Mr SETTER - 1997-08-12
Mr Speaker, can he inform members what jobs might be put at risk if the Labor Party’s policies on native title and land rights were put into effect?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I welcome the question from the member from Jingili and ...
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: Despite the interjections from members opposite, this is an important issue in the minds of Territorians because thousands of jobs are at stake if, as a country, we do not get it right in relation to native title.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr STONE: I pick up the interjection from the member for Wanguri. Members opposite will not fix this issue with the policy that they have put on the table for Territorians. Yesterday or the day before, we heard the Leader of the Opposition say that she supported point No 10 of the 10-point plan, and that she did not support points 1 to 9. That is typical of her. Once again, she is trying to have a quid each way. She does not know whether to go this way or that way. She says that we should negotiate in relation to the issue. Territorians have a clear choice that they can make when they see the way that the CLP government approaches these issues.
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I ask the Chief Minister to resume his seat. There is far too much discussion. It is not interjection. There is continuous chatter on the opposition benches. I ask members to refrain unless they are making a pertinent interjection.
Mr STONE: They are like a pack of dogs with distemper, Mr Speaker.
Mr Bailey: Where is the member for Greatorex?
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr BELL: A point of order, Mr Speaker! If the Chief Minister wants to comment on your ruling, he should be called to order as well.
Mr STONE: I was not commenting on the Speaker’s ruling. I was commenting on you.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I do not believe that the Chief Minister was commenting on my ruling. In fact, I did not make a ruling. I simply asked that there be less interjection.
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Mr Bell: That is right. Oh yes, absolutely.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: Mr Speaker, the reality is that, if this country is to get it right in relation to native title, and if we are to ensure that we go forward and not backwards, it is incumbent on each of the major political parties to support the 10-point plan. When that legislation is introduced into the House of Representatives later this month, I hope that the federal Australian Labor Party and its colleagues in the Territory will rethink their position.
A member interjecting.
Mr STONE: You cannot simply negotiate away the rights of Territorians. You may go on a radio program, as you did this morning ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: You cannot go on a radio program, as you did this morning, and say ...
Mr Bailey: You were too gutless to go on.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member for Wanguri.
Mr STONE: You cannot say that you are really concerned about the beaches and the parks and the foreshores, can you?
Mr Bailey: You are not. You are doing this simply for an election stunt. You do not care about the beaches and the parks.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: You still look ugly, even without your beard.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey: How are you going with your 20 km on your bike each day, you little fat boy?
Mr STONE: Very well, thank you.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! Would the Chief Minister again resume his seat. I am not prepared to tolerate the level of interjection that is coming from the opposition benches at present. I certainly will not tolerate the continuous interjection over me.
Mr STONE: Those Territorians who are listening to this broadcast will get the general drift that the Labor Party does not want us to talk about this issue.
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Mr Bailey: The member for Greatorex is not listening either. He is on a plane back to Alice Springs because he knows the election is on.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: I will pick up the interjection, Mr Speaker. The member for Greatorex is representing me as Chief Minister at the Batchelor College graduation ceremony today.
Mr Bailey: Why did he get on a plane to Alice Springs? It does not fly to Batchelor.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member for Wanguri is treading on dangerous ground at present. If he continues with his outbursts, he will be named.
Mr STONE: I will pick up the interjection from the member for Wanguri. This is an example of how slow he is. It is a Batchelor College graduation ceremony in Alice Springs.
To return to the general thrust of my comments, Labor members are terrified of this issue for the very simple reason that they will not face up to it.
Ms Martin: Put out a policy.
Mr STONE: They will not stand up and defend Territorians. The member for Fannie Bay interjects. I will tell her what our policy is. It is full support for the 10-point plan. That is CLP policy and that policy will deliver jobs for Territorians.
The Leader of the Opposition said on radio that she is very concerned about the beaches, the parks etc. However, she stood by and said nothing when the Northern Land Council started to levy fees on other people who use beaches around Nhulunbuy. The levy was $50 per family, and she did not say boo.
Mrs Hickey interjecting.
Mr STONE: You are not fair dinkum.
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Ms Martin: What about the entry fee to Kakadu?
Mr STONE: Entry fees to Kakadu were put in place by a former federal Labor government. You will not pay fees to enter any park that is run by the Northern Territory government.
To return to the question, we estimate that there is ...
Members interjecting.
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Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: The Leader of the Opposition laughs. It is a shame Territorians listening to the broadcast cannot see the members opposite. They are like a gaggle of school kids.
Mrs Hickey interjecting.
Mr STONE: You do not care about the ramifications of native title.
Mrs Hickey: You are not concentrating on issues that Territorians are worried about.
Mr STONE: You do not care that 6000 jobs ...
Mrs Hickey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I ask the Chief Minister to resume his seat. I warn the Leader of the Opposition that, on the next occasion, she will be named, as will other members if they continue with these interjections.
