Mr BURKE - 2002-10-08
Chief Minister, I am sure as local member and as Chief Minister, you would be aware that the Arafura Sports and Community Club owns land under freehold title, albeit prescribed land but freehold title nonetheless for which your government has offered as little as $550 000. This freehold land has on it considerable improvements, including the club house and 14 accommodation units which Ernst and Young in their report valued at $1.4m. Chief Minister, will you admit that your Labor government has purchased this facility at a windfall price and has dudded the club out of $900 000 worth of assets?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, you hope when you give answers in this House that the Opposition is actually listening. We sought, in response to how on earth we could meet the outstanding creditors of the Arafura Bowls and Community Club - $505 000 of creditors. What could we do about them? Organisations like the Disabled Sports Association, individuals, and a lot of businesses around that had done work for club because the club believed that the previous government would meet those costs.
I am not saying whether that was a commitment given by the then Chief Minister or whether it was misunderstood by the club, Madam Speaker, but it was definitely there. Here is a man who is trying to stand in here and ask questions based on ‘Where is your due diligence, government?’ There was not even a smell of due diligence from the previous government.
Dr Toyne: There was the smell of something else, though.
Ms MARTIN: There was the smell of something else. Madam Speaker, we went transparently and fairly through the proper processes, a judicial manager, an accounting firm to look at the situation, done in conjunction with the club. We then went to the Australian Valuation Office. So you don’t trust the Australian Valuation Office? Is this what you are saying? We went to the AVO and said: ‘Give us a fair valuation’.
Mr Burke: It depends on the zoning. Tell the truth. It depends on what zoning you give it. You are the government; you can zone it however you like.
Ms MARTIN: The Valuation Office recognises the zoning of the club. $550 000. Which government was it that sold it to the club for $85 000 just a few years ago? The valuation was $550 000 and it is a fair one. Those dollars, now with the judicial managers, will be used to pay off those Territorians who are creditors of that club, some of them individuals who have put considerable dollars into the club and their investment has been let down by very poor financial management. We will not let that go astray. We will pursue any individual who has ripped off that club. We will pursue that individual. We are changing the Incorporations Act - something you never did - to make sure that that will never happen again, and someone who does work for a club cannot simply walk away and go to another club and do the same thing.
My greatest concern is that we make sure that lawn bowls has a sustainable future and that those who want to be involved in lawn bowls have facilities to go to. What they have been doing, particularly for the Arafura Club over the last couple of years, is spending all their time concerned about the club surviving financially, worrying about debt. That is not why you join a club. That is my concern. My commitment, as chief of this government, is that we will work with the Lawn Bowls Association, and we have already started those discussions, to make sure that the lawn bowls future in the Territory is bright and is certainly financially hassle free. That is my commitment.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, you hope when you give answers in this House that the Opposition is actually listening. We sought, in response to how on earth we could meet the outstanding creditors of the Arafura Bowls and Community Club - $505 000 of creditors. What could we do about them? Organisations like the Disabled Sports Association, individuals, and a lot of businesses around that had done work for club because the club believed that the previous government would meet those costs.
I am not saying whether that was a commitment given by the then Chief Minister or whether it was misunderstood by the club, Madam Speaker, but it was definitely there. Here is a man who is trying to stand in here and ask questions based on ‘Where is your due diligence, government?’ There was not even a smell of due diligence from the previous government.
Dr Toyne: There was the smell of something else, though.
Ms MARTIN: There was the smell of something else. Madam Speaker, we went transparently and fairly through the proper processes, a judicial manager, an accounting firm to look at the situation, done in conjunction with the club. We then went to the Australian Valuation Office. So you don’t trust the Australian Valuation Office? Is this what you are saying? We went to the AVO and said: ‘Give us a fair valuation’.
Mr Burke: It depends on the zoning. Tell the truth. It depends on what zoning you give it. You are the government; you can zone it however you like.
Ms MARTIN: The Valuation Office recognises the zoning of the club. $550 000. Which government was it that sold it to the club for $85 000 just a few years ago? The valuation was $550 000 and it is a fair one. Those dollars, now with the judicial managers, will be used to pay off those Territorians who are creditors of that club, some of them individuals who have put considerable dollars into the club and their investment has been let down by very poor financial management. We will not let that go astray. We will pursue any individual who has ripped off that club. We will pursue that individual. We are changing the Incorporations Act - something you never did - to make sure that that will never happen again, and someone who does work for a club cannot simply walk away and go to another club and do the same thing.
My greatest concern is that we make sure that lawn bowls has a sustainable future and that those who want to be involved in lawn bowls have facilities to go to. What they have been doing, particularly for the Arafura Club over the last couple of years, is spending all their time concerned about the club surviving financially, worrying about debt. That is not why you join a club. That is my concern. My commitment, as chief of this government, is that we will work with the Lawn Bowls Association, and we have already started those discussions, to make sure that the lawn bowls future in the Territory is bright and is certainly financially hassle free. That is my commitment.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016