Mr HATTON - 1999-11-24
What is hisresponse to claims on radio this morning by the Leader of the Opposition that she would scrap the Planning Act and start all over again, particularly given that she has presented nothing in the whole debate on the Planning Bill on what she or the opposition would do in respect of planning, as so lucidly outlined by Fred McCue in his ABC Morning program?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, the member for Nightcliff is a very experienced former Minister of Lands, Planning and Environment. He has followed the details of this bill with some vigour and certainly his contribution last night to the debate was much appreciated.
With regard to the contribution that was made by the Leader of the Opposition, I can do no more than express my pleasure that the media are starting to ask the sorts of questions that I believe should be asked of the second-highest-paid politician in the Northern Territory, the Leader of the Opposition - simple questions like: ‘Shouldn’t you do something for the amount of money you’re paid?’ It is too easy to run out with emotive one-liners suggesting to Territorians that sometime, somehow, in the future Labor under her leadership will come up with some sort of policy or some sort of direction.
This morning on the Fred McCue show he put a simple question to the Leader of the Opposition with regards to the Planning Act that was passed last night. It was simply this: ‘Why haven’t you put these type of amendments, your own amendments, up to the process?’ He went on to say: ‘If you were fair dinkum, Clare Martin, if you really wanted to see the best Planning Act in place for the Northern Territory for Territorians, wouldn’t you have at least tried?’
That is the substance of the arguments from this side of the House we’ve been making for some time. The Planning Bill was put out for public discussion and comment some 6 months ago at least and that public discussion has been very robust. I noted last night that in her closing comments the Leader of the Opposition thanked the Lord Mayor, George Brown, and Darwin City Council for their campaign to help Labor with regard to their policy on planning – a policy we are yet to see. The important issue is that the Planning Bill, a very important bill for Territorians, was out for public debate and comment, for amendments to be proposed to and possibly accepted by the government, for some 6 months.
In all of that time, the Leader of the Opposition and the members sitting opposite have done nothing in terms of proposing an act of their own or proposing any realistic amendments to back up the position that they would adopt with regard to the Planning Act. I remind honourable members and other Territorians that included in that period was at least one General Business Day where ample opportunity was provided to the Labor opposition. That General Business Day finished at 3 o’clock in the afternoon. There were only 2 points that the opposition raised in that General Business Day. It finished at 3 o’clock because they had nothing more to contribute.
I have made the statement before and I’ll say it again: the Labor opposition treats this parliament with total disdain. Obviously their national campaign director has said to them: ‘Don’t put your efforts into parliament. That’s not where you’ll get the best results. Put it into these efforts such as glossy newsletters - the right sort of stuff, the emotive statements that will impress the uninformed. That’s the way to go. Essentially, develop your policies by media. Run off the NT News. Promise anything and say you’ll deliver whatever they want whenever you get into government’.
Last night the Leader of the Opposition had a golden opportunity to go through the Planning Act clause by clause, to pick that act apart and demonstrate to Territorians how Labor would introduce a Planning Act to the Northern Territory. She didn’t take advantage of that opportunity. She says that somehow, in government, when she becomes Chief Minister, she will throw out the Planning Act that we have in the Northern Territory and introduce a new act. Well, that simply is not good enough for the second-highest-paid politician in the Northern Territory. It’s not good enough for the Labor opposition.
It’s not only the opposition who have the right to interrogate the government. It is the government’s obligation to Territorians as well to interrogate the sorts of policies that you would put forward if you were in government. Put them forward, get them costed, and let’s debate them. The simple challenge I give to the Leader of the Opposition is this: you have a General Business Day coming up. You had 6 months to interrogate the Planning Bill. Put up your Planning Bill on the next General Business Day. Let’s go through it clause by clause so that the average Territorian, and developers, will see what the Labor Party in the Northern Territory would impose upon them in terms of planning and land management. That is a simple proposition. It requires nothing more than a little effort. It takes a lot more, though, than running the simple one-liner that you’re going to throw everything out and somehow, somewhere, some day you’ll come up with a planning act that will meet everyone’s aspirations. Put it up and let’s see it.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, the member for Nightcliff is a very experienced former Minister of Lands, Planning and Environment. He has followed the details of this bill with some vigour and certainly his contribution last night to the debate was much appreciated.
