Mr EDE - 1995-05-16
In his reply to his last question, the Chief Minister maintained that the government had made a fair job of a couple of areas it had worked on over the last 11 months, a statement which is disputed by this side. I point out to the Chief Minister that, in the last 12 months, Territorians have been forced to witness: a series of shocking reports condemning the health of Aboriginal Territorians; the Northern Territory Police Force complaining about being used by the CLP as political tools; the worst high school retention rates in Australia; prisoners walking in and out of Alice Springs Prison at will whilst conditions at Darwin Prison are totally overcrowded; an Attorney-General with the lowest consumer affairs rating in the country; and long-standing coaches-in-residence programs being wiped with no sign of the AIS program that was to be put in place immediately after the election. The electorate has been forced to accept all that. I ask now whether the Chief Minister will accept any of the blame for the failure of what has become a leaderless rabble.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I believe the Leader of the Opposition tried to convince Territorians some 10 or 11 months ago that the CLP government was in bad shape and the Territory was falling apart. If I remember rightly, he called it `an economic basket case'. He even brought up a Sydney actor to tell everybody that. He could not find a Territorian to tell them, so he brought up an actor from Sydney and stuck him in front of the cameras to tell people that things are bad in the Territory, that it is a terrible place in which to live, and they will have to get rid of the government. What happened when the people exercised their judgment? Two opposition members lost their seats and 3 other members, including the Leader of the Opposition, were left hanging on by the hairs in their nostrils, just over the edge of the cliff.
Mr Coulter: Less than 100 votes!
Mr PERRON: What do they call it? The 100 Club! That's you.
Mr Ede: You went fishing.
Mr PERRON: The Leader of the Opposition's seat was won by 88 votes, Barkly was won by 96 votes, and Wanguri was won by 98 votes. The figures are very consistent - consistently bad in fact. That is what Territorians thought of the Leader of the Opposition's proposals for the Northern Territory and his presentation of how good or how bad it was.
People would not vote for the unknown. They would not vote for some group about whose policies or performance they were not quite sure. They were voting for a government that had been here for a long time and that will remain here for a long time.
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ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I believe the Leader of the Opposition tried to convince Territorians some 10 or 11 months ago that the CLP government was in bad shape and the Territory was falling apart. If I remember rightly, he called it `an economic basket case'. He even brought up a Sydney actor to tell everybody that. He could not find a Territorian to tell them, so he brought up an actor from Sydney and stuck him in front of the cameras to tell people that things are bad in the Territory, that it is a terrible place in which to live, and they will have to get rid of the government. What happened when the people exercised their judgment? Two opposition members lost their seats and 3 other members, including the Leader of the Opposition, were left hanging on by the hairs in their nostrils, just over the edge of the cliff.
Mr Coulter: Less than 100 votes!
Mr PERRON: What do they call it? The 100 Club! That's you.
Mr Ede: You went fishing.
Mr PERRON: The Leader of the Opposition's seat was won by 88 votes, Barkly was won by 96 votes, and Wanguri was won by 98 votes. The figures are very consistent - consistently bad in fact. That is what Territorians thought of the Leader of the Opposition's proposals for the Northern Territory and his presentation of how good or how bad it was.
People would not vote for the unknown. They would not vote for some group about whose policies or performance they were not quite sure. They were voting for a government that had been here for a long time and that will remain here for a long time.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016