Mr STONE: They do not want Territorians to hear. They do not have a single answer. They are prepared to sell out Territorians.
Mr Ah Kit: No, we are not.
Mr STONE: They are prepared to roll over for their land council mates. The member for Arnhem interjects, but there sits the living proof. They are hand in glove - the Labor Party equals the land councils. There he sits - an apparatchiki from the land councils. He made his way into the Labor Party ranks and now he is running the show. He is right behind the Leader of the Opposition. He will not let her move sideways. She has nowhere to go.
I have listened very carefully to what Territorians have been saying over the past few months ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr STONE: I have listened to the workers. I have listened to people on the street. If the member for Wanguri will do me the courtesy of being quiet, I will be able to complete what I am about to say. There is no doubt in my mind that Territorians want this election over and done with.
Mr Bailey: They want you over and done with.
Mr STONE: Despite the interjection from the member for Wanguri, Territorians want to be able to choose who will lead the Territory in this unprecedented period of growth, prosperity and full employment. They want to be able to choose between Shane Stone and Maggie Hickey.
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Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey: Why should you ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I name the member for Wanguri.
Mr COULTER (Leader of Government Business): Mr Speaker, I move that the member for Wanguri be suspended from the service of the Assembly.
The Assembly divided:
Ayes 15 Noes 8
Mr Adamson Mr Ah Kit
Mr Baldwin Mr Bailey
Mrs Braham Mr Bell
Mr Burke Mrs Hickey
Mr Coulter Ms Martin
Mr Finch Mr Rioli
Mr Hatton Mr Stirling
Mr Manzie Mr Toyne
Mr Mitchell
Mrs Padgham-Purich
Mr Palmer
Mr Poole
Mr Reed
Mr Setter
Mr Stone
Motion agreed to.
Mr STONE: Mr Speaker, before I was interrupted by the member for Wanguri, I was saying that Territorians want to be able to choose the person who is to lead the Territory in this period of unprecedented economic growth, prosperity and full employment. They want to be given the opportunity to choose between Maggie Hickey and Shane Stone. The Leader of the Opposition knows that ...
Mr Stirling: Yes.
Mr Toyne: Yes. We are ready.
Mr STONE: Members opposite say that they are ready, and I can only presume from that that the Leader of the Opposition has not been sharing things with her colleagues. For the member for Stuart to say that they are ready reminds me ...
Mr Toyne: We are ready!
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Mr STONE: That is what the last member for Stuart said, almost 3 years and 3 months ago.
Territorians really do want to be able to choose between the ALP, whose representatives here have no idea whatsoever and who have policies that are a real threat to our lifestyle ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: The member for Arnhem may interject all he wants, but he is one of the authors of some of these whacky policies that are designed really to serve only minority groups. Territorians want to be able to choose between a party which has those sorts of whacky policies and no ideas and the CLP which has a proven track record of providing strong, stable government in the Territory.
Mr Ah Kit: We are waiting on Canberra ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: Mr Speaker, the facts are ...
Ms Martin: He has barely enough energy to deliver it.
Mr Toyne: Come on! Put a bit of conviction into this.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: The fact is that this is the worst ALP team in the history of self-government. Those members opposite who are honest know it, and Territorians are saying it. All I can say is that the Leader of the Opposition knows it and, if she is not sharing that information with her colleagues, she does them a great disservice. Labor is worse than ever. They really are a bunch of amateurs.
Mr Toyne: You are reading this.
Mr STONE: This will be a close election.
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: The Leader of the Opposition has already stood up and claimed Karama, Jingili ...
Mrs Hickey: Make your mind up. What is it going to be, Shane?
Mr STONE: ... and Greatorex. Do you remember Paul Keating? Do you remember what he had to say? He said that Labor would bolt it in. That is what Maggie Hickey has been saying to Territorians. She is taking Territorians for granted. The Leader of the Opposition
Page 2190
may chuckle and members opposite may continue to interject all they wish, but that is a sobering reminder that it requires only a couple of hundred voters to change their minds for there to be a change of government. It is a very sobering thought that Territorians listening to this broadcast should know that it would require only a very small shift and they would wake up the next morning with Maggie Hickey as the Chief Minister and John Bailey as the Treasurer.
Mrs Hickey: And Shane Stone and his bunch on the opposition benches where they should be. You need a period in opposition, Shane.
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: Have a look at who stands behind them.
This is our sixth election and, for the CLP, it will be the toughest.
Mrs Hickey: It is time for a change. Time is up, Shane.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Ms Martin: Is this your statesmanlike number?
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: Mr Speaker, when you vacate the Chair, I intend to wait on His Honour the Administrator and request that he prorogue the Assembly and invite him to issue writs for a general election on 30 August.
Page 2191
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I welcome the question from the member from Jingili and ...
