Ms LAWRIE - 2002-08-21
What has been the community’s reaction to yesterday’s budget?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, a very fine question from the member for Karama. I came in here yesterday and said we had just come from a Chamber of Commerce and Industry lunch …
Mr Elferink interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Macdonnell, that is out of order.
Ms MARTIN: … where the description of the first Labor budget was ‘responsible and responsive’ - fine words. When you look at what has happened over the last 24 hours, there has been an overwhelmingly positive response to the budget. An overwhelmingly positive response, except from the whingers, the whiners with the lack of vision on the other side of this parliament. Even worse than that, listening to the Leader of the Opposition’s budget speech this morning, it was simply wrong. I cannot work out whether the Leader of the Opposition was either trying to mislead this parliament or was simply lost and confused. I will give you the benefit of the doubt and just think you were lost and confused.
I would like to refer to some of the comments we had over the last 24 hours about the first Labor budget in the Territory. From the Territory Construction Association, yesterday afternoon on ABC radio, the General Manager, Dave Malone:
We think it is a strong budget. It provides over $400m worth of construction activities throughout the Territory, so it is
a major boost for our industry, of course, and a major boost for provision of infrastructure throughout the Northern Territory.
One for us. One for the Territory, I say.
Jane Alley from NTCOSS, an organisation that lobbies on behalf of families, seniors, and the disabled across the non-government sector:
This is a really positive budget for us. It shows a real commitment by the Northern Territory government to reinvesting
in what was a previously neglected area.
Previously neglected.
Carole Frost from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry:
Well, we are really pleased with what has come down. We are seeing that there is a forecast of a steady 3.7% growth, the
continuation of tight fiscal management within the government departments, and a steady debt reduction. We have also
seen some cuts to business taxes.
She was particularly referring there to the cut in franchise, a legacy of CLP.
Let us look at a major focus of the budget: education. We have the President of the Australian Education Union in the Territory, Robert Laird saying:
Well, overall we have had to say that it is a very good start in terms of educational reform by this government.
Another positive.
Sue Shearer from the Real Estate Institute. Basically the budget, as she says:
It will act as a catalyst for people who have been vacillating about selling their existing home and upgrading. So it will be
a stimulus for our industry.
Paul Nieuwenhoven from the Nursing Federation:
For the first time in a while we have had a real increase in health spending.
Going to a political scientist looking at the budget, Professor Bob Catley from the NTU, and his overall description:
This is a growth budget.
Then, when asked about overall debt reduction:
Well, there is some immediate increase in debt, but it is small, and if the economy grows at 5% per annum after next
year, quite manageable.
The budget also anticipates going into a balance within two years, and there will be some paying off the debt when it goes into
balance and then into surplus.. So I do not think that is anything to worry about.
When asked: ‘Is this short on vision?’, which the opposition is trying to claim:
Oh, I do not think that is entirely fair. The government is spending a lot on infrastructure. We are a frontier economy still,
and you have to build the infrastructure to get the private sector going along, and they are ticking along nicely.
Graham Kemp from the Housing Association:
Indeed, we are very pleased with this budget; very pleased with the proactive stand that the government has taken.
He goes on to talk about a number of things. He was asked: ‘Is capital investment good for bush in remote areas?’, and this was his answer:
Yeah, very much so, and it is good for us from an employment point of view because we have tended to see a lot of – a drift
of trades going down to the southern and eastern states. I think in actual fact we are going to get people back here because
we are starting to see a fall-off in the eastern states. We may, in actual fact, start to see people coming back into the Territory.
Across the Territory, in the industry sectors and the unions, there is a really positive response to this budget. And - what a surprise! - the only negative response, the only carping is coming from that side of the House.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, a very fine question from the member for Karama. I came in here yesterday and said we had just come from a Chamber of Commerce and Industry lunch …
Mr Elferink interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Member for Macdonnell, that is out of order.
Ms MARTIN: … where the description of the first Labor budget was ‘responsible and responsive’ - fine words. When you look at what has happened over the last 24 hours, there has been an overwhelmingly positive response to the budget. An overwhelmingly positive response, except from the whingers, the whiners with the lack of vision on the other side of this parliament. Even worse than that, listening to the Leader of the Opposition’s budget speech this morning, it was simply wrong. I cannot work out whether the Leader of the Opposition was either trying to mislead this parliament or was simply lost and confused. I will give you the benefit of the doubt and just think you were lost and confused.
I would like to refer to some of the comments we had over the last 24 hours about the first Labor budget in the Territory. From the Territory Construction Association, yesterday afternoon on ABC radio, the General Manager, Dave Malone:
We think it is a strong budget. It provides over $400m worth of construction activities throughout the Territory, so it is
a major boost for our industry, of course, and a major boost for provision of infrastructure throughout the Northern Territory.
One for us. One for the Territory, I say.
Jane Alley from NTCOSS, an organisation that lobbies on behalf of families, seniors, and the disabled across the non-government sector:
This is a really positive budget for us. It shows a real commitment by the Northern Territory government to reinvesting
in what was a previously neglected area.
Previously neglected.
Carole Frost from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry:
Well, we are really pleased with what has come down. We are seeing that there is a forecast of a steady 3.7% growth, the
continuation of tight fiscal management within the government departments, and a steady debt reduction. We have also
seen some cuts to business taxes.
She was particularly referring there to the cut in franchise, a legacy of CLP.
Let us look at a major focus of the budget: education. We have the President of the Australian Education Union in the Territory, Robert Laird saying:
Well, overall we have had to say that it is a very good start in terms of educational reform by this government.
Another positive.
Sue Shearer from the Real Estate Institute. Basically the budget, as she says:
It will act as a catalyst for people who have been vacillating about selling their existing home and upgrading. So it will be
a stimulus for our industry.
Paul Nieuwenhoven from the Nursing Federation:
For the first time in a while we have had a real increase in health spending.
Going to a political scientist looking at the budget, Professor Bob Catley from the NTU, and his overall description:
This is a growth budget.
Then, when asked about overall debt reduction:
Well, there is some immediate increase in debt, but it is small, and if the economy grows at 5% per annum after next
year, quite manageable.
The budget also anticipates going into a balance within two years, and there will be some paying off the debt when it goes into
balance and then into surplus.. So I do not think that is anything to worry about.
When asked: ‘Is this short on vision?’, which the opposition is trying to claim:
Oh, I do not think that is entirely fair. The government is spending a lot on infrastructure. We are a frontier economy still,
and you have to build the infrastructure to get the private sector going along, and they are ticking along nicely.
Graham Kemp from the Housing Association:
Indeed, we are very pleased with this budget; very pleased with the proactive stand that the government has taken.
He goes on to talk about a number of things. He was asked: ‘Is capital investment good for bush in remote areas?’, and this was his answer:
Yeah, very much so, and it is good for us from an employment point of view because we have tended to see a lot of – a drift
of trades going down to the southern and eastern states. I think in actual fact we are going to get people back here because
we are starting to see a fall-off in the eastern states. We may, in actual fact, start to see people coming back into the Territory.
Across the Territory, in the industry sectors and the unions, there is a really positive response to this budget. And - what a surprise! - the only negative response, the only carping is coming from that side of the House.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016