2015-06-18
Madam Speaker Purick took the Chair at 10 am.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, red noses are on your desk and I see they are on the microphones. That is a good move Clerks. It is to highlight sudden infant death syndrome and the kids campaign. Sids and Kids is a member of both the International Society for the Study and Prevention of Perinatal Infant Death and the International Still Birth Alliance.
Since 1988, SIDS and Kids has contributed over $16.5m to research into the possible causes and prevention of infant deaths, SIDS, still birth and health promotion. Thank you for your support, and we will be breaking at 11.50 am so we can have a group photo on the steps of Parliament House.
Bill presented and read a first time.
Mr STYLES (Business): Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time.
This bill addresses the remaining legislative changes to our workers compensation scheme that were recommended to government. Members may recall 68 recommendations were made following an extensive review and considerable public and stakeholder consultation.
The first stage was passed in this House in March 2015. The change of name to the Return to Work Act commenced on 22 May 2015. The other changes from the first bill will commence on 1 July 2015.
It will be clear from this bill that the review was focused on ensuring fair and balanced outcomes, and there are a number of improvements directed to ensuring better outcomes for injured workers.
I bring to the attention of the House the key changes we are proposing in this bill. The most important outcome in workers compensation is to get injured workers back to suitable work. To help achieve this, there will be a new requirement for the employer to produce a return to work plan for any injury that involves incapacity of more than 28 days.
A return to work plan sets out the short- and long-term goals and takes into account the worker’s medical condition and any other factors that may affect a worker’s return to work. The requirement for a return to work plan exists in every jurisdiction and it is expected this new process will help produce better return to work outcomes.
Another change to help provide a focus on return to work is that there will be a restriction on the ability of an employer to terminate the employment of a worker for a period of six months while the worker is totally or partially incapacitated. This change is also consistent with other jurisdictions.
Another change to improve return to work outcomes is that employers will be required to pay for medical treatment during a deferral of a decision on a claim. When an insurer receives a claim, they are required to make a decision to accept or dispute the claim. Sometimes the insurer needs more time and the legislation allows for a deferral of the decision for up to 56 days.
Currently, the employer must pay for weekly benefits during the deferral but is not required to pay for medical treatment or rehabilitation unless the claim relates to mental stress. There will now be a requirement of the employer to pay for medical treatment and rehabilitation during deferral. This will ensure that a worker’s recovery is not compromised by lack of treatment or rehabilitation during the deferral period.
The benefit will, however, exclude hospital inpatient and associated surgical costs, and costs of interstate evacuations. These costs are high and it would be unreasonable to impose this cost on employers in circumstances where liability has not been accepted.
A new benefit has also been introduced that will allow for family counselling for a worker or the worker’s family. The psychological issues that can develop from a worker’s compensation claim can have a very poor effect on a worker’s self-esteem, the worker’s family and personal relationships. Access to this support may make a difference in the wellbeing of the worker and their family, and also contribute to a faster return to work.
The amount payable will be one-and-a-half times average weekly earnings, which is just over $2100 on current values. This benefit is, of course, over and above any treatment the injured worker needs if they actually develop a psychological condition that requires ongoing treatment.
There is currently a defence available to employers for a mental injury claim based on reasonable, administrative action. It is proposed to replace the current formulation of ‘administrative action’ with ‘management action’ to improve guidance. The amendment provides a detailed explanation of what comprises management action, and this will make the situation much clearer for employers and workers.
There will also be a change that will affect what is known as journey claims. These claims relate to injuries that occur when a worker is travelling to or from work. The Northern Territory is one of few jurisdictions that continue to give workers compensation cover on a journey to or from work. Over 20 years ago, a decision was made to exclude injuries that occur as a result of accidents in motor vehicles on a journey to and from work. Since that time, these injuries have been covered by motor accident compensation legislation.
For many years employers have argued that they should not be responsible for any injury, to or from work, because they have no control over how a worker travels or the level of care exercised by the worker. This change will now exclude all journey claims, for example, walking to work or riding a bicycle will not be covered. Of coruse, anyone walking or riding who is involved in an accident with a motor vehicle will be covered under the Motor Accidents Compensation scheme, as is currently the case.
It is important to understand that this change does not impact on every journey. In some cases the journey will be regarded as being in the course of employment, such as a paid call out, and these situations will continue to fall under workers compensation. The change to exclude journey claims brings the Northern Territory into line with most other jurisdictions.
Another important change is that insurers will be required to give workers advance notice of any legislated reductions or cessation of benefits. For example, the legislation currently requires weekly payments to be reduced to 75% after 26 weeks. This provision will ensure that those affected by a change in payments are aware it is happening, and will also ensure that notice is given in a timely manner.
The review also looked at how the dispute resolution process could be improved. Our scheme currently provides for a mandatory mediation process before any matter can proceed to court. The recommendation was that workers should have access to paid, independent legal advice for matters being mediated. This bill therefore provides a benefit for a worker to have access to legal advice paid for by the insurer, where the mediator is of the opinion that legal representation will facilitate the mediation process.
Examples of where this benefit might apply are complex matters or where the worker is disadvantaged by language, culture or life experience. The benefit for legal advice will only be available for matters that relate to new claim decisions or claims involving a reduction or cancellation of weekly compensation benefits, and will be capped at one times the average weekly earnings, which is currently $1417.20.
Another enhancement of the mediation process will be that the injured worker will have the option of being represented by a more experienced family member, union representative or other experienced advocate to present their case, so long as the mediator considers that it will facilitate the conduct of the mediation. This change recognises that most mediations do not need the assistance of legal representation, but that claimants are not always best equipped to represent themselves. This change is about giving claimants more choice and confidence about participating in mediation.
Another important change in this bill is the ability to negotiate settlements for workers compensation claims. Currently, around 33% of all claim payments in a year relate to settlements of claims. These settlements occur through contractual arrangements that are not recognised under legislation. For injured workers, settlement is an opportunity to move on from the compensation scheme. For employers and insurers, it removes uncertainty over the cost of the claim.
While government supports this change, we do not want to see the parties lose focus on achieving positive return-to-work outcomes. Therefore, settlements will usually not be possible until 104 weeks after the injury. However, sometimes exceptions need to apply, such as in the case of a claim where liability is in dispute. To allow for this flexibility, settlements within 104 weeks will contain a six-month cooling-off period. During this period, the injured worker will have the option to reconsider, renegotiate or withdraw from the settlement. It is important to understand that settlement cannot be forced on either party. All settlements require a negotiated agreement between the parties.
It is this government’s intention that injured workers will not enter into settlements without being fully informed; therefore it will be mandatory that all settlements must include independent legal advice for the injured worker, paid for by the employer. Furthermore, any settlement must also include paid financial advice if the worker requests it.
In any compensation system there will be differing opinions between employers, workers, insurance and medical practitioners. On occasion insurers have refused treatment even though they do not have in their possession any differing medical opinion from that of the claimant’s treating medical practitioner. This bill proposes that if treatment is to be denied, the worker is given notice of the reasons and also advised of the process to dispute a decision to deny payment for treatment. If the decision is that the worker does not require the treatment, then a medical opinion must be supplied to support that decision. The worker’s treating medical practitioner must also be notified of the decision and the reasons for the decision.
The legislation currently contains what is known as deemed diseases. In a similar way to the presumptive legislation for firefighters, the legislation already contains a list of diseases and occupations. If a worker who contracts one of these diseases works in a particular occupation, the disease is deemed to have been contracted at work. The current list has not been reviewed for many years and it is known that the list will increase in number. To facilitate this change, the schedule of diseases will be removed from the act and placed in regulation.
I have now covered the major changes and will quickly touch on a number of changes that are more administrative in nature.
There will be an improved process for claims by injured workers where the worker’s employer was not insured. There will also be more powers available to the Work Health Authority to ensure compliance with compulsory insurance provisions under the legislation, including the ability to stop work if an employer does not have a workers compensation policy.
There will be provisions to discourage fraudulent conduct by parties in the claims process. There will also be a clear right for employers or insurers to recover compensation where there has been fraudulent or deliberately misleading behaviour.
There will be an additional claims management option to provide for periodic agreements between the employer and the injured worker for payment of benefits in advance, to allow workers to manage their own affairs relating to treatment, training and rehabilitation.
This bill will contribute to achieving improved return-to-work outcomes and improve claims service for injured workers, as well as achieving consistency with other jurisdictions. The changes that have been included in this bill, together with those of the amending legislation passed in March 2015, represent a mix of changes that will influence costs and outcomes. These changes deliver a fair and affordable workers compensation scheme.
Madam Speaker, I commend the bill to the House.
Debate adjourned.
Bill presented and read a first time.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice): Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time.
The purpose of this bill is to implement the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) approved reforms for nationally consistent provisions in legislation, imposing criminal liability on directors for breaches of laws by corporations.
In 2008 COAG recognised that directors’ liability provisions across Australian law were in need of reform. COAG had two main concerns with directors’ liabilities provisions generally. Firstly, it was concerned that some directors’ liabilities laws unfairly imposed criminal liability on directors, such as fines and imprisonment, for breaches of laws by corporations where the director has no personal liability for the circumstances in which the breach may occur. While COAG recognises that in certain contexts the personal criminal liability imposed upon directors is justified, particularly in situations where non-compliance may have serious consequences for the public and in some instances it also may be unfair. For example, a director may not be aware of, or may not always be in a position to prevent, an offence being committed by an employee of the corporation.
Many of the Northern Territory’s directors' liabilities provisions fall into this category. A number of our statutes impose personal criminal liability on directors for corporate breach by virtue of their positions, regardless of whether or not they knew of or were involved in the commission of the corporation’s offence. Many statutes in the Northern Territory also impose directors' liability for corporate offences unless the director can prove an available defence. These provisions override the presumption of innocence and reverse the usual onus of proof in criminal law where the prosecution must prove guilt of an accused person beyond reasonable doubt. For these reasons, many of the current directors' liability provisions in the Northern Territory may seem unfair.
COAG’s second concern with directors' liabilities provisions crystallised following the release of a study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which found that Australia had the least harmonised directors' liability laws among the 30 countries it profiled. The OECD study found that the subject matter of Australian statutes imposing personal liability was diverse and the provisions varied with respect to the person subject to liability, the type of conduct that attracted the liability, the defences available and the language adopted. COAG concluded that inconsistent regulatory requirements across statutes and jurisdictions created complexity and uncertainty for directors and corporations, and could raise compliance costs and impede efforts to ensure compliance for Australian corporations that operate in two or more states or territories.
Accordingly, during 2009-10 COAG agreed on a set of principles as the basis for the reform of directors' liabilities laws across Australia. It also developed guidelines for the application of the principles. When applied, the principles and guidelines ensure the imposition of personal criminal responsibility is justified and such liability is applied as consistently as possible across all legislation.
In summary, the COAG principles provide that a corporation is always liable for corporate breaches in the first instance, and the directors should not be liable unless they have personally assisted in the commission of an offence or been negligent or reckless in relation to the corporation’s offending. The principles also recognise that directors should take reasonable steps to prevent the corporation’s offending and that there are some circumstances where personal liability may be attributable to a director. For example, where there are strong public policy reasons for imposing personal liability; where liability of the corporation alone is not likely to sufficiently promote compliance; or where it is reasonable, in all the circumstances, for the director be liable.
The COAG guidelines set out a number of criteria that can be used to determine whether a directors’ liability provision is justified. These criteria include:
whether the offence could cause significant public harm
the size and nature of the penalty applying to the conduct
whether the underlying offence (committed by the corporation) is central to the regulatory regime
the extent to which directors can directly control the corporate conduct
the effectiveness or enforcement against the corporation
the extent to which similar offences are subject to a directors’ liability.
If a directors’ liability provision is justified, the COAG guidelines establish three types of director’s liability provisions that may be applied. The type of provision depends on the extent to which the onus of establishing whether a director took reasonable steps to prevent a corporation’s offending falls on the defence or the prosecution.
In a Type 1 provision, the failure of the director to take reasonable steps to prevent the corporation’s offending must be proved by the prosecution beyond reasonable doubt. Until this is proved, the director is presumed to be innocent. This is the standard directors’ liability provision.
In a Type 2 provision a director is deemed to be liable unless they can produce enough evidence to suggest that there is a reasonable possibility that a defence applies. It is then up to the prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the defence does not apply. In this type of provision, a director bears an evidential burden of proof, while the more substantial legal burden of proof is retained by the prosecution.
In a Type 3 provision, the director is deemed to be liable for a corporate breach unless they can produce enough evidence to prove their defence on the balance of probabilities. In this type of provision the director bears a legal burden to establish their defence, which reverses the usual onus of proof in criminal law. As this reversal is inconsistent with the general presumption of innocence until proven guilty, Type 3 provisions are intended to be applied only in exceptional circumstances, such as where the offence is of a very serious nature and, for example, where it endangers public safety and where the nature of the particular offence makes it difficult for the prosecution to discharge its burden of proving beyond reasonable doubt, for example, where one party (the director) is the only party able to possess the specific knowledge required to either prove or disprove the offending.
The Department of the Attorney-General and Justice undertook an audit of the Northern Territory’s statute book, identifying some 58 acts containing offences that impose personal criminal liability on directors. Those acts were then assessed by agencies responsible for administering them to determine whether or not the imposition of director liability was appropriate and, if so, what type of liability should be applied.
The bill culminates that review. Existing directors’ liability provisions are repealed in 40 acts, with the COAG default position of direct or accessorial liability to apply through general application of the criminal law. Where it has been identified that a higher standard of director accountability is required to give effect to a particular regulatory regime, either a Type 1, Type 2 or Type 3 liability provision has been applied.
While a number of acts have been identified as necessitating retention of directors’ liabilities provisions to ensure compliance, the evidentiary burden on directors has been greatly reduced, with only 13 Type 2 provisions and just two Type 3 provisions to be introduced by this bill.
Twelve acts have had directors’ liability provisions repealed entirely, meaning that the general application of the criminal law will apply in determining whether a director was an accessory to the body corporate’s offending. The wording of each provision depends on which type of liability it is. However, generally speaking, the bill achieves a harmonised legislative approach to provisions imposing directors’ liability by applying a consistent structure to the provisions and using consistent terminology and definitions for ‘executive officer’ and ‘declared provision’.
Each amended provision contains a subsection that lists declared provisions relevant to that section and defines executive officer. In each provision, an executive officer of a body corporate is defined to mean ‘a director or other person who is concerned with or takes part in the management of the body corporate’. It is intended that the term ‘body corporate’ used in this bill have the same meaning as the term ‘corporation’ as defined in section 57A of the Corporation Act 2001 of the Commonwealth.
Each Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3 provision provides a list of considerations a court must take into account when deciding whether a director took reasonable steps to prevent the body corporate’s offending. The considerations are not exhaustive and the court may take other matters into account. However, the directors’ liability provision provides a minimum standard to assist directors in discharging their obligations.
Those minimum standards consider that the actions the director took to ensure that the body corporate arranged regular compliance assessments; whether the body corporate appropriately implemented any recommendations from those assessments; and whether or not the director ensured that the body corporate’s employees, agents and contractors had reasonable knowledge and understanding of the requirement to comply with the declared provisions. In addition to those general preventative requirements, the standard also considers the director’s response and actions upon becoming aware that the body corporate was, or could be, about to contravene the law.
The two different drafting styles are applied throughout this bill reflecting the styles that under Part II of the Criminal Code Act (Griffiths Code style) and Part IIAA of the Criminal Code Act (Model Code style). As Northern Territory acts are reviewed, their offence provisions are converted to the Model Code style. The differing styles in this bill are reflective of whether a respective act has, at the time of the introduction of this bill, been converted to the Part IIAA Model Code style.
The elements which comprise the director liability offence are dictated by whether the offence is drafted by the Griffiths Code style or the Model Code style and whether it is a Type 1, 2 or 3 provision. Under the Griffiths Code style for Type 1 provisions, a director will attract liability if it can be shown that the director knew, or could have been expected to know, that under the circumstances the body corporate could commit an offence. Under this provision, the prosecution will have to prove either a director’s direct knowledge of the likelihood of the body corporate offending or apply the reasonable person test of whether or not an ordinary person under similar circumstances would make the same conclusion as the director on the foreseeability of the body corporate committing the offence.
Type 2 and 3 Griffiths Code provisions are deemed to be regulatory offences to reflect the more serious nature of the body corporate’s offending. Under the Type 2 and 3 Griffiths Code provisions, the regulatory offence removes the mental element of the intention, or mens rae, of the director from consideration at the first instance of whether the director’s liability arises as a result of the body corporate’s offending. The onus is placed on the director to establish whether or not the director was in a position to influence the conduct of the body corporate, whether the director took reasonable steps to prevent the body corporate offending, or whether the director was in a position to know, or reasonably expect to have known, that the corporate offending would happen.
For Model Code Type 1 provisions, the fault elements consider the recklessness of the director in relation to whether a contravention by the body corporate would happen, and the taking of reasonable steps to prevent that contravention. The Type 1 provision prescribes the physical element of the director being in a position to influence the conduct of the body corporate as a strict liability matter, reflecting the general position that directors are ultimately in control of the organisation. Application of strict liability in this instance gives rise to the defence of mistake of fact in the director’s actual position or influence over the body corporate’s conduct.
Similar to the Type 2 and 3 Griffiths Code provisions, the Model Code Type 2 and 3 provisions remove the fault element associated with the offence in the first instance but provide an available defence. The onus under the Model Code provisions is placed on the director to establish whether or not the director was in a position to influence the conduct of the body corporate; whether the director took reasonable steps to prevent the body corporate from offending; or whether the director was in a position to know, or reasonably expected to have known, that the body corporate offending would happen.
Absolute liability is prescribed against the Model Code Type 2 and 3 provisions to reflect the more serious nature or the body corporate’s offending. Attributing absolute liability for serious offences precludes a director from relying on mistake of fact for an offence based on some prior consideration of past circumstances, reflecting the ongoing need for directors to maintain a high standard of due diligence towards potential serious offending by the body corporate.
Transitional provisions have been included in the bill to set out how the amendments are to apply to the director’s potential liability for corporate offending. The transitional provisions clarify that the new provisions only apply in circumstances where all or both the body corporate’s and director’s deemed offending occur after commencement. Additionally, for the new provisions to apply all of the conduct constituting the offence, and engaged in by both the body corporate and director, must have occurred after commencement. This is to ensure that no element of retrospectivity applies that would disadvantage directors by potentially changing their duties to prevent corporate offending. On the other hand, where part or all of the offence occurred prior to the commencement, or where some of the conduct occurred prior to commencement, the transitional provisions dictate that the old provisions will continue to apply, ensuring that there is no gap in the regulatory regime.
The government’s reform of directors’ liability provisions in accordance with the COAG principles and guidelines promotes two main benefits. Firstly, it restores the general principles that an individual should only be responsible for his own acts and omissions, and that the prosecution must bear the burden of proving the guilt of an accused person and not the other way around.
Secondly, it creates consistency both across the Northern Territory’s statute book and with the rest of Australia. Along with Western Australia’s recent introduction of amendments into their parliament, introduction and passage of the Northern Territory’s bill will complete the COAG reform. A harmonised approach to the imposition of personal liability for corporate fault reduces complexity, uncertainty and business compliance costs by overcoming the need for corporations and individuals to respond to differing standards across various pieces of legislation and across jurisdictions. In this way the reforms will help to ensure corporations comply with their responsibilities.
In short, the bill completes the Northern Territory’s commitment to a national law reform agreement and creates a fairer, less complex legal system in relation to the criminal liability of directors for corporate fault.
I commend the bill to honourable members and table a copy of the explanatory statement.
Debate adjourned.
Continued from 17 June 2015.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I will talk about some issues raised in the Auditor-General’s report for February 2015. I will not cover everything and presume other speakers might pick up on areas I do not cover.
The key findings of the Auditor-General’s report on Cobourg Peninsula Sanctuary and Marine Park Board are:
Could the government give us an update on where that Aboriginal land claim is at present and the cost been of continuing that land claim since it was first introduced?
There is also a section on the Construction Division. I was aware the Construction Division was a Government Business Division responsible for the project management of the government’s capital works and repairs and maintenance programs, but I did not realise it had ceased being a Government Business Division. I would like to know why the government decided to get rid of the Construction Division. It is obvious they have reincorporated it into the Department of Infrastructure. I would like to hear from the minister as to why. Has it been beneficial? Has it reduced costs? For the government to do that there would be a reason, and it will be interesting to hear the reason and see whether it has saved money and improved efficiencies in the department. If the government made that decision, it would be interesting if they report back to parliament on how that has gone.
There was also an audit finding about the Darwin Bus Service. We all know the Darwin Bus Service was sold, unfortunately without any debate in this House. It was a government asset, similar to the Government Printing Office, and regardless of whether or not there was a benefit, I am still critical of the government for not allowing this procedure of selling a government asset to happen following public consultation or at least some debate in this House. There was neither; there was simply a government decision after parliament had stopped sitting. The government should not be operating that way and parliament should not be treated that way.
My concern is that we do not know enough about the details. If the government does not ask, I might even write to the Auditor-General asking for details about the sale of the bus service. What were the guarantees of funding from government to allow this service to continue? The bus service is not a commercial operation in the sense that it is a profit-making business because it is a service to the community. The government has taken what was a government service to the community and handed it over to a private company. Government is beholden to us to let us know the arrangements, the details of the sale and any ongoing payments.
I have raised this matter before and asked the government if it would provide a public bus service to the prison. That was meant to happen in the original plan. In fact two bus stops were built at the prison, one where the low-security people are and one near the main gate. There is a need for a bus service to the prison, which could also be beneficial to people working at the INPEX village, as well as people who like to go to the Howard Springs Nature Park.
The answer I got was a flat no. I have asked twice. My concerns are, whatever the details of this contract, it seems very difficult to find out if we can get an expansion of our bus service. Is an expansion in the bus service limited by the arrangement the government has made with the new company? In other words, you have put in place a contractual arrangement that does not allow any expansion of bus routes in the Darwin region. Is that the case? I do not know, but it seems to me we cannot even get a trial of a bus service to the prison.
I have visited Port Phillip Prison in Melbourne where the bus pulls up at the front gate. It is part of a public bus service. It is not specifically for the prison. It is there to provide a service for correctional services staff who might like to use a public bus service to get to work. It can also be used for families visiting and professionals who might want to go there and not drive.
We do not even get a debate, and we do not get the possibility of a trial. We are told no, and I wonder whether that approach from the government has been affected by the details put into the sale of the Darwin Bus Service.
Also there is a new ticketing system. I think it was raised during the Estimates Committee. It would be worth finding out from the government more detail about the ticketing system. The previous government looked at a ticketing system and found it to be complex and expensive, which is why they looked at a flat-rate fare. I do not know if the government has done the figures on the cost of introducing – I think the new ticketing system is around about $1m. It takes many fares to recover $1m.
I was in Canada, and on my way home I stopped at Vancouver and used the public bus service a number of times. You simply put the money in a little box; they tell you how much money per zone. In fact, I should tell you about how cheap public transport is in Vancouver. I went on a Saturday morning ticket into Vancouver. It was two zones, which cost me $2.50. I then caught the driverless train to the airport. I do not know how many kilometres – it is a long way to the airport from Vancouver CBD. It cost me $1.75, and it went to the airport direct. We do not even have public transport to our airport. That is an issue we can debate another day. We should have public transport to our airport and not be tied into the cost of getting there, which is associated with the airport corporations’ fees.
On the Darwin Waterfront Corporation, the income section says ‘operating grants and other contributions of $17.84m’. Is that money the government is still giving to the waterfront. What are the long-term plans for government in relation to reducing the financial input into the waterfront? When does it expect the Darwin Waterfront Corporation to operate either without government subsidy or with a much-reduced government subsidy?
There are a couple of items here which do not appear on other people’s financial performance sheets. It will be interesting to know what they mean. It has here the ‘Territory availability payments’, which is about $2.8m. It had a payment last year in 2013 of what are called ‘Territory efficiency payments’. Then it had the ‘Territory incentive payments’ of $775 000, and the ‘Territory operating payments’ of $2.8m. If the minister in charge of the waterfront is able to tell us what they are, that would be good.
The waterfront corporation commented on some of the things the auditor raised, and said the 2014 financial year reports a surplus when excluding the depreciation expense of $4.36m. While it might be a surplus, I am interested to know whether that is only a surplus because it is funded by the government.
On page 45 the Auditor-General dealt with Desert Knowledge Australia. It is probably timely for the government to report on Desert Knowledge. It has been operating for a long time. I always found it a cloudy area. I am not 100% sure what it does and why it is there, but it has been there a while now so its role should be fairly clearly defined. It says here:
It is a fairly broad-brush objective. It would be good for the government, which funds Desert Knowledge Australia, to give us a statement on where that is at present. The Auditor-General said:
The government sold the Government Printing Office. It may have been a good decision, but the discussion was never held in this parliament, and that was a bad move.
There is a section on the Jabiru Town Development Authority. As the Auditor-General said:
What is the future of Jabiru? If ERA is unlikely to continue mining uranium at Jabiru, their income will be nil. They will be doing a lot of work rehabilitating. What is the future in relation to Energy Resources Australia Limited’s participation in the Jabiru Town Development Authority? That is not to say they would disappear overnight, but with the recent announcement about the unlikelihood in the near future of the underground uranium mine going ahead, I am interested in whether that has impacted on their input into the Jabiru Town Development Authority.
The Auditor-General said:
The reports also says there were changes to the Aboriginal Land Rights and Other Legislation Amendment Bill in this House, and one of the identified impacts of this legislation was the potential cessation of the lease over the town of Jabiru currently held by the authority. The Auditor-General said:
The Land Development Corporation – this relates to the Tiwi Island consideration money the Attorney-General mentioned yesterday. The Auditor-General said:
I would like more explanation about that.
The Land Development Corporation did comment. They said:
I am not sure what that means. Is that the repayment of the $1m we spoke about yesterday?
I am concerned about the Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission as the Auditor-General said:
Under Performance Overview, it says the commission reported a current year loss of $139 247.
I am not sure if that is related to other things or is a permanent problem, but I would be concerned if the Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission did not have sufficient funds to continue its important role each year. I ask the government if it is running at a loss. Does it have sufficient money to continue?
Mr Elferink: I had a chat to Mr Brandis and they have a good news story.
Mr WOOD: That is good.
There have always been a few issues with NT Build. The Auditor-General mentions an audit opinion that related the 30 June 2014. It says:
NT Build said:
I want to find out from the government if that legislative amendment has come to parliament yet. Is there an intention to bring something forward to parliament?
In regard to the Territory Insurance Office, as much as we like to speak more about that, we might have to wait till the next report because the Auditor-General, referring to the changeover, said:
Mr VOWLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Pursuant to Standing Order 77, I seek an extension time for the member.
Motion agreed to.
Mr WOOD: Thank you, member for Johnston. I hope you are on my side at the Lord Taverners next week.
Territory Wildlife Parks is an important part of a government service to community. Some may say it has to make money, and obviously it has to make as much money as possible. The Auditor-General comments:
It is concerning. We need to do a lot more work to get more people into these parks. The government should be congratulated for trying to finish the Litchfield loop road. The Litchfield loop road will give an opportunity for the Northern Territory Wildlife Park at Berry Springs to have more visitors because there will be a loop road through Batchelor, Litchfield park and back through Berry Springs, or the reverse. Hopefully, some of those changes will impact on the viability of those parks.
I hope the government does not sell or close them. It has been spoken about before. They are a very important part of the Territory. I do not believe they compete with the other parks. The other parks are much more commercial; they have lions and tigers and all sorts of animals which are well and truly exotic. The Territory Wildlife Park tends to focus on animals of the region, although I am disappointed those animals that have been in the Territory for a long time but are not native were removed.
I do not know if they are back because I have not been there for a while. Buffaloes and bantengs, and even some of the kangaroos, either were not from here or came here many years ago and were taken out of the park. They are historically animals that have lived here. It is probably worth keeping them there, because not only is it a wildlife park for research, it is also a tourist attraction.
Another interesting issue the Auditor-General raised was matters referred to the Auditor-General pursuant to section 6 of the Public Information Act. This responsibility of the Auditor-General is basically to make sure that when Members of the Legislative Assembly, or agencies, or a body corporate that is controlled by a public authority, or a person appointed or engaged to perform work for a public authority puts out information that it is correct. The definition of public information is ‘information given by a public authority to the public by using money or other property of the Territory’.
Basically people are required to make sure when they make statements they do not contravene section 6(2) of the Public Information Act, which says you are contravening the act if you promote party political interests, include statements that are misleading or factually inaccurate; or do not clearly distinguish a statement of facts from a statement of comments.
The Auditor-General raised a number of issues. Of the six issues someone raised, four of them were regarded as against the act and the other two were accepted. There were statements made like:
I will give you the bottom line:
There was another statement:
The Auditor-General said:
The Auditor-General said:
The government said:
Auditor-General:
Statement:
Auditor-General:
Her recommendation was that:
My concern is we have this act which says you should not be releasing information that is not factual, especially if taxpayers’ money is being used for it, yet we have no way of stopping it going out in the first place. Once it is out there, it is out there. If it goes out on television and radio, it is out there, it has been said, it is too late. If it goes out in a letter drop, it is out there. How do you stop it going out in the first place?
Maybe I am wrong, but it was my understanding that some of these things should go through the Auditor-General to be checked. It is like asking last night why we do not have an integrity commissioner. An integrity commissioner is a friend of the MLAs. A person can say to the integrity commissioner, ‘If I do this, what do you think?’ In this case, before someone issues a document claiming things, perhaps they should take it to the Auditor-General. I thought that was the idea.
Many things are going out that are not being tested and are being shown by the Auditor-General to be incorrect. Taxpayers’ money was being used for statements that do not hold up. If governments can do that, even opposition parties, and we find out later it should not have gone out, what is the point if there is no penalty?
I raise the effectiveness of this section of the act. It highlights there are statements made by the government – in this instance, but not necessarily only the government – which have been shown not to follow the guidelines of the act. If we have an act which is meant to make sure government puts out accurate information, we need to look at the way government puts out information and if it should be a requirement to get some indication from the Auditor-General. I thought that was the correct process.
I raised that because the Auditor-General raised it. I thank the Auditor-General for bringing forward her report. It has been some time since we touched on this. These matters need to be debated in parliament closer to the time they are released because sometimes by the time we debate it some of the issues have been sorted through.
Mrs PRICE (Parks and Wildlife): Madam Speaker, I speak about the Auditor-General’s Report to the Legislative Assembly February 2015 and the items which come under my Parks and Wildlife portfolio.
In regard to the Cobourg Peninsula Sanctuary, a Marine Park Board was formed in 1981 under the Cobourg Peninsula Aboriginal Land, Sanctuary and Marine Park Act.
The Auditor-General’s report notes the board secures the right of Aboriginals to occupy and use certain lands on the Cobourg Peninsula, to vest that land in trust for Aboriginals, to declare that land to be a national park and make provisions relating to the management of adjacent marine areas and related purposes.
The Auditor-General highlighted that, as noted in previous reports to the Legislative Assembly, a land claim was lodged in 1978 under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act over the Cobourg Peninsula, resulting in the Cobourg Peninsula Aboriginal, Land Sanctuary and Marine Park Act.
The land claim was never withdrawn and was subsequently reactivated. The Australian and Northern Territory governments are working with the Northern Land Council to resolve any potential issues as quickly as possible to ensure arrangements for a joint management committee continue. These discussions are expected to have minimal impacts on visitors, residents and businesses in the Cobourg region.
The Nitmiluk National Park Board was formed in 1989 under the Nitmiluk (Katherine Gorge) National Park Act to acknowledge and secure the rights of those Aboriginals who are the traditional owners. I am pleased to say the audit did not identify any material weaknesses in controls.
In regard to the Government Business Division which operates the Territory Wildlife Park at Berry Springs and the Alice Springs Desert Park, I am pleased the audit did not identify any material weaknesses in controls. The audit did, however, note that the Territory Wildlife Park continues to rely on financial support in the form of community service obligations. It is widely recognised that the Territory Wildlife Parks provide important conservation, tourism and community benefits. This government will continue to look at structural reform of business models to make it a more sustainable business venture, and is introducing new visitor experiences.
