to come to that conclusion. I quote, in part, from that particular letter to Mr Beazley:
Partly as a result of your false and misleading representation, the Territory government has had to endure sustained media criticism over a number of months, the vitriol of which, and the further factual misrepresentation of which, has led me to the belief that there exists a concerted campaign to discredit the Territory government to the point when overriding constitutional action can be instituted by a future Labor government without fear of public condemnation.
You may believe that I have misread your intent. If that is the case then you may clarify the situation by providing an assurance that there is no intention on the part of the Labor Party to reduce current Northern Territory government powers as provided under the Self-Government Act.
You can be assured that if I do not receive an unequivocal assurance from you that there is no intention under a future Labor federal government to intervene in areas that properly remain under our jurisdiction, then I will feel compelled to warn the Northern Territory electorate of the dangers posed to their rights and entitlements under a Labor government at the Commonwealth level in the future.
I would be grateful for a prompt and unambiguous answer on this issue…
Mr AH KIT: A point of order, Mr Speaker! I ask the Chief Minister to table the document he is reading from.
Mr BURKE: I am about to table it, you fool.
Mr SPEAKER: As I understand it, the Chief Minister is going to table it.
Mr BURKE: Look, I am reading from the document with the intention of tabling it. I said I would only quote from part of it. The last paragraph:
I would be grateful for a prompt and unambiguous answer on this issue, which is of considerable concern to myself, the Northern Territory government and the people of the Northern Territory.
Dated 22 May - no response as yet from the Leader of the Opposition.
Now, here is a challenge for the so-called Leader of the Opposition in the Northern Territory. When you go to the next Labor federal conference, go there with the objective of getting the answer to that simple question. Get him to give an unequivocal assurance that if he became Prime Minister of Australia, he would not interfere with the Self-Government Act.
Find out from Mr Beazley, whether he would interfere with the judicial system in the Northern Territory, as his shadow attorney federally would suggest they would do and find out from him where he stands on Jabiluka and Ranger. There are three issues. You can go to the federal Labor conference. We challenge you to do it on behalf of Territorians, and we look forward to your answer.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition was interjecting as I spoke on the last question saying that we had rolled over to the Prime Minister and the federal government with regards to the GST, well here is a good example. You can demonstrate your strength of character and show that you will not roll over to a federal Labor leader because since I have raised the issue of what I truly believe is the intent of the Labor Party if they attain government in Australia, I truly believe their intent is to roll back the Self-Government Act to the point where I believe they would install a political lackey as the Administrator, not under the conditions our present administrator operates, but to directly run the Northern Territory from Canberra. I believe that the utterances that have been made by senior Labor ministers, both Labor members …
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr BURKE: ... in the Northern Territory ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order on both sides of the House!
Mr BURKE: Mr Speaker, I did actually speak to a number of constituents last week with regards to the problems they have in listening to radio broadcasts and I have instructed the CLP wing that we have to be more conscious of the fact that all of these microphones here are live and if you are listening to this broadcast as a Territorian, you get a constant roar because the microphones are live when people interject. The easiest way to have Territorians understand what is happening in Question Time is for those that are not speaking to keep their mouths shut and then the average person might hear what the broadcast is all about.
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Mr BURKE: Interestingly in this debate, no one, apart from heaping abuse on me for my comments, has ever denied the fact that what I say is true. I have heard Beazley and Snowdon and Crossin all make comments, but not one of them has said that if a Labor government became the federal government, they would not interfere with the Self-Government Act of the Northern Territory.
I have written to the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Beazley. I have outlined in that letter the instances which led me to come to that conclusion. I quote, in part, from that particular letter to Mr Beazley:
Partly as a result of your false and misleading representation, the Territory government has had to endure sustained media criticism over a number of months, the vitriol of which, and the further factual misrepresentation of which, has led me to the belief that there exists a concerted campaign to discredit the Territory government to the point when overriding constitutional action can be instituted by a future Labor government without fear of public condemnation.
You may believe that I have misread your intent. If that is the case then you may clarify the situation by providing an assurance that there is no intention on the part of the Labor Party to reduce current Northern Territory government powers as provided under the Self-Government Act.
You can be assured that if I do not receive an unequivocal assurance from you that there is no intention under a future Labor federal government to intervene in areas that properly remain under our jurisdiction, then I will feel compelled to warn the Northern Territory electorate of the dangers posed to their rights and entitlements under a Labor government at the Commonwealth level in the future.
I would be grateful for a prompt and unambiguous answer on this issue…
Mr AH KIT: A point of order, Mr Speaker! I ask the Chief Minister to table the document he is reading from.
Mr BURKE: I am about to table it, you fool.
Mr SPEAKER: As I understand it, the Chief Minister is going to table it.
Mr BURKE: Look, I am reading from the document with the intention of tabling it. I said I would only quote from part of it. The last paragraph:
I would be grateful for a prompt and unambiguous answer on this issue, which is of considerable concern to myself, the Northern Territory government and the people of the Northern Territory.
Dated 22 May - no response as yet from the Leader of the Opposition.
Now, here is a challenge for the so-called Leader of the Opposition in the Northern Territory. When you go to the next Labor federal conference, go there with the objective of getting the answer to that simple question. Get him to give an unequivocal assurance that if he became Prime Minister of Australia, he would not interfere with the Self-Government Act.
Find out from Mr Beazley, whether he would interfere with the judicial system in the Northern Territory, as his shadow attorney federally would suggest they would do and find out from him where he stands on Jabiluka and Ranger. There are three issues. You can go to the federal Labor conference. We challenge you to do it on behalf of Territorians, and we look forward to your answer.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016