With regard to the contribution that was made by the Leader of the Opposition, I can do no more than express my pleasure that the media are starting to ask the sorts of questions that I believe should be asked of the second-highest-paid politician in the Northern Territory, the Leader of the Opposition - simple questions like: ‘Shouldn’t you do something for the amount of money you’re paid?’ It is too easy to run out with emotive one-liners suggesting to Territorians that sometime, somehow, in the future Labor under her leadership will come up with some sort of policy or some sort of direction.
This morning on the Fred McCue show he put a simple question to the Leader of the Opposition with regards to the Planning Act that was passed last night. It was simply this: ‘Why haven’t you put these type of amendments, your own amendments, up to the process?’ He went on to say: ‘If you were fair dinkum, Clare Martin, if you really wanted to see the best Planning Act in place for the Northern Territory for Territorians, wouldn’t you have at least tried?’
That is the substance of the arguments from this side of the House we’ve been making for some time. The Planning Bill was put out for public discussion and comment some 6 months ago at least and that public discussion has been very robust. I noted last night that in her closing comments the Leader of the Opposition thanked the Lord Mayor, George Brown, and Darwin City Council for their campaign to help Labor with regard to their policy on planning – a policy we are yet to see. The important issue is that the Planning Bill, a very important bill for Territorians, was out for public debate and comment, for amendments to be proposed to and possibly accepted by the government, for some 6 months.
In all of that time, the Leader of the Opposition and the members sitting opposite have done nothing in terms of proposing an act of their own or proposing any realistic amendments to back up the position that they would adopt with regard to the Planning Act. I remind honourable members and other Territorians that included in that period was at least one General Business Day where ample opportunity was provided to the Labor opposition. That General Business Day finished at 3 o’clock in the afternoon. There were only 2 points that the opposition raised in that General Business Day. It finished at 3 o’clock because they had nothing more to contribute.
I have made the statement before and I’ll say it again: the Labor opposition treats this parliament with total disdain. Obviously their national campaign director has said to them: ‘Don’t put your efforts into parliament. That’s not where you’ll get the best results. Put it into these efforts such as glossy newsletters - the right sort of stuff, the emotive statements that will impress the uninformed. That’s the way to go. Essentially, develop your policies by media. Run off the NT News. Promise anything and say you’ll deliver whatever they want whenever you get into government’.
Last night the Leader of the Opposition had a golden opportunity to go through the Planning Act clause by clause, to pick that act apart and demonstrate to Territorians how Labor would introduce a Planning Act to the Northern Territory. She didn’t take advantage of that opportunity. She says that somehow, in government, when she becomes Chief Minister, she will throw out the Planning Act that we have in the Northern Territory and introduce a new act. Well, that simply is not good enough for the second-highest-paid politician in the Northern Territory. It’s not good enough for the Labor opposition.
It’s not only the opposition who have the right to interrogate the government. It is the government’s obligation to Territorians as well to interrogate the sorts of policies that you would put forward if you were in government. Put them forward, get them costed, and let’s debate them. The simple challenge I give to the Leader of the Opposition is this: you have a General Business Day coming up. You had 6 months to interrogate the Planning Bill. Put up your Planning Bill on the next General Business Day. Let’s go through it clause by clause so that the average Territorian, and developers, will see what the Labor Party in the Northern Territory would impose upon them in terms of planning and land management. That is a simple proposition. It requires nothing more than a little effort. It takes a lot more, though, than running the simple one-liner that you’re going to throw everything out and somehow, somewhere, some day you’ll come up with a planning act that will meet everyone’s aspirations. Put it up and let’s see it.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016