At the Territory Wildlife Park we have developed an artist trail around the park, opened the woodland walk and macropod emergent experience, developed a series of wild encounters where visitors can get up close and personal with wildlife for an additional fee, and revamped the picnic grounds so they are nicer and more practical for functions and events. The upgrade will improve the opportunity for alfresco dining in the Dry Season, live entertainment, music, film nights and many other options. An ablution facility in the Woollybutts camp ground will double the park’s school camping activities and be more attractive as a destination for local and interstate schools. All of these new experiences have seen visitation grown by 7% over the past 12 months, which is on the back of a 7% increase for last year.
At the Alice Springs Desert Park new visitor experiences include dingo encounters and presentations with keepers; the exhibition of rare and endangered species in the foyer; nocturnal tours extended with supper; emus introduced into their new enclosure, which provides better viewing vantage points of the emus from the paths, nature theatre, visitor centre and woodland walks; and daily habitat presentations by guides.
The park has seen an increase in visitation of 5% and a revenue increase of 2% since the start of the financial year. This is in direct response to the exciting new opportunities being provided. The encouraging thing is that the Territory Wildlife Parks have increased revenue trends since 2012.
We realise our parks require top up funding to continue their important conservation and tourism work. I thank park staff for their hard work and I encourage everyone to get out to visit the parks.
In my Housing portfolio, the Auditor-General’s report also covered the Northern Territory Home Ownership government business division. Northern Territory Home Ownership oversees the government’s home purchase assistance initiatives. It also includes the HomeBuild Access loan products that seek to increase new supply at the affordable end of the housing market by providing more home ownership opportunities for Territorians unable to access the private finance market.
We offer two primary home loan products. One is the low deposit loan. Under this product, the purchaser must contribute a minimum of 2.5% towards the purchase price. The chief executive officer provides finance of up to 17.5% of the purchase price. The remaining finance of 80% of the purchase price is provided by People’s Choice Credit Union, which was previously the Territory Insurance Office, as first mortgage security. There are no income eligibility criteria and applicants can own, or have previously owned, other property in Australia.
We also offer the Subsidised Interest Rate Loan, where the chief executive officer provides up to 98% of the purchase price to income eligible first home buyers. It is only available to first home buyers and income limits range up to $80 000 for single applicants and $127 500 for a household of six or more people.
The key findings of the report state that the audit did not identify any material weaknesses in controls. The performance overview recommended the department undertake further research in the appropriate accounting treatment for the shared equity investments, in order to ensure compliance with the Australian accounting standards.
This is due to the complex nature of the products that NT Home Ownership offers. NT Home Ownership reviewed the accounting treatment for shared equity investment and confirms such accounting treatment to be appropriate. A new policy has been developed to reflect our accounting treatment of shared equity investments which complies with the Australian Accounting Standards.
Mr STYLES (Business): Madam Speaker, I rise to speak on the Auditor-General for the Northern Territory’s February 2015 report.
Firstly I address the comments in relation to the Department of Corporate and Information Services. I sincerely thank the public servants who work in that area. I am blessed with an excellent chief executive in Kathleen Robinson and her team. What a fantastic effort they make. Since this report, there have been leaps and bounds made in delivering corporate and information services to the Northern Territory government and the various departments.
I will first address the Auditor-General’s unqualified audit opinion on the government business divisions under the Department of Corporate and Information Services for the 2013-14 period, including Data Centre Services, the Government Printing Office and NT Fleet.
The Auditor-General was satisfied with the statements in relation to fairly presented financial data because it was in accordance with the Australian Accounting Standards and the Financial Management Act. There were no adverse audit findings identified that required any managerial action. Data Centre Services and NT Fleet reported strong net surpluses before tax and dividends of $3.16m and $11.2m respectively.
This was the last audit for the Government Printing Office, which closed on 30 June 2014. The Government Printing Office reported a deficit of $2.6m predominately due to a $1.42m decrease in revenue during the transition of print management service costs associated with its closure.
I congratulate the people who have had to deal with and rectify the problem of the asset management system introduced by the former government. Labor’s asset management system was supposed to cost $7.2m. What did we get? It was $70m worth of junk that did not work. That is a sad lack of leadership and direction from the previous ministers in Labor. When we came to government we inherited this absolute basket case. We had to try to rectify it, but it was like unscrambling an egg. You can do it but it takes a lot of money and years to unscramble the egg.
They purged the system that never ran properly and cost Territorians $70m to implement but did not work. In some of the briefings I received I was told the best it was doing was operating at about 11% capacity. As a result, we had to do go from a system that was almost working back to a manual system. It cost the Territory a considerable amount of time. The original estimates were that the project would cost $7.2m, which went to $14m, and by the time the former government called tenders in 2008 the price had doubled to $27.3m. I do not know who was driving the bus at the time, but it would appear the driver had gone to sleep at the wheel and did not watch the fair rack up by millions of dollars.
Another legacy left by the Labor government’s incompetence and maladministration – there are numerous ones I could go through today, but I am talking about DCIS. DCIS did a fantastic job looking at something that was not working, working with industry, our senior people and people at the coalface in DCIS, and coming up with a shareware model that cost under $10m to implement. Reports to me are saying the system is working quite well.
For the life of me I cannot understand how the previous government allowed this to blow out to $70m. That is a 1000% blowout. If you were in business, you would be considered to be trading insolvent or someone would think you have rocks in your head. What a disgrace.
What could you have done with that $50m? What we are doing with $50m is the flood mitigation strategies to save people’s homes and stop them from being flooded, and to keep their insurance costs down. We could have had a brand-new multifaceted football stadium or the best car park in the world at Royal Darwin Hospital. We have spent money and have nothing to show for it, which is the signature of the previous government. That is why we ended up with a projected $5.6bn deficit.
For those who are watching you can see how the deficit runs. When the previous government was in you see flag poles starting on the debt chart. For my colleagues in the Chamber, you might like to note in 2011, 2013 and up to 2015, went through the roof. Like federal Labor, they are building pyramids.
As of March 2015, which is just after the Auditor-General completed this report, we saw the previous system cost of $70m thrown in the bin and replaced with a working system for $10m. That is quite an achievement. I congratulate the Department of Corporate and Information Services and those people who had a hand in this on a job well done. Everything else they are doing is reflected in this report from the Auditor-General and they are seen to be doing a very good job.
I move to the Department of Business and reflect on the Auditor-General’s comments. They are all positive, and to Michael Tennant and Andy Cowan, the Chief Executive and the Deputy Chief Executive of Department of Business, I give sincere heartfelt congratulations for their leadership in the Department of Business. The Department of Business is going ahead in leaps and bounds and performing extremely well.
We have some great initiatives. In the latest Northern Territory budget we saw Business in the Bush with an increase in a range of business developments officers, grants programs, and Indigenous employment and training opportunities. We are seeing a shift in what the Department of Business is doing in that area, which was commented on by the Auditor-General, who says they are doing a good job.
It is no surprise the Auditor-General would say that and make positive comments about what they are doing. There is a raft of people who need to be thanked, and they are all the people who work for the Department of Business because they operate in a team environment, as we do on this side of the House. We all work together for a common goal, and that is for the people of the Northern Territory. We aim to make the Territory the best place to live and a viable option for investors from all around the world to invest their money and create jobs and economic growth for the Northern Territory. That then relates back to jobs for our kids, grandkids and those to follow.
We on this side have been very successful through the Department of Business in contributing to bringing down the projected debt from a 98% debt to income ratio to about 40% to 42% down to 38% to 39%. We will not know until the end of this financial year exactly what it is, but we have been able to turn the Northern Territory economy around from something you see on this graph of going further into debt to go down to about a $2.6bn projected debt. That is the trend you see not only in federal politics, but in other areas in Australia. Where when Labor gets in, the debt skyrockets; when conservatives get back in, jobs are created, economic development is put in, and we see debt reduction.
Sadly, if Labor gets back into government we will see debt increases. They are no different from the previous regime, and they are proposing exactly the same strategies the previous ALP government had, which led to a 98% debt to income ratio.
In relation to NT Build, while the audit findings did not identify any material weakness in the controls for NT Build, the Auditor-General issued a qualified audit opinion for the year ended 30 June 2014. NT Build was established to administer the scheme under the Construction Industry Long Service Leave and Benefits Act to provide construction workers with entitlements to long service leave and long service benefits.
That is the legislation brought in by the Country Liberals government to benefit many people in the building industry. We have cut down the time people have to work to qualify. The nature of the building industry, not only in the Territory but interstate, is that people move from one job site to another. There may be periods of downtime in between finishing one job and starting another. These are the things we brought in; I did not see these things occur under the previous Labor government. We are out to look after everyone, as is the federal government.
I recall some years ago when people voted for John Howard because he was looking after the battlers. When you have policies like the previous Labor government had, and you shut overseas investment offices and sit around looking at your navel all the time, not a great deal happens. You are not out there generating wealth. The Labor Party in the House here, the opposition, seems to say on a regular basis, ‘We are there for the workers’. I often wonder who they really represent, because what I see is people who close down the investment roads, those channels that bring opportunity to Territorians and their families, and jobs for our kids. I wonder who they are looking after. On this side of the House, when we look at the stuff we bring in and which the Auditor-General looked at, we are about looking after everyone.
The small- to medium-sized enterprises employ about 84% of the people in Australia, which is not much different here. Large corporations will employ local people. These people need the investment we are getting, and talking to people about overseas and interstate to facilitate investment in the Northern Territory. That will produce jobs and employ people. They will employ union members.
When you do not do that and you simply borrow money to fund whatever it is you want to do, you are not generating wealth. We all know the story about the Pied Piper; sometime and somewhere you have to pay it back. Sadly for the community, money spent without any wealth creation is something that we and - if we are unable to do it - our children are required to pay back. When we looked at the construction industry, we said, ‘Okay, we need investment’. How do you do that? Not by closing your overseas offices where you attract investment.
To get overseas investment you need relationships. Not everything is done cut and dry by just going to an overseas bank and saying, ‘Right, we need to borrow money’, because we have to pay it back. If that is how the government borrows money – governments are notoriously bad at running business. Business runs business, and they are the most suitable people to make these things happen.
The opposition does not operate on these philosophical beliefs. We, however, are about facilitating and making sure there is a fair field to play on. We will make sure it is fair for everyone, that people can invest and get reasonable returns. Hopefully they will invest in the Northern Territory and create the economic growth we need to repay Labor’s debt.
To that end, we change legislation to make it good for people to come here, but they need jobs. To do that, we need to attract the investment and sell it. Sadly, we are trying to rebuild relationships. When you just cut them, like in the early 2000s when Labor came to government in the Northern Territory, they closed those offices and got rid of all those overseas contacts, which were the channels for investment.
Australia has always relied on foreign investment. One of the first major investments in this country was Colonial Sugar Refineries, CSR. People say we should not sell anything. CSR was an overseas company and since its inception has had seven different owners. It is currently owned by Malaysian interests. It provides many jobs for Territorians, and export dollars for product sent overseas. As the minister for Asian Engagement and Trade, exports dollars are very important to me.
I am about making sure that when the Auditor-General looks at government, there are very positive reports, to make sure we are operating in a surplus and creating wealth. There are four things any community anywhere in the world needs to be economically sustainable and generate wealth.
The first is real estate rights. Some of the legislation we introduced is about people who own real estate who can then build something, provided all the authorities agree that it is a suitable building for the area. You regulate so things are sustainable and fair. You have to be fair and seen to be so.
The second thing you need is intellectual property rights. These are all things the Auditor-General looked at, making sure departments are operating correctly, using what we give them money for and not abusing intellectual property rights.
The third thing you need is access to cheap finance. Although the Auditor-General looks at the various ways we finance, she is not looking at whether or not it is the right amount of money or whether it could be gotten more cheaply or at not-so-cheap interest rates.
The fourth thing is effective and efficient communication and transport systems. We have been the poor cousins to the rest of Australian over a period of time. They have had a considerable length of time, over 100 years, to get their infrastructure in place – their ports, roads and railways systems. We have not been the backwater but we have been a little behind them; we are now coming of age.
With the release of the White Paper on the Developing Northern Australia there will be extra dollars. In fact, I heard this morning that there is $667m for roadworks in northern Australia. I think I heard that right. That is great news for the region.
The other thing is the billions of dollars’ worth of infrastructure that needs to be built in the Territory so the Territory can meet its potential. I was at a meeting this morning of the Indigenous Employment Network, which is excited about what is coming down the pipeline. If you excuse the pun, it is a pipeline. They are prawn farms and a couple of items people have been talking to government about which, sadly due to commercial-in-confidence, I cannot speak about. These are all things that add to the good news the Auditor-General looks at and reports on.
One of them is not related to oil and gas but involves thousands of jobs. People want to move to Darwin, as they see Darwin as a part of their future. It is very important …
Mr BARRETT: A point of order, Madam Speaker. Pursuant to Standing Order 77, can we please get an extension of time for the minister to conclude his statement?
Motion agreed to.
Mr STYLES: When you have all of those things put together you generate wealth. That is what we need to demonstrate to people. With the white paper on development, I can now talk to people who are looking for investment opportunities and get them to invest with confidence. Not only do we want to produce great results for the Territory, but the Commonwealth is also on board. When you get this partnership, we should be able to sell the Northern Territory to various investors, not only here but across the world.
I was told the other day that in Europe you can get negative bonds. If you want someone to look after $100m, they will charge you $2m a year to look after it. There are plenty of people with cash over there but they are afraid of sovereign risk. It is not so much sovereign risk of governments turning – because there are some governments around the world who do not have an Auditor-General to keep an eye on them. We are fortunate we have a good, well-regulated financial system, and a system where the Auditor-General can oversee all the government departments and areas of authority, and make sure everyone is doing the right thing.
There is a confidence in this that we have that we can take to the world. What frightens people off in relation to investing in Australia is the regulatory environment. They want to make sure that either side of politics in government will support what they want to do and the rules will not change halfway through a major investment.
That is something we have to sell. This is about relationships. We need to build those relationships. Not every relationship ends up in something. That is life. We all experience that in life. You have relationships with people but not all of them end up in a partnership, relationship or marriage. The same goes for business. You have to build relationships so at some stage, when something happens in the Territory, there is investment, and job and wealth creation. The four things I mentioned earlier are required to create wealth so our children have a future.
On this side of the House we are doing that. We are building this. The Auditor-General has made comments all the way through on many departments and issues which suggest things are travelling well. We are being open and transparent. We are putting things in place for things we inherited that were not open and transparent.
I hear people from the other side say we need to be open and transparent. The Chief Minister mentioned in this House yesterday allegations that we are somehow destroying the travel industry. We are not. These are the things Labor says would like the public to believe. When the truth comes out, they are often proved to be incorrect.
I will go back to NT Build. The qualified audit opinion of the financial statements of NT Build for the year ended 30 June 2014 was issued as follows:
One of things we are doing which I think will impact on the Auditor-General’s report next year is reducing red tape. We saw over the last decade a massive increase in red tape. The draft report is out. There is a figure in it which I am not permitted to release at this point, but the changes to the red tape involved in the construction and development area are enormous. I could not believe the figure Deloitte gave us saying what the red tape we can get rid of is costing. It is not tens of millions; it is hundreds of millions of dollars.
The red tape introduced has caused developers and the public to pay. The interesting part is that the opposition will say, ‘That is terrible, that is not right’, but at the end of the day somebody pays, and that somebody is generally people who they claim they are representing. They put all this red tape in place and it costs hundreds of millions of dollars more to do business. That all gets tagged on to commercial, residential and industrial developments. Somewhere, someone has to pay. It is the old Pied Piper story, whereby if hundreds of millions of dollars are added on, who pays that? The consumer.
Who employs most of the people in this town and in Australia? Eighty four per cent of people are employed by small- to medium-sized enterprises. Most of the people in the Northern Territory, who are in business, are employing people the Labor Party claims to represent.
They do a very good job of that. When you add that on to the price of a home for an average working family, the amount of money we can shave off by removing the burden of red tape is in five figures. When the report is made public, I will release all those figures. These are estimates, but they are in five figures.
Three of my offspring are buying houses and one is in rented accommodation, struggling to buy a home. Mind you, if they lived in Sydney or Melbourne they would be going through the same thing. When I can talk about this, I will say, ‘How would you like to save X thousand dollars on the purchase of your home?’ They will say, ‘Well, dad, that will make a huge difference to how much money I can borrow from the bank’.
When you look at 30-year loans and go through the finances - I hope the people on the other side do this when they make statements that all the red tape is great. I hope they will support the reduction of red tape we are proposing and the changes in legislation required to achieve it. At the end of the day, we will be reducing the cost of a house by thousands of dollars.
We have also gone through the land release program. We are releasing more land than ever, not only residential but also commercial. With things coming down the pipeline, and some of the things government is negotiating with people – sadly, I cannot talk about that because it is commercial-in-confidence, but I am looking forward to it. I am excited by some of these things being discussed behind the scenes. There are thousands of jobs attached to that, which is good for the building industry, as well as people who have moved here and those who want to. It is good when INPEX comes off the boil. It is good news for the Territory.
If you want to buy a house or a unit here, I want to be able to reduce the cost of that unit not only by releasing more land and making the system fairer, but also by making sure the red tape is not increasing the cost by thousands of dollars that have been built up over the last decade.
We are about making it fair and equitable for everyone. This team supports that attitude. We are about making sure our children and grandchildren have a bright future. The way I read it from this side of the House is that we have a very bright future. If you talk to people from southern states they will tell you it is a lot worse there than the Territory. Even though business confidence is high, the last Sensis report said it is very high, we are about making sure we have a bright future.
As I said this morning, I gave a group of people this information and they were excited. Most people I talk to are excited, except the opposition members who want to talk down the current economic environment.
I have plenty more to say, but I am running short on time. I thank the Auditor-General for doing such a good job in presenting the Auditor-General’s report for February 2015 and I commend that report to the House. I invite further comments from the members opposite.
Motion agreed to; paper noted.
Continued from 30 October 2014.
Mr VOWLES (Johnston): Madam Speaker, I thank the minister for making this statement in October last year. It is great to have the opportunity to speak as the new opposition spokesperson for fisheries. My colleague, the member for Barkly, has spoken on this previously, but it is a great opportunity to put some comments on the record. Hopefully the minister will give us an update at some stage.
As we all know fisheries are an important resource for the Territory’s economy and lifestyle. As my colleague, the member for Barkly, noted in October last year, fishing and the management of both freshwater and marine resources is a central and important part of the culture and day-to-day life of many Indigenous Territorians living on their homelands. Reading the ministerial statement again, I was struck by the lack of acknowledgement of that. The CLP still has a way to go in connecting with the things that are important to Territorians in our remote communities.
We also heard in debate on the statement last year of the importance of recreational fishing in economic terms: that there is direct expenditure on recreational fishing in the Northern Territory of some $1m per year.
We are proud of the work we did while in government in our connection with all stakeholders concerned about the future of fishing resources in the Northern Territory, whether they be Indigenous Territorians living on country, pastoralists, environmental groups, recreational fishers, tour operators, commercial fishers, restaurateurs, fishing scientists, boat builders, roadhouses or all the small businesses supporting the fishing sector.
We are proud of the Recreational Fishing Development Plan 2012 to 2022 which we developed to support a sustainable fishery industry. We continue to be proud of our achievements in sustaining our fisheries and our support for fishers through the establishment of better boat ramps to improve access to our fisheries. Our development plans also highlighted the importance of good science to underpin management decisions.
That continues to be central to the sound future for our fisheries, and we will be interested to see what support the government continues to provide for this important work, especially given the new restrictions on the golden snapper and jewfish based on the alert arising from research and monitoring of the health of our fish stocks.
I take this opportunity to thank the minister and his department for the briefing I received on the new fishing restrictions. It was also fantastic to attend the AFANT AGM in March. I acknowledge that the Chief Minister and the minister for Fisheries attended. It is important that people have that direct access. There were many questions put to the Chief Minister and the minister. It was a good morning for updating AFANT and to hear answers from the government on where they are going with this.
I mention Chambers and Finke Bays and the closures to commercial barramundi fishing. I asked in the estimates process whether the price of barramundi had gone up. It has increased just a little, and I thank the department of Fisheries for acknowledging the barramundi price has gone up. It was an election commitment of the Country Liberals government to close Chambers Bay and Finke Bay to commercial barramundi fishing. We acknowledge this is a popular decision amongst recreational fishers. But as my colleague, the member for Barkly, said last year, commercial fishers continue to express frustration with the way that was managed by the Country Liberals and the impact it has had on their industry sector.
This ministerial statement is also lacking in relation to the environment that sustains our healthy fishery resources. Perhaps we should not be surprised. This is the same minister who paid scant regard to the environmental flows in his management of water allocations, or perhaps I should say water over-allocations.
I cannot mention water allocations without mentioning the Supreme Court case of 29 May this year, where it was found that the minister had failed in his statutory responsibility to make a merit-based review of his decisions under section 30 of the Water Act.
AFANT, in 2013, took the extraordinary step of calling for an immediate halt to the government’s flawed water allocations and called on the government to:
I want to put on the record again a media release from AFANT titled, ‘AFANT objects to 9180 ML water allocation’.
The Assembly suspended.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Madam Speaker, I present a petition from 85 petitioners praying that the Yirrkala Community Child Safety and Wellbeing Team Practitioner position be retained and funded. The petition bears the Clerk’s certificate that it conforms with the requirements of standing orders.
Ms WALKER: Madam Speaker, I move that the petition be read.
Motion agreed to; petition read.
Mr GUNNER (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, I move that this Assembly censures the Chief Minister for destroying the faith and trust that needs to exist between Territorians and their elected representatives for good government to occur; for diminishing this parliament and bringing the government, this parliament and the Northern Territory into disrepute through arrogant, deceitful and disrespectful; behaviour; continuing to lie to Territorians; and always putting self-interest ahead of the interests of Territorians.
It brings me no joy to speak on what is a sad day for the Territory and a sad chapter in Territory history. It gives me no joy at all to watch the continuing disintegration and chaos of this government. We on this side of the House are duty bound to stand up for the thousands of Territorians who deserve a better government and an honourable Chief Minister. When the Territory public gives you the gift of government, they invest in you a trust that you will act in the interests of the people and progress the interests of the community. When you are elected to government, the people are giving you a great honour. In return, they expect you to live up to that honour.
Territorians expect their government to act with honesty, integrity and respect. They also expect their government to be open, transparent and accountable. All of us rightly expect government to put the wellbeing of Territorians ahead of the personal ambition and conceit of the Chief Minister. The sad fact is the Northern Territory and the CLP government are now led by a man who members of the CLP have described as lacking the maturity, temperament, honesty and character to deliver good government. The Chief Minister is incapable of grasping one of the key responsibilities of leadership: that his actions set the tone and standard of acceptable behaviour for his colleagues, the public service and all Territorians. It all starts with the Chief Minister, and the tragedy is every day the member for Braitling remains Chief Minister enormous damage is being done to the reputation of the Northern Territory and the interests of Territorians.
Last night and again this morning the anger of people in his own party about his behaviour has again spilled into the public domain. In what I believe was a very brave speech, the member for Araluen outlined a history of behaviour she has experienced that stands as stark condemnation of the Chief Minister and his leadership style. She used quite devastating words such as ‘intimidation’ and ‘abuse’, and she has described a leadership style that eliminates, executes, annihilates and assassinates and, of course, has no use for the truth. She spelt out her anger by describing the Chief Minister as presiding over almost three years of the politics of hate, discord and lies.
The Territory community deserves better that what they are getting from the CLP government, from a Chief Minister they did not elect and whose own party room did not elect him.
Most damning of all, she warned the women of the Northern Territory to think hard about running for the CLP because of the sustained abuse and intimidation she and other prominent women have faced from the leadership of her now former party. It was a comprehensive and damning picture painted by a member of parliament who was the Deputy Chief Minister of the CLP when Terry Mills was Chief Minister, a person who was elected to govern the Northern Territory with integrity and honesty.
We have now seen three years of the politics of hate, discord and lies. We have seen the two people who sit either side of the Chief Minister, the Deputy Chief Minister and the Leader of Government Business, say they do not trust nor have faith in this Chief Minister. We have disunity, clearly and starkly in front of us, with a Chief Minister flanked by two people who did not vote for him.
It was a comprehensive picture painted by the former member of Araluen, who was once the Deputy Chief Minister, who sat in a Cabinet room and walked the corridors of power in the Northern Territory, who participated in the CLP governance structure in how they run their meetings - a member who has seen this government up close and is now telling it as it is.
The future we all want to build is a healthy and prosperous one, where all Territorians can access a world-class education system, where we are all treated with decency and respect. But that cannot be built on a bedrock of lies, dishonesty and mistrust. We have now seen four members of the CLP government leave it. The sad truth is the Chief Minister has proved himself incapable of acting with honesty, integrity and respect. Example after example has proven this to be the case.
Territorians, this parliament and the vast majority of the Chief Minister’s colleagues have testified to this simple fact. To some of the most important issues facing the Territory to the simplest of questions in this place, in the media or in estimates, the Chief Minister’s first instinct is to dissemble, lie or cover up the truth. It is a reflexive action.
Territorians have witnessed the Chief Minister deny any knowledge of the activities of Foundation 51, before and after e-mails came to light that were addressed to him, proving beyond all doubt he knew what was happening. He promised Territorians and the member for Nelson he would have an independent investigation into political donations to end the concerns being brought to light by the evidence of the actions of Foundation 51. That was an inquiry voted on and supported by this House. He promised the member for Nelson and he broke his word.
He broke his word to this parliament and to Territorians. He reneged as soon as he was able to, right after the Casuarina by-election, after he thought the political costs of that action might go away. He broke his word on Foundation 51 after refusing to admit to knowing what was happening both before and after the e-mails came to light that were addressed to him about Foundation 51.
We will never forget the media conference called by the Chief Minister on that wild day in February when we had two Chief Ministers in the Northern Territory. Territorians witnessed the current Chief Minister make the incredible accusation that he was the victim of a police coup to oust him and that politicians and police were working together in collusion to form a coup in the Northern Territory. This is an unheard of allegation, an incredible one, and it slurred the reputation of police in the Northern Territory.
He went further; he promised a full judicial inquiry. He said he had evidence they needed to see. It is hard to overstate the seriousness and gravity of this accusation. The Chief Minister of the Northern Territory called into question the integrity of the Northern Territory Police Force. We rely on the community to have trust in the police force, and he alleged the sort of behaviour that is commonplace in third-world countries. This is a big deal. He made a very serious allegation that went to the trust we hold in NT Police. He said he had evidence and he promised a judicial inquiry.
What we saw was a backflip on this promise of a judicial inquiry once he stared down the member for Katherine and retained his crown. I think that is how they see it sometimes; at least I think that might be how the Chief Minister sees it, almost as a monarchy or a ruling from above. He used the police and their good name in the cause of holding onto his leadership of the CLP.
There is no principle or reputation he cannot sacrifice at the altar of his arrogance and ambition. This was a dark day in the Territory, not only because we had uncertainty - and two Chief Ministers - but we saw the reputation of the Northern Territory Police called into question. The judicial inquiry promised by the Chief Minister, which would have given them an opportunity to clear their name, was then scrapped once he got to hold on to his leadership. We saw self-interest put against the interests of Territorians.
Territorians witnessed the Chief Minister’s outrageous performance recently in estimates. In answers to me, he denied the Department of the Chief Minister’s inquiry into travel had terms of reference or involved Latitude Travel. I will go to the transcript because it is quite telling. I said to the Chief Minister:
The Chief Minister:
I said to the Chief Minister:
He said:
I seek leave to table the terms of reference that were put together the day before estimates.
Leave granted.
Mr GUNNER: I table the terms of reference that he said did not exist, but existed the day before he answered questions in estimates in front of a parliamentary committee. It was an unnecessary reflexive lie. Just table the terms of reference; they exist.
We then had the unedifying spectacle of the Chief Minister reading answers to questions regarding the questionable travel expenditure of his government as slowly as he could. Also in that estimates exchange, he denied the inquiry his department was leading was as a result of the Latitude Travel investigation. Again, I will go to the record.
I said to the Chief Minister:
I was interrupted by the Chief Minister; he was very quick. The Chief Minister said:
The Chief Minister was very clear. I was quite surprised because the opening line of the media release is:
I seek leave to table for the House the media release that was issued.
Leave is granted.
Mr GUNNER: Its opening sentence says:
Again, an unnecessary reflexive lie about something that was already on the public record. It makes no sense and is a habit that is peculiar.
These are small but important issues. You should treat parliament, estimates and Territorians with respect. You should be honest when answering questions. It was quite an extraordinary reflexive comment to make.
As I said, the Chief Minister read his answers incredibly slowly. It was not a good look. He read slower that someone reading a book on Play School. As Jodeen Carney said, a former firie contributed to the estimates debate.
These are questions every government receives, and we gave the exact words of the question to the Chief Minister in advance. You get them every year.
It was noticeable that the Chief Minister just pulled up stumps when he got to an answer, prepared by his own department, where he simply decided he did not want to answer the questions anymore. It goes to the truth that he and his ministers treat taxpayers’ money like their own. We are still waiting on the answers to those questions about ministerial travel from the Estimates Committee. They are questions that are asked every year, and it was a question he was given notice of in writing so he had the exact words. It was quite an extraordinary estimates performance. He did not answer questions he knew he was would get, and the questions he did get he chose to lie about – small but important lies.
The Chief Minister has presided over a government that has given water licences to mates against proper process, and has trashed the scientific basis for the use of this most precious resource. His reckless handling of the environment has seen the development of the $134m port without an environmental assessment. The Chief Minister’s response was that Port Melville is not a port.
It goes to trust. When talking to people around the Territory, they ask me questions ranging from fracking to mining to general environmental questions; they raise a serious concern about the trust they can have in this government when it cannot get basic processes right and cannot be relied on to look after the environment of the Northern Territory, our lasting legacy.
We want to see development, but you have to make sure you look after our country. That sort of recklessness, that cowboy approach, should have been consigned to history decades ago. It damages us all and does not provide any trust in the Territory’s leaders. It brings us into disrepute and diminishes our standing. If you cannot be trusted to undertake the simple process of holding an EIS to ensure your development is correct, then you cannot be trusted with anything.
The Chief Minister continues to fail these tests of trust with the Northern Territory. He is in a trust deficit and has been there from the moment he rolled Terry Mills while he was in Tokyo, and has continued to dig the hole deeper. If he breaks the shovel, he asks for another one.
If any further proof was needed we need only look at the testimony of the Chief Minister’s own colleagues past and present. Testimony has been brought against the Chief Minister by his own CLP colleagues. The comments from the member for Araluen, the former Deputy Chief Minister, in this place yesterday showed the kind of leadership that is sorely lacking from the Chief Minister. They are testament to the deep despair those within the Chief Minister’s own political wing have about his leadership and integrity.
The member for Araluen said quote:
She is absolutely right. She further said:
She described the Chief Minister’s leadership as a ‘dark amoral cabal’. She has underlined what we have been saying and what we have had people saying to us on a regular basis. As I said, this comes from someone who worked closely with this Chief Minister. Most damning of all was the member for Araluen’s warning to women not to engage in politics with the CLP unless they can withstand sustained abuse.
She correctly pointed to the list of strong and smart women who have now marched out of the CLP. This is a tragedy for our society. We need two fully functioning parties fully representative of the Northern Territory, if not more. They need to be fully functioning and representative of the Northern Territory’s genders, races and creeds. We are now facing a lack of that. There is also a direct warning to women of the Northern Territory to not run with the CLP.
To lead our Territory, to fulfil its promise, men and women must stand shoulder to shoulder; we have to walk together. The days of the male dominance of society are well and truly over. We are past that. Our society achieves more balance and progress when it is marked by an equal role for men and women working together. To warn women away from politics because of the behaviour of the Chief Minister opens a dark chapter in our history.
I welcome the member for Araluen’s support for the development, establishment and implementation of an anti-corruption commission. I agreed when she said:
We saw the Ombudsman’s report tabled where the Ombudsman identified absences of scrutiny in the Northern Territory, particularly amongst members of parliament, and the absence of an independent body. He identified powers that were missing within the Northern Territory: the power to compel evidence. He identified an absence in the Northern Territory, and that there are powers that an independent body should have.
