Ms SCRYMGOUR - 2009-10-12
On 23 September, the ANZ Bank said that the Northern Territory’s economy leads the nation. Their comments arose from an analysis across Australia in the ANZ’s Rural and Regional Quarterly Report. Does this analysis coincide with our own assessment of the Territory economy?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arafura for her question. The media release from the ANZ dated 23 September – which I am happy to table - says, very clearly: ‘NT’s economy leads the nation’. That is something we should be proud of, at a time when the nation has been embroiled in the global financial crisis, a crisis around the world that has seen millions of people thrown out of work. The economies of the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, and many countries around the world, are going into freefall. Here in the Northern Territory we have managed to maintain, despite the global financial crisis, a growing economy in the Territory, and that has been acknowledged by the ANZ Bank.
That means that people continue to be employed in the Northern Territory where, elsewhere in Australia and around the world, people have been thrown on the scrapheap of unemployment.
If we look at what the release actually says, and I will quote, so this is not me as the Chief Minister - I know the opposition like to talk about spin, but these are the facts presented by the ANZ Bank …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HENDERSON: … listen, you might acknowledge the truth of what is happening here:
That feeds into our own economic analysis; that feeds into why, in the budget this year, we contributed $1.3bn to infrastructure across the Northern Territory to support and maintain 2500 jobs in our economy at a time when the private sector was contracting. We will continue to work to grow the economy. The opposition has no plans for the future of the Northern Territory.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Arafura for her question. The media release from the ANZ dated 23 September – which I am happy to table - says, very clearly: ‘NT’s economy leads the nation’. That is something we should be proud of, at a time when the nation has been embroiled in the global financial crisis, a crisis around the world that has seen millions of people thrown out of work. The economies of the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, and many countries around the world, are going into freefall. Here in the Northern Territory we have managed to maintain, despite the global financial crisis, a growing economy in the Territory, and that has been acknowledged by the ANZ Bank.
That means that people continue to be employed in the Northern Territory where, elsewhere in Australia and around the world, people have been thrown on the scrapheap of unemployment.
If we look at what the release actually says, and I will quote, so this is not me as the Chief Minister - I know the opposition like to talk about spin, but these are the facts presented by the ANZ Bank …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HENDERSON: … listen, you might acknowledge the truth of what is happening here:
- While many parts of Australia are feeling the impact of the economic downturn, the Northern Territory is extremely well placed. When you consider the number of jobs in the NT is still growing very strongly while the rest of Australia has come to a standstill, it is easy to see why consumers are still spending and retail sales are up.
That feeds into our own economic analysis; that feeds into why, in the budget this year, we contributed $1.3bn to infrastructure across the Northern Territory to support and maintain 2500 jobs in our economy at a time when the private sector was contracting. We will continue to work to grow the economy. The opposition has no plans for the future of the Northern Territory.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016