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: Despite the interjections from members opposite, this is an important issue in the minds of Territorians because thousands of jobs are at stake if, as a country, we do not get it right in relation to native title.
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr STONE: I pick up the interjection from the member for Wanguri. Members opposite will not fix this issue with the policy that they have put on the table for Territorians. Yesterday or the day before, we heard the Leader of the Opposition say that she supported point No 10 of the 10-point plan, and that she did not support points 1 to 9. That is typical of her. Once again, she is trying to have a quid each way. She does not know whether to go this way or that way. She says that we should negotiate in relation to the issue. Territorians have a clear choice that they can make when they see the way that the CLP government approaches these issues.
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I ask the Chief Minister to resume his seat. There is far too much discussion. It is not interjection. There is continuous chatter on the opposition benches. I ask members to refrain unless they are making a pertinent interjection.
Mr STONE: They are like a pack of dogs with distemper, Mr Speaker.
Mr Bailey: Where is the member for Greatorex?
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr BELL: A point of order, Mr Speaker! If the Chief Minister wants to comment on your ruling, he should be called to order as well.
Mr STONE: I was not commenting on the Speaker’s ruling. I was commenting on you.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I do not believe that the Chief Minister was commenting on my ruling. In fact, I did not make a ruling. I simply asked that there be less interjection.
Page 2185
Mr Bell: That is right. Oh yes, absolutely.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: Mr Speaker, the reality is that, if this country is to get it right in relation to native title, and if we are to ensure that we go forward and not backwards, it is incumbent on each of the major political parties to support the 10-point plan. When that legislation is introduced into the House of Representatives later this month, I hope that the federal Australian Labor Party and its colleagues in the Territory will rethink their position.
A member interjecting.
Mr STONE: You cannot simply negotiate away the rights of Territorians. You may go on a radio program, as you did this morning ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: You cannot go on a radio program, as you did this morning, and say ...
Mr Bailey: You were too gutless to go on.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member for Wanguri.
Mr STONE: You cannot say that you are really concerned about the beaches and the parks and the foreshores, can you?
Mr Bailey: You are not. You are doing this simply for an election stunt. You do not care about the beaches and the parks.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: You still look ugly, even without your beard.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey: How are you going with your 20 km on your bike each day, you little fat boy?
Mr STONE: Very well, thank you.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! Would the Chief Minister again resume his seat. I am not prepared to tolerate the level of interjection that is coming from the opposition benches at present. I certainly will not tolerate the continuous interjection over me.
Mr STONE: Those Territorians who are listening to this broadcast will get the general drift that the Labor Party does not want us to talk about this issue.
Page 2186
Mr Bailey: The member for Greatorex is not listening either. He is on a plane back to Alice Springs because he knows the election is on.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: I will pick up the interjection, Mr Speaker. The member for Greatorex is representing me as Chief Minister at the Batchelor College graduation ceremony today.
Mr Bailey: Why did he get on a plane to Alice Springs? It does not fly to Batchelor.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The member for Wanguri is treading on dangerous ground at present. If he continues with his outbursts, he will be named.
Mr STONE: I will pick up the interjection from the member for Wanguri. This is an example of how slow he is. It is a Batchelor College graduation ceremony in Alice Springs.
To return to the general thrust of my comments, Labor members are terrified of this issue for the very simple reason that they will not face up to it.
Ms Martin: Put out a policy.
Mr STONE: They will not stand up and defend Territorians. The member for Fannie Bay interjects. I will tell her what our policy is. It is full support for the 10-point plan. That is CLP policy and that policy will deliver jobs for Territorians.
The Leader of the Opposition said on radio that she is very concerned about the beaches, the parks etc. However, she stood by and said nothing when the Northern Land Council started to levy fees on other people who use beaches around Nhulunbuy. The levy was $50 per family, and she did not say boo.
Mrs Hickey interjecting.
Mr STONE: You are not fair dinkum.
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Ms Martin: What about the entry fee to Kakadu?
Mr STONE: Entry fees to Kakadu were put in place by a former federal Labor government. You will not pay fees to enter any park that is run by the Northern Territory government.
To return to the question, we estimate that there is ...
Members interjecting.
Page 2187
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: The Leader of the Opposition laughs. It is a shame Territorians listening to the broadcast cannot see the members opposite. They are like a gaggle of school kids.
Mrs Hickey interjecting.
Mr STONE: You do not care about the ramifications of native title.
Mrs Hickey: You are not concentrating on issues that Territorians are worried about.
Mr STONE: You do not care that 6000 jobs ...
Mrs Hickey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I ask the Chief Minister to resume his seat. I warn the Leader of the Opposition that, on the next occasion, she will be named, as will other members if they continue with these interjections.
Mr STONE: They do not want Territorians to hear. They do not have a single answer. They are prepared to sell out Territorians.