I am happy to work with anyone in this Chamber to bring forward an independent commission against corruption. I want to work with people here and consult with Territorians about the shape of that commission so we can make it work for the conditions of the Territory. We have a small population and are highly interconnected. We need an independent commission against corruption that works for the Territory. We need to address the absences of scrutiny and oversight that have been identified by the Ombudsman. We have seen over the last three years that people need to have trust, and it takes an oversight body to bring that trust.
People simply cannot trust a Chief Minister who scraps inquiries he promises to have. He has promised two but he scrapped them.
We have no open accountable and transparent government in the Northern Territory right now. When a minister is asked a question, as we saw yesterday, instead of answering it, they say, ‘FOI it’. It is an unacceptable way for the Territory to be governed. Ministers should be available to answer questions and there should be an oversight body in place so people know that trust exists in the Northern Territory.
We are at an incredibly low ebb when it comes to trust. The trust deficit created by this Chief Minister has tainted everybody and we need to bring in an oversight mechanism to bring trust back to the Territory parliament. We have been diminished as a parliament as a result of the Chief Minister’s actions; we have been brought into disrepute.
The former leader of the CLP, Jodeen Carney, is a smart, tough woman. We can testify to that from these benches. The member for Araluen is also a very tough woman. Whatever our personal differences of opinion on policy with the member for Araluen, we recognise she is smart and tough. Jodeen Carney also highlighted the Chief Minister’s contempt for Territorians when she said recently in the Sunday Territorian:
This morning on ABC radio she said:
This comes from someone who returned to the fray of politics to help this Chief Minister. That is the level of broken relationships and betrayals we have seen over the last three years of this CLP government – an extraordinary list of victims. As the member for Araluen said, ‘Look at the bodies; look at the gender’.
Let us not forget the assessment of the former Chief Minister, Terry Mills:
He also said:
The former leader, Terry Mills, had a role in Indonesia and continues to play a role there now, I believe, for others. His service is still valued. He was politically assassinated twice by the Chief Minister. Let us keep in mind these comments are coming from people who know this Chief Minister personally and have worked closely with him over many years. These are direct testimonies of colleagues of the Chief Minister. The Chief Minister’s behaviour has diminished government in the Northern Territory, this parliament and all Territorians.
Frankly, this behaviour could not have come at a worse time for the Territory. Territorians and the government elected to lead them have some critical issues to deal with. Our economy has had some early warning signs on work we need to do to deal with short-term challenges in employment and net interstate migration.
Children in our community are failing in most of the categories of the Australian Early Development Index. We have layer upon layer of sickness, and disease profiles that place some of our people among the sickest in the world. There are housing problems; our schools are crying out for greater investment; our regions need concerted government action and attention. There are issues of importance to address.
What we have to deal with in this House today is the aftermath of a leadership spill from three years ago which is continuing to run through the narrative of this Territory. It is clearly spinning out of control. Events were set in place with the challenge of Terry Mills in Tokyo that we have never recovered from, and the reputation of the Territory has been taking a hammering as a result.
The damage being done is real now and in the future. What kind of message does the behaviour of the CLP government send Territory businesses and investors in Australia and abroad? How can the Chief Minister be trusted to deliver jobs now and in the future when even his colleagues do not trust him to put the Territory first? His own colleagues voted him out – nine to five - but he refused to go.
We have seen the consequences of the Chief Minister’s behaviour over a long period. The way he decides to conduct his business and implement policies in the Northern Territory is being felt. I will give you an example regarding travel agents. Instead of dealing openly and accountably with ministerial travel, instead of being open, honest and transparent and coming clean, he will now put in place a system that will see travel agents in the Territory lose their jobs. We will see people shut their doors and businesses close because the Chief Minister cannot be trusted to run a government that can control its own travel. The policy being brought into place will see travel agents lose their jobs and businesses shut down.
I had a very difficult conversation with Sandra Lew Fatt on Tuesday; she was visibly upset. I have spoken to other travel agents since. They despair at the decisions and actions of this government. They do not understand why they are carrying the sins of others. It is an unacceptable way to deal with problems of openness and accountability.
Building world-class health and education systems in the Territory relies on a constructive relationship with the Commonwealth government, born of mutual respect. I do not believe the actions of the Chief Minister send a strong message of trust to the people who hold the purse strings in Canberra.
What does it say when we have all of that swirling around and the Chief Minister still refuses to establish a body that can investigate the corruption and misconduct of our leaders? It took a member of parliament breaking away from being bound by the CLP to get the vote last night to 12 all.
We need an anti-corruption commission in the Northern Territory. It will take a Labor government, but I am happy to work with anybody to try to create it and negotiate with Territorians to see how we can have one in place that is independent and suited to Territory conditions, our interconnectedness and small population. The actions of the Chief Minister speak volumes to Territorians.
I repeat that we are censuring the Chief Minister for destroying the faith and trust that needs to exist between Territorians and their elected representatives for good government to occur; for bringing the government, this parliament and the Northern Territory into disrepute through arrogant, deceitful and disrespectful behaviour; for continuing to lie to Territorians; and for always putting self-interest ahead of the interests of Territorians.
We have demonstrated today – from the actions of the Chief Minister and the testimony of his colleagues – that these accusations are founded in truth. Importantly, we have demonstrated today that it is not just being said by members on my side of the House, it is being said by CLP members and the public. The CLP has to act to end this tragedy.
For faith to be restored, support us in building the architecture of accountability in this democracy. Support us in bringing into law an independent commission against corruption. Support us in strengthening the Public Information Act, tidying up the Electoral Act and turning this parliament into something other than a hall of abuse. We need that support.
I say to the eight members of the CLP who are left from the nine who tried to vote the Chief Minister out, please do it again; take on your responsibility. Territorians are looking to you. You have the ability to stand up to this Chief Minister as the member for Araluen has. Try to reclaim the trust Territorians placed in you three years ago. You can do the right thing by Territorians. You are some of the few left in the CLP who can. You tried; I urge you to try again. The member for Araluen took a stand last night and you should take a stand with her. If you care for the true welfare of the people of the Northern Territory you need to get rid of this Chief Minister. Territorians deserve better and the Chief Minister deserves the censure of this House.
Mr HIGGINS (Sport and Recreation): Madam Speaker, as I have said in this House before, I support the Chief Minister and this government’s direction. It is concerning and upsetting to me to see all the mud that gets flung around this Chamber. The incident last night was a classic example of that.
This is not why we are here; we are here for other reasons. We have been elected to work for Territorians and this nonsense-type motion is a disappointing tactic that is continually used by the opposition. It is not clever, constructive or in the best interests of Territorians.
As I have said before, I feel honoured and humbled to be in the service of Territorians and my constituents of Daly. This government is trying to move ahead. We are working hard, listening and delivering. Members know about the wonderful initiatives in my portfolios alone, from the Sports Voucher Scheme, including the Learn to Swim vouchers, to bringing events like the Davis Cup quarter final, AFL and NRL games to the Territory, and this weekend we have the V8 Supercars. From upcoming developments in a wide-ranging art and cultural policy, to investment in community festivals and arts projects, we are looking forward and making it simpler, safer and easier for Territorians to enjoy an even better lifestyle.
I will name just a few of the recent budget announcements and initiatives: $20m to expand Richardson Park; $8m for the tennis centre; $2m to upgrade Alice Springs netball; $2m to upgrade lawn bowls facilities in Marrara and Fannie Bay; $1.5m for the new lawn bowls facility in Alice Springs; $2m for the athletics track in Alice Springs; $1.85m for the Alice Springs speedway and go-karts; $500 000 for a new tower and clubhouse at Tennant Creek; and $1m to upgrade track and fencing at the Katherine Motor Sports Club.
I have also encouraged people to be involved in the two master plans we provided funding for. There is $600 000 for a Territory-wide sports master plan and $400 000 for a master plan for Hidden Valley. We are speaking of nearly $11m to upgrade the Chan building, and these are just a few budget initiatives. More recently, there was $500 000 put into Freds Pass.
I am about getting on with the job. This is a place for grown-ups. This should not be a place for mudslinging or personal attacks. Let us just get on with the job.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, my comments will generally be about the government’s behaviour overall.
I listened to the member for Daly, the minister for Sport. His has a soft portfolio, and I not saying that in a bad way. It is a good news portfolio.
I take up what he said about Freds Pass. There was no money in the budget for Freds Pass. It was a latter day budget announcement, and as a rural resident that is what is so disappointing. The rural area has been left out and clearly not listened to as shown by some of the comments made by the minister for Planning in relation to where people in the rural area would like their lives to head, not the way the minister thinks they should go.
The government laughed at the ALP when it lost one member of its government. It actually lost two then one came back. In this case, there has been a 300% increase in defectors from this government. Four left, and one has gone back. If you were an outsider looking at this you would say it is a pretty unstable government to lose three members in a one term. That reflects much of how people in the community feel. They are disenchanted with this government.
Yes, the government may have some good visions. I will not say the Chief Minister’s vision for the north is bad, or some of the statements that have been made in this parliament are bad. They are, in many cases, very good, but in the mix of all the things that have happened they show the government, when it wants to hide from the public processes that should be open and transparent, is willing to avoid exposure at all costs.
The classic example is when I asked for an inquiry into Foundation 51 and Harold Nelson Holdings. I said it should be for both sides, and it was promised to the Northern Territory News. As the Opposition Leader said, straight after the Casuarina by-election it was watered down. I was never told about that and I had meetings with the Chief Minister. That is an example of why people are disenchanted with what is happening.
We had the attempted coup d’tat. I was in Portland when it happened. I had a Chief Minister at 2 am; by 10 am that morning I did not have the same Chief Minister. It is difficult for me to see people stand up in parliament on the government side who supported the change of leadership, and say, ‘We are a team behind the present Chief Minister’.
People will laugh and ask why you voted for this person and when the pressure was on you changed your mind. People are cynical when members of the government get say they support the present Chief Minister, especially if they were part of the group that did not support him in February.
I do not want to get caught up in the personal antagonism. I have been in this parliament long enough to have copped a lot of flak, abuse and name calling. I am not perfect either, but I reckon the balance is more one way than the other. I think this reflects badly on our parliament.
Again, I refer to my trip to Canada recently and how I looked at those two territories and the way they behave. They ask hard questions, but they do not behave the way we do in this parliament.
There are other issues. The government was very vocal about the Stella Maris issue. It was so concerned it set up an inquiry. That inquiry brought out many recommendations, but the one I believe was really important was that we should have an integrity commissioner. Why should we have an integrity commissioner? To ensure there is someone that MLAs, no matter whether they are ministers or members like us on this side, can go to and get advice.
Maybe some of the mistakes the government of the time made in relation to this could have been avoided if we had an integrity commissioner, because they could have gone to that person and asked, ‘If we make this decision, what do you think? Do you think that is a correct decision?’ Maybe it would have been stopped at that stage.
As I said, a little territory in Canada of 37 000 people has an integrity commissioner, and here is a territory with 225 000 people and the government rejects that idea. People lose faith if the government is not willing to have somebody who helps improve the way we govern. That is why people get suspicious about what is happening.
Statements have been made by various people who were CLP members, criticising the Chief Minister. As I said, I will not go into personal matters. I was extremely disappointed when the Chief Minister told me we would have an inquiry and it did not happen, at least not in the form originally agreed to.
We have a censure motion, but the final censure motion will be at the election in August next year. That will be the proof in the pudding. It was mentioned in the paper today that I might consider a no-confidence motion - I just said ‘consider’ - but I do not intend to bring the government down. The government will bring itself down. It only really needs one or two more people to trip over and it will bring itself down. I will not be party to that. I know what happened previously and I did my best to help bring stable government to the Northern Territory.
In this case the government has not shown leadership. It has not shown open and transparent government. The minister for Planning, I said the other day, had made an announcement about the land block size of he supported. I said, ‘You are the minister who will decide on a development application which will allow blocks of that size in an area where they are currently not permitted. They are not permitted by the rules of planning in the rural area. Therefore, you cannot make a decision, because you are in a position of administration and will be seen to be administratively biased.’ I do not believe the minister can make that decision. He has to pass it to another minister.
I remember the matter in relation to Doctor’s Gully when the previous Chief Minister, Marshall Perron, had to make a decision – he might have been the minister for Planning - about his own land. He said he could not make that decision and passed it to another minister.
It is the arrogance that people see. There are people in the rural area who care about the future of where they live. I get the impression the minister could not care two hoots, as long as he can say, ‘Oh, we developed more blocks of land’. That, to me, is a sign that this government does not have an understanding of the wishes and needs of people, especially in my area. The government might think it is great to have this new development, but I ask how many ministers have gone to places like Elizabeth Valley, Acacia Hills and Noonamah and asked the people in that area whether they want what the Planning Commission and the government are pushing for – lots of little blocks everywhere.
They have not had the guts to talk to the people who will live next to these developments. They did not do it in my area. It was only recently when we started to stir the pot about Holtze next to the hospital development that government people came to see people in that area to discuss the issues important to them. I see this blanket approach, ‘We want development; the north has to develop. We cannot afford to build Weddell; we will have to cut up the rural area into small blocks.’ This is a blanket approach to planning and decision-making that does not have any relationship with what the people would like. That is a sign of an arrogant government.
I remember talking to a company – I will not name it – and asking why they had not held a public meeting. He basically said, ‘Tomatoes’. Big deal, tomatoes are soft anyway. If he had said bricks I might have been a bit concerned. Sometimes you have to stand in front of people and take the flak. Sometimes you also have to listen to what people have to say. Sometimes you have to be brave enough to say, ‘That is not the decision the government wants to take’. But that has not occurred, especially in my area.
The Opposition Leader knows that generally I do not get caught up in censure motions. I repeat that this is a censure motion that will come to fruition at the next election. I get indications of what that will be from the people I meet who are disenchanted and disillusioned with the process of government in the Northern Territory, and not just the government; there have been problems on the opposition side. I get a genuine feeling that people are just sick of it.
I read the estimates and noticed how I received a bit of a knock when someone commented about Gerry being away from estimates. I had to go to Canada at that time because there was simply no other time to go. Firstly, it was spring and it got to a top temperature of 1C, so I was not going in winter; secondly, parliaments in those areas were sitting at that time so my trip could include two territories; thirdly, I knew these Legislative Assemblies had a system which did not include political parties, but was based on a system of Independents in parliament. As many people had said to me, ‘We are sick of the system of government we have in the Northern Territory’, I thought it was my duty to at least see what other jurisdictions do to see if there was a possibility that their type of government and Legislative Assembly processes could be reflected here.
I know what happens here. There is a mixture of proper debate, but there is also, ‘My party is better than your party and we will do everything for our party to get into power’. The other side will do everything to rubbish you so much that you are defeated at the next election, instead of saying, ‘We have policies that we should promote as a parliament to improve the welfare of the people of the Northern Territory’. We are elected to represent our electorates and the whole of the Northern Territory. That is why I went overseas. I am getting a constant feeling that people are fed up. The things happening at the moment reinforce it.
I hope that over the next 12 months change will occur, perhaps even a miracle. If it does not, I am sure it will at the next election. I am not a fortune teller but I say to the government that things are not good in the community.
The government has let the people down, not because of its vision – I do not disagree with most of the vision it puts forward. It is the bits that hold that vision together. Processes that are open, transparent and that work with the people are missing. These hidden bits are what people are concerned about. It is very hard to be constructive when you are dealing with a censure motion; however, the government has to take stock of where it is at present because it cannot get much lower in the people’s minds.
Mr KURRUPUWU (Arafura): Madam Speaker, I rise as an Indigenous member of parliament to speak in support of the Country Liberal government and Chief Minister Adam Giles. I am a proud Tiwi man and traditional owner. I am also a man of faith and integrity. I have seen a remarkable turnaround in fortune for people in my electorate as a result of the Chief Minister’s push for economic development in remote communities.
This Chief Minister and the Country Liberal government understand that Aboriginal people do not want paternalism and welfare. Aboriginal people want self-determination and jobs. For many years the Tiwi people have been pushing to have the right and ability to develop our land and create new business and employment opportunities for our people, and our kids especially.
There were countless times under the previous Labor government that Tiwi people went to them for support to develop their economy and create jobs, but Labor gave none. They did not support the forestry and plantation project. Labor’s policy is to keep Indigenous people reliant on welfare and Labor. Since the Country Liberals came to government, the feeling in my electorate has changed dramatically. My constituents are energised and optimistic about a bright future, one where there are viable jobs on country for their children.
We know, and this government knows, it is a long and hard road to create a viable economy. It takes time and money to build the infrastructure needed to support the creation of business and jobs. The Treasurer and Chief Minister have made it clear that they see spending on this infrastructure as an investment not only in the Northern Territory, but in the lives and future of Indigenous people in the bush.
The Country Liberal government has invested heavily in the bush. I have mentioned previously in this place some examples. We have done things like the Maningrida barge landing upgrade; starting and supporting the Tiwi ferry service, which received more funding in the last budget from the Treasurer; negotiating with traditional owners to get fishing permit deals; upgrading a sewerage plant in Maningrida; funding tourist welcome facilities in Maningrida; working with Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation to get it operating efficiently and effectively again, allowing it to continue employing and supporting local people; police station upgrades in Oenpelli and Pularumpi; providing money in the budget for further upgrades in remote communities; a new child and family centre in Maningrida and Gunbalanya; working with Tiwi people to help them establish an MOU between the Tiwi Islands Plantations Corporation and Japanese company Mitsui; and working closely with Tiwi people to help them to reach their full potential.
This government is taking proactive steps to work with Tiwi people to see land development and investment opportunities open up to assist in providing jobs for Tiwi people so they can move away from the social welfare dependency affecting so many Indigenous communities. The Tiwi Islands have become a great example of what can happen when traditional owners and government work together to create opportunities for investment and economic development.
When I travel to other parts of the electorate, traditional owners and local people tell me they want to do the same as the Tiwi Islanders. They want the same opportunities. With the support of the Chief Minister, I am helping them to work through the process, finding out what they need for support or the infrastructure that will help them to be successful in achieving viable businesses and opportunities. We will continue to do this to bring better lives to people living in the bush.
I ask the media and urban Territorians not to fall for the false statements from the Labor Party and their union mates, or those Independents seeking revenge after losing their ministerial perks. The Country Liberals government is delivering. There have been some missteps along the way, but the government is delivering for remote Territorians.
I was born and raised in the bush. I have represented Indigenous people on many boards and in many forums. I have seen all the Chief Ministers there have been. Not one of them has been as interested in committing to creating better lives for Indigenous people through jobs and wealth creation than the member for Braitling, Adam Giles. For this I thank him.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Madam Speaker, I am proud to stand here in support of this censure motion. As the Leader of the Opposition said, it gives us no joy to be here today again debating the disintegration and chaos that is the Giles government. As the member for Araluen said, the Chief Minister will be viewed by history as the worst ever. It gives us no joy because the disintegration and chaos means more disruption to Territorians, more government chaos and uncertainty for business, and more contempt for the political process and all of us in this House.
As the member for Nelson has said in the past in these circumstances, it reflects on us all and diminishes the House and the institutions of the Territory in the eyes of Territorians. I am afraid this is largely the work of one man, one individual: the Chief Minister.
The opposition has been overwhelmed by business people talking to us about the instability in government and the impact this has on them. Business needs stability, consistency and certainty. Our economy is reliant upon it. Two-and-a-half Chief Ministers in three years does not provide certainty. Fourteen reshuffles do not provide stability. Five Ministers for Business does not lend itself to a consistent approach from government.
What is perhaps the saddest thing is the evident attitude towards this House that has now been built up in the eyes of Territorians. We are now all tainted by the failings of this Chief Minister. We, as members of parliament, have had our reputations diminished by the actions of this Chief Minister. The institutions we represent have all been diminished by him.
We all must understand that our actions, how we conduct ourselves, and how we go about doing business is watched and judged by Territorians, so it is incumbent upon us all to behave with the respect and demeanour this institution of parliament and government deserves. The abuse this Chief Minister brings to the operations of this House is seen and judged by Territorians. They see it for what it is: arrogance.
The problem is we all get tarred with the same brush and our political process comes into more disrepute. At a time when there is a national debate about how we conduct politics, this Chief Minister has continued his policies of intimidation and persecution, even against members of his own party.
The member for Araluen has made a tough decision. I am sure she did not take the decision lightly or with any joy when she stood on the floor of this House yesterday evening. She has dedicated her political life to the Country Liberal Party. As she herself said, she has been a natural Liberal and Country Liberal all her life. She has done the right thing by her party for a long time, even in the most difficult of circumstances. But she stood aside as Deputy Chief Minister. She took on numerous difficult portfolios. Teachers will remember it was she who added additional millions to the failed global budgeting exercise in her recent but brief foray back into Education. She then endured being dumped from her portfolios after the failed leadership coup in February.
It should be noted that the man who challenged the Chief Minister is now his deputy, and the woman who supported that challenge has been dumped, intimidated and abused since. That speaks volumes for the state of mind of this Chief Minister and the conditions of the government he somehow leads.
Perhaps one of the most telling criticisms made by the member for Araluen was about the treatment of strong women in the Country Liberal Party by this Chief Minister and his Treasurer, his sidekick, who, because of his own bad and entirely inappropriate behaviour, has spent six months on the backbench, only to be returned to Cabinet and restored to the position of Treasurer.
It is a very sad day for every Territorian, but particularly women, when a strong female member of this House says:
That, Chief Minister, is a tragedy for your party, this House and the Territory. Women, as you know, form half of the population of the Territory. Women play a massively important role in our society, leadership roles in business, unions, politics and the public service – every aspect of the Territory. Our society operates more functionally and effectively when men and women take a shared approach to leadership in our community, business and, indeed, in this House.
I believe the Territory welcomes women playing important roles. I am conscious and proud of the fact that my party produced women like Clare Martin, who led us to the first-ever Labor government in the Territory in 2001. I am proud of the role Her Honour Sally Thomas played as our Administrator, serving the Territory admirably. I am proud of the fact that the Cattlemen’s Association is led by an articulate, smart and tough woman like Tracey Hayes. I am proud of the fact that our unions are led by intelligent, strong, dedicated and tenacious women like Erina Early and Kay Densley. I am proud when I see young women like Lauren Moss, the member for Casuarina, step up and become a member of this House. To be frank, I feel proud every time I see Jessica Mauboy represent and showcase our culture and society to the country and the world.
I am proud of the women of the Territory, and I believe we have a massive contribution to make. Territorians believe that too, but there is obviously one exception, and that is the Chief Minister. The member for Araluen has pointed out quite clearly that the people who have marched from the CLP are the strong women, those not prepared to put up with the abuse of the Chief Minister. She has called you out for your behaviour in the past at bars, and yesterday she called you out on your leadership behind closed doors.
The members for Araluen, Namatjira and Arnhem all have marched from this government. Jodeen Carney, a tough, smart and resourceful former leader who was close to you, Chief Minister, has today again added her voice to that of the member for Araluen. Jodeen Carney says you are arrogant and divisive. She says you cannot lead your team and you therefore cannot lead a government. She says you have failed every leadership test. Fay Miller, a former member of this House and a strong leader and Mayor of Katherine, and in no way a shrinking violet, has also left your party because of you, Chief Minister.
Chief Minister, the way you conduct yourself in this House, the special contempt you show to people like the members for Namatjira and Arnhem, the way you paternalistically step in over the top of your Minister for Women’s Policy, and the way you deal with my female colleagues on this side of the House speaks volumes to the way you treat women. As the member for Araluen said, your leadership style is to ‘eliminate, execute, annihilate and assassinate’.
The Chief Minister began his leadership by stabbing in the back a colleague who was out of the country. He has since lost four members of parliament and managed to entice just one of them to return. He has been implicated in the rotten stench of Foundation 51. Foundation 51 has corrupted the electoral processes of the Northern Territory to such an extent there is now very serious and real public concern about political donations, how they are made and reported, and what benefits flow from making them. Foundation 51 has tainted the processes of decent people who wish to make a contribution to the political discussion in the Northern Territory.
Thanks to the Chief Minister, who overturned a motion of this parliament to investigate political donations on the back of controversy about Foundation 51, there was a complete abuse of the democratic process that this parliament is supposed to enshrine.
There are serious questions to be addressed and answered over this Chief Minister’s relationship and the relationship of his government with Latitude Travel. He held a bizarre and ranting media conference where he accused police of being engaged in a coup and threatened everybody with a judicial inquiry, and then backed off and entirely backflipped. A coup! Never in the history of the Territory has a Chief Minister ever made such a serious and shameful allegation against the hard-working men and women of the police force. This police force now lives with the stain of that slur from the Chief Minister.
The Chief Minister claims to be interested in and to support the regions, but the reality is he is not and does not. I know this firsthand. I know he is not to be trusted. I witnessed the betrayal of a community when he reneged on a gas deal set up by his predecessor, Terry Mills, and the cynical announcement on Darwin Show Day two years ago, a public holiday, when he reneged on that deal. He had not even provided the courtesy of a heads up to Pacific Aluminium or Rio Tinto, who did not know that announcement was coming that day.
He muscled up to the largest private employer in the Northern Territory and broke a promise to on-sell gas to their company and saw, as a result, more than 1100 jobs disappear from Nhulunbuy. It sent a terrible message to businesses looking to invest in the Northern Territory. It was a message that said, ‘You cannot trust this Chief Minister or this government’.
He has treated the people of Nhulunbuy with nothing but contempt since that day and his visits, when they happen, are carefully stage managed as he knows he is so disliked there because he is not to be trusted and has betrayed the people of the region. He cannot even bring himself to support the Territory’s local airline, Airnorth, and utilise its commercial service each time he travels. Instead he travels on costly charters.
In the whole debacle that was the failure of gas to Gove, and the huge downturn experienced in Nhulunbuy and the Gove region, he washed his hands of any responsibility to pursue and deliver structural adjustment packages with the federal government, which is standard practice in any region in Australia where there are major downturns in manufacturing – not this Chief Minister or this government – out of sight, out of mind.
Nhulunbuy is one region of the Territory that has suffered from this government but, as the member for Araluen pointed out, not the only one. The Chief Minister was instrumental in driving a regional agenda when he was in opposition; I acknowledge and congratulate him for that. The problem is the people in the bush who trusted your word have now been left with a fistful of empty promises, and the realisation that your word is worthless and counts for nothing.
My colleague, the member for Barkly, works day-in day-out during his extensive travels through the Northern Territory to the bush communities, some which he represents and others he does not. The community of Borroloola signed on the dotted line, with the Chief Minister when he was in opposition, a contract to deliver things that have simply not been delivered. Similar contracts were signed on the dotted line in Wadeye and across many communities in the Northern Territory.
One of the first things the Chief Minister did was dismantle the cooperative interagency working arrangements between the Territory and the federal government, which was an appalling move. Those interagency working arrangements were bearing real fruit. Work was being done on the ground to deliver on the agenda that people had developed, importantly, from the ground up.
Then he sought to replace that with a structure all his own, but this has patently failed. He also sought to undermine the importance of Aboriginal Affairs by abolishing that portfolio upon taking the reins in March 2013. Some two-and-a-half years later he realised that in the terms of the electoral cycle he needed to reinstate that important portfolio.
Under his watch, housing in the bush has slowed almost to a standstill. Housing is a massive issue in our remote areas. This was recognised even by the Howard government. Under our watch, and federal Labor’s, we built houses hundreds of houses. We also fixed up hundreds of them and we knew, and still know, there is not enough. I have no doubt that those houses built under Labor in our remote communities across the Top End, in communities like Galiwinku, Milingimbi, Maningrida and Ramingining saved lives earlier this year when these communities were hit not once, but twice in the a space of a month by cyclones.
The Chief Minister cannot even deliver on the paltry amount that has been promised - no houses in Borroloola, which is a promise long overdue, and maintenance programs for housing that are failing tenants miserably. People are waiting months to have the simplest of issues resolved. Do not get me started about the empty houses in Nhulunbuy. There still remain around 170 empty houses. Yolngu people, on a daily basis, ask me, ‘Why can’t I have one of those houses? Why can they not make them available?’
There are terrible stories of overcrowding and dysfunction at some homes in Yirrkala. It is shameful. These houses were given away by Rio Tinto; no one has to buy them. But, no, the government simply does not have the political will to step forward and recognise its corporate and social responsibility to take on some of those houses to address the longest public waiting list for housing in the Northern Territory – in Nhulunbuy.
Infrastructure delivery under this government is patchy at best. Palmerston Regional Hospital is more than two-and-a-half years behind. They cannot even deliver the projects that were funded by Labor. I include in that the $50m worth of funding to build and renovate remote clinics. That schedule is way behind. Umbakumba clinic was due to start in May. The intelligence I have is that it has not started yet.
As for the infrastructure that will come with $5bn announced by the federal government, it is $5bn in concessional loans – a very competitive budget of that $5bn to be shared across the Top End, not just for the Northern Territory.
This government has stripped resources from the schools out bush. We know about the levels of disadvantage, that English is not the first language and there is a need for more teachers and local assistant teachers, but those resources have been removed and instead we got $20m for a boarding facility which the Treasurer thinks we should be grateful for. The problem is everyone I have talked to says they are fearful about sending their children there. This is a government that does not listen. His government, as the member for Araluen said and I agree, has failed the regions, even in his home town of Alice Springs where the economy has stalled and too many commercial premises are empty. There has been such a significant population decline that the seat of Araluen has collapsed.
Who can forget the Chief Minister’s recent performance in estimates. His schoolboy-like slow reading, his refusal to table information and discuss ministerial travel, and the contemptuous way he handled questions all point to one thing: he is not a leader.
Today we are censuring you not only because of your treatment of the member for Araluen, but for your leadership style. We are censuring you for the way you lead your government, where your own Speaker has to FOI the government to get details on planning in her electorate. Most importantly, we are censuring you for bringing all of us down with you and for adding to the contempt the public has for all politicians.
I am interested to see who speaks next in this debate. I dare say the two men who sit either side the Chief Minister will now get to their feet, defend him and say what a good job he does. That will surely compromise their integrity, given that those two men who sit either side of the Chief Minister stepped out in February at a 1 am media conference and said they were now the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister because they had no faith in the Chief Minister. Now we are about to see them rise to their feet, forget that damage and say they support the Chief Minister.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend this motion to the House and urge all members to support it.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE (Deputy Chief Minister): Mr Deputy Speaker, the member for Nhulunbuy was quite right in her prediction, one of the two men sitting either side of the Chief Minister has leapt to his feet to talk on this repetitive motion. We have seen these types of motions come before this House before, much as we have seen duplicitous debate in this House about water. Here we are yet again. They must have these motions Xeroxed and sitting out the back ready to go because they are so duplicitous.
I do not think I will speak for terribly long, but I will say that I am disappointed that once again this House is being used as an avenue for discussing personal matters and for personal attacks on the Chief Minister and the integrity of this government. The opposition tends, unfortunately, to focus on personal attacks and the internal machinations of the CLP rather than focusing on the issues that matter to Territorians, that is, the policies of this government as they relate to the people of the Territory. These are the things that influence the lives of Territorians and make their lives better, safer and smarter. But no, we do not see that here; it is very rare.
I pick up on a comment from the member for Nelson about the fact that there is very little policy debate in this House, and he is right. There is very little policy debate in this House because the opposition tends to focus on matters of internal politics, talking about ourselves rather than things that matter to Territorians. If there is one thing I do get it is that the people of the Northern Territory do not like politicians talking about politicians. Unfortunately, the way the opposition behave we are again doing just that.
Beyond that, this government, in its current guise led by Chief Minister Adam Giles and a team of devoted, dedicated and hard-working ministers and backbenchers, is doing a stellar job in many areas that affect the lives of the people of the Northern Territory. I am proud to be part of a team that is getting on with the job. When the opposition was in government a number of years ago we had a government that floundered at every difficult junction and shied away from making tough decisions. This government has rolled up its sleeves and got on with the business of governing the Northern Territory.
We are dedicated to ensuring an effective and efficient government working for the advancement of the Northern Territory because we are not focused on internal politics; we are just getting on with the job. We are not interested in wasting valuable parliamentary time. I said the other night that an hour of the parliament costs around about $20 000 to run. Here we are again, we started this at 2.45 pm and it is now 4 pm so we have ticked over more than $20 000 in costs to the taxpayer just to make the opposition members feel good about themselves and give them an opportunity to hear their own voices.
What we are doing as a government is far more important than what the opposition is talking about in the parliament today. We are getting on and doing things. I will go through a few of the highlights of the work ministers have done over the last two-and-half-years. This is just a tiny sample of the work happening.
