Mr GUNNER - 2014-08-28
By any measure, the Maley affair should have been the end of the Attorney-General. You should have sacked him. Instead we have seen a culture of cover-up. The appointment of Mr Maley as a magistrate was a lack of judgement, and the fact there has been no inquiry into Maley’s conduct is outrageous. Has the Attorney-General survived because you do not have the numbers to sack him and keep your own job?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Fannie Bay for his fantastic question.
Clearly, the Labor strategists are working overtime on your side of the Chamber. I think we all know three important things in this Chamber. The deputy is decided by the team, not by me. The portfolios held by the Attorney-General, the Corrections minister and Public Service Employment minister, are determined by me, and he has my full support, the same as every other member on this side of the Chamber.
What is important about Peter Maley is the attacks on him by Labor are about his political interest, not his professional ability.
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Last week, the Chief Minister gave the member for Fong Lim his full support and the chair is now empty.
Madam SPEAKER: That is not a point of order.
Mr GILES: You are attacking him because of his political interest, not his professional ability. That is exactly what it is about and I find that absurd. I also find it absurd – and I refer to my answer yesterday. We should be talking about the jobs of Territorians, not the jobs of political mates and people in this Chamber. That is not what we are all here to do.
We are here to come up with great policy that advances the interests of Territorians, so the kids who come to see parliament know there are jobs for their future. That is what we are supposed to be doing, building the Territory for our future.
If you want to talk about Peter Maley - yesterday you asked about 13 questions. I do not know what the 13 questions are, as I have not seen them. Perhaps it has something to do with this on the front page of the NT News, ‘Labor is scum, filthy and corrupt’.
I was very interested to read that newspaper this morning. Perhaps that is what was being asked in those 13 questions put out to Labor. You are asking for these things to be tabled; we do not know what those 13 questions were, but perhaps it had something to do with Peter Maley saying, ‘Labor is scum, filthy and corrupt’.
I do not know if Peter Maley was referring to any individual, to the party or perhaps to the process and procedure around how you operated the Stella Maris debate, when you gave away a $3m Territory asset to your union mate, Matthew Gardiner, at Unions NT. This is the same bloke, presumably, who will be asked to represent the interests of prisoners now seeking award wages under Labor’s new policy.
I go back to the point about Peter Maley. He has political interests …
Mr McCARTHY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. With 30 seconds to go, will the Chief Minister advise of the numbers he has been crunching this week?
Madam SPEAKER: That is not a point of order. Sit down, member for Barkly.
Mr GILES: It is very timely the member for Barkly stands up. Perhaps Peter Maley was saying the member for Barkly is scum, filthy and corrupt.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, withdraw those comments, please.
Mr GILES: I withdraw. Perhaps Peter Maley was referring to the member for Barkly’s operations in the Stella Maris scandal, where he signed off on the asset to Labor mates …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! That is offensive; he is referring to the front page remarks.
Madam SPEAKER: The Chief Minister withdrew comments in respect to the member for Barkly, as I ordered.
Mr GILES: Perhaps he was referring to the Leader and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, regarding your operations on Stella Maris and the way you handed over Territory government assets to your union mates.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Fannie Bay for his fantastic question.
Clearly, the Labor strategists are working overtime on your side of the Chamber. I think we all know three important things in this Chamber. The deputy is decided by the team, not by me. The portfolios held by the Attorney-General, the Corrections minister and Public Service Employment minister, are determined by me, and he has my full support, the same as every other member on this side of the Chamber.
What is important about Peter Maley is the attacks on him by Labor are about his political interest, not his professional ability.
Mr GUNNER: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. Last week, the Chief Minister gave the member for Fong Lim his full support and the chair is now empty.
Madam SPEAKER: That is not a point of order.
Mr GILES: You are attacking him because of his political interest, not his professional ability. That is exactly what it is about and I find that absurd. I also find it absurd – and I refer to my answer yesterday. We should be talking about the jobs of Territorians, not the jobs of political mates and people in this Chamber. That is not what we are all here to do.
We are here to come up with great policy that advances the interests of Territorians, so the kids who come to see parliament know there are jobs for their future. That is what we are supposed to be doing, building the Territory for our future.
If you want to talk about Peter Maley - yesterday you asked about 13 questions. I do not know what the 13 questions are, as I have not seen them. Perhaps it has something to do with this on the front page of the NT News, ‘Labor is scum, filthy and corrupt’.
I was very interested to read that newspaper this morning. Perhaps that is what was being asked in those 13 questions put out to Labor. You are asking for these things to be tabled; we do not know what those 13 questions were, but perhaps it had something to do with Peter Maley saying, ‘Labor is scum, filthy and corrupt’.
I do not know if Peter Maley was referring to any individual, to the party or perhaps to the process and procedure around how you operated the Stella Maris debate, when you gave away a $3m Territory asset to your union mate, Matthew Gardiner, at Unions NT. This is the same bloke, presumably, who will be asked to represent the interests of prisoners now seeking award wages under Labor’s new policy.
I go back to the point about Peter Maley. He has political interests …
Mr McCARTHY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 113: relevance. With 30 seconds to go, will the Chief Minister advise of the numbers he has been crunching this week?
Madam SPEAKER: That is not a point of order. Sit down, member for Barkly.
Mr GILES: It is very timely the member for Barkly stands up. Perhaps Peter Maley was saying the member for Barkly is scum, filthy and corrupt.
Madam SPEAKER: Chief Minister, withdraw those comments, please.
Mr GILES: I withdraw. Perhaps Peter Maley was referring to the member for Barkly’s operations in the Stella Maris scandal, where he signed off on the asset to Labor mates …
Ms LAWRIE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! That is offensive; he is referring to the front page remarks.
Madam SPEAKER: The Chief Minister withdrew comments in respect to the member for Barkly, as I ordered.
Mr GILES: Perhaps he was referring to the Leader and the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, regarding your operations on Stella Maris and the way you handed over Territory government assets to your union mates.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016