Ms LAWRIE - 2013-05-15
Your budget has been slammed by groups as diverse as mining executives, teachers, seniors and young mums. Your debt and GST blame game is just shallow rhetoric, with your decision to increase debt by $1.1bn while GST increases from $2.5bn last year to $2.8bn next year: GST up $300m, debt up $1.1bn. You are cutting pay to teachers and support staff by $34m, but staff in your department get an extra $8m. Why are you sacking 130 teachers whilst paying your mates more?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the Opposition Leader for her question. I will not accept the premise of the end of it because we are not sacking teachers. We are recalibrating the way we provide teaching in the Northern Territory. We are putting greater focus on kindergarten to Year 2. We are going from a ratio of 22 students per teacher to 20 students per teacher, because we know early education is the best form of education. It is the best way to give a start in life to those kids. Getting kids to school and getting them a start is what we need to do and that is why we are putting an extra 61 teachers into early childhood education: to ensure kids get the best start in life.
At the start of the question you talked about debt and deficit, trying to make us own your problem. The deficit is so big because we had to put in the $500m-plus for your new gaol, which will be full from day one, and which under your new era of corrections had gaol capacity at 131%. You were housing people in gaol more than you were housing them in the community, while pushing up the cost of land. The increase in the land cost for people who wanted to buy in the Northern Territory was $1000 per week. They could not afford to buy land so you were housing people in gaol, congratulations - adding to our deficit, adding to our debt. The income of the Northern Territory is less than $5bn. Your estimate when you were in government was to have debt of …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Relevance, 113. We are talking about your budget. It is the Territory budget handed down by your Treasurer. I know you want to hide from it because it is a shocker, but at least answer the question.
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order. Chief Minister, continue.
Mr GILES: We inherited your books and your $500m-plus commitment for the gaol. That is why the deficit is so high. It is not as high as you predicted. We have managed to rein in an extra $600m over the forward estimates.
We have pulled things back. We are carrying your legacy. Yesterday we put out a responsible budget - responsible action for the Northern Territory - without putting the knife through the Territory by making all the cuts to pay your debt in one go. We have scaled it back, supporting private industry and investment to create jobs in the private sector to ensure we continue to move forward on a level playing field, the Territory continues to operate, and we support private sector investment and jobs.
Your debt …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Relevance, 113. Taking $34m out of education and $8m …
Mr ELFERINK: A point of order, Madam Speaker! There cannot be a point of order here.
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order. Please be seated, Opposition Leader.
Mr GILES: I will return to education - 61 new teachers in kindergarten to Year 2.
Opposition Leader, look at the NAPLAN results and show us the performance of your former government in education. It was absolutely shameful! We want kids to go to school and we want them to get a good start in life. That is why we are employing 61 extra early childhood teachers.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the Opposition Leader for her question. I will not accept the premise of the end of it because we are not sacking teachers. We are recalibrating the way we provide teaching in the Northern Territory. We are putting greater focus on kindergarten to Year 2. We are going from a ratio of 22 students per teacher to 20 students per teacher, because we know early education is the best form of education. It is the best way to give a start in life to those kids. Getting kids to school and getting them a start is what we need to do and that is why we are putting an extra 61 teachers into early childhood education: to ensure kids get the best start in life.
At the start of the question you talked about debt and deficit, trying to make us own your problem. The deficit is so big because we had to put in the $500m-plus for your new gaol, which will be full from day one, and which under your new era of corrections had gaol capacity at 131%. You were housing people in gaol more than you were housing them in the community, while pushing up the cost of land. The increase in the land cost for people who wanted to buy in the Northern Territory was $1000 per week. They could not afford to buy land so you were housing people in gaol, congratulations - adding to our deficit, adding to our debt. The income of the Northern Territory is less than $5bn. Your estimate when you were in government was to have debt of …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Relevance, 113. We are talking about your budget. It is the Territory budget handed down by your Treasurer. I know you want to hide from it because it is a shocker, but at least answer the question.
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order. Chief Minister, continue.
Mr GILES: We inherited your books and your $500m-plus commitment for the gaol. That is why the deficit is so high. It is not as high as you predicted. We have managed to rein in an extra $600m over the forward estimates.
We have pulled things back. We are carrying your legacy. Yesterday we put out a responsible budget - responsible action for the Northern Territory - without putting the knife through the Territory by making all the cuts to pay your debt in one go. We have scaled it back, supporting private industry and investment to create jobs in the private sector to ensure we continue to move forward on a level playing field, the Territory continues to operate, and we support private sector investment and jobs.
Your debt …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Relevance, 113. Taking $34m out of education and $8m …
Mr ELFERINK: A point of order, Madam Speaker! There cannot be a point of order here.
Madam SPEAKER: It is not a point of order. Please be seated, Opposition Leader.
Mr GILES: I will return to education - 61 new teachers in kindergarten to Year 2.
Opposition Leader, look at the NAPLAN results and show us the performance of your former government in education. It was absolutely shameful! We want kids to go to school and we want them to get a good start in life. That is why we are employing 61 extra early childhood teachers.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016