In my own portfolios I have introduced measures to rebuild at-risk reef fish stocks to sustainable levels and improve the quality of NT fisheries for the future. That might sound like government imposing more regulation, but that will make a difference in the future. Our children and grandchildren will have fish to catch because this government took some tough decisions. Yes, we have upset a few people. That is what happens when you are in government; you upset people because in order to make an omelette you have to crack a few eggs. That is what we are doing, nonetheless.
We have just gone through the biggest ever plant health response in Australia’s history with the banana freckle response plan. We have finished phase one. Again, we have taken some responsible, tough decisions to do the right thing by the Territory because biosecurity is all about protecting jobs, livelihoods, industries and the environment. These are some of the tough decisions we are taking on this side of this House while we are not focusing on the internal machinations of politics.
I could talk forever about the growth in trade of cattle and buffalo into Vietnam and Indonesia. We have worked with landholders to help them through the difficulties they are facing with cucumber green mottle mosaic virus. I know water is a topical subject, but we have done something that no government has ever done before, certainly something the Labor government never considered in their 11 years, and that was to introduce a strategic policy discussion paper on water to make sure we get the future water planning for the Northern Territory right.
We are working with pastoralists on the wild dog programs to make sure that system is set up right, so they can get on, do their business and reduce and mitigate the impacts of wild dogs on cattle herds.
In the area of public employment, we have the Northern Territory public service Indigenous Employment and Career Development Strategy 2015-20, which was launched earlier this year. The Indigenous employment target set by the Chief Minister – I applaud him for that. We were sitting at about 8%, and the target for 2030 is for 16% Indigenous employment within the public sector. It is a lofty goal, but what a great goal. These are things government is doing while not focusing on internal politics.
The Chief Minister has created the Indigenous Affairs portfolio to refocus government’s attention on matters that relate to Indigenous people, trying to drive economic development, which is so right. I heard the comments by the member for Arafura earlier about the Labor government focusing only on Indigenous people in regard to keeping them welfare dependent and dependent on the Labor government. He could not have spoken truer words, but we are focused on Indigenous economic development and getting people out of the welfare cycle. I applaud the member for Arafura for his comments.
The Treasurer has done some amazing work in sorting out the Territory’s financial problems. We were in a space, when we came to government, of inheriting $5.5bn worth of project debt from the Labor Party. We have worked to reduce that significantly. By next year we should be at, or very close to, a surplus budget. These are the things we are focusing on while we are not focusing on internal politics.
In the Lands and Planning area we delivered a land release program, which is the biggest in the Northern Territory’s history, to help create 6500 homes over the next 10 years. Our reforms have delivered a planning system that is rated Australia’s best by the national Property Council.
In the area of Mines and Energy we have created the CORE initiative, which is a funding initiative of $23.8m over four years for collaborative drilling programs to enhance opportunities for our explorers and make sure they have every opportunity to come to the Territory, even in this downturn cycle, and find the next major discovery. The Hawke report was commissioned by this government. That is paving the way for the next generation of oil and gas projects in the Northern Territory.
I applaud the Attorney-General, the Minister for Correctional Services, on his work on the Sentenced to a Job program, which is turning the lives of people in our prisons around. It is making a huge impact on the potential for inmates who are currently in prison, or have been in the past, to find meaningful work.
I cannot go any further without mentioning the Minister for Health. The Palmerston Regional Hospital will become a reality, as opposed to what the Labor government delivered in its time of government, which was a fence and a sign. That was their effort towards the Palmerston Regional Hospital.
Minister Chandler, in his Police portfolio, had CCTV cameras installed - more than we ever had before. We have the mobile cameras, which were the first in the nation, being used in hotspots in the Northern Territory. He also launched the Indigenous Education Strategy giving remote students the best chance of good schooling. In Transport he is tackling antisocial behaviour by upgrading bus security and giving transit officers more powers. There is a record spend in infrastructure in the budget of $1.385m. We are connecting people with roads, bridges and aerodromes right across the Northern Territory.
The member for Stuart, in her role as the Women’s Policy minister, has been selected by the Prime Minister as part of the panel to provide advice to COAG about reducing violence against women. In her Parks and Wildlife portfolio she is opening up our parks through an expression of interest process and creating partnerships with industry to increase visitation to the Territory’s wonderful parks and reserves through sustainable development and increased commercial partnership.
From the member for Daly, minister Higgins, we heard today the wonderful news about ticket sales for the Davis Cup. That is a world-class premiere event being held in the Northern Territory, brought to the Northern Territory by the Country Liberal government. We are able to do that because we are not focusing on internal politics, we are focusing on the things that make a difference to the lives of Territorians.
There are so many components to running a government. I know some on the cross benches have been part of a government before and others are new to the role in opposition. The work that has been done by this government, even in the last two-and-a-half years, well and truly eclipses all the work done between 2001 and 2012 when the Labor Party was in power. I acknowledge we have endured some difficult and perhaps interesting times within the ranks of our party, but we have managed to achieve an incredible amount of work, notwithstanding the internal machinations of the CLP.
We are, as a party, a broad church. We are entitled to have our opinions. And guess what? We air those opinions. I do not always agree with things the Chief Minister says and does. Guess what? When I do not agree, I talk to him about it. Likewise, I sometimes do not agree with things the member for Daly wants to do, and I talk to him about that as well. We have those robust conversations. We do not always agree on things. Despite all of that, we are getting on and governing for the people of the Northern Territory.
That is why people elected us in 2012. The people of the Northern Territory said, ‘We are sick and tired of Labor. We are sick and tired of nothing happening in the Territory. We are sick and tired of the Northern Territory having no chance of reaching its true potential.’ That is why the Country Liberals were elected to govern.
We have been getting on and doing that. There are political machinations going on in every party room across Australia every day of the week, we are no different, in many ways, to any other party in any state or in the federal arena. Nonetheless, importantly, we are getting on and doing the job for the people of the Northern Territory. I am very proud to be a part of a government that is driving so many different forward-looking agendas for the Northern Territory.
Before I finish I will talk a little about some of the things the Chief Minister is doing. Never before has anyone ever mooted a gas pipeline connecting our gas potential in the Northern Territory to the east coast. I do not think it has ever been considered anywhere. I have not seen it written in any despatches, and I have not heard it mentioned by anyone. The gas pipeline will be a game changer for the Northern Territory. That is due wholly and solely to the vision of the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, Adam Giles. That is just one example of the visionary things this government is focusing on as we move forward to the next election in 2016.
If the people of the Northern Territory want us to keep talking about ourselves, then they might throw their support behind Labor. But if they really want things to happen in the Northern Territory, then they will continue to throw their support behind the Country Liberal Party and keep us where we rightly should be, and that is driving the agenda for the future of the people of the Northern Territory.
In closing, I do not subscribe to this censure motion in any way, shape or form. I will make one quick reference to it. I will quote from the third paragraph of the censure which says:
This is a strong government led by a strong leader, supported by a number of very strong, hard-working ministers and backbenchers, and it is a government that is working hard for the people of the Northern Territory.
Mr STYLES (Business): Mr Deputy Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition talks about trust and lies. Everything about the Opposition Leader smacks of hypocrisy. Such is the hypocrisy of the Labor Party that Terry Mills, the man they said was not fit to represent the Territory in Indonesia, is now their new found best friend.
Whilst I will not discuss or surmise why Mr Mills’ company was dismissed from that role, it was not a political assassination as was alluded to by members opposite yesterday.
The Opposition Leader speaks glowingly of Jodeen Carney, yet it was not all that long ago that he loathed her and called for her dismissal from her public service position. The Labor members opposite hail Alison Anderson as a person of substance, yet openly despised and ridiculed her when she left the Labor Party. The Labor members opposite have previously claimed that the member for Arnhem is not fit to be a Territory politician and should be sacked from parliament. The Labor Party now holds up the same person as a shining example of all that is good in a politician.
When the Opposition Leader talks about hate, he should look no further than the member for Nhulunbuy. The hate this member has for the Aboriginal member for Stuart, Bess Price, is displayed almost on a daily basis. This behaviour is akin to white supremacy. It is bullying and thuggish hatred that stems from the fact the Labor Party has never forgiven the Territory Aboriginal population for voting for the Country Liberal Party.
The Labor Party considers Territory Aborigines as their slaves, and as they are the masters the Territory Indigenous population should serve the Labor Party only. We heard that from the member for Arafura. I admire the member for Arafura and his words in relation to what he and his people think about those opposite.
I recall well many years ago a former Labor member for Central Australia, Mr Peter Toyne, was quoted on the front page of the NT News as saying, ‘You can’t keep Aboriginal people in a cultural museum’. That is what the Labor Party seems to want to do. ‘You just sit over there, do nothing and we will look after you. Be reliant on the government.’ The member for Arafura said that today. I admire the determination he has to do well for his people.
The Leader of the Opposition talks about trust; it is the same trust that resulted in the corrupt handing over of Stella Maris to Labor’s equally corrupt union mates. I find it laughable that the member for Nhulunbuy spoke about how proud she is of Clare Martin, the former Labor Chief Minister, when her party rewarded her by stabbing her in the back. I do not know whether we should talk about what happened on that fateful Sunday when the former Leader of the Opposition, the member for Karama, and the former member for Wanguri, Paul Henderson, stabbed Clare Martin in the back.
What happened at the Casuarina Club? Should we talk about that and what the member for Karama was doing there? She was supposed to be the Deputy Chief Minister, yet the former member for Arafura, Marion Scrymgour became the Deputy Chief Minister. The vitriol that came out of that little interaction is not something I want to discuss in this debate.
I am a very proud member of the Country Liberal Party and government. We have policies and we are delivering real outcomes for Territorians. I am also proud to be here standing next to and supporting Chief Minister Adam Giles. He is a man of vision, someone who has a plan and is determined to get the people of the Northern Territory into the 21st Century and progress the Territory so all Territorians have an equal say. When he became the Chief Minister he commenced a program called Community Champions, where ministers all have a community in the Northern Territory they champion, to make sure the community voice is heard.
Those opposite will interject and ask what we have achieved. We have achieved a lot, but I will get to that in a moment. Without Adam Giles’ vision and leadership we might not have that program. We have heard from other members about some of the things that are visionary. Here is a man who is determined to make sure the Territory is part of the economic development of Australia as a whole, and not only that, but also to lead the Australian economy by participating in developing the north. He has been a strident supporter of that and a leader in making that happen.
Together, as a team, the Country Liberals stand alongside the Chief Minister and we are working to deliver real outcomes for Territorians. On our side there are three female members who stand proudly to represent their constituents as part of the Country Liberals team. The reason for three other members choosing to leave is a matter only they understand. As the Deputy Chief Minister said, and as the Chief Minister said in Question Time today, it is a rough and tumble game. We have three very strong female members in our team who are always challenging us - the males - on everything, and that is their job.
We are a team of equal opportunity. For those who chose to leave and have their reasons for leaving, it is best that they explain them.
I will go through some of the things we are delivering. I will start with debt failure; these are the issues we were left with. Under Labor, debt went through the roof. In 2012 Territorians inherited from Labor a couple of things. One is a $5.5bn debt projected by 2015-16, with a net debt to revenue ratio of 98% in the Northern Territory Public Sector, and a budget deficit projection in all years of the forward estimates. We also inherited an ailing Power and Water Corporation.
The graph I throw around this Chamber from time to time is nothing new to people in this side or the opposition, but it shows dramatic increases in debt that would have been left by the former Labor government. Under the Giles leadership we have a reduction in the projected debt, down to about $2.67bn in 2015-16, or somewhere around there. That is a debt to income ratio of around 40%, 41%, 42%, or maybe even down to 39%. That is quite an achievement led by the Giles team, compared with what Labor left.
Under Labor, land release came to a standstill. The Commonwealth government report shows between 2006 and 2011 the Henderson Labor government failed to act as the gap between housing demand and supply skyrocketed. As the 2012 election loomed, figures showed the number of people looking for homes exceeded the number of available dwellings by a massive 10 100.
The Giles government team, led by the Chief Minister, has reduced those figures well down. On the basis of the average household size of 2.7 people per dwelling there was a shortage of about 3750 homes Territory-wide. On a per-capita basis it was harder to find a home in the Territory than anywhere else in Australia.
The previous year to that, the shortfall was 8900 and before that 4200. What you saw under Labor was a dramatically increasing shortfall of land availability and housing. What you see under this government is a reduction. These things are on the way down, as is crime and many other things.
We are seeing the start of a reduction in house and rent prices. We hear on a daily basis that the heat has gone out of the market and it is much easier for people to get affordable housing.
We had the highest fuel costs in the nation under Labor. As a result of our candidate for Casuarina in the recent by-election, Mr Harry Kypreos, who instituted a price summit, we have seen prices fall in the Northern Territory …
Mr Elferink: And stay down.
Mr STYLES: And stay down. I say well done to Harry Kypreos for creating that benefit for Territorians.
We saw the Power and Water debt failure. I hope the Treasurer, if he will speak on this, will talk about the basket case we inherited in the Power and Water Corporation.
Crime rates are on the rise under the government. In fact, two days ago my colleague, the Minister for Correctional Services, articulated that Labor’s plan was to have even more people in gaol. In fact, they built a $1.8bn gaol to accommodate the massive increase …
Mr Elferink: Now their plan is to let them go.
Mr STYLES: Yes, now their plan is to let them go. How absurd is that? What sort of leadership is that? I hope the Leader of the Opposition has taken up my challenge to make an apology to Mr John Anictomatis, Mr Andy Bruyn and Mr Michael Tennant. It will be interesting to see whether that occurs.
We have seen crime figures go down. Of course, you see spikes, but when you come off an extremely high level and go to a low level, even with some increases that is far better than where it was. There are fluctuations when you have groups of people. In small jurisdictions like ours, yes, you can have some spikes from here to there. However, at the end of the day crime overall is down, assaults are down. It is not a bad story to tell. It is all led by our Chief Minister, Adam Giles.
What a failure the Banned Drinker Register was. The opposition talks about this, which is one of the things the Chief Minister stuck with. We have, at his instigation, temporary beat location. Even the Mayor of Katherine, who for some reason decided to leave the CLP, has reported that the town has never been cleaner and quieter. These are things that were led by the Chief Minister and are a result of the Giles government.
I look at the ongoing failures of those opposite and I feel very sorry for them. I am a compassionate person and I feel a lot of compassion for them. When you are part of a group of people which has led the Territory down the path of disaster – you created this big debt, you have no wealth creation programs going, your social policy is in tatters, crime is out of control and you are building big gaols because you think you need to lock up lots of people; things were not going too well.
Then along came the Country Liberal Party, which got the economy under control, saw a brighter future and got crime under control. There are so many successes this side has had, down to good governance, but probably also down to the disastrous results the Northern Territory had when Labor was on the government benches. They achieved shameful results. We are continuing to drive economic increases in the Northern Territory. We are driving jobs and people’s bright futures.
Under the Giles-led government, we have the largest infrastructure spend in the history of the Northern Territory. The member for Nhulunbuy said , ‘The Chief Minister claims to be interested in the regions, but he is not. I know.’ I would like to know what the member for Nhulunbuy knows about what the Chief Minister says in Cabinet, in our wing meetings and to staff who are part of the team driving the Northern Territory forward. They are part of the team that is creating economic wealth in the Northern Territory and putting together the pipeline, the prawn farms, the railway we are trying to get from Tennant Creek to Mount Isa, the new ports, exports and everything we are doing that is driving the Territory forward to create jobs.
Probably one of the best things to happen to regional, rural and remote Northern Territory is Adam Giles. He has shifted the focus from the Labor-held seats in the northern suburbs to the bush and has a more equitable program for people in the bush. I look at what the Department of Business is doing in business development programs for people in the bush.
Let us talk about increasing Aboriginal participation in the labour force, a priority of this government. Apart from being my priority, it is the Chief Minister’s priority. He is driving it to make sure people in the bush get a fair go.
The Department of Business supports Aboriginal workforce participation through the Indigenous Workforce Participation Initiatives program and Local Jobs for Local People Indigenous traineeships programs. The Northern Territory government, under the Giles leadership, recognises that Indigenous businesses have the capability to deliver contracted services. However, many have difficulty navigating the tender process. The Indigenous Business Support Tender Support program is an initiative of Adam Giles with a suite of support programs offered by the Department of Business and is available to any eligible Aboriginal business.
These are new initiatives that were never even thought of under Labor. They stand in this House and profess, ‘We are the party for Aboriginal people’. You heard from the member for Arafura, who said that is not quite correct. I did not hear what the member for Stuart had to say, but I am sure it is along the vein that when Labor was in government not much was achieved on behalf of Aboriginal people.
You heard the Chief Minister in Question Time today talk about what is happening on the Tiwi Islands and that a major Japanese company has signed a deal with the Tiwi Islands. That is something Labor did not want to happen. They wanted it to go away. I often wonder is Labor jealous that we have had so many successes on this side, because when you look at the facts, they reveal the Territory has achieved a lot and is moving forward. We are moving forward rapidly and that is great for the Northern Territory.
It must be sad to sit on that side when your team has had a go and made complete mess of it, and someone else comes along with a new team and fixes so many of the problems. I do not blame them for feeling a bit sad or upset, even angry. They should look at the good things in the Territory and not continually talk down the economy of the Northern Territory and try to scaremonger. Get the story right.
Talking of scaremongering, I recall earlier this week in the House, I think it was last Tuesday, after the sad incident of the shooting of the guy in the northern suburbs of Darwin. The police had reported that it seemed like these people knew one another. Yet the member for Nhulunbuy tried to run a scare campaign that this was a drive-by shooting.
Drive-by shootings are random shootings at people. She was trying to scare our community and get some cheap political headlines in the paper saying, ‘This is terrible; what is the Territory coming to?’ That is simply scaring people and not demonstrating the facts of the event known to the public.
I read the paper too, and that is what I knew. I knew that the paper was reporting something about the people involved probably being known to one another; that is the story. The news reports said that appeared to be the case. It was reported in the paper on Sunday. I will say again for the benefit of those listening, the member for Nhulunbuy called it a ‘drive-by shooting’. It was a very sad event.
The failures of the former Labor government - some of the team are still there from the previous government, one of whom is the deputy leader and also the Opposition Leader. They need to watch what they say and what they are doing with scaremongering in the community.
I will reiterate what I said a few minutes ago; I am very proud to be a member of the Country Liberals team led by Adam Giles.
I assure all Territorians that this team is working extremely hard, as was articulated by the Deputy Chief Minister. Everyone is working hard: the backbenchers, the ministers and the staff working for us. We are a very proud team. We have made a lot of progress and have achieved a lot. Sadly, Labor is still knocking us for all those achievements.
The Assembly divided:
Continued from earlier this day.
Mr VOWLES (Johnston): Mr Deputy Speaker, I read out before lunch the media release from AFANT about the water restrictions and what that means for them. There was no acknowledgement of AFANT’s concern about development of Glyde Point as a dirty port impacting on mangrove habitats and recreational fishing opportunities on our Darwin doorstep.
We have also heard AFANT being very vocal about concerns with this government’s approach to monitoring and regulating mining activity, including legacy mines, that potentially impacts on our aquatic systems and fish resources. Let us not forget it was AFANT which brought the issue of iron ore dust affecting marine life at the Bing Bong port and, joining with the traditional owners of the McArthur River area, expressed concerns about pollutants from the mine site, mine management and potential impacts on local fish resources.
While speaking of AFANT, I acknowledge the great work of Craig Ingram for his two-and-a-half years as CEO, particularly for progressing the development of AFANT as a very credible and effective representative body.
I welcome the new CEO of the Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the Northern Territory, Tristan Sloan. Tristan comes to this job well credentialed, with university qualifications in applied science, specialising in fisheries. I look forward to working with him and the board in the near future.
It is timely to note that despite the rosy picture the minister tries to paint, the CLP still has a way to go in delivering its promises to recreational fishers. Here are some of the concerns raised at the last AGM at AFANT in March this year:
There is a need for greater resourcing and support for Water Police to both address water safety issues and the regulation of fisheries regulations.
More support is needed for tag-and-reward schemes to involve recreational fishers in monitoring the health of our fish population.
There is a need to progress a resolution of outstanding Blue Mud Bay access issues
settlement of issues on the Finniss River and the stability of existing agreements in other places
the CLP’s deal making which has reduced access to fishing areas around the Tiwi Islands for recreational fishers
after two-and-a-half years there has been no real progress on fulfilling the election promise of a new Dundee boat ramp
the future of East Arm boat ramp, with the continuing infrastructure development there
unresolved issues relating to access to Catalina Creek in Darwin Harbour for fishers
the CLP plans, both short and long-term, for Shady Camp
a scoping study for potential boat ramps in the Darwin metro region
the potential closure of Cooper Creek in western Arnhem Land to commercial fishers.
There is also a call to protect our waterways and fishing resources from speculative projects that could be promoted under the northern Australian development agenda, particularly the harvesting of environmental water flows and other projects that could adversely impact on fishery resources. There were concerns raised about the monitoring and regulation of Roper mining operations, including potential breaches of environmental requirements and the need for risk management of these mining operations under administration.
The minister’s statement also notes the importance of continuing support for Indigenous land and marine ranger groups. We will always support these programs and their development. However, we remain gravely concerned about cuts in federal support for these groups, particularly under the IAS grants scheme. We look to the minister to update us on what he knows and is doing to ensure adequate federal funding for these groups in Northern Territory, and for a commitment to fight on the rangers’ behalf for more support and to find ways for the NT government to ensure no lessening of support for these groups to ensure their stability and continued development should funding gaps emerge.
The ranger groups are an important part of the management of our resources, and safer, more sustainable access to water ways, particularly in remote parts of the Territory for recreational fishers. Fisheries are important to the Northern Territory, both in commercial and amateur forms. It is important, and part of our great Territory lifestyle.
I hope when it comes to serious issues about fisheries, we can have a bipartisan approach. It is politics. The main thing is to look after our fisheries and keep the interests of commercial and amateur fisherman at the forefront of any decisions the government makes. I am very thankful for the briefings I have had. I know the minister has worked hard in this area, and it means a lot to both parties to make sure we get it right.
We will continue to develop practical and progressive Labor policies supporting sustainable use of our fisheries resources. It is important for the Territory’s fisheries and our fishers, both commercial and amateur, that when we can, we have bipartisan support to further develop the future of this industry.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE (Primary Industry and Fisheries): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank all the members who contributed to this statement. By and large, those contributions were very meaningful and I enjoyed hearing some of the comments and views espoused by members on this side of the House and those opposite.
Picking up on some comments made by the last speaker, the member for Johnston, I agree that fishing should largely be dealt with in a bipartisan way. Regardless of politics, we still have the same resource in the oceans and rivers, and it is about finding a way to manage those resources going forward.
We all want to see sustainable fisheries in the future. That is why I have done a lot in the last two-and-a-half years to make sure those fisheries are in the best condition they can be now and in the future.
Quite often I hear very reasoned debates coming from the opposition spokesman on fisheries, the member for Johnston. Every now and then he throws in some politics. I am still not quite with him when he talks about water allocations and refers to some of the comments made by stakeholder groups in that area, but that is the nature of this job.
I will wrap up by saying a few things about the contribution from the member for Drysdale. I completely agree with her comments. She loves fishing and knows many people who like fishing. I admire her vision in stocking the Palmerston lakes with fish to bring the community together and provide more accessible locations for fishing for Territorians living in the Palmerston region with limited access to transport. It is a very interesting concept. The member for Drysdale and I have been working on this for a while and the department has been heavily engaged in looking at how and if it can become a reality.
For the most part, this government’s direction to protect and enhance recreational fishing in the Northern Territory is important and on the right track. We always hear calls for additional scientific research and monitoring of our fisheries. I could not agree more wholeheartedly. We have been working on developing and implementing a strategy that will ensure the long-term sustainability of our fisheries, which will include ongoing monitoring to ensure the continued health of our fish stocks and the environment.
Although I give ministerial statements on fishing generally – this one is about recreational fishing in the Northern Territory – a lot of detail is not included about the type of research work occurring. I could probably stand here for several hours talking about the multiple research projects under way in the department of Fisheries. Some of our recent research has led to changes to the coastal line fishery area to combat the decline of a number of our important reef stocks, such as golden snapper and jewfish. That is just one example of the research and monitoring under way.
That dovetails with a lot of work being done by the aquatic health unit within the Land Resource Management department, as well. Monitoring the health of our water ways and harbour is also critical to make sure we have healthy environments for sustainable fish stocks across the Top End.
Since I delivered this recreational fishing statement last year, there has been progress in all those areas. We have delivered on our promise to introduce a resource sharing framework to protect Territory fisheries in the future. The framework, which I launched in May this year, will ensure Top End waterways are used in a sustainable and fair way.
Fisheries across the Territory have a maximum annual harvest. It is important we have the right mix between traditional, recreational and also commercial fishers. The Fisheries Resource Sharing Framework provides a clear and simple process to guide government decisions about fisheries usage, ensuring a fair, transparent and equitable system.
All future fisheries management decisions will be made in alignment with the framework to give fishers confidence in the process. This is part of the government’s commitment to a fair, reasonable, equitable and transparent modus operandi when it comes to managing our fisheries. That framework was developed in conjunction with the NT Seafood Council, the Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the Northern Territory, the Northern Land Council and the NT Guided Fishing Industry Association.
The Northern Territory government consulted widely with the community to ensure the framework is representative of all user groups. I am proud to say the Fisheries Resource Sharing Framework has struck the right balance for sustainable, equitable and optimal use of the Territory’s aquatic resources. The Northern Territory is renowned for the great outdoor lifestyle and abundant fisheries, and this framework will make sure it is protected long into the future. The framework is consistent with national guidelines around best practice for fisheries management.
Quite frankly, we are at the leading edge with much of the fisheries work being done within the Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries. I congratulate the fisheries division of Primary Industry and Fisheries and the staff who work there. They do an incredible job. They have been providing me with sound advice over the past two-and-three-quarter years. Since becoming the minister, I have learnt a heck of a lot about the fisheries of the Northern Territory. I am pleased the member for Johnston has acknowledged the briefings he has received and the work that goes into those briefings. Of course, I am happy to continue to provide them for you.
It is a sad, though, that the member for Barkly, in his contribution, made some negative remarks. Is it not time he removed his rose-coloured glasses and looked at history with 20:20 vision? Under the former Labor government, there were few new initiatives to grow the recreational fishing industry for small business. There were few, if any, new initiatives to create opportunities for Territorians and visitors to land a metrey. By contrast, the Country Liberals government has proudly made many advances to recreational fishing opportunities, and we are determined to protect this industry and pastime for future generations.
Following on from that theme, fisheries management is a combination of a few things. The member for Johnston mentioned artificial reefs. In this budget we have announced $250 000 for a scoping study for artificial reefs around the Darwin region. I am hopeful that will lead to an artificial reef program at some point. That goes to the nub of the point I want to make that one component of fisheries management is making sure you have a good budget allocation from the overall Territory budget. Without that budget allocation, they are the programs we cannot get up and running. If there is any advice I can offer a future minister for Fisheries, it is to make sure he or she pushes hard to get those budget allocations so you can drive that new generation of fisheries management for the good of our kids and grandkids.
The other component of fisheries management is getting sound advice and making sure you have the right people in the Fisheries department to provide it, and then having the courage to make what are sometimes quite tough decisions. I spoke in the previous debate about the tough decisions government has to make at times. It is important that ministers have the mettle to make those tough calls. I made some changes to the coastal line fishery in the last few months. Arguably some of those modifications to the fishery could have been made when the sustainability issues of golden snapper and jewfish were first raised in 2009, and in the years between 2009 and 2012. The previous Fisheries minister – I think for that period of time it was the former member for Casuarina Kon Vatskalis – did not have the courage to make those decisions. That is another component, as well.
The other thing is to be a bit visionary about fisheries and make sure you have some big ideas. We all know our big ideas will, no doubt, get pared back in the budget process; that is a pretty normal. But be visionary about fisheries in the Northern Territory and that will bode well for those fisheries in the future.
In the statement I announced the removal of the Mary River seasonal closure. All reports since then indicate that Territorians and visitors have relished the opportunity to fish on the Mary, particularly around Shady Camp, over the past few months in what was previously the closed season. That is one of the achievements we have made in supporting, growing and enhancing the Territory’s recreational fishing opportunities.
One of the big things that came out of that was the growth for businesses around the Shady Camp area. They reported some significant increases in business now the closed season has been done away with. That is an almost unintended consequence of making what we believed to be a sound decision based on the science around that fishery.
Other achievements for the government include closing Finke and Chambers Bays to commercial barramundi fishing, establishing the Recreational Fishing Advisory Committee, implementing the Recreational Fishery Development Plan, establishing a recreational fishing data survey program to better understand recreational fishing patterns in the Territory, reaching seven agreements with traditional owners around the Territory for ongoing access for fishers to waters affected by Blue Mud Bay, implementing a comprehensive safety and recreational fishing education program in conjunction with the Marine Safety Division, and, of course, the announcement of the seasonal closure of Mary River being removed. Recreational fishers can now fish year round at the iconic Shady Camp barrage and along the Mary River.
The member for Johnston mentioned a range of programs. I am pleased this government has been supporting the ranger programs since we have been in government, and will continue to do so. I notice the funding for ranger programs flowing on through support of the Blue Mud Bay decision coming from the Commonwealth. We have also announced in this budget additional support for those ranger programs.
Recreational fishing is an important social and traditional activity for many Territorians. I am really proud of the work this government has done and the support I have had from my colleagues. I am very lucky I have been the minister for Fisheries since being elected in 2012, and I have had really stellar support from all my colleagues on this side of the House to further the agenda for recreational fishing in the Northern Territory.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend the statement to the House.
Motion agreed to; statement noted.
Mrs FINOCCHIARO (Drysdale): Mr Deputy Speaker, I table the answers to questions taken on notice during the Estimates Committee’s consideration of estimates of proposed expenditure contained in the schedule to the Appropriation Bill 2015-16, and the government Owned Corporations Scrutiny Committee’s consideration of the activities, performance, practices and financial management of the Power and Water Corporation, Jacana Energy and Territory Generation.
Mrs FINOCCHIARO (Drysdale): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the report be printed.
Motion agreed to.
Continued from 26 November 2014.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE (Primary Industry and Fisheries): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the Chief Minister and ministers Higgins and Styles for their input on this important issue.
The history we know. In 2008 the High Court of Australia handed down its decision with regard to Blue Mud Bay. The High Court found the Fisheries Act is valid in tidal waters over Aboriginal land but a permit is required to enter and remain on those lands. Those intertidal waters are the area between the low water and high water mark.
The Blue Mud Bay decision presented a range of practical problems, not least the inability for either fishers or traditional owners to identify the extent of the waters that overlie that Aboriginal land. This government is committed to reaching agreements which provide a practical win/win solution for traditional owners and recreational and commercial fishers. These agreements will allow ongoing access to affected waters by recreational and commercial fishers. They will provide greater opportunities for traditional owners to be involved in managing and benefiting from fishing activity, not just in the narrow band affected by the intertidal waters, but right across their sea country.
The Country Liberal government has allocated $2.7 m from this year’s budget for Blue Mud agreements. The formal allocation of this funding will ensure the delivery of a range of initiatives, including marine ranger program training and support and access payments to traditional owners for the term of those agreements already reached. I make that point again on the back of comments in the last debate about this government’s support for ranger programs.
I am proud to say that seven agreements have been reached for the following regions: the upper Daly, the Daly River mouth to Cape Ford, the McArthur River and Sir Edward Pellew Group of Islands, the Minimini and Murgenella Region, Nhulunbuy, Wadeye and the Tiwi Islands. New fishing brochures have been developed for the Daly River, Tiwi Islands and Borroloola areas which acknowledge the permission granted by traditional owners to visit their land. They also outline a code of conduct for fishers, which is very important. I am pleased to inform the House that a Nhulunbuy fishing brochure is in its final drafting stage. I am sure the member for Nhulunbuy will be pleased to hear that.
These communities have worked in partnership with my Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries to develop the brochures and provide local artwork for the design. These programs are successfully delivering economic growth for Indigenous communities. The Blue Mud Bay agreements are seeing an increase in employment and workplace skills along with development opportunities for remote Aboriginal communities.