Mr Ah Kit: No, we are not.
Mr STONE: They are prepared to roll over for their land council mates. The member for Arnhem interjects, but there sits the living proof. They are hand in glove - the Labor Party equals the land councils. There he sits - an apparatchiki from the land councils. He made his way into the Labor Party ranks and now he is running the show. He is right behind the Leader of the Opposition. He will not let her move sideways. She has nowhere to go.
I have listened very carefully to what Territorians have been saying over the past few months ...
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr STONE: I have listened to the workers. I have listened to people on the street. If the member for Wanguri will do me the courtesy of being quiet, I will be able to complete what I am about to say. There is no doubt in my mind that Territorians want this election over and done with.
Mr Bailey: They want you over and done with.
Mr STONE: Despite the interjection from the member for Wanguri, Territorians want to be able to choose who will lead the Territory in this unprecedented period of growth, prosperity and full employment. They want to be able to choose between Shane Stone and Maggie Hickey.
Page 2188
Mr Bailey interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr Bailey: Why should you ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I name the member for Wanguri.
Mr COULTER (Leader of Government Business): Mr Speaker, I move that the member for Wanguri be suspended from the service of the Assembly.
The Assembly divided:
Ayes 15 Noes 8
Mr Adamson Mr Ah Kit
Mr Baldwin Mr Bailey
Mrs Braham Mr Bell
Mr Burke Mrs Hickey
Mr Coulter Ms Martin
Mr Finch Mr Rioli
Mr Hatton Mr Stirling
Mr Manzie Mr Toyne
Mr Mitchell
Mrs Padgham-Purich
Mr Palmer
Mr Poole
Mr Reed
Mr Setter
Mr Stone
Motion agreed to.
Mr STONE: Mr Speaker, before I was interrupted by the member for Wanguri, I was saying that Territorians want to be able to choose the person who is to lead the Territory in this period of unprecedented economic growth, prosperity and full employment. They want to be given the opportunity to choose between Maggie Hickey and Shane Stone. The Leader of the Opposition knows that ...
Mr Stirling: Yes.
Mr Toyne: Yes. We are ready.
Mr STONE: Members opposite say that they are ready, and I can only presume from that that the Leader of the Opposition has not been sharing things with her colleagues. For the member for Stuart to say that they are ready reminds me ...
Mr Toyne: We are ready!
Page 2189
Mr STONE: That is what the last member for Stuart said, almost 3 years and 3 months ago.
Territorians really do want to be able to choose between the ALP, whose representatives here have no idea whatsoever and who have policies that are a real threat to our lifestyle ...
Members interjecting.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: The member for Arnhem may interject all he wants, but he is one of the authors of some of these whacky policies that are designed really to serve only minority groups. Territorians want to be able to choose between a party which has those sorts of whacky policies and no ideas and the CLP which has a proven track record of providing strong, stable government in the Territory.
Mr Ah Kit: We are waiting on Canberra ...
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: Mr Speaker, the facts are ...
Ms Martin: He has barely enough energy to deliver it.
Mr Toyne: Come on! Put a bit of conviction into this.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: The fact is that this is the worst ALP team in the history of self-government. Those members opposite who are honest know it, and Territorians are saying it. All I can say is that the Leader of the Opposition knows it and, if she is not sharing that information with her colleagues, she does them a great disservice. Labor is worse than ever. They really are a bunch of amateurs.
Mr Toyne: You are reading this.
Mr STONE: This will be a close election.
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: The Leader of the Opposition has already stood up and claimed Karama, Jingili ...
Mrs Hickey: Make your mind up. What is it going to be, Shane?
Mr STONE: ... and Greatorex. Do you remember Paul Keating? Do you remember what he had to say? He said that Labor would bolt it in. That is what Maggie Hickey has been saying to Territorians. She is taking Territorians for granted. The Leader of the Opposition
Page 2190
may chuckle and members opposite may continue to interject all they wish, but that is a sobering reminder that it requires only a couple of hundred voters to change their minds for there to be a change of government. It is a very sobering thought that Territorians listening to this broadcast should know that it would require only a very small shift and they would wake up the next morning with Maggie Hickey as the Chief Minister and John Bailey as the Treasurer.
Mrs Hickey: And Shane Stone and his bunch on the opposition benches where they should be. You need a period in opposition, Shane.
Members interjecting.
Mr STONE: Have a look at who stands behind them.
This is our sixth election and, for the CLP, it will be the toughest.
Mrs Hickey: It is time for a change. Time is up, Shane.
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Ms Martin: Is this your statesmanlike number?
Mr SPEAKER: Order!
Mr STONE: Mr Speaker, when you vacate the Chair, I intend to wait on His Honour the Administrator and request that he prorogue the Assembly and invite him to issue writs for a general election on 30 August.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016