The Country Liberals government is committed to giving traditional owners across the Territory coastline the opportunity to consider the government’s offer to enable ongoing permit-free access to intertidal waters overlying Aboriginal land. That resolve has not changed. While the seven agreements reached to date encompass most key recreational fishing areas, formal negotiations have not been able to be progressed in some key commercial fishing areas. However, traditional owners from a number of coastal communities in Arnhem Land, including Baniyala, which is Blue Mud Bay – where the Blue Mud Bay case actually began – Ramingining, Millingimbi and Ngukurr/Numbulwar have shown they have a keen interest in holding negotiations with government over individual agreements for those areas.
Government is keen to progress these negotiations as soon as it is practical to allow traditional owners the opportunity to consider a formal agreement. At this stage the Northern Land Council has extended the interim arrangements until the end of December this year. I once again thank the Northern Land Council for extending that period of time to allow their traditional owners to negotiate with the government on Blue Mud Bay.
Given the number of community meetings that will still be required, it is clear that further time is required to allow these discussions to progress. Government has made it clear it is prepared to continue to devote resources to the further negotiations to ensure all traditional owners have the opportunity to consider an offer for an agreement that will provide opportunities and the improved management of their sea country.
In February this year 17 marine rangers from four different ranger groups participated in Certificate II Fisheries Compliance training in Maningrida. In May this year 12 marine rangers and 10 land-based rangers became the first ever to undertake Certificate III Fisheries Compliance training for Indigenous rangers in Darwin. They commenced that training and it was fantastic. Their final exams are scheduled for the end of August this year.
Fisheries regulations amendments to enhance the Aboriginal coastal licences will be implemented from 1 July 2015 and will provide small business opportunities for Indigenous Territorians and hopefully see an increase in the availability of fresh seafood for remote community stores. This was a topic I discussed only last week with the Chairman of the Northern Land Council about having more opportunities for Indigenous people on coastal areas to engage in small-scale commercial fishing opportunities. That is coming to fruition. To help facilitate this commitment, the Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries has established a commercial fishing mentoring program to provide training to interested communities.
Amendments to the Fisheries Act are also being drafted which include new provisions for fisheries inspectors that will allow appropriately qualified and experienced marine rangers to have enforcement powers. There is a turn up for the books.
There are many benefits of the Blue Mud Bay agreement, including: actively involving Aboriginal Territorians in aquatic resource management; improving the efficiency of marine surveillance, compliance and scientific research; building small business capacity in remote communities; providing locally caught fresh seafood for health and cultural benefits; increasing the capacity of Indigenous Marine Ranger groups to operate under fee-for-service arrangements; and, importantly, genuine engagement with communities.
I remain optimistic about the future for all the Blue Mud Bay negotiations, and I look forward to updating the House on this very important matter in the future. I commend the statement to the House.
Motion agreed to; statement noted.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Honourable members, I table a report from the member for Arafura, pursuant to the RTD clause 4.12 and also the member for Greatorex, who has been working hard travelling to Darwin in preparation for sittings.
Mr ELFERINK (Leader of Government Business): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the Assembly do now adjourn.
Mrs FINOCCHIARO (Drysdale): Mr Deputy Speaker, last year Palmerston welcomed a passionate group of volunteers who got together to establish the Palmerston Athletics Club under the leadership of Priya Wickremasena.
The interim committee, made up of John Bowden, the General Manager of NT Athletics; Aaron McMahon from Defence Athletics and founder of Slim Digital; and Priya Wickremasena, a masters athlete and Athletics Australia registered coach, established a vision and mission for the club, a location from which it would operate, a constitution and structure under which it would be governed, and now in 2015 we are seeing the fruits of their hard work with the commencement of the club’s first season from 19 April 2015. The interim committee kindly sought my endorsement as local member and I wholeheartedly endorsed their dream to see a Palmerston athletics club.
The interim committee then took their proposal to the Palmerston community and sought office bearers and members. Kelly Poe, a local mum, stepped up and took on some committee responsibilities. Peter Archer and Darryl Miller, both Palmerston dads who are also Australian qualified coaches, also stepped up to regularly contribute to the club’s activities. Lee Wilson, the NT Manager of Life. Be In It, has also assisted the Palmerston Athletics Club a great deal. He has promoted the club within the school community which has greatly helped to increase the number of youth members.
The club’s overarching goal is to promote athletics and fitness in the Northern Territory. The club wants to encourage young Territorians to engage with athletics and develop basic running, throwing and jumping skills, which are the three skills that form the basis of all sports and games.
A Facebook page has been established so members and friends can keep track of the club’s progress. Everyone is invited to like the page which is called Palmerston Athletics Club.
The club acknowledges how important parents are in fostering a healthy lifestyle for their children and encouraging them to participate in sports. As Priya always says, there are not many 10-year-olds who wake up on Sunday morning and drive themselves to athletics training. In order for young people to participate, there is a valuable contribution being made by parents. In recognition of that contribution, Palmerston Athletics Club has decided that as a part of its offering to its members and as part of its philosophy, something must be offered to engage parents who bring their children to training. The club has a model of community-engaged athletics, which is a commitment by the club to ensure all children’s training session involve the parents so mums and dad, aunties, uncles, grandparents and carers are all running around during training. This commitment has been tremendously successful and is a major achievement of the club.
For parents, it is a great way to spend time with their children, foster their child’s participation in athletics, and get a little fitness training themselves while they are at it. The engagement of parents in training sessions was a key part of the club’s mission statement and was set as a key performance indicator to gauge the success of the club. It is a key part of the club’s commitment to promoting a healthy, active lifestyle for all Territorians. I am pleased to report to the parliament that the club is succeeding.
The club is also keenly fostering what it calls pending medals. These are young athletes with tremendous potential who, with the right training and support, could compete for Australia at the Commonwealth and Olympic games. The club takes a responsibility to identify young talent early and create pathways for them to excel. Additional specialised training is provided for its pending medals, who are provided the best technical coaching training available. This is a huge commitment for the club, which is still establishing itself and has limited resources.
The club is looking forward to the upcoming NT championships and believes it will compete strongly in this competition. I look forward to receiving updates from the club on how its members went.
In the short lifespan of this club it has made a concerted effort to build close relationships with other athletics clubs, including the Darwin Athletics Club. Every Friday night Palmerston seniors compete against Darwin seniors at Marrara. Palmerston also recently participated in an annual interclub competition at which its 100 m relay team did a fantastic job.
In the future, the club would like to see a synthetic track built in Palmerston and believe that this facility would not only benefit athletics but also other sports that could use the track for agility training and conditioning work.
The Palmerston Athletics Club trains at Northline Oval on Sunday mornings from 10 am to 11 am. Everyone is invited to attend one of the sessions to see firsthand the way families can engage in club activities. I commend Priya and his committee for their hard work and passion for the Palmerston Athletics Club. I look forward to attending one of its training sessions and for the ongoing success of its membership.
Ms PURICK (Goyder): Mr Deputy Speaker, I rise this evening to talk about a group of people in the rural area, the Friends of Taminmin Library, and the wonderful community work they do and the enjoyment they bring to so many people. Before I speak about the people involved with that group, I will talk a little about the history of libraries because it is interesting and it goes to the heart of what these people try to do. They not only read books, journals and magazines but they spread the word and are keepers of history.
The word library comes from the Latin word liber, which means book. For as long as there have been people to record and document information about the world around them, there have been libraries in which to store that information. In the prehistoric age people drew pictures on the walls of caves in order to pass knowledge along. These caves could be considered the very first libraries in the world.
As the world changed, language also changed and evolved. As languages developed the peoples of the ancient world also found new ways to store and transfer their records. The Sumerians were credited with inventing writing and libraries around 300 BC. They lived in what is now called Iraq. They wrote by breaking reeds and pressing them into clay tablets. It must have been pretty tricky but it was all they had at the time. This type of writing is called cuneiform, which is Latin for wedge. Sumerians kept their tablets in temples and used them to keep records of grain harvests and to write hymns.
Archaeologists have uncovered several libraries from around this period. One library from a city called Ebla has over 15 000 tablets which contain writings about many topics, including plants, animals and maths. The most famous Sumerian text is called the Epic of Gilgamesh. This epic poem, written around 2000 BC, is all about the adventures of Gilgamesh, the ruler of the ancient city of Uruk and became a very desirable book to collectors around the world at the time.
Around that time libraries were also starting to be established in Alexandria, Egypt, and they kept the written language – the Egyptians had hieroglyphics which were picture symbols and stood for sounds and ideas. Over the years there were tremendous libraries set up that stored all the information across that empire.
The Dead Sea Scrolls – in 1947 a shepherd in Jordan made one of the most important discoveries of the 20th century. When looking for a lost goat in the caves near the Dead Sea, in one of the caves the shepherd found seven scrolls inside broken clay jars. The scrolls were made of animal skin and wrapped in cloth. The shepherd took the scrolls and sold them in Bethlehem. In 1948 the scholars in Jerusalem announced that the scrolls, which were written between 150 BC and 70 CE, contained books from the Hebrew Bible. Archaeologists then excavated other caves around the Dead Sea and by 1956 they had found over 800 texts in 11 different caves. The site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found is called Qumran and was home to a group called the Essenes, one of the three sects of ancient Judaism.
There were also libraries set up in China, probably around 2000 BC. There were libraries set up in Japan in about 700 BC, in India – Islamic libraries, Roman libraries and then Western European libraries. Libraries started to be established in the Renaissance period and it was fashionable to gather in libraries to learn and read, and to hear other people read because in those days not a lot of people could read. They relied upon the people of the day, some of them nobly called clerks, who read to others.
Many people know about the Dewey Decimal Classification system used in most libraries around the western world but not many people know about the person who invented it. It was a gentleman by the name of Melvil Dewey and he was a compulsive innovator, which sounds very interesting. He was born in 1851, and everyone is familiar with his signature achievement, the Dewey Decimal Classification system, but not so much about the man.
He was born in Upstate New York, and the story says he could not stop thinking about number 10. As an adolescent, Dewey fell hard for the metric system whose great superiority, as he wrote in a high school essay:
He thought 10 was a magical number. Dewey was convinced it was no accident he was born on 10 December, the same day the French National Assembly adopted the platinum metre bar in 1799.
At the Lake Placid Club, the cooperative resort in the Adirondacks that he established in 1895, the number 10 ruled. He charged members a $10 annual fee, life time memberships were $1000 or $10 cubed. He required that guests turn off their lights at exactly 10 pm, the same time the overnight train from the club left for Manhattan. This was a man who was addicted to writing 10-page letters, and even preferred to sleep decimally – that is, for 10 hours each night.
Moreover, Dewey’s worship of the number 10 was closely related to other obsessions that also dated back to his boyhood. At age five he was already alphabetising the spices in his mother’s pantry. He was a perfectionist. Dewey was preoccupied with order, details, rules and lists, symptoms of a form of illness known to psychiatrists as Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder. However, he was a clever man and went on to do great things in his life in the world of libraries and in education.
He has left us a system most libraries use today. The Dewey system can be very complicated, but is basically built on sound principles that make it ideal as a general knowledge organisational tool. The system is divided into 10 main classes which together cover the entire world of knowledge. Each main class is further divided into 10 divisions and each division into 10 sections. Not all the numbers for the divisions and the sections have been used. Sometimes you can have subjects of books that go into different systems.
I will not go into the full detail because I could not follow some of the words I was reading. However, it goes to the heart of what I am trying to say, and that is there are people not only in the rural area with the Friends of Taminmin Library but elsewhere who value the current and future importance of our libraries.
The Friends of Taminmin Library is a group of people based at Taminmin College Library. Taminmin library is a jointly-used library with two separate parts operating as one entity for both Taminmin College and the rural community. Recently, the long-time and much loved teacher librarian, Liz Short, retired, and the new teacher librarian is Tracy Wing. Liz had been with the library and the school for many years and was very popular. She is now having a lovely time in retirement enjoying her grandchildren but still comes back to the library for various functions.
The library also has been very lucky and fortunate to have stable staff throughout 2014 and into 2015. On the college side, there was Liz Short and now Tracy Wing, and Robyn Bishop as the college library technician. On the community side there is Iris Beale, the library manager; Dianne Wilcox is in inter-library loans; Jul Moulday runs the country borrowing service; Lyn Carseldine is in children’s services; and Grace Craddock has proven she can do everything and is a real delight. All those people make the library a very special place.
The Friends of Taminmin Library meet there on a regular basis. They are involved in putting on morning tea and events, and in March this year they had the AGM for the community library. It is my great pleasure to let the Chamber people know that again Sandra Parker, who is a very keen and dedicated person when it comes to Friends of Taminmin Library, was selected chairman. Anna Durbridge was selected as vice chairman, Lyn Gerdes is the secretary, treasurer is Shelly Grobler, and the public officer is Sandra Parker. Other people on the committee are Robin Hempel, John Ottway, Angie Wallace, Pauline Fitzmaurice, Gisela Erfurt, Anna Rosencranz and Pat Jones. All those people do quite a lot to make the Friends of Taminmin Library the successful organisation it is.
They hold book fairs and go to the Berry Springs market on a regular basis to sell second-hand books. They are only too happy to show people round the library and welcome them to the world of books and words. Congratulations to those people for being so much part of our rural community. I wish them well for this year and the future.
Ms MANISON (Wanguri): Mr Deputy Speaker, this evening I place my congratulations on the record to some of my local schools for some wonderful recent events which were opened up to the broader community.
Firstly, to the Leanyer School community for the successful Walk Safely to School Day. This is a wonderful event where all the students gather at the top of VRD Drive and make the walk to school, along VRD Drive and Leanyer Drive. I attended last year to join the walk and this year I attended again. To see the numbers grow significantly from year to year is a wonderful thing. It was great to see the involvement of the school-based constable and to have the police there doing the speed checks, reminding the community about the school zones and speeding. Overall it was a wonderful event, and very well organised this year by teacher, Fran Selvadurai. It was the first time she organised the event. She did a wonderful job, so well done. It was a pleasure to join them and see the positive message being sent to children, parents and the broader community about safety, especially during peak hours when children are making their way to school and heading home at the end of the school day.
I also place my congratulations on the record to the Wanguri school community on its recent twilight sports carnival. It was another successful sports day for the school. Congratulations to Dundas house on taking out the sports carnival this year, followed closely by Wellington. Third place was Palmerston and fourth was Victoria. A special thanks goes to Anne Goodman, who organised the events, and to all the parents who volunteered to take part in the sports carnival. They also ran the barbecue, something I am always happy to support and donate snags to; it helps the school raise funds. The school wanted to thank students and staff from Dripstone and the SEDA students who helped with the events and scoring on the day. Well done; it was another great sports carnival for the year, for Gail Quigley and her school. I am looking forward to seeing the event again next year.
I also say congratulations to the Holy Spirit school community; it was great to attend the presentation for their sports carnival last week where, after a very tight day of competition, Angelo was successful in winning on 376 points, McAuley came in second on 371, Strele on 344 came in third, and Gsell came in on fourth place with 342 points. There were some very tight finishes on the day and very close results.
The students and staff put a great effort into the sports carnival. It was a wonderful turnout again, with parents and grandparents coming along to watch everybody compete in events. The result of the carnival is that 54 students are now qualified to represent Holy Spirit at the Darwin region athletics carnival, scheduled to take place on 31 July at Arafura stadium.
A very big thanks and congratulations goes to their wonderful Assistant Principal, Paula Sellars, for coordinating the early childhood and primary school carnivals. The students prepared for the carnival through their weekly PE sessions. The school would also like to thank, Sally Riley, from the SEDA school who came out with 27 of her students and assisted with marshalling events. It was a great day for all, capped off with a beautiful day.
Patrick Johnson, a legendary Australian sprinter and record holder for 100 m sprinting, also came along to cheer on the students at Holy Spirit and played another role of inspiring those kids getting out there on the track. Thank you, Patrick, for coming along and encouraging them, and well done to Holy Spirit school.
Lastly, I place my congratulations on the record to the Darwin Malayalee Association, a wonderful community organisation which supports many people who move over to the Territory from the Kerala region in India. I have the pleasure a few times every year of attending their wonderful events. This was the first time I attended their sports carnival, which took place in Alawa.
I came in on the last night of events, on the Sunday night, where they were finishing up with a tug-of-war. I have never seen anything quite like it. It followed on from many other events, including football – or soccer as I call it – and cricket. The tug-of-war was the end event and I do not think I have ever seen such fierce competition between groups in a tug-of-war. I never quite realised the pride and tradition in the Darwin Malayalee community for the event. It was fierce to say the least – very heated, lots of cheering, yelling and passion. It was very tightly contested. Well done, it was quite a sight. I am sure they would more than welcome other people to come and watch. It was spectacular.
Well done on a wonderful event, particularly to the President, Mr Salas Abraham; the Public Relations Officer, Mr Tomy Jacob; and, of course, Jennifer for her hospitality on the evening. The Malayalee Association does a wonderful job of welcoming people to the Darwin community, giving them the support they need as they get used to life in the Territory. More broadly, they also contribute to the Darwin community. I am sure they will be helping out in huge numbers this weekend at India on Mindil.
Congratulations to the Darwin Malayalee Association. I am hoping to get to your sports carnival again next year and see that wonderful event.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for allowing me the spot ahead of his good self.
I wish to adjourn on a number of matters back home in my wonderful electorate of Nhulunbuy where, despite what we have been through in the last 18 months, many good things still happen.
Nhulunbuy High School recently held its swimming carnival on 29 April 2015 in our beautiful town pool. The winning team was Giddies, whose 2015 House Captains and Vice Captains are Sam Smith, Mahlia Snowden, John-Paul Gilmore and Meagan Morris.
In the championship scores, the Under 13 Male champion was Clancy Brennan and runner up Marley Skertchly. The Under 13 Female champion was Charli Appo and the runner up was Wanetta Willis.
The Under 14 Male champion was Callan Carey and the runner up was Harry Pitkin.
The Under 14 Female champion was Teagan Stiff and the runner up was Cooper Bartlett.
The Under 15 Male champion was Macallaster Barnett and the runners up tied were Tallis Naughton and William Smith.
The Under 15 Female champion was Cheyenne Reynolds and the runner up Mahlia Snowden.
The Under 16 Male champion was Jack Pitkin and the runner up was Cameron Stiff.
The Under 16 Female champion was Bandjirrang Yunupingu.
The Open Male champion was Alex Parfitt and the runner up Caleb Epiha.
The Open Female champion was Abbey-Rose Vaggs and the runner up was Meagan Morris.
Congratulations to all of those kids. Obviously it is not just about the championship side of things in running the school swimming carnival. There are a lot of fun things that happen during the day for kids who do not want to be in those competitive-type events lining up for medals. It is always a fun day at the Nhulunbuy High School swimming carnival.
I acknowledge the hard work I know teachers put into running the day, particularly those from the PE department. It is a great day out for the students, the teachers and the mums and dads who go along and visit the carnival during the day. It is always well attended, so well done to everybody involved.
In the last sittings I talked about an Arnhem region school sport trip into Darwin. That was the Under 12 Aussie Rules boys. There has been another one and this time it was the school sport girls’ soccer trip. I thank Jeremy Robinson, our School Sport Coordinator for Arnhem, who provided me with these words. He organised the Arnhem girls’ soccer team to compete in the Under 12 soccer competition held in Darwin.
The team undertook a 16-hour drive to Darwin, travelling on the Lirrwi Tourism four-wheel-drive bus, picking up six additional team members at the Ramingining/Arnhem Highway turnoff. The girls got to practise together for the very first time half-an-hour before their first game. Some of these girls had never played soccer in their lives.
The Arnhem region played a total of eight games of which they won one game against the Darwin Dingoes. – one goal to zero – and they drew two games. All players, coaches, chaperones and support staff should be greatly acknowledged for their enthusiasm and effort.
The team was made up of students from Nhulunbuy Christian School, Nhulunbuy Primary School, Nhulunbuy High School, Yirrkala School and Ramingining School. The players were Leila Dunn, who is Captain; Dhandiya Garrawurra; Madajula Garawirrtja; Bundatja Gumara; Nanukula Burarrwanga; Meagan O’Dwyer; Tiana Inglis; Lowena Mununggurritj; Phoebe Lamboa; Richelle Malibirr; Vanessa Gaykamangu; Zoe Malibirr; Brandy Dhamarrandji; and Shakayla Gaykamangu. The coaches were Lee Gordon and Tina Trudgen. Goodness me! That makes me feel old. I used to teach Tina Trudgen a long time ago.
The chaperones were Rakrakpuy from Yirrkala and Shirley from Ramingining. Denzel Shine from Nhulunbuy High School – I know Denzel and his family – also travelled with the group to work as referee for three days at the boy’s competition.
The sponsors who helped to make this trip possible included me; I was very happy to give a financial contribution that helped with the purchase of food for the journey. Other important sponsors were Lirrwi Tourism; Rirratjingu Aboriginal Corporation; Miwatj Health; the Department of Education; Cheryl O’Dwyer, one of the parents who travelled; and Dave Neenan at Gove Rentals for the support vehicle.
The journey and the participation in this school sport competition struck a chord with some Darwinites. It featured on the ABC Radio Facebook page and I know Liz Trevaskis – I think it was – did an interview with Jeremy Robinson and some of the kids. It was a delightful story. It was a 16 hour journey to get here with some of them playing soccer for the first time, meeting together for the first time as a team, and then making the long journey back to Nhulunbuy.
I will also talk about the RSPCA Million Paws Walk, which was coordinated in Nhulunbuy on Sunday 17 May. As we know, the Million Paws Walk was occurring right around the country. There were an estimated 35 dogs which participated in the event and I think at least $2000 was raised to support our own Nhulunbuy RSPCA.
I was one of the sponsors of the event. I walked the walk – along with other dog owners – with my dear little miniature Dachshund, Pippa Von Kransky. On his little legs I was not sure he was going to make the whole distance but he was pretty keen and we managed to cover what was probably about a four kilometre walk.
Congratulations to Jacob Mery, and I thank him for his fantastic efforts. He donated the earnings from his doggy treat sales that were recently held in Nhulunbuy. Other sponsors included Shonane Beazley on behalf of Thirsty Camel, who provided a selection of delicious homemade cakes; Marion Adams from Woolworths, who provided the voucher for the raffle; and Sally Dutton, who provided delicious sushi.
It was not just about getting together and going for a walk with the dogs, there were little activities to keep the dogs and their owners occupied as everybody was getting organised to head off on the walk, and then when we returned there were plenty of refreshments and food for people to participate in.
A special thank you must go to all the RSPCA volunteers who worked tirelessly to bring this event to Gove, especially Liz Brown. Liz Brown, or Thin Lizzy as she is known, is instrumental with her work with the RSPCA as a kennel manager and fund raiser. Liz, along with other RSPCA volunteers, has provided a vital role in the past 18 months where, in the downturn Nhulunbuy has been through, we have lost our full-time vet, the wonderful Dr Sue Samuelsson, because her husband lost his job. They have two small children and she had to move to Darwin. She still owns the premises and the practice but it has been incredibly difficult for her to try to run it from Darwin. I want to acknowledge not only the great job Dr Samuelsson has done in supporting RSPCA, but our RSPCA volunteers who have stepped up and provided advice to pet owners, particularly when the call goes out general on social media, on Gove noticeboard Facebook, where someone says there is something wrong with their dog or cat, asking what it might be.
I apologise if I have left somebody out but there are other fabulous RSPCA volunteers in Nhulunbuy, including Richard Lewis, Sharon Asplin, Linda Alexander, Scott Halliday, Anta van Gelder, Cheryl O’Dwyer, Murray Wilson and family, and Deb Barba. A shout out must also go to Pep Phelan for contributing her photography skills. Pep is a relatively new arrival to our town. She is a great community member and it does not matter where you go, you will always see Pep out with her camera.
I suspect that Nhulunbuy Corporation was somehow involved in supporting this event. I know our fabulous CE Angela MacMillan is also a lover of dogs. She has two dogs and I know she is involved in the walk, so I daresay the NCL was involved.
I also want to highlight the efforts of our Rotary Club in recently conducting a quiz night. Twenty-nine teams entered the event. It is always a fabulous night and it raises money for the community. They work tirelessly to run these events, and I want to acknowledge each and every one of them even though I have run out of time to list their names.
Mr BARRETT (Blain): Mr Deputy Speaker, tonight I will talk about some issues in Palmerston. There has been some unrest there. The council is looking to change the rating system from a flat rate to a UCV-linked system. The UCV-linked system takes the unimproved capital value of the land and multiplies it by a particular multiple which creates a value, and that value reflects people’s rates. They have also set a threshold level of $277 000 at the moment.
In effect, for most people in Palmerston their rates are not moving, but people living on blocks valued higher than $277 000 will see their rates move quite drastically. In some cases, particularly for people who live in the Marlow Lagoon area and some of the new blocks in Bellamack that are semi-country blocks, their rates will go up more than 100%. That is a heck of a lot of money, and many people living in the Marlow Lagoon area who bought their home many years ago, some of whom are pensioners, do not have the capacity to come up with a 125% increase in rates.
This system has been peddled as being fairer, but Marlow Lagoon residents, and a growing number of other residents in the Palmerston area affected by this, believe it is not fair at all. The rate rise is intended to raise about $1.7m. The reasons they need to raise $1.7m at this point are not the issue. The issue is they are proposing to do something which puts the burden of this revenue measure on a low number of people.
Currently in Palmerston there are about 12 082 residential properties, 299 commercial properties and 214 industrial properties. For the 2015-16 year it is estimated there will be $12 582 residential properties, 299 commercial properties and 268 industrial properties. For the 2014-15 financial year the estimated rates income is about $16.7m made up of people in residential properties – the vast majority – about $14.7, and the rest are smaller numbers: $1.5m for commercial properties and $0.5m for industrial properties.
They are trying to get about $18.4m made up of $16.17m from residential properties, $1.7m from commercial properties and $500 000 or so from industrial properties. They have about $30m in the bank, which is a truckload of money, particularly considering the current situation of the Northern Territory government which has a deficit budget and a debt which we are trying to rein back in. Looking at it from this perspective, we assess it and think the change really has been made quite quickly. A letter went out to residents saying, ‘This is a proposal and by the way there will be a vote about this on the 30th’.
That precipitated a big reaction from many people in the community, and that number is growing. While it is not the job of NT government to tell council how they should and should not collect rates and and do their revenue modelling, it is our responsibility as elected members in our electorates to represent our constituents.
There are many people who have contacted me about this who are very concerned. I call on the council to delay this decision and better consult with people. Most of the complaints we have been receiving are that council’s consultative process has been poor, and I witnessed a few events that corroborate that. We have to agree with the complainants on this point.
On this issue the council appears to be out of touch with the community and has been less than forthcoming in its explanations as to the need for the change to move to a UCV-based rate as opposed to a flat rate.
Of the 13 150 rateable places in Palmerston and the $1.7m they are looking to raise means about $130 per ratepayer. That is an increase of about 10% and it may be the case they do not feel it is good politics to add more than a 10% rate rise to people in Palmerston, particularly when several people came to their positions as aldermen saying they would resist rate rises. With that in mind, they need to go back to the drawing board and reassess some of the spending initiatives they have and the method they are using to calculate this.
The Country Liberal Party has been working very hard to bring down the cost of living. We have been working hard with fuels, land prices and dwellings. We have seen rent and land value come down, particularly in my electorate of Blain which is a growing area and has many new families and young people looking to enter the market. I see it on a day-to-day basis. We also see the government working hard with things like the sports voucher initiative, trying to get parents extra income so they can afford to send their kids to sporting events.
In my electorate when parents come to me and say their kid has made a state side to represent the Northern Territory, I give them $200 to help their kids. We all know that historically Darwin has been an expensive place to live and we do everything we can as local members and as a government to work on ways of improving this.
This rate rise of plus 10% per rateable block will be another impost on people in terms of the costs of living. Given we are working so hard to combat that at this level, I also call on council to look at the way it is doing things. If it needs to increase rates above CPI, with $30m in the bank, then I wonder at whether or not it is taking enough time to be concerned about the spending it is doing and sustaining its core business of looking after what ratepayers need it to look after, such as collecting bins, looking after roads, footpaths, stray dogs and such things that fall in the purview of the Palmerston City Council.
In closing, I call on the Palmerston City Council to be more consultative, which I believe they have failed to do to date. Alderman on the council have called me and asked for help in this matter because they know this whole thing is being ignored. I call on them to at least expand the time period they have put forward for consultation, past the 30th and begin to listen to the people in Palmerston and respect their views.
Motion agreed to; the Assembly adjourned.
STATEMENT BY SPEAKER
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and Kids Campaign
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and Kids Campaign
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, red noses are on your desk and I see they are on the microphones. That is a good move Clerks. It is to highlight sudden infant death syndrome and the kids campaign. Sids and Kids is a member of both the International Society for the Study and Prevention of Perinatal Infant Death and the International Still Birth Alliance.
Since 1988, SIDS and Kids has contributed over $16.5m to research into the possible causes and prevention of infant deaths, SIDS, still birth and health promotion. Thank you for your support, and we will be breaking at 11.50 am so we can have a group photo on the steps of Parliament House.
RETURN TO WORK LEGISLATION AMENDMENT BILL
(Serial 127)
(Serial 127)
Bill presented and read a first time.
Mr STYLES (Business): Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time.
This bill addresses the remaining legislative changes to our workers compensation scheme that were recommended to government. Members may recall 68 recommendations were made following an extensive review and considerable public and stakeholder consultation.
The first stage was passed in this House in March 2015. The change of name to the Return to Work Act commenced on 22 May 2015. The other changes from the first bill will commence on 1 July 2015.
It will be clear from this bill that the review was focused on ensuring fair and balanced outcomes, and there are a number of improvements directed to ensuring better outcomes for injured workers.
I bring to the attention of the House the key changes we are proposing in this bill. The most important outcome in workers compensation is to get injured workers back to suitable work. To help achieve this, there will be a new requirement for the employer to produce a return to work plan for any injury that involves incapacity of more than 28 days.
A return to work plan sets out the short- and long-term goals and takes into account the worker’s medical condition and any other factors that may affect a worker’s return to work. The requirement for a return to work plan exists in every jurisdiction and it is expected this new process will help produce better return to work outcomes.
Another change to help provide a focus on return to work is that there will be a restriction on the ability of an employer to terminate the employment of a worker for a period of six months while the worker is totally or partially incapacitated. This change is also consistent with other jurisdictions.
Another change to improve return to work outcomes is that employers will be required to pay for medical treatment during a deferral of a decision on a claim. When an insurer receives a claim, they are required to make a decision to accept or dispute the claim. Sometimes the insurer needs more time and the legislation allows for a deferral of the decision for up to 56 days.
Currently, the employer must pay for weekly benefits during the deferral but is not required to pay for medical treatment or rehabilitation unless the claim relates to mental stress. There will now be a requirement of the employer to pay for medical treatment and rehabilitation during deferral. This will ensure that a worker’s recovery is not compromised by lack of treatment or rehabilitation during the deferral period.
The benefit will, however, exclude hospital inpatient and associated surgical costs, and costs of interstate evacuations. These costs are high and it would be unreasonable to impose this cost on employers in circumstances where liability has not been accepted.
A new benefit has also been introduced that will allow for family counselling for a worker or the worker’s family. The psychological issues that can develop from a worker’s compensation claim can have a very poor effect on a worker’s self-esteem, the worker’s family and personal relationships. Access to this support may make a difference in the wellbeing of the worker and their family, and also contribute to a faster return to work.
The amount payable will be one-and-a-half times average weekly earnings, which is just over $2100 on current values. This benefit is, of course, over and above any treatment the injured worker needs if they actually develop a psychological condition that requires ongoing treatment.
There is currently a defence available to employers for a mental injury claim based on reasonable, administrative action. It is proposed to replace the current formulation of ‘administrative action’ with ‘management action’ to improve guidance. The amendment provides a detailed explanation of what comprises management action, and this will make the situation much clearer for employers and workers.
There will also be a change that will affect what is known as journey claims. These claims relate to injuries that occur when a worker is travelling to or from work. The Northern Territory is one of few jurisdictions that continue to give workers compensation cover on a journey to or from work. Over 20 years ago, a decision was made to exclude injuries that occur as a result of accidents in motor vehicles on a journey to and from work. Since that time, these injuries have been covered by motor accident compensation legislation.
For many years employers have argued that they should not be responsible for any injury, to or from work, because they have no control over how a worker travels or the level of care exercised by the worker. This change will now exclude all journey claims, for example, walking to work or riding a bicycle will not be covered. Of coruse, anyone walking or riding who is involved in an accident with a motor vehicle will be covered under the Motor Accidents Compensation scheme, as is currently the case.
It is important to understand that this change does not impact on every journey. In some cases the journey will be regarded as being in the course of employment, such as a paid call out, and these situations will continue to fall under workers compensation. The change to exclude journey claims brings the Northern Territory into line with most other jurisdictions.
Another important change is that insurers will be required to give workers advance notice of any legislated reductions or cessation of benefits. For example, the legislation currently requires weekly payments to be reduced to 75% after 26 weeks. This provision will ensure that those affected by a change in payments are aware it is happening, and will also ensure that notice is given in a timely manner.
The review also looked at how the dispute resolution process could be improved. Our scheme currently provides for a mandatory mediation process before any matter can proceed to court. The recommendation was that workers should have access to paid, independent legal advice for matters being mediated. This bill therefore provides a benefit for a worker to have access to legal advice paid for by the insurer, where the mediator is of the opinion that legal representation will facilitate the mediation process.
Examples of where this benefit might apply are complex matters or where the worker is disadvantaged by language, culture or life experience. The benefit for legal advice will only be available for matters that relate to new claim decisions or claims involving a reduction or cancellation of weekly compensation benefits, and will be capped at one times the average weekly earnings, which is currently $1417.20.
Another enhancement of the mediation process will be that the injured worker will have the option of being represented by a more experienced family member, union representative or other experienced advocate to present their case, so long as the mediator considers that it will facilitate the conduct of the mediation. This change recognises that most mediations do not need the assistance of legal representation, but that claimants are not always best equipped to represent themselves. This change is about giving claimants more choice and confidence about participating in mediation.
Another important change in this bill is the ability to negotiate settlements for workers compensation claims. Currently, around 33% of all claim payments in a year relate to settlements of claims. These settlements occur through contractual arrangements that are not recognised under legislation. For injured workers, settlement is an opportunity to move on from the compensation scheme. For employers and insurers, it removes uncertainty over the cost of the claim.
While government supports this change, we do not want to see the parties lose focus on achieving positive return-to-work outcomes. Therefore, settlements will usually not be possible until 104 weeks after the injury. However, sometimes exceptions need to apply, such as in the case of a claim where liability is in dispute. To allow for this flexibility, settlements within 104 weeks will contain a six-month cooling-off period. During this period, the injured worker will have the option to reconsider, renegotiate or withdraw from the settlement. It is important to understand that settlement cannot be forced on either party. All settlements require a negotiated agreement between the parties.
It is this government’s intention that injured workers will not enter into settlements without being fully informed; therefore it will be mandatory that all settlements must include independent legal advice for the injured worker, paid for by the employer. Furthermore, any settlement must also include paid financial advice if the worker requests it.
In any compensation system there will be differing opinions between employers, workers, insurance and medical practitioners. On occasion insurers have refused treatment even though they do not have in their possession any differing medical opinion from that of the claimant’s treating medical practitioner. This bill proposes that if treatment is to be denied, the worker is given notice of the reasons and also advised of the process to dispute a decision to deny payment for treatment. If the decision is that the worker does not require the treatment, then a medical opinion must be supplied to support that decision. The worker’s treating medical practitioner must also be notified of the decision and the reasons for the decision.
The legislation currently contains what is known as deemed diseases. In a similar way to the presumptive legislation for firefighters, the legislation already contains a list of diseases and occupations. If a worker who contracts one of these diseases works in a particular occupation, the disease is deemed to have been contracted at work. The current list has not been reviewed for many years and it is known that the list will increase in number. To facilitate this change, the schedule of diseases will be removed from the act and placed in regulation.
I have now covered the major changes and will quickly touch on a number of changes that are more administrative in nature.
There will be an improved process for claims by injured workers where the worker’s employer was not insured. There will also be more powers available to the Work Health Authority to ensure compliance with compulsory insurance provisions under the legislation, including the ability to stop work if an employer does not have a workers compensation policy.
There will be provisions to discourage fraudulent conduct by parties in the claims process. There will also be a clear right for employers or insurers to recover compensation where there has been fraudulent or deliberately misleading behaviour.
There will be an additional claims management option to provide for periodic agreements between the employer and the injured worker for payment of benefits in advance, to allow workers to manage their own affairs relating to treatment, training and rehabilitation.
This bill will contribute to achieving improved return-to-work outcomes and improve claims service for injured workers, as well as achieving consistency with other jurisdictions. The changes that have been included in this bill, together with those of the amending legislation passed in March 2015, represent a mix of changes that will influence costs and outcomes. These changes deliver a fair and affordable workers compensation scheme.
Madam Speaker, I commend the bill to the House.
Debate adjourned.
STATUTE LAW AMENDMENT (DIRECTORS’ LIABILITY) BILL
(Serial 128)
(Serial 128)
Bill presented and read a first time.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice): Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time.
The purpose of this bill is to implement the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) approved reforms for nationally consistent provisions in legislation, imposing criminal liability on directors for breaches of laws by corporations.
In 2008 COAG recognised that directors’ liability provisions across Australian law were in need of reform. COAG had two main concerns with directors’ liabilities provisions generally. Firstly, it was concerned that some directors’ liabilities laws unfairly imposed criminal liability on directors, such as fines and imprisonment, for breaches of laws by corporations where the director has no personal liability for the circumstances in which the breach may occur. While COAG recognises that in certain contexts the personal criminal liability imposed upon directors is justified, particularly in situations where non-compliance may have serious consequences for the public and in some instances it also may be unfair. For example, a director may not be aware of, or may not always be in a position to prevent, an offence being committed by an employee of the corporation.
Many of the Northern Territory’s directors' liabilities provisions fall into this category. A number of our statutes impose personal criminal liability on directors for corporate breach by virtue of their positions, regardless of whether or not they knew of or were involved in the commission of the corporation’s offence. Many statutes in the Northern Territory also impose directors' liability for corporate offences unless the director can prove an available defence. These provisions override the presumption of innocence and reverse the usual onus of proof in criminal law where the prosecution must prove guilt of an accused person beyond reasonable doubt. For these reasons, many of the current directors' liability provisions in the Northern Territory may seem unfair.
COAG’s second concern with directors' liabilities provisions crystallised following the release of a study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), which found that Australia had the least harmonised directors' liability laws among the 30 countries it profiled. The OECD study found that the subject matter of Australian statutes imposing personal liability was diverse and the provisions varied with respect to the person subject to liability, the type of conduct that attracted the liability, the defences available and the language adopted. COAG concluded that inconsistent regulatory requirements across statutes and jurisdictions created complexity and uncertainty for directors and corporations, and could raise compliance costs and impede efforts to ensure compliance for Australian corporations that operate in two or more states or territories.
Accordingly, during 2009-10 COAG agreed on a set of principles as the basis for the reform of directors' liabilities laws across Australia. It also developed guidelines for the application of the principles. When applied, the principles and guidelines ensure the imposition of personal criminal responsibility is justified and such liability is applied as consistently as possible across all legislation.
In summary, the COAG principles provide that a corporation is always liable for corporate breaches in the first instance, and the directors should not be liable unless they have personally assisted in the commission of an offence or been negligent or reckless in relation to the corporation’s offending. The principles also recognise that directors should take reasonable steps to prevent the corporation’s offending and that there are some circumstances where personal liability may be attributable to a director. For example, where there are strong public policy reasons for imposing personal liability; where liability of the corporation alone is not likely to sufficiently promote compliance; or where it is reasonable, in all the circumstances, for the director be liable.
The COAG guidelines set out a number of criteria that can be used to determine whether a directors’ liability provision is justified. These criteria include:
whether the offence could cause significant public harm
the size and nature of the penalty applying to the conduct
whether the underlying offence (committed by the corporation) is central to the regulatory regime
the extent to which directors can directly control the corporate conduct
the effectiveness or enforcement against the corporation
the extent to which similar offences are subject to a directors’ liability.
If a directors’ liability provision is justified, the COAG guidelines establish three types of director’s liability provisions that may be applied. The type of provision depends on the extent to which the onus of establishing whether a director took reasonable steps to prevent a corporation’s offending falls on the defence or the prosecution.
In a Type 1 provision, the failure of the director to take reasonable steps to prevent the corporation’s offending must be proved by the prosecution beyond reasonable doubt. Until this is proved, the director is presumed to be innocent. This is the standard directors’ liability provision.
In a Type 2 provision a director is deemed to be liable unless they can produce enough evidence to suggest that there is a reasonable possibility that a defence applies. It is then up to the prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the defence does not apply. In this type of provision, a director bears an evidential burden of proof, while the more substantial legal burden of proof is retained by the prosecution.
In a Type 3 provision, the director is deemed to be liable for a corporate breach unless they can produce enough evidence to prove their defence on the balance of probabilities. In this type of provision the director bears a legal burden to establish their defence, which reverses the usual onus of proof in criminal law. As this reversal is inconsistent with the general presumption of innocence until proven guilty, Type 3 provisions are intended to be applied only in exceptional circumstances, such as where the offence is of a very serious nature and, for example, where it endangers public safety and where the nature of the particular offence makes it difficult for the prosecution to discharge its burden of proving beyond reasonable doubt, for example, where one party (the director) is the only party able to possess the specific knowledge required to either prove or disprove the offending.
The Department of the Attorney-General and Justice undertook an audit of the Northern Territory’s statute book, identifying some 58 acts containing offences that impose personal criminal liability on directors. Those acts were then assessed by agencies responsible for administering them to determine whether or not the imposition of director liability was appropriate and, if so, what type of liability should be applied.
The bill culminates that review. Existing directors’ liability provisions are repealed in 40 acts, with the COAG default position of direct or accessorial liability to apply through general application of the criminal law. Where it has been identified that a higher standard of director accountability is required to give effect to a particular regulatory regime, either a Type 1, Type 2 or Type 3 liability provision has been applied.
While a number of acts have been identified as necessitating retention of directors’ liabilities provisions to ensure compliance, the evidentiary burden on directors has been greatly reduced, with only 13 Type 2 provisions and just two Type 3 provisions to be introduced by this bill.
Twelve acts have had directors’ liability provisions repealed entirely, meaning that the general application of the criminal law will apply in determining whether a director was an accessory to the body corporate’s offending. The wording of each provision depends on which type of liability it is. However, generally speaking, the bill achieves a harmonised legislative approach to provisions imposing directors’ liability by applying a consistent structure to the provisions and using consistent terminology and definitions for ‘executive officer’ and ‘declared provision’.
Each amended provision contains a subsection that lists declared provisions relevant to that section and defines executive officer. In each provision, an executive officer of a body corporate is defined to mean ‘a director or other person who is concerned with or takes part in the management of the body corporate’. It is intended that the term ‘body corporate’ used in this bill have the same meaning as the term ‘corporation’ as defined in section 57A of the Corporation Act 2001 of the Commonwealth.
Each Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3 provision provides a list of considerations a court must take into account when deciding whether a director took reasonable steps to prevent the body corporate’s offending. The considerations are not exhaustive and the court may take other matters into account. However, the directors’ liability provision provides a minimum standard to assist directors in discharging their obligations.
Those minimum standards consider that the actions the director took to ensure that the body corporate arranged regular compliance assessments; whether the body corporate appropriately implemented any recommendations from those assessments; and whether or not the director ensured that the body corporate’s employees, agents and contractors had reasonable knowledge and understanding of the requirement to comply with the declared provisions. In addition to those general preventative requirements, the standard also considers the director’s response and actions upon becoming aware that the body corporate was, or could be, about to contravene the law.
The two different drafting styles are applied throughout this bill reflecting the styles that under Part II of the Criminal Code Act (Griffiths Code style) and Part IIAA of the Criminal Code Act (Model Code style). As Northern Territory acts are reviewed, their offence provisions are converted to the Model Code style. The differing styles in this bill are reflective of whether a respective act has, at the time of the introduction of this bill, been converted to the Part IIAA Model Code style.
The elements which comprise the director liability offence are dictated by whether the offence is drafted by the Griffiths Code style or the Model Code style and whether it is a Type 1, 2 or 3 provision. Under the Griffiths Code style for Type 1 provisions, a director will attract liability if it can be shown that the director knew, or could have been expected to know, that under the circumstances the body corporate could commit an offence. Under this provision, the prosecution will have to prove either a director’s direct knowledge of the likelihood of the body corporate offending or apply the reasonable person test of whether or not an ordinary person under similar circumstances would make the same conclusion as the director on the foreseeability of the body corporate committing the offence.
Type 2 and 3 Griffiths Code provisions are deemed to be regulatory offences to reflect the more serious nature of the body corporate’s offending. Under the Type 2 and 3 Griffiths Code provisions, the regulatory offence removes the mental element of the intention, or mens rae, of the director from consideration at the first instance of whether the director’s liability arises as a result of the body corporate’s offending. The onus is placed on the director to establish whether or not the director was in a position to influence the conduct of the body corporate, whether the director took reasonable steps to prevent the body corporate offending, or whether the director was in a position to know, or reasonably expect to have known, that the corporate offending would happen.
For Model Code Type 1 provisions, the fault elements consider the recklessness of the director in relation to whether a contravention by the body corporate would happen, and the taking of reasonable steps to prevent that contravention. The Type 1 provision prescribes the physical element of the director being in a position to influence the conduct of the body corporate as a strict liability matter, reflecting the general position that directors are ultimately in control of the organisation. Application of strict liability in this instance gives rise to the defence of mistake of fact in the director’s actual position or influence over the body corporate’s conduct.
Similar to the Type 2 and 3 Griffiths Code provisions, the Model Code Type 2 and 3 provisions remove the fault element associated with the offence in the first instance but provide an available defence. The onus under the Model Code provisions is placed on the director to establish whether or not the director was in a position to influence the conduct of the body corporate; whether the director took reasonable steps to prevent the body corporate from offending; or whether the director was in a position to know, or reasonably expected to have known, that the body corporate offending would happen.
Absolute liability is prescribed against the Model Code Type 2 and 3 provisions to reflect the more serious nature or the body corporate’s offending. Attributing absolute liability for serious offences precludes a director from relying on mistake of fact for an offence based on some prior consideration of past circumstances, reflecting the ongoing need for directors to maintain a high standard of due diligence towards potential serious offending by the body corporate.
Transitional provisions have been included in the bill to set out how the amendments are to apply to the director’s potential liability for corporate offending. The transitional provisions clarify that the new provisions only apply in circumstances where all or both the body corporate’s and director’s deemed offending occur after commencement. Additionally, for the new provisions to apply all of the conduct constituting the offence, and engaged in by both the body corporate and director, must have occurred after commencement. This is to ensure that no element of retrospectivity applies that would disadvantage directors by potentially changing their duties to prevent corporate offending. On the other hand, where part or all of the offence occurred prior to the commencement, or where some of the conduct occurred prior to commencement, the transitional provisions dictate that the old provisions will continue to apply, ensuring that there is no gap in the regulatory regime.
The government’s reform of directors’ liability provisions in accordance with the COAG principles and guidelines promotes two main benefits. Firstly, it restores the general principles that an individual should only be responsible for his own acts and omissions, and that the prosecution must bear the burden of proving the guilt of an accused person and not the other way around.
Secondly, it creates consistency both across the Northern Territory’s statute book and with the rest of Australia. Along with Western Australia’s recent introduction of amendments into their parliament, introduction and passage of the Northern Territory’s bill will complete the COAG reform. A harmonised approach to the imposition of personal liability for corporate fault reduces complexity, uncertainty and business compliance costs by overcoming the need for corporations and individuals to respond to differing standards across various pieces of legislation and across jurisdictions. In this way the reforms will help to ensure corporations comply with their responsibilities.
In short, the bill completes the Northern Territory’s commitment to a national law reform agreement and creates a fairer, less complex legal system in relation to the criminal liability of directors for corporate fault.
I commend the bill to honourable members and table a copy of the explanatory statement.
Debate adjourned.
MOTION
Note Paper – Auditor-General’s February 2015
Report to the Legislative Assembly
Note Paper – Auditor-General’s February 2015
Report to the Legislative Assembly
Continued from 17 June 2015.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I will talk about some issues raised in the Auditor-General’s report for February 2015. I will not cover everything and presume other speakers might pick up on areas I do not cover.
The key findings of the Auditor-General’s report on Cobourg Peninsula Sanctuary and Marine Park Board are:
- As noted in previous reports to the Legislative Assembly, a land claim was lodged in 1978 under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act (NT) over the Cobourg Peninsula, resulting in the Cobourg Peninsula Aboriginal Land, Sanctuary and Marine Park Act. The land claim was never withdrawn and was subsequently re-activated.
- The board has reported that although the Northern Territory government and the traditional Aboriginal owners reached a positive outcome in 1981 with the establishment of a land trust and park board, the original Cobourg Peninsula Aboriginal land claim was not withdrawn.
Could the government give us an update on where that Aboriginal land claim is at present and the cost been of continuing that land claim since it was first introduced?
There is also a section on the Construction Division. I was aware the Construction Division was a Government Business Division responsible for the project management of the government’s capital works and repairs and maintenance programs, but I did not realise it had ceased being a Government Business Division. I would like to know why the government decided to get rid of the Construction Division. It is obvious they have reincorporated it into the Department of Infrastructure. I would like to hear from the minister as to why. Has it been beneficial? Has it reduced costs? For the government to do that there would be a reason, and it will be interesting to hear the reason and see whether it has saved money and improved efficiencies in the department. If the government made that decision, it would be interesting if they report back to parliament on how that has gone.
There was also an audit finding about the Darwin Bus Service. We all know the Darwin Bus Service was sold, unfortunately without any debate in this House. It was a government asset, similar to the Government Printing Office, and regardless of whether or not there was a benefit, I am still critical of the government for not allowing this procedure of selling a government asset to happen following public consultation or at least some debate in this House. There was neither; there was simply a government decision after parliament had stopped sitting. The government should not be operating that way and parliament should not be treated that way.
My concern is that we do not know enough about the details. If the government does not ask, I might even write to the Auditor-General asking for details about the sale of the bus service. What were the guarantees of funding from government to allow this service to continue? The bus service is not a commercial operation in the sense that it is a profit-making business because it is a service to the community. The government has taken what was a government service to the community and handed it over to a private company. Government is beholden to us to let us know the arrangements, the details of the sale and any ongoing payments.
I have raised this matter before and asked the government if it would provide a public bus service to the prison. That was meant to happen in the original plan. In fact two bus stops were built at the prison, one where the low-security people are and one near the main gate. There is a need for a bus service to the prison, which could also be beneficial to people working at the INPEX village, as well as people who like to go to the Howard Springs Nature Park.
The answer I got was a flat no. I have asked twice. My concerns are, whatever the details of this contract, it seems very difficult to find out if we can get an expansion of our bus service. Is an expansion in the bus service limited by the arrangement the government has made with the new company? In other words, you have put in place a contractual arrangement that does not allow any expansion of bus routes in the Darwin region. Is that the case? I do not know, but it seems to me we cannot even get a trial of a bus service to the prison.
I have visited Port Phillip Prison in Melbourne where the bus pulls up at the front gate. It is part of a public bus service. It is not specifically for the prison. It is there to provide a service for correctional services staff who might like to use a public bus service to get to work. It can also be used for families visiting and professionals who might want to go there and not drive.
We do not even get a debate, and we do not get the possibility of a trial. We are told no, and I wonder whether that approach from the government has been affected by the details put into the sale of the Darwin Bus Service.
Also there is a new ticketing system. I think it was raised during the Estimates Committee. It would be worth finding out from the government more detail about the ticketing system. The previous government looked at a ticketing system and found it to be complex and expensive, which is why they looked at a flat-rate fare. I do not know if the government has done the figures on the cost of introducing – I think the new ticketing system is around about $1m. It takes many fares to recover $1m.
I was in Canada, and on my way home I stopped at Vancouver and used the public bus service a number of times. You simply put the money in a little box; they tell you how much money per zone. In fact, I should tell you about how cheap public transport is in Vancouver. I went on a Saturday morning ticket into Vancouver. It was two zones, which cost me $2.50. I then caught the driverless train to the airport. I do not know how many kilometres – it is a long way to the airport from Vancouver CBD. It cost me $1.75, and it went to the airport direct. We do not even have public transport to our airport. That is an issue we can debate another day. We should have public transport to our airport and not be tied into the cost of getting there, which is associated with the airport corporations’ fees.
On the Darwin Waterfront Corporation, the income section says ‘operating grants and other contributions of $17.84m’. Is that money the government is still giving to the waterfront. What are the long-term plans for government in relation to reducing the financial input into the waterfront? When does it expect the Darwin Waterfront Corporation to operate either without government subsidy or with a much-reduced government subsidy?
There are a couple of items here which do not appear on other people’s financial performance sheets. It will be interesting to know what they mean. It has here the ‘Territory availability payments’, which is about $2.8m. It had a payment last year in 2013 of what are called ‘Territory efficiency payments’. Then it had the ‘Territory incentive payments’ of $775 000, and the ‘Territory operating payments’ of $2.8m. If the minister in charge of the waterfront is able to tell us what they are, that would be good.
The waterfront corporation commented on some of the things the auditor raised, and said the 2014 financial year reports a surplus when excluding the depreciation expense of $4.36m. While it might be a surplus, I am interested to know whether that is only a surplus because it is funded by the government.
On page 45 the Auditor-General dealt with Desert Knowledge Australia. It is probably timely for the government to report on Desert Knowledge. It has been operating for a long time. I always found it a cloudy area. I am not 100% sure what it does and why it is there, but it has been there a while now so its role should be fairly clearly defined. It says here:
- The objectives of the DKA (Desert Knowledge Australia) are centred on a range of activities intended to promote economic and social development in desert and arid land areas.
It is a fairly broad-brush objective. It would be good for the government, which funds Desert Knowledge Australia, to give us a statement on where that is at present. The Auditor-General said:
- I have formed the view that the ability of DKA to continue as a going concern is contingent upon any future funding decision by the Northern Territory government.
The government sold the Government Printing Office. It may have been a good decision, but the discussion was never held in this parliament, and that was a bad move.
There is a section on the Jabiru Town Development Authority. As the Auditor-General said:
- A 1985 cost-sharing agreement set out the principles for the allocation between participating parties of expenditure required for the town development. The participating parties were principally the Commonwealth government, the Northern Territory government, Energy Resources Australia Limited and the authority.
What is the future of Jabiru? If ERA is unlikely to continue mining uranium at Jabiru, their income will be nil. They will be doing a lot of work rehabilitating. What is the future in relation to Energy Resources Australia Limited’s participation in the Jabiru Town Development Authority? That is not to say they would disappear overnight, but with the recent announcement about the unlikelihood in the near future of the underground uranium mine going ahead, I am interested in whether that has impacted on their input into the Jabiru Town Development Authority.
The Auditor-General said:
- … the indefinite moratorium on the authority’s future interest and principal repayment of loans due to the Northern Territory totalling $8.8m. Without this moratorium, there would be significant uncertainty as to whether the authority would be able to continue as a going concern and be able to realise its assets and extinguish its liabilities in the normal course of business and the amount stated in the financial report.
The reports also says there were changes to the Aboriginal Land Rights and Other Legislation Amendment Bill in this House, and one of the identified impacts of this legislation was the potential cessation of the lease over the town of Jabiru currently held by the authority. The Auditor-General said:
- Should this occur the appropriateness of the authority continuing to report on a going concern basis may be brought into question.
It should be noted that the continued deficits incurred by the authority also call into question the appropriateness of the Authority continuing to account on a going concern basis, particularly in light of the worsening net liability position.
The Land Development Corporation – this relates to the Tiwi Island consideration money the Attorney-General mentioned yesterday. The Auditor-General said:
- During the final visit to conclude the conduct of the audit of the financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2014 , the Corporation ascertained that the payment related to the Tiwi Islands did not meet the asset recognition criteria, and consequently management has reclassified this transaction as ‘infrastructure-related expenses’. Therefore there is no asset, either land or loan receivable, recorded in the books of the Corporation as at 30 June 2014.
I would like more explanation about that.
The Land Development Corporation did comment. They said:
- The agreement now reached provides for the repayment of this and other pre-leasing costs incurred by the corporation in the facilitation and management of new investment opportunities on the Tiwi Islands.
I am not sure what that means. Is that the repayment of the $1m we spoke about yesterday?
I am concerned about the Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission as the Auditor-General said:
- The Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission is established under the Legal Aid Act. The commission’s charter is to ensure that people in the Northern Territory, particularly those who are disadvantaged, understand and have access to help to protect and enforce their legal rights and interests.
Under Performance Overview, it says the commission reported a current year loss of $139 247.
I am not sure if that is related to other things or is a permanent problem, but I would be concerned if the Northern Territory Legal Aid Commission did not have sufficient funds to continue its important role each year. I ask the government if it is running at a loss. Does it have sufficient money to continue?
Mr Elferink: I had a chat to Mr Brandis and they have a good news story.
Mr WOOD: That is good.
There have always been a few issues with NT Build. The Auditor-General mentions an audit opinion that related the 30 June 2014. It says:
- Due to the nature of the approval process within the Northern Territory construction industry, there exists some uncertainty regarding the ability of NT Build to identify all construction and maintenance projects that fall within the scope of the Construction Industry Long Service Leave and Benefits Act …I am unable to satisfy myself as to the completeness of the $4 236 462 disclosed as 'Contributions from levy payers' in the statement of comprehensive income.
NT Build said:
- Throughout the 2013-2014 reporting period, NT Build continued to work closely with the Department of Lands and Planning to pursue legislative amendments in order to strengthen NT Build's ability to maximise levy compliance.
I want to find out from the government if that legislative amendment has come to parliament yet. Is there an intention to bring something forward to parliament?
In regard to the Territory Insurance Office, as much as we like to speak more about that, we might have to wait till the next report because the Auditor-General, referring to the changeover, said:
- The completion accounts, prepared in accordance with the sale arrangements, are subject to audit and my next report to parliament will include the results of my audit and related findings.
Mr VOWLES: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Pursuant to Standing Order 77, I seek an extension time for the member.
Motion agreed to.
Mr WOOD: Thank you, member for Johnston. I hope you are on my side at the Lord Taverners next week.
Territory Wildlife Parks is an important part of a government service to community. Some may say it has to make money, and obviously it has to make as much money as possible. The Auditor-General comments:
- Territory Wildlife Parks is a Government Business Division that operates the Territory Wildlife Park at Berry Springs and the Alice Springs Desert Park. Territory Wildlife Parks has required ongoing financial support, through its host Agency, to enable it to meet its operating expenses.
…
Whilst my audit did not identify any material weaknesses in controls it is notable that Territory Wildlife Parks has recorded financial deficits since its inception and that it continues to rely upon financial support in the form of Community Service Obligations to enable it to manage its cash flow requirements.
Territory Wildlife Parks incurred an operating loss of $2.13 million this year (2013: $1.85 million). This loss again calls into question the viability of the entity in the medium to longer term.
I also note that the Territory Wildlife Parks has reported negative working capital since 2008 and, in 2014, current liabilities exceed current assets by $0.63 million.
It is concerning. We need to do a lot more work to get more people into these parks. The government should be congratulated for trying to finish the Litchfield loop road. The Litchfield loop road will give an opportunity for the Northern Territory Wildlife Park at Berry Springs to have more visitors because there will be a loop road through Batchelor, Litchfield park and back through Berry Springs, or the reverse. Hopefully, some of those changes will impact on the viability of those parks.
I hope the government does not sell or close them. It has been spoken about before. They are a very important part of the Territory. I do not believe they compete with the other parks. The other parks are much more commercial; they have lions and tigers and all sorts of animals which are well and truly exotic. The Territory Wildlife Park tends to focus on animals of the region, although I am disappointed those animals that have been in the Territory for a long time but are not native were removed.
I do not know if they are back because I have not been there for a while. Buffaloes and bantengs, and even some of the kangaroos, either were not from here or came here many years ago and were taken out of the park. They are historically animals that have lived here. It is probably worth keeping them there, because not only is it a wildlife park for research, it is also a tourist attraction.
Another interesting issue the Auditor-General raised was matters referred to the Auditor-General pursuant to section 6 of the Public Information Act. This responsibility of the Auditor-General is basically to make sure that when Members of the Legislative Assembly, or agencies, or a body corporate that is controlled by a public authority, or a person appointed or engaged to perform work for a public authority puts out information that it is correct. The definition of public information is ‘information given by a public authority to the public by using money or other property of the Territory’.
Basically people are required to make sure when they make statements they do not contravene section 6(2) of the Public Information Act, which says you are contravening the act if you promote party political interests, include statements that are misleading or factually inaccurate; or do not clearly distinguish a statement of facts from a statement of comments.
The Auditor-General raised a number of issues. Of the six issues someone raised, four of them were regarded as against the act and the other two were accepted. There were statements made like:
- We have the fastest growing economy in the country which means increased job opportunities, higher wages and new business opportunities for current and future generations of Casuarina residents.
I will give you the bottom line:
- … I determined that the act was contravened in that this statement did not clearly distinguish a statement of fact from a statement of comment.
There was another statement:
- By strengthening our public service, we’re building a Northern Territory with a bright future.
The Auditor-General said:
- … I determined that the Act was contravened in that this statement did not clearly distinguish a statement of facts from a statement of comment.
- The government has a plan to make the Territory more affordable and has started driving down the cost of living through rapid land release, increased child care subsidies and expanded Sports Voucher Scheme.
The Auditor-General said:
- I accepted that this statement did not contravene the requirements of section 6(2) of the Act.
The government said:
- Our plan is already reducing crime on our streets by tackling bad behaviour head-on and placing social responsibility on the individual rather than society at large.
Auditor-General:
- … I determined that the act was contravened in that this statement did not clearly distinguish a statement of fact from a statement of comment.
Statement:
- The government is also investing in bringing first class sport to the Top End with international cricket at Marrara this weekend and the Territory Eels playing the Raiders at TIO on 9 August.
Auditor-General:
- I accepted that this statement did not contravene the requirements of section 6(2) of the act.
Her recommendation was that:
- Section 8(3) of the act permits me to make recommendations. However, any recommendations under that section are limited to:
the withdrawal of the public information; or
that specified changes be made to the content of the public information.
Given my conclusions, above, I made no recommendations in relation to the referred matter.
My concern is we have this act which says you should not be releasing information that is not factual, especially if taxpayers’ money is being used for it, yet we have no way of stopping it going out in the first place. Once it is out there, it is out there. If it goes out on television and radio, it is out there, it has been said, it is too late. If it goes out in a letter drop, it is out there. How do you stop it going out in the first place?
Maybe I am wrong, but it was my understanding that some of these things should go through the Auditor-General to be checked. It is like asking last night why we do not have an integrity commissioner. An integrity commissioner is a friend of the MLAs. A person can say to the integrity commissioner, ‘If I do this, what do you think?’ In this case, before someone issues a document claiming things, perhaps they should take it to the Auditor-General. I thought that was the idea.
Many things are going out that are not being tested and are being shown by the Auditor-General to be incorrect. Taxpayers’ money was being used for statements that do not hold up. If governments can do that, even opposition parties, and we find out later it should not have gone out, what is the point if there is no penalty?
I raise the effectiveness of this section of the act. It highlights there are statements made by the government – in this instance, but not necessarily only the government – which have been shown not to follow the guidelines of the act. If we have an act which is meant to make sure government puts out accurate information, we need to look at the way government puts out information and if it should be a requirement to get some indication from the Auditor-General. I thought that was the correct process.
I raised that because the Auditor-General raised it. I thank the Auditor-General for bringing forward her report. It has been some time since we touched on this. These matters need to be debated in parliament closer to the time they are released because sometimes by the time we debate it some of the issues have been sorted through.
Mrs PRICE (Parks and Wildlife): Madam Speaker, I speak about the Auditor-General’s Report to the Legislative Assembly February 2015 and the items which come under my Parks and Wildlife portfolio.
In regard to the Cobourg Peninsula Sanctuary, a Marine Park Board was formed in 1981 under the Cobourg Peninsula Aboriginal Land, Sanctuary and Marine Park Act.
The Auditor-General’s report notes the board secures the right of Aboriginals to occupy and use certain lands on the Cobourg Peninsula, to vest that land in trust for Aboriginals, to declare that land to be a national park and make provisions relating to the management of adjacent marine areas and related purposes.
The Auditor-General highlighted that, as noted in previous reports to the Legislative Assembly, a land claim was lodged in 1978 under the Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act over the Cobourg Peninsula, resulting in the Cobourg Peninsula Aboriginal, Land Sanctuary and Marine Park Act.
The land claim was never withdrawn and was subsequently reactivated. The Australian and Northern Territory governments are working with the Northern Land Council to resolve any potential issues as quickly as possible to ensure arrangements for a joint management committee continue. These discussions are expected to have minimal impacts on visitors, residents and businesses in the Cobourg region.
The Nitmiluk National Park Board was formed in 1989 under the Nitmiluk (Katherine Gorge) National Park Act to acknowledge and secure the rights of those Aboriginals who are the traditional owners. I am pleased to say the audit did not identify any material weaknesses in controls.
In regard to the Government Business Division which operates the Territory Wildlife Park at Berry Springs and the Alice Springs Desert Park, I am pleased the audit did not identify any material weaknesses in controls. The audit did, however, note that the Territory Wildlife Park continues to rely on financial support in the form of community service obligations. It is widely recognised that the Territory Wildlife Parks provide important conservation, tourism and community benefits. This government will continue to look at structural reform of business models to make it a more sustainable business venture, and is introducing new visitor experiences.
At the Territory Wildlife Park we have developed an artist trail around the park, opened the woodland walk and macropod emergent experience, developed a series of wild encounters where visitors can get up close and personal with wildlife for an additional fee, and revamped the picnic grounds so they are nicer and more practical for functions and events. The upgrade will improve the opportunity for alfresco dining in the Dry Season, live entertainment, music, film nights and many other options. An ablution facility in the Woollybutts camp ground will double the park’s school camping activities and be more attractive as a destination for local and interstate schools. All of these new experiences have seen visitation grown by 7% over the past 12 months, which is on the back of a 7% increase for last year.
At the Alice Springs Desert Park new visitor experiences include dingo encounters and presentations with keepers; the exhibition of rare and endangered species in the foyer; nocturnal tours extended with supper; emus introduced into their new enclosure, which provides better viewing vantage points of the emus from the paths, nature theatre, visitor centre and woodland walks; and daily habitat presentations by guides.
The park has seen an increase in visitation of 5% and a revenue increase of 2% since the start of the financial year. This is in direct response to the exciting new opportunities being provided. The encouraging thing is that the Territory Wildlife Parks have increased revenue trends since 2012.
We realise our parks require top up funding to continue their important conservation and tourism work. I thank park staff for their hard work and I encourage everyone to get out to visit the parks.
In my Housing portfolio, the Auditor-General’s report also covered the Northern Territory Home Ownership government business division. Northern Territory Home Ownership oversees the government’s home purchase assistance initiatives. It also includes the HomeBuild Access loan products that seek to increase new supply at the affordable end of the housing market by providing more home ownership opportunities for Territorians unable to access the private finance market.
We offer two primary home loan products. One is the low deposit loan. Under this product, the purchaser must contribute a minimum of 2.5% towards the purchase price. The chief executive officer provides finance of up to 17.5% of the purchase price. The remaining finance of 80% of the purchase price is provided by People’s Choice Credit Union, which was previously the Territory Insurance Office, as first mortgage security. There are no income eligibility criteria and applicants can own, or have previously owned, other property in Australia.
We also offer the Subsidised Interest Rate Loan, where the chief executive officer provides up to 98% of the purchase price to income eligible first home buyers. It is only available to first home buyers and income limits range up to $80 000 for single applicants and $127 500 for a household of six or more people.
The key findings of the report state that the audit did not identify any material weaknesses in controls. The performance overview recommended the department undertake further research in the appropriate accounting treatment for the shared equity investments, in order to ensure compliance with the Australian accounting standards.
This is due to the complex nature of the products that NT Home Ownership offers. NT Home Ownership reviewed the accounting treatment for shared equity investment and confirms such accounting treatment to be appropriate. A new policy has been developed to reflect our accounting treatment of shared equity investments which complies with the Australian Accounting Standards.
Mr STYLES (Business): Madam Speaker, I rise to speak on the Auditor-General for the Northern Territory’s February 2015 report.
Firstly I address the comments in relation to the Department of Corporate and Information Services. I sincerely thank the public servants who work in that area. I am blessed with an excellent chief executive in Kathleen Robinson and her team. What a fantastic effort they make. Since this report, there have been leaps and bounds made in delivering corporate and information services to the Northern Territory government and the various departments.
I will first address the Auditor-General’s unqualified audit opinion on the government business divisions under the Department of Corporate and Information Services for the 2013-14 period, including Data Centre Services, the Government Printing Office and NT Fleet.
The Auditor-General was satisfied with the statements in relation to fairly presented financial data because it was in accordance with the Australian Accounting Standards and the Financial Management Act. There were no adverse audit findings identified that required any managerial action. Data Centre Services and NT Fleet reported strong net surpluses before tax and dividends of $3.16m and $11.2m respectively.
This was the last audit for the Government Printing Office, which closed on 30 June 2014. The Government Printing Office reported a deficit of $2.6m predominately due to a $1.42m decrease in revenue during the transition of print management service costs associated with its closure.
I congratulate the people who have had to deal with and rectify the problem of the asset management system introduced by the former government. Labor’s asset management system was supposed to cost $7.2m. What did we get? It was $70m worth of junk that did not work. That is a sad lack of leadership and direction from the previous ministers in Labor. When we came to government we inherited this absolute basket case. We had to try to rectify it, but it was like unscrambling an egg. You can do it but it takes a lot of money and years to unscramble the egg.
They purged the system that never ran properly and cost Territorians $70m to implement but did not work. In some of the briefings I received I was told the best it was doing was operating at about 11% capacity. As a result, we had to do go from a system that was almost working back to a manual system. It cost the Territory a considerable amount of time. The original estimates were that the project would cost $7.2m, which went to $14m, and by the time the former government called tenders in 2008 the price had doubled to $27.3m. I do not know who was driving the bus at the time, but it would appear the driver had gone to sleep at the wheel and did not watch the fair rack up by millions of dollars.
Another legacy left by the Labor government’s incompetence and maladministration – there are numerous ones I could go through today, but I am talking about DCIS. DCIS did a fantastic job looking at something that was not working, working with industry, our senior people and people at the coalface in DCIS, and coming up with a shareware model that cost under $10m to implement. Reports to me are saying the system is working quite well.
For the life of me I cannot understand how the previous government allowed this to blow out to $70m. That is a 1000% blowout. If you were in business, you would be considered to be trading insolvent or someone would think you have rocks in your head. What a disgrace.
What could you have done with that $50m? What we are doing with $50m is the flood mitigation strategies to save people’s homes and stop them from being flooded, and to keep their insurance costs down. We could have had a brand-new multifaceted football stadium or the best car park in the world at Royal Darwin Hospital. We have spent money and have nothing to show for it, which is the signature of the previous government. That is why we ended up with a projected $5.6bn deficit.
For those who are watching you can see how the deficit runs. When the previous government was in you see flag poles starting on the debt chart. For my colleagues in the Chamber, you might like to note in 2011, 2013 and up to 2015, went through the roof. Like federal Labor, they are building pyramids.
As of March 2015, which is just after the Auditor-General completed this report, we saw the previous system cost of $70m thrown in the bin and replaced with a working system for $10m. That is quite an achievement. I congratulate the Department of Corporate and Information Services and those people who had a hand in this on a job well done. Everything else they are doing is reflected in this report from the Auditor-General and they are seen to be doing a very good job.
I move to the Department of Business and reflect on the Auditor-General’s comments. They are all positive, and to Michael Tennant and Andy Cowan, the Chief Executive and the Deputy Chief Executive of Department of Business, I give sincere heartfelt congratulations for their leadership in the Department of Business. The Department of Business is going ahead in leaps and bounds and performing extremely well.
We have some great initiatives. In the latest Northern Territory budget we saw Business in the Bush with an increase in a range of business developments officers, grants programs, and Indigenous employment and training opportunities. We are seeing a shift in what the Department of Business is doing in that area, which was commented on by the Auditor-General, who says they are doing a good job.
It is no surprise the Auditor-General would say that and make positive comments about what they are doing. There is a raft of people who need to be thanked, and they are all the people who work for the Department of Business because they operate in a team environment, as we do on this side of the House. We all work together for a common goal, and that is for the people of the Northern Territory. We aim to make the Territory the best place to live and a viable option for investors from all around the world to invest their money and create jobs and economic growth for the Northern Territory. That then relates back to jobs for our kids, grandkids and those to follow.
We on this side have been very successful through the Department of Business in contributing to bringing down the projected debt from a 98% debt to income ratio to about 40% to 42% down to 38% to 39%. We will not know until the end of this financial year exactly what it is, but we have been able to turn the Northern Territory economy around from something you see on this graph of going further into debt to go down to about a $2.6bn projected debt. That is the trend you see not only in federal politics, but in other areas in Australia. Where when Labor gets in, the debt skyrockets; when conservatives get back in, jobs are created, economic development is put in, and we see debt reduction.
Sadly, if Labor gets back into government we will see debt increases. They are no different from the previous regime, and they are proposing exactly the same strategies the previous ALP government had, which led to a 98% debt to income ratio.
In relation to NT Build, while the audit findings did not identify any material weakness in the controls for NT Build, the Auditor-General issued a qualified audit opinion for the year ended 30 June 2014. NT Build was established to administer the scheme under the Construction Industry Long Service Leave and Benefits Act to provide construction workers with entitlements to long service leave and long service benefits.
That is the legislation brought in by the Country Liberals government to benefit many people in the building industry. We have cut down the time people have to work to qualify. The nature of the building industry, not only in the Territory but interstate, is that people move from one job site to another. There may be periods of downtime in between finishing one job and starting another. These are the things we brought in; I did not see these things occur under the previous Labor government. We are out to look after everyone, as is the federal government.
I recall some years ago when people voted for John Howard because he was looking after the battlers. When you have policies like the previous Labor government had, and you shut overseas investment offices and sit around looking at your navel all the time, not a great deal happens. You are not out there generating wealth. The Labor Party in the House here, the opposition, seems to say on a regular basis, ‘We are there for the workers’. I often wonder who they really represent, because what I see is people who close down the investment roads, those channels that bring opportunity to Territorians and their families, and jobs for our kids. I wonder who they are looking after. On this side of the House, when we look at the stuff we bring in and which the Auditor-General looked at, we are about looking after everyone.
The small- to medium-sized enterprises employ about 84% of the people in Australia, which is not much different here. Large corporations will employ local people. These people need the investment we are getting, and talking to people about overseas and interstate to facilitate investment in the Northern Territory. That will produce jobs and employ people. They will employ union members.
When you do not do that and you simply borrow money to fund whatever it is you want to do, you are not generating wealth. We all know the story about the Pied Piper; sometime and somewhere you have to pay it back. Sadly for the community, money spent without any wealth creation is something that we and - if we are unable to do it - our children are required to pay back. When we looked at the construction industry, we said, ‘Okay, we need investment’. How do you do that? Not by closing your overseas offices where you attract investment.
To get overseas investment you need relationships. Not everything is done cut and dry by just going to an overseas bank and saying, ‘Right, we need to borrow money’, because we have to pay it back. If that is how the government borrows money – governments are notoriously bad at running business. Business runs business, and they are the most suitable people to make these things happen.
The opposition does not operate on these philosophical beliefs. We, however, are about facilitating and making sure there is a fair field to play on. We will make sure it is fair for everyone, that people can invest and get reasonable returns. Hopefully they will invest in the Northern Territory and create the economic growth we need to repay Labor’s debt.
To that end, we change legislation to make it good for people to come here, but they need jobs. To do that, we need to attract the investment and sell it. Sadly, we are trying to rebuild relationships. When you just cut them, like in the early 2000s when Labor came to government in the Northern Territory, they closed those offices and got rid of all those overseas contacts, which were the channels for investment.
Australia has always relied on foreign investment. One of the first major investments in this country was Colonial Sugar Refineries, CSR. People say we should not sell anything. CSR was an overseas company and since its inception has had seven different owners. It is currently owned by Malaysian interests. It provides many jobs for Territorians, and export dollars for product sent overseas. As the minister for Asian Engagement and Trade, exports dollars are very important to me.
I am about making sure that when the Auditor-General looks at government, there are very positive reports, to make sure we are operating in a surplus and creating wealth. There are four things any community anywhere in the world needs to be economically sustainable and generate wealth.
The first is real estate rights. Some of the legislation we introduced is about people who own real estate who can then build something, provided all the authorities agree that it is a suitable building for the area. You regulate so things are sustainable and fair. You have to be fair and seen to be so.
The second thing you need is intellectual property rights. These are all things the Auditor-General looked at, making sure departments are operating correctly, using what we give them money for and not abusing intellectual property rights.
The third thing you need is access to cheap finance. Although the Auditor-General looks at the various ways we finance, she is not looking at whether or not it is the right amount of money or whether it could be gotten more cheaply or at not-so-cheap interest rates.
The fourth thing is effective and efficient communication and transport systems. We have been the poor cousins to the rest of Australian over a period of time. They have had a considerable length of time, over 100 years, to get their infrastructure in place – their ports, roads and railways systems. We have not been the backwater but we have been a little behind them; we are now coming of age.
With the release of the White Paper on the Developing Northern Australia there will be extra dollars. In fact, I heard this morning that there is $667m for roadworks in northern Australia. I think I heard that right. That is great news for the region.
The other thing is the billions of dollars’ worth of infrastructure that needs to be built in the Territory so the Territory can meet its potential. I was at a meeting this morning of the Indigenous Employment Network, which is excited about what is coming down the pipeline. If you excuse the pun, it is a pipeline. They are prawn farms and a couple of items people have been talking to government about which, sadly due to commercial-in-confidence, I cannot speak about. These are all things that add to the good news the Auditor-General looks at and reports on.
One of them is not related to oil and gas but involves thousands of jobs. People want to move to Darwin, as they see Darwin as a part of their future. It is very important …
Mr BARRETT: A point of order, Madam Speaker. Pursuant to Standing Order 77, can we please get an extension of time for the minister to conclude his statement?
Motion agreed to.
Mr STYLES: When you have all of those things put together you generate wealth. That is what we need to demonstrate to people. With the white paper on development, I can now talk to people who are looking for investment opportunities and get them to invest with confidence. Not only do we want to produce great results for the Territory, but the Commonwealth is also on board. When you get this partnership, we should be able to sell the Northern Territory to various investors, not only here but across the world.
I was told the other day that in Europe you can get negative bonds. If you want someone to look after $100m, they will charge you $2m a year to look after it. There are plenty of people with cash over there but they are afraid of sovereign risk. It is not so much sovereign risk of governments turning – because there are some governments around the world who do not have an Auditor-General to keep an eye on them. We are fortunate we have a good, well-regulated financial system, and a system where the Auditor-General can oversee all the government departments and areas of authority, and make sure everyone is doing the right thing.
There is a confidence in this that we have that we can take to the world. What frightens people off in relation to investing in Australia is the regulatory environment. They want to make sure that either side of politics in government will support what they want to do and the rules will not change halfway through a major investment.
That is something we have to sell. This is about relationships. We need to build those relationships. Not every relationship ends up in something. That is life. We all experience that in life. You have relationships with people but not all of them end up in a partnership, relationship or marriage. The same goes for business. You have to build relationships so at some stage, when something happens in the Territory, there is investment, and job and wealth creation. The four things I mentioned earlier are required to create wealth so our children have a future.
On this side of the House we are doing that. We are building this. The Auditor-General has made comments all the way through on many departments and issues which suggest things are travelling well. We are being open and transparent. We are putting things in place for things we inherited that were not open and transparent.
I hear people from the other side say we need to be open and transparent. The Chief Minister mentioned in this House yesterday allegations that we are somehow destroying the travel industry. We are not. These are the things Labor says would like the public to believe. When the truth comes out, they are often proved to be incorrect.
I will go back to NT Build. The qualified audit opinion of the financial statements of NT Build for the year ended 30 June 2014 was issued as follows:
- The statutory obligation to notify NT Build of the commencement of a project rests with the developer. NT Build has implemented a number of mechanisms to help monitor compliance and identify leviable projects, and consequently those liable to pay the levy, including monitoring projects where building permits under the Building Act are issued. It is noted that not all types of construction work carried out in the Territory require a building permit.
One of things we are doing which I think will impact on the Auditor-General’s report next year is reducing red tape. We saw over the last decade a massive increase in red tape. The draft report is out. There is a figure in it which I am not permitted to release at this point, but the changes to the red tape involved in the construction and development area are enormous. I could not believe the figure Deloitte gave us saying what the red tape we can get rid of is costing. It is not tens of millions; it is hundreds of millions of dollars.
The red tape introduced has caused developers and the public to pay. The interesting part is that the opposition will say, ‘That is terrible, that is not right’, but at the end of the day somebody pays, and that somebody is generally people who they claim they are representing. They put all this red tape in place and it costs hundreds of millions of dollars more to do business. That all gets tagged on to commercial, residential and industrial developments. Somewhere, someone has to pay. It is the old Pied Piper story, whereby if hundreds of millions of dollars are added on, who pays that? The consumer.
Who employs most of the people in this town and in Australia? Eighty four per cent of people are employed by small- to medium-sized enterprises. Most of the people in the Northern Territory, who are in business, are employing people the Labor Party claims to represent.
They do a very good job of that. When you add that on to the price of a home for an average working family, the amount of money we can shave off by removing the burden of red tape is in five figures. When the report is made public, I will release all those figures. These are estimates, but they are in five figures.
Three of my offspring are buying houses and one is in rented accommodation, struggling to buy a home. Mind you, if they lived in Sydney or Melbourne they would be going through the same thing. When I can talk about this, I will say, ‘How would you like to save X thousand dollars on the purchase of your home?’ They will say, ‘Well, dad, that will make a huge difference to how much money I can borrow from the bank’.
When you look at 30-year loans and go through the finances - I hope the people on the other side do this when they make statements that all the red tape is great. I hope they will support the reduction of red tape we are proposing and the changes in legislation required to achieve it. At the end of the day, we will be reducing the cost of a house by thousands of dollars.
We have also gone through the land release program. We are releasing more land than ever, not only residential but also commercial. With things coming down the pipeline, and some of the things government is negotiating with people – sadly, I cannot talk about that because it is commercial-in-confidence, but I am looking forward to it. I am excited by some of these things being discussed behind the scenes. There are thousands of jobs attached to that, which is good for the building industry, as well as people who have moved here and those who want to. It is good when INPEX comes off the boil. It is good news for the Territory.
If you want to buy a house or a unit here, I want to be able to reduce the cost of that unit not only by releasing more land and making the system fairer, but also by making sure the red tape is not increasing the cost by thousands of dollars that have been built up over the last decade.
We are about making it fair and equitable for everyone. This team supports that attitude. We are about making sure our children and grandchildren have a bright future. The way I read it from this side of the House is that we have a very bright future. If you talk to people from southern states they will tell you it is a lot worse there than the Territory. Even though business confidence is high, the last Sensis report said it is very high, we are about making sure we have a bright future.
As I said this morning, I gave a group of people this information and they were excited. Most people I talk to are excited, except the opposition members who want to talk down the current economic environment.
I have plenty more to say, but I am running short on time. I thank the Auditor-General for doing such a good job in presenting the Auditor-General’s report for February 2015 and I commend that report to the House. I invite further comments from the members opposite.
Motion agreed to; paper noted.
MOTION
Note Statement – Recreational Fishing in the Northern Territory
Note Statement – Recreational Fishing in the Northern Territory
Continued from 30 October 2014.
Mr VOWLES (Johnston): Madam Speaker, I thank the minister for making this statement in October last year. It is great to have the opportunity to speak as the new opposition spokesperson for fisheries. My colleague, the member for Barkly, has spoken on this previously, but it is a great opportunity to put some comments on the record. Hopefully the minister will give us an update at some stage.
As we all know fisheries are an important resource for the Territory’s economy and lifestyle. As my colleague, the member for Barkly, noted in October last year, fishing and the management of both freshwater and marine resources is a central and important part of the culture and day-to-day life of many Indigenous Territorians living on their homelands. Reading the ministerial statement again, I was struck by the lack of acknowledgement of that. The CLP still has a way to go in connecting with the things that are important to Territorians in our remote communities.
We also heard in debate on the statement last year of the importance of recreational fishing in economic terms: that there is direct expenditure on recreational fishing in the Northern Territory of some $1m per year.
We are proud of the work we did while in government in our connection with all stakeholders concerned about the future of fishing resources in the Northern Territory, whether they be Indigenous Territorians living on country, pastoralists, environmental groups, recreational fishers, tour operators, commercial fishers, restaurateurs, fishing scientists, boat builders, roadhouses or all the small businesses supporting the fishing sector.
We are proud of the Recreational Fishing Development Plan 2012 to 2022 which we developed to support a sustainable fishery industry. We continue to be proud of our achievements in sustaining our fisheries and our support for fishers through the establishment of better boat ramps to improve access to our fisheries. Our development plans also highlighted the importance of good science to underpin management decisions.
That continues to be central to the sound future for our fisheries, and we will be interested to see what support the government continues to provide for this important work, especially given the new restrictions on the golden snapper and jewfish based on the alert arising from research and monitoring of the health of our fish stocks.
I take this opportunity to thank the minister and his department for the briefing I received on the new fishing restrictions. It was also fantastic to attend the AFANT AGM in March. I acknowledge that the Chief Minister and the minister for Fisheries attended. It is important that people have that direct access. There were many questions put to the Chief Minister and the minister. It was a good morning for updating AFANT and to hear answers from the government on where they are going with this.
I mention Chambers and Finke Bays and the closures to commercial barramundi fishing. I asked in the estimates process whether the price of barramundi had gone up. It has increased just a little, and I thank the department of Fisheries for acknowledging the barramundi price has gone up. It was an election commitment of the Country Liberals government to close Chambers Bay and Finke Bay to commercial barramundi fishing. We acknowledge this is a popular decision amongst recreational fishers. But as my colleague, the member for Barkly, said last year, commercial fishers continue to express frustration with the way that was managed by the Country Liberals and the impact it has had on their industry sector.
This ministerial statement is also lacking in relation to the environment that sustains our healthy fishery resources. Perhaps we should not be surprised. This is the same minister who paid scant regard to the environmental flows in his management of water allocations, or perhaps I should say water over-allocations.
I cannot mention water allocations without mentioning the Supreme Court case of 29 May this year, where it was found that the minister had failed in his statutory responsibility to make a merit-based review of his decisions under section 30 of the Water Act.
AFANT, in 2013, took the extraordinary step of calling for an immediate halt to the government’s flawed water allocations and called on the government to:
- …re-establish a water planning process consistent with the Northern Territory’s national water initiative commitment and best practice planning’.
I want to put on the record again a media release from AFANT titled, ‘AFANT objects to 9180 ML water allocation’.
- AFANT objects to an application for a further large water allocation… from the Tindall Limestone Aquifer. The Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the NT Inc (AFANT) is extremely concerned with the lack of clear planning and apparent free for all water allocation process from the Mataranka Tindall Limestone Aquifer.
‘In a formal objection lodged with the NT government Water Controller this week the Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the NT Inc has opposed the application for a water extraction licence due to real concerns with the government’s abandoning of the required water planning and allocation process and the high likelihood of the significant environmental impact on the Roper River’, AFANT president Warren de With said today.
‘AFANT is extremely concerned with the government’s failure to follow the nationally agreed best practice in water planning in the allocation of water from the Mataranka Tindall Limestone Aquifer. The Northern Territory government signed up to John Howard’s national water reforms and committed to implement and follow best practice in water planning and management. Clearly the current lack of process is in breach of those commitments.
We are also strongly of the view, based on the evidence provided in the Mataranka Tindall Limestone Aquifer Draft Water Allocation Plan and supporting documents, that there is significant risk to the Roper River from increased development and the approval of large volume water allocations without a formal planning process.
- ‘AFANT has real concerns with the cumulative impact of this and past allocations of water extraction licences on the rivers relying on the Mataranka Tindall aquifer, particularly the Roper River system, which is entirely reliant on the aquifer for Dry Season flows. AFANT has called for a halt to any further large volume water allocations until the completion of an approved water plan as required under the Northern Territory government’s commitment to the national water reforms on water planning and the Water Act’, Mr De With said.
The Assembly suspended.
PETITION
Petition No 85 – Yirrkala Community Child Safety and Wellbeing Team Practitioner Position
Petition No 85 – Yirrkala Community Child Safety and Wellbeing Team Practitioner Position
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Madam Speaker, I present a petition from 85 petitioners praying that the Yirrkala Community Child Safety and Wellbeing Team Practitioner position be retained and funded. The petition bears the Clerk’s certificate that it conforms with the requirements of standing orders.
Ms WALKER: Madam Speaker, I move that the petition be read.
Motion agreed to; petition read.
- To the honourable Madam Speaker and members of the Legislative Assembly, the community child safety and wellbeing team practitioner based at Yirrkala has demonstrated great success. Your petitioners therefore humbly pray that the department of Children and Families continue to fund this valued position.
MOTION
Censure of Chief Minister
Censure of Chief Minister
Mr GUNNER (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, I move that this Assembly censures the Chief Minister for destroying the faith and trust that needs to exist between Territorians and their elected representatives for good government to occur; for diminishing this parliament and bringing the government, this parliament and the Northern Territory into disrepute through arrogant, deceitful and disrespectful; behaviour; continuing to lie to Territorians; and always putting self-interest ahead of the interests of Territorians.
It brings me no joy to speak on what is a sad day for the Territory and a sad chapter in Territory history. It gives me no joy at all to watch the continuing disintegration and chaos of this government. We on this side of the House are duty bound to stand up for the thousands of Territorians who deserve a better government and an honourable Chief Minister. When the Territory public gives you the gift of government, they invest in you a trust that you will act in the interests of the people and progress the interests of the community. When you are elected to government, the people are giving you a great honour. In return, they expect you to live up to that honour.
Territorians expect their government to act with honesty, integrity and respect. They also expect their government to be open, transparent and accountable. All of us rightly expect government to put the wellbeing of Territorians ahead of the personal ambition and conceit of the Chief Minister. The sad fact is the Northern Territory and the CLP government are now led by a man who members of the CLP have described as lacking the maturity, temperament, honesty and character to deliver good government. The Chief Minister is incapable of grasping one of the key responsibilities of leadership: that his actions set the tone and standard of acceptable behaviour for his colleagues, the public service and all Territorians. It all starts with the Chief Minister, and the tragedy is every day the member for Braitling remains Chief Minister enormous damage is being done to the reputation of the Northern Territory and the interests of Territorians.
Last night and again this morning the anger of people in his own party about his behaviour has again spilled into the public domain. In what I believe was a very brave speech, the member for Araluen outlined a history of behaviour she has experienced that stands as stark condemnation of the Chief Minister and his leadership style. She used quite devastating words such as ‘intimidation’ and ‘abuse’, and she has described a leadership style that eliminates, executes, annihilates and assassinates and, of course, has no use for the truth. She spelt out her anger by describing the Chief Minister as presiding over almost three years of the politics of hate, discord and lies.
The Territory community deserves better that what they are getting from the CLP government, from a Chief Minister they did not elect and whose own party room did not elect him.
Most damning of all, she warned the women of the Northern Territory to think hard about running for the CLP because of the sustained abuse and intimidation she and other prominent women have faced from the leadership of her now former party. It was a comprehensive and damning picture painted by a member of parliament who was the Deputy Chief Minister of the CLP when Terry Mills was Chief Minister, a person who was elected to govern the Northern Territory with integrity and honesty.
We have now seen three years of the politics of hate, discord and lies. We have seen the two people who sit either side of the Chief Minister, the Deputy Chief Minister and the Leader of Government Business, say they do not trust nor have faith in this Chief Minister. We have disunity, clearly and starkly in front of us, with a Chief Minister flanked by two people who did not vote for him.
It was a comprehensive picture painted by the former member of Araluen, who was once the Deputy Chief Minister, who sat in a Cabinet room and walked the corridors of power in the Northern Territory, who participated in the CLP governance structure in how they run their meetings - a member who has seen this government up close and is now telling it as it is.
The future we all want to build is a healthy and prosperous one, where all Territorians can access a world-class education system, where we are all treated with decency and respect. But that cannot be built on a bedrock of lies, dishonesty and mistrust. We have now seen four members of the CLP government leave it. The sad truth is the Chief Minister has proved himself incapable of acting with honesty, integrity and respect. Example after example has proven this to be the case.
Territorians, this parliament and the vast majority of the Chief Minister’s colleagues have testified to this simple fact. To some of the most important issues facing the Territory to the simplest of questions in this place, in the media or in estimates, the Chief Minister’s first instinct is to dissemble, lie or cover up the truth. It is a reflexive action.
Territorians have witnessed the Chief Minister deny any knowledge of the activities of Foundation 51, before and after e-mails came to light that were addressed to him, proving beyond all doubt he knew what was happening. He promised Territorians and the member for Nelson he would have an independent investigation into political donations to end the concerns being brought to light by the evidence of the actions of Foundation 51. That was an inquiry voted on and supported by this House. He promised the member for Nelson and he broke his word.
He broke his word to this parliament and to Territorians. He reneged as soon as he was able to, right after the Casuarina by-election, after he thought the political costs of that action might go away. He broke his word on Foundation 51 after refusing to admit to knowing what was happening both before and after the e-mails came to light that were addressed to him about Foundation 51.
We will never forget the media conference called by the Chief Minister on that wild day in February when we had two Chief Ministers in the Northern Territory. Territorians witnessed the current Chief Minister make the incredible accusation that he was the victim of a police coup to oust him and that politicians and police were working together in collusion to form a coup in the Northern Territory. This is an unheard of allegation, an incredible one, and it slurred the reputation of police in the Northern Territory.
He went further; he promised a full judicial inquiry. He said he had evidence they needed to see. It is hard to overstate the seriousness and gravity of this accusation. The Chief Minister of the Northern Territory called into question the integrity of the Northern Territory Police Force. We rely on the community to have trust in the police force, and he alleged the sort of behaviour that is commonplace in third-world countries. This is a big deal. He made a very serious allegation that went to the trust we hold in NT Police. He said he had evidence and he promised a judicial inquiry.
What we saw was a backflip on this promise of a judicial inquiry once he stared down the member for Katherine and retained his crown. I think that is how they see it sometimes; at least I think that might be how the Chief Minister sees it, almost as a monarchy or a ruling from above. He used the police and their good name in the cause of holding onto his leadership of the CLP.
There is no principle or reputation he cannot sacrifice at the altar of his arrogance and ambition. This was a dark day in the Territory, not only because we had uncertainty - and two Chief Ministers - but we saw the reputation of the Northern Territory Police called into question. The judicial inquiry promised by the Chief Minister, which would have given them an opportunity to clear their name, was then scrapped once he got to hold on to his leadership. We saw self-interest put against the interests of Territorians.
Territorians witnessed the Chief Minister’s outrageous performance recently in estimates. In answers to me, he denied the Department of the Chief Minister’s inquiry into travel had terms of reference or involved Latitude Travel. I will go to the transcript because it is quite telling. I said to the Chief Minister:
- Do you have the terms of reference for the inquiry?
The Chief Minister:
- We are looking at it internally.
I said to the Chief Minister:
- But you still have terms of reference?
He said:
- If we were to do something on an external basis we would put out a terms of reference, but we are looking at it internally. We have a look at internal matters of governance in a range of areas at different times without terms of reference, but it is about responsibly looking at the way things are undertaken.
I seek leave to table the terms of reference that were put together the day before estimates.
Leave granted.
Mr GUNNER: I table the terms of reference that he said did not exist, but existed the day before he answered questions in estimates in front of a parliamentary committee. It was an unnecessary reflexive lie. Just table the terms of reference; they exist.
We then had the unedifying spectacle of the Chief Minister reading answers to questions regarding the questionable travel expenditure of his government as slowly as he could. Also in that estimates exchange, he denied the inquiry his department was leading was as a result of the Latitude Travel investigation. Again, I will go to the record.
I said to the Chief Minister:
- As the inquiry is a result of the Latitude Travel investigation, are you going to look at whether …
I was interrupted by the Chief Minister; he was very quick. The Chief Minister said:
- It is not as a result of the Latitude Travel investigation.
The Chief Minister was very clear. I was quite surprised because the opening line of the media release is:
As a result of the police investigation into Latitude Travel …
I seek leave to table for the House the media release that was issued.
Leave is granted.
Mr GUNNER: Its opening sentence says:
- As a result of the police investigation into Latitude Travel, the Northern Territory is launching a review into public sector travel processes.
Again, an unnecessary reflexive lie about something that was already on the public record. It makes no sense and is a habit that is peculiar.
These are small but important issues. You should treat parliament, estimates and Territorians with respect. You should be honest when answering questions. It was quite an extraordinary reflexive comment to make.
As I said, the Chief Minister read his answers incredibly slowly. It was not a good look. He read slower that someone reading a book on Play School. As Jodeen Carney said, a former firie contributed to the estimates debate.
These are questions every government receives, and we gave the exact words of the question to the Chief Minister in advance. You get them every year.
It was noticeable that the Chief Minister just pulled up stumps when he got to an answer, prepared by his own department, where he simply decided he did not want to answer the questions anymore. It goes to the truth that he and his ministers treat taxpayers’ money like their own. We are still waiting on the answers to those questions about ministerial travel from the Estimates Committee. They are questions that are asked every year, and it was a question he was given notice of in writing so he had the exact words. It was quite an extraordinary estimates performance. He did not answer questions he knew he was would get, and the questions he did get he chose to lie about – small but important lies.
The Chief Minister has presided over a government that has given water licences to mates against proper process, and has trashed the scientific basis for the use of this most precious resource. His reckless handling of the environment has seen the development of the $134m port without an environmental assessment. The Chief Minister’s response was that Port Melville is not a port.
It goes to trust. When talking to people around the Territory, they ask me questions ranging from fracking to mining to general environmental questions; they raise a serious concern about the trust they can have in this government when it cannot get basic processes right and cannot be relied on to look after the environment of the Northern Territory, our lasting legacy.
We want to see development, but you have to make sure you look after our country. That sort of recklessness, that cowboy approach, should have been consigned to history decades ago. It damages us all and does not provide any trust in the Territory’s leaders. It brings us into disrepute and diminishes our standing. If you cannot be trusted to undertake the simple process of holding an EIS to ensure your development is correct, then you cannot be trusted with anything.
The Chief Minister continues to fail these tests of trust with the Northern Territory. He is in a trust deficit and has been there from the moment he rolled Terry Mills while he was in Tokyo, and has continued to dig the hole deeper. If he breaks the shovel, he asks for another one.
If any further proof was needed we need only look at the testimony of the Chief Minister’s own colleagues past and present. Testimony has been brought against the Chief Minister by his own CLP colleagues. The comments from the member for Araluen, the former Deputy Chief Minister, in this place yesterday showed the kind of leadership that is sorely lacking from the Chief Minister. They are testament to the deep despair those within the Chief Minister’s own political wing have about his leadership and integrity.
The member for Araluen said quote:
- We cannot progress if we have politicians who aim to divide not unify.
She is absolutely right. She further said:
- We have had almost three years of the politics of hate, discord and lies … Scandal has followed scandal and many of the key institutions of the Territory have been politicised.
She described the Chief Minister’s leadership as a ‘dark amoral cabal’. She has underlined what we have been saying and what we have had people saying to us on a regular basis. As I said, this comes from someone who worked closely with this Chief Minister. Most damning of all was the member for Araluen’s warning to women not to engage in politics with the CLP unless they can withstand sustained abuse.
She correctly pointed to the list of strong and smart women who have now marched out of the CLP. This is a tragedy for our society. We need two fully functioning parties fully representative of the Northern Territory, if not more. They need to be fully functioning and representative of the Northern Territory’s genders, races and creeds. We are now facing a lack of that. There is also a direct warning to women of the Northern Territory to not run with the CLP.
To lead our Territory, to fulfil its promise, men and women must stand shoulder to shoulder; we have to walk together. The days of the male dominance of society are well and truly over. We are past that. Our society achieves more balance and progress when it is marked by an equal role for men and women working together. To warn women away from politics because of the behaviour of the Chief Minister opens a dark chapter in our history.
I welcome the member for Araluen’s support for the development, establishment and implementation of an anti-corruption commission. I agreed when she said:
- I do not believe the Northern Territory has the checks and balances to ensure strong, objective and independent investigation into the public administration of the Northern Territory.
We saw the Ombudsman’s report tabled where the Ombudsman identified absences of scrutiny in the Northern Territory, particularly amongst members of parliament, and the absence of an independent body. He identified powers that were missing within the Northern Territory: the power to compel evidence. He identified an absence in the Northern Territory, and that there are powers that an independent body should have.
I am happy to work with anyone in this Chamber to bring forward an independent commission against corruption. I want to work with people here and consult with Territorians about the shape of that commission so we can make it work for the conditions of the Territory. We have a small population and are highly interconnected. We need an independent commission against corruption that works for the Territory. We need to address the absences of scrutiny and oversight that have been identified by the Ombudsman. We have seen over the last three years that people need to have trust, and it takes an oversight body to bring that trust.
People simply cannot trust a Chief Minister who scraps inquiries he promises to have. He has promised two but he scrapped them.
We have no open accountable and transparent government in the Northern Territory right now. When a minister is asked a question, as we saw yesterday, instead of answering it, they say, ‘FOI it’. It is an unacceptable way for the Territory to be governed. Ministers should be available to answer questions and there should be an oversight body in place so people know that trust exists in the Northern Territory.
We are at an incredibly low ebb when it comes to trust. The trust deficit created by this Chief Minister has tainted everybody and we need to bring in an oversight mechanism to bring trust back to the Territory parliament. We have been diminished as a parliament as a result of the Chief Minister’s actions; we have been brought into disrepute.
The former leader of the CLP, Jodeen Carney, is a smart, tough woman. We can testify to that from these benches. The member for Araluen is also a very tough woman. Whatever our personal differences of opinion on policy with the member for Araluen, we recognise she is smart and tough. Jodeen Carney also highlighted the Chief Minister’s contempt for Territorians when she said recently in the Sunday Territorian:
- … the various odours wafting in and around Territory politics in recent times are at a risk of becoming a collective stench.
Obfuscation and obstruction are not the hallmarks of a government that values transparency or accountability.
This morning on ABC radio she said:
- Adam Giles has proven himself to be a divisive, arrogant Chief Minister, incapable of leading his team and incapable of leading the government …
This comes from someone who returned to the fray of politics to help this Chief Minister. That is the level of broken relationships and betrayals we have seen over the last three years of this CLP government – an extraordinary list of victims. As the member for Araluen said, ‘Look at the bodies; look at the gender’.
Let us not forget the assessment of the former Chief Minister, Terry Mills:
- To be effectively politically assassinated whilst I was in Tokyo and now, in my view, politically assassinated whilst in Jakarta, looks like overkill to me, but it certainly plays out quite badly. The optics of this aren’t so good.
He also said:
I am deeply concerned about the reputation of the Territory.
The former leader, Terry Mills, had a role in Indonesia and continues to play a role there now, I believe, for others. His service is still valued. He was politically assassinated twice by the Chief Minister. Let us keep in mind these comments are coming from people who know this Chief Minister personally and have worked closely with him over many years. These are direct testimonies of colleagues of the Chief Minister. The Chief Minister’s behaviour has diminished government in the Northern Territory, this parliament and all Territorians.
Frankly, this behaviour could not have come at a worse time for the Territory. Territorians and the government elected to lead them have some critical issues to deal with. Our economy has had some early warning signs on work we need to do to deal with short-term challenges in employment and net interstate migration.
Children in our community are failing in most of the categories of the Australian Early Development Index. We have layer upon layer of sickness, and disease profiles that place some of our people among the sickest in the world. There are housing problems; our schools are crying out for greater investment; our regions need concerted government action and attention. There are issues of importance to address.
What we have to deal with in this House today is the aftermath of a leadership spill from three years ago which is continuing to run through the narrative of this Territory. It is clearly spinning out of control. Events were set in place with the challenge of Terry Mills in Tokyo that we have never recovered from, and the reputation of the Territory has been taking a hammering as a result.
The damage being done is real now and in the future. What kind of message does the behaviour of the CLP government send Territory businesses and investors in Australia and abroad? How can the Chief Minister be trusted to deliver jobs now and in the future when even his colleagues do not trust him to put the Territory first? His own colleagues voted him out – nine to five - but he refused to go.
We have seen the consequences of the Chief Minister’s behaviour over a long period. The way he decides to conduct his business and implement policies in the Northern Territory is being felt. I will give you an example regarding travel agents. Instead of dealing openly and accountably with ministerial travel, instead of being open, honest and transparent and coming clean, he will now put in place a system that will see travel agents in the Territory lose their jobs. We will see people shut their doors and businesses close because the Chief Minister cannot be trusted to run a government that can control its own travel. The policy being brought into place will see travel agents lose their jobs and businesses shut down.
I had a very difficult conversation with Sandra Lew Fatt on Tuesday; she was visibly upset. I have spoken to other travel agents since. They despair at the decisions and actions of this government. They do not understand why they are carrying the sins of others. It is an unacceptable way to deal with problems of openness and accountability.
Building world-class health and education systems in the Territory relies on a constructive relationship with the Commonwealth government, born of mutual respect. I do not believe the actions of the Chief Minister send a strong message of trust to the people who hold the purse strings in Canberra.
What does it say when we have all of that swirling around and the Chief Minister still refuses to establish a body that can investigate the corruption and misconduct of our leaders? It took a member of parliament breaking away from being bound by the CLP to get the vote last night to 12 all.
We need an anti-corruption commission in the Northern Territory. It will take a Labor government, but I am happy to work with anybody to try to create it and negotiate with Territorians to see how we can have one in place that is independent and suited to Territory conditions, our interconnectedness and small population. The actions of the Chief Minister speak volumes to Territorians.
I repeat that we are censuring the Chief Minister for destroying the faith and trust that needs to exist between Territorians and their elected representatives for good government to occur; for bringing the government, this parliament and the Northern Territory into disrepute through arrogant, deceitful and disrespectful behaviour; for continuing to lie to Territorians; and for always putting self-interest ahead of the interests of Territorians.
We have demonstrated today – from the actions of the Chief Minister and the testimony of his colleagues – that these accusations are founded in truth. Importantly, we have demonstrated today that it is not just being said by members on my side of the House, it is being said by CLP members and the public. The CLP has to act to end this tragedy.
For faith to be restored, support us in building the architecture of accountability in this democracy. Support us in bringing into law an independent commission against corruption. Support us in strengthening the Public Information Act, tidying up the Electoral Act and turning this parliament into something other than a hall of abuse. We need that support.
I say to the eight members of the CLP who are left from the nine who tried to vote the Chief Minister out, please do it again; take on your responsibility. Territorians are looking to you. You have the ability to stand up to this Chief Minister as the member for Araluen has. Try to reclaim the trust Territorians placed in you three years ago. You can do the right thing by Territorians. You are some of the few left in the CLP who can. You tried; I urge you to try again. The member for Araluen took a stand last night and you should take a stand with her. If you care for the true welfare of the people of the Northern Territory you need to get rid of this Chief Minister. Territorians deserve better and the Chief Minister deserves the censure of this House.
Mr HIGGINS (Sport and Recreation): Madam Speaker, as I have said in this House before, I support the Chief Minister and this government’s direction. It is concerning and upsetting to me to see all the mud that gets flung around this Chamber. The incident last night was a classic example of that.
This is not why we are here; we are here for other reasons. We have been elected to work for Territorians and this nonsense-type motion is a disappointing tactic that is continually used by the opposition. It is not clever, constructive or in the best interests of Territorians.
As I have said before, I feel honoured and humbled to be in the service of Territorians and my constituents of Daly. This government is trying to move ahead. We are working hard, listening and delivering. Members know about the wonderful initiatives in my portfolios alone, from the Sports Voucher Scheme, including the Learn to Swim vouchers, to bringing events like the Davis Cup quarter final, AFL and NRL games to the Territory, and this weekend we have the V8 Supercars. From upcoming developments in a wide-ranging art and cultural policy, to investment in community festivals and arts projects, we are looking forward and making it simpler, safer and easier for Territorians to enjoy an even better lifestyle.
I will name just a few of the recent budget announcements and initiatives: $20m to expand Richardson Park; $8m for the tennis centre; $2m to upgrade Alice Springs netball; $2m to upgrade lawn bowls facilities in Marrara and Fannie Bay; $1.5m for the new lawn bowls facility in Alice Springs; $2m for the athletics track in Alice Springs; $1.85m for the Alice Springs speedway and go-karts; $500 000 for a new tower and clubhouse at Tennant Creek; and $1m to upgrade track and fencing at the Katherine Motor Sports Club.
I have also encouraged people to be involved in the two master plans we provided funding for. There is $600 000 for a Territory-wide sports master plan and $400 000 for a master plan for Hidden Valley. We are speaking of nearly $11m to upgrade the Chan building, and these are just a few budget initiatives. More recently, there was $500 000 put into Freds Pass.
I am about getting on with the job. This is a place for grown-ups. This should not be a place for mudslinging or personal attacks. Let us just get on with the job.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, my comments will generally be about the government’s behaviour overall.
I listened to the member for Daly, the minister for Sport. His has a soft portfolio, and I not saying that in a bad way. It is a good news portfolio.
I take up what he said about Freds Pass. There was no money in the budget for Freds Pass. It was a latter day budget announcement, and as a rural resident that is what is so disappointing. The rural area has been left out and clearly not listened to as shown by some of the comments made by the minister for Planning in relation to where people in the rural area would like their lives to head, not the way the minister thinks they should go.
The government laughed at the ALP when it lost one member of its government. It actually lost two then one came back. In this case, there has been a 300% increase in defectors from this government. Four left, and one has gone back. If you were an outsider looking at this you would say it is a pretty unstable government to lose three members in a one term. That reflects much of how people in the community feel. They are disenchanted with this government.
Yes, the government may have some good visions. I will not say the Chief Minister’s vision for the north is bad, or some of the statements that have been made in this parliament are bad. They are, in many cases, very good, but in the mix of all the things that have happened they show the government, when it wants to hide from the public processes that should be open and transparent, is willing to avoid exposure at all costs.
The classic example is when I asked for an inquiry into Foundation 51 and Harold Nelson Holdings. I said it should be for both sides, and it was promised to the Northern Territory News. As the Opposition Leader said, straight after the Casuarina by-election it was watered down. I was never told about that and I had meetings with the Chief Minister. That is an example of why people are disenchanted with what is happening.
We had the attempted coup d’tat. I was in Portland when it happened. I had a Chief Minister at 2 am; by 10 am that morning I did not have the same Chief Minister. It is difficult for me to see people stand up in parliament on the government side who supported the change of leadership, and say, ‘We are a team behind the present Chief Minister’.
People will laugh and ask why you voted for this person and when the pressure was on you changed your mind. People are cynical when members of the government get say they support the present Chief Minister, especially if they were part of the group that did not support him in February.
I do not want to get caught up in the personal antagonism. I have been in this parliament long enough to have copped a lot of flak, abuse and name calling. I am not perfect either, but I reckon the balance is more one way than the other. I think this reflects badly on our parliament.
Again, I refer to my trip to Canada recently and how I looked at those two territories and the way they behave. They ask hard questions, but they do not behave the way we do in this parliament.
There are other issues. The government was very vocal about the Stella Maris issue. It was so concerned it set up an inquiry. That inquiry brought out many recommendations, but the one I believe was really important was that we should have an integrity commissioner. Why should we have an integrity commissioner? To ensure there is someone that MLAs, no matter whether they are ministers or members like us on this side, can go to and get advice.
Maybe some of the mistakes the government of the time made in relation to this could have been avoided if we had an integrity commissioner, because they could have gone to that person and asked, ‘If we make this decision, what do you think? Do you think that is a correct decision?’ Maybe it would have been stopped at that stage.
As I said, a little territory in Canada of 37 000 people has an integrity commissioner, and here is a territory with 225 000 people and the government rejects that idea. People lose faith if the government is not willing to have somebody who helps improve the way we govern. That is why people get suspicious about what is happening.
Statements have been made by various people who were CLP members, criticising the Chief Minister. As I said, I will not go into personal matters. I was extremely disappointed when the Chief Minister told me we would have an inquiry and it did not happen, at least not in the form originally agreed to.
We have a censure motion, but the final censure motion will be at the election in August next year. That will be the proof in the pudding. It was mentioned in the paper today that I might consider a no-confidence motion - I just said ‘consider’ - but I do not intend to bring the government down. The government will bring itself down. It only really needs one or two more people to trip over and it will bring itself down. I will not be party to that. I know what happened previously and I did my best to help bring stable government to the Northern Territory.
In this case the government has not shown leadership. It has not shown open and transparent government. The minister for Planning, I said the other day, had made an announcement about the land block size of he supported. I said, ‘You are the minister who will decide on a development application which will allow blocks of that size in an area where they are currently not permitted. They are not permitted by the rules of planning in the rural area. Therefore, you cannot make a decision, because you are in a position of administration and will be seen to be administratively biased.’ I do not believe the minister can make that decision. He has to pass it to another minister.
I remember the matter in relation to Doctor’s Gully when the previous Chief Minister, Marshall Perron, had to make a decision – he might have been the minister for Planning - about his own land. He said he could not make that decision and passed it to another minister.
It is the arrogance that people see. There are people in the rural area who care about the future of where they live. I get the impression the minister could not care two hoots, as long as he can say, ‘Oh, we developed more blocks of land’. That, to me, is a sign that this government does not have an understanding of the wishes and needs of people, especially in my area. The government might think it is great to have this new development, but I ask how many ministers have gone to places like Elizabeth Valley, Acacia Hills and Noonamah and asked the people in that area whether they want what the Planning Commission and the government are pushing for – lots of little blocks everywhere.
They have not had the guts to talk to the people who will live next to these developments. They did not do it in my area. It was only recently when we started to stir the pot about Holtze next to the hospital development that government people came to see people in that area to discuss the issues important to them. I see this blanket approach, ‘We want development; the north has to develop. We cannot afford to build Weddell; we will have to cut up the rural area into small blocks.’ This is a blanket approach to planning and decision-making that does not have any relationship with what the people would like. That is a sign of an arrogant government.
I remember talking to a company – I will not name it – and asking why they had not held a public meeting. He basically said, ‘Tomatoes’. Big deal, tomatoes are soft anyway. If he had said bricks I might have been a bit concerned. Sometimes you have to stand in front of people and take the flak. Sometimes you also have to listen to what people have to say. Sometimes you have to be brave enough to say, ‘That is not the decision the government wants to take’. But that has not occurred, especially in my area.
The Opposition Leader knows that generally I do not get caught up in censure motions. I repeat that this is a censure motion that will come to fruition at the next election. I get indications of what that will be from the people I meet who are disenchanted and disillusioned with the process of government in the Northern Territory, and not just the government; there have been problems on the opposition side. I get a genuine feeling that people are just sick of it.
I read the estimates and noticed how I received a bit of a knock when someone commented about Gerry being away from estimates. I had to go to Canada at that time because there was simply no other time to go. Firstly, it was spring and it got to a top temperature of 1C, so I was not going in winter; secondly, parliaments in those areas were sitting at that time so my trip could include two territories; thirdly, I knew these Legislative Assemblies had a system which did not include political parties, but was based on a system of Independents in parliament. As many people had said to me, ‘We are sick of the system of government we have in the Northern Territory’, I thought it was my duty to at least see what other jurisdictions do to see if there was a possibility that their type of government and Legislative Assembly processes could be reflected here.
I know what happens here. There is a mixture of proper debate, but there is also, ‘My party is better than your party and we will do everything for our party to get into power’. The other side will do everything to rubbish you so much that you are defeated at the next election, instead of saying, ‘We have policies that we should promote as a parliament to improve the welfare of the people of the Northern Territory’. We are elected to represent our electorates and the whole of the Northern Territory. That is why I went overseas. I am getting a constant feeling that people are fed up. The things happening at the moment reinforce it.
I hope that over the next 12 months change will occur, perhaps even a miracle. If it does not, I am sure it will at the next election. I am not a fortune teller but I say to the government that things are not good in the community.
The government has let the people down, not because of its vision – I do not disagree with most of the vision it puts forward. It is the bits that hold that vision together. Processes that are open, transparent and that work with the people are missing. These hidden bits are what people are concerned about. It is very hard to be constructive when you are dealing with a censure motion; however, the government has to take stock of where it is at present because it cannot get much lower in the people’s minds.
Mr KURRUPUWU (Arafura): Madam Speaker, I rise as an Indigenous member of parliament to speak in support of the Country Liberal government and Chief Minister Adam Giles. I am a proud Tiwi man and traditional owner. I am also a man of faith and integrity. I have seen a remarkable turnaround in fortune for people in my electorate as a result of the Chief Minister’s push for economic development in remote communities.
This Chief Minister and the Country Liberal government understand that Aboriginal people do not want paternalism and welfare. Aboriginal people want self-determination and jobs. For many years the Tiwi people have been pushing to have the right and ability to develop our land and create new business and employment opportunities for our people, and our kids especially.
There were countless times under the previous Labor government that Tiwi people went to them for support to develop their economy and create jobs, but Labor gave none. They did not support the forestry and plantation project. Labor’s policy is to keep Indigenous people reliant on welfare and Labor. Since the Country Liberals came to government, the feeling in my electorate has changed dramatically. My constituents are energised and optimistic about a bright future, one where there are viable jobs on country for their children.
We know, and this government knows, it is a long and hard road to create a viable economy. It takes time and money to build the infrastructure needed to support the creation of business and jobs. The Treasurer and Chief Minister have made it clear that they see spending on this infrastructure as an investment not only in the Northern Territory, but in the lives and future of Indigenous people in the bush.
The Country Liberal government has invested heavily in the bush. I have mentioned previously in this place some examples. We have done things like the Maningrida barge landing upgrade; starting and supporting the Tiwi ferry service, which received more funding in the last budget from the Treasurer; negotiating with traditional owners to get fishing permit deals; upgrading a sewerage plant in Maningrida; funding tourist welcome facilities in Maningrida; working with Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation to get it operating efficiently and effectively again, allowing it to continue employing and supporting local people; police station upgrades in Oenpelli and Pularumpi; providing money in the budget for further upgrades in remote communities; a new child and family centre in Maningrida and Gunbalanya; working with Tiwi people to help them establish an MOU between the Tiwi Islands Plantations Corporation and Japanese company Mitsui; and working closely with Tiwi people to help them to reach their full potential.
This government is taking proactive steps to work with Tiwi people to see land development and investment opportunities open up to assist in providing jobs for Tiwi people so they can move away from the social welfare dependency affecting so many Indigenous communities. The Tiwi Islands have become a great example of what can happen when traditional owners and government work together to create opportunities for investment and economic development.
When I travel to other parts of the electorate, traditional owners and local people tell me they want to do the same as the Tiwi Islanders. They want the same opportunities. With the support of the Chief Minister, I am helping them to work through the process, finding out what they need for support or the infrastructure that will help them to be successful in achieving viable businesses and opportunities. We will continue to do this to bring better lives to people living in the bush.
I ask the media and urban Territorians not to fall for the false statements from the Labor Party and their union mates, or those Independents seeking revenge after losing their ministerial perks. The Country Liberals government is delivering. There have been some missteps along the way, but the government is delivering for remote Territorians.
I was born and raised in the bush. I have represented Indigenous people on many boards and in many forums. I have seen all the Chief Ministers there have been. Not one of them has been as interested in committing to creating better lives for Indigenous people through jobs and wealth creation than the member for Braitling, Adam Giles. For this I thank him.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Madam Speaker, I am proud to stand here in support of this censure motion. As the Leader of the Opposition said, it gives us no joy to be here today again debating the disintegration and chaos that is the Giles government. As the member for Araluen said, the Chief Minister will be viewed by history as the worst ever. It gives us no joy because the disintegration and chaos means more disruption to Territorians, more government chaos and uncertainty for business, and more contempt for the political process and all of us in this House.
As the member for Nelson has said in the past in these circumstances, it reflects on us all and diminishes the House and the institutions of the Territory in the eyes of Territorians. I am afraid this is largely the work of one man, one individual: the Chief Minister.
The opposition has been overwhelmed by business people talking to us about the instability in government and the impact this has on them. Business needs stability, consistency and certainty. Our economy is reliant upon it. Two-and-a-half Chief Ministers in three years does not provide certainty. Fourteen reshuffles do not provide stability. Five Ministers for Business does not lend itself to a consistent approach from government.
What is perhaps the saddest thing is the evident attitude towards this House that has now been built up in the eyes of Territorians. We are now all tainted by the failings of this Chief Minister. We, as members of parliament, have had our reputations diminished by the actions of this Chief Minister. The institutions we represent have all been diminished by him.
We all must understand that our actions, how we conduct ourselves, and how we go about doing business is watched and judged by Territorians, so it is incumbent upon us all to behave with the respect and demeanour this institution of parliament and government deserves. The abuse this Chief Minister brings to the operations of this House is seen and judged by Territorians. They see it for what it is: arrogance.
The problem is we all get tarred with the same brush and our political process comes into more disrepute. At a time when there is a national debate about how we conduct politics, this Chief Minister has continued his policies of intimidation and persecution, even against members of his own party.
The member for Araluen has made a tough decision. I am sure she did not take the decision lightly or with any joy when she stood on the floor of this House yesterday evening. She has dedicated her political life to the Country Liberal Party. As she herself said, she has been a natural Liberal and Country Liberal all her life. She has done the right thing by her party for a long time, even in the most difficult of circumstances. But she stood aside as Deputy Chief Minister. She took on numerous difficult portfolios. Teachers will remember it was she who added additional millions to the failed global budgeting exercise in her recent but brief foray back into Education. She then endured being dumped from her portfolios after the failed leadership coup in February.
It should be noted that the man who challenged the Chief Minister is now his deputy, and the woman who supported that challenge has been dumped, intimidated and abused since. That speaks volumes for the state of mind of this Chief Minister and the conditions of the government he somehow leads.
Perhaps one of the most telling criticisms made by the member for Araluen was about the treatment of strong women in the Country Liberal Party by this Chief Minister and his Treasurer, his sidekick, who, because of his own bad and entirely inappropriate behaviour, has spent six months on the backbench, only to be returned to Cabinet and restored to the position of Treasurer.
It is a very sad day for every Territorian, but particularly women, when a strong female member of this House says:
- To any woman contemplating a future in politics with the Country Liberal Party, think carefully about your ability to endure what I can only describe as abuse.
That, Chief Minister, is a tragedy for your party, this House and the Territory. Women, as you know, form half of the population of the Territory. Women play a massively important role in our society, leadership roles in business, unions, politics and the public service – every aspect of the Territory. Our society operates more functionally and effectively when men and women take a shared approach to leadership in our community, business and, indeed, in this House.
I believe the Territory welcomes women playing important roles. I am conscious and proud of the fact that my party produced women like Clare Martin, who led us to the first-ever Labor government in the Territory in 2001. I am proud of the role Her Honour Sally Thomas played as our Administrator, serving the Territory admirably. I am proud of the fact that the Cattlemen’s Association is led by an articulate, smart and tough woman like Tracey Hayes. I am proud of the fact that our unions are led by intelligent, strong, dedicated and tenacious women like Erina Early and Kay Densley. I am proud when I see young women like Lauren Moss, the member for Casuarina, step up and become a member of this House. To be frank, I feel proud every time I see Jessica Mauboy represent and showcase our culture and society to the country and the world.
I am proud of the women of the Territory, and I believe we have a massive contribution to make. Territorians believe that too, but there is obviously one exception, and that is the Chief Minister. The member for Araluen has pointed out quite clearly that the people who have marched from the CLP are the strong women, those not prepared to put up with the abuse of the Chief Minister. She has called you out for your behaviour in the past at bars, and yesterday she called you out on your leadership behind closed doors.
The members for Araluen, Namatjira and Arnhem all have marched from this government. Jodeen Carney, a tough, smart and resourceful former leader who was close to you, Chief Minister, has today again added her voice to that of the member for Araluen. Jodeen Carney says you are arrogant and divisive. She says you cannot lead your team and you therefore cannot lead a government. She says you have failed every leadership test. Fay Miller, a former member of this House and a strong leader and Mayor of Katherine, and in no way a shrinking violet, has also left your party because of you, Chief Minister.
Chief Minister, the way you conduct yourself in this House, the special contempt you show to people like the members for Namatjira and Arnhem, the way you paternalistically step in over the top of your Minister for Women’s Policy, and the way you deal with my female colleagues on this side of the House speaks volumes to the way you treat women. As the member for Araluen said, your leadership style is to ‘eliminate, execute, annihilate and assassinate’.
The Chief Minister began his leadership by stabbing in the back a colleague who was out of the country. He has since lost four members of parliament and managed to entice just one of them to return. He has been implicated in the rotten stench of Foundation 51. Foundation 51 has corrupted the electoral processes of the Northern Territory to such an extent there is now very serious and real public concern about political donations, how they are made and reported, and what benefits flow from making them. Foundation 51 has tainted the processes of decent people who wish to make a contribution to the political discussion in the Northern Territory.
Thanks to the Chief Minister, who overturned a motion of this parliament to investigate political donations on the back of controversy about Foundation 51, there was a complete abuse of the democratic process that this parliament is supposed to enshrine.
There are serious questions to be addressed and answered over this Chief Minister’s relationship and the relationship of his government with Latitude Travel. He held a bizarre and ranting media conference where he accused police of being engaged in a coup and threatened everybody with a judicial inquiry, and then backed off and entirely backflipped. A coup! Never in the history of the Territory has a Chief Minister ever made such a serious and shameful allegation against the hard-working men and women of the police force. This police force now lives with the stain of that slur from the Chief Minister.
The Chief Minister claims to be interested in and to support the regions, but the reality is he is not and does not. I know this firsthand. I know he is not to be trusted. I witnessed the betrayal of a community when he reneged on a gas deal set up by his predecessor, Terry Mills, and the cynical announcement on Darwin Show Day two years ago, a public holiday, when he reneged on that deal. He had not even provided the courtesy of a heads up to Pacific Aluminium or Rio Tinto, who did not know that announcement was coming that day.
He muscled up to the largest private employer in the Northern Territory and broke a promise to on-sell gas to their company and saw, as a result, more than 1100 jobs disappear from Nhulunbuy. It sent a terrible message to businesses looking to invest in the Northern Territory. It was a message that said, ‘You cannot trust this Chief Minister or this government’.
He has treated the people of Nhulunbuy with nothing but contempt since that day and his visits, when they happen, are carefully stage managed as he knows he is so disliked there because he is not to be trusted and has betrayed the people of the region. He cannot even bring himself to support the Territory’s local airline, Airnorth, and utilise its commercial service each time he travels. Instead he travels on costly charters.
In the whole debacle that was the failure of gas to Gove, and the huge downturn experienced in Nhulunbuy and the Gove region, he washed his hands of any responsibility to pursue and deliver structural adjustment packages with the federal government, which is standard practice in any region in Australia where there are major downturns in manufacturing – not this Chief Minister or this government – out of sight, out of mind.
Nhulunbuy is one region of the Territory that has suffered from this government but, as the member for Araluen pointed out, not the only one. The Chief Minister was instrumental in driving a regional agenda when he was in opposition; I acknowledge and congratulate him for that. The problem is the people in the bush who trusted your word have now been left with a fistful of empty promises, and the realisation that your word is worthless and counts for nothing.
My colleague, the member for Barkly, works day-in day-out during his extensive travels through the Northern Territory to the bush communities, some which he represents and others he does not. The community of Borroloola signed on the dotted line, with the Chief Minister when he was in opposition, a contract to deliver things that have simply not been delivered. Similar contracts were signed on the dotted line in Wadeye and across many communities in the Northern Territory.
One of the first things the Chief Minister did was dismantle the cooperative interagency working arrangements between the Territory and the federal government, which was an appalling move. Those interagency working arrangements were bearing real fruit. Work was being done on the ground to deliver on the agenda that people had developed, importantly, from the ground up.
Then he sought to replace that with a structure all his own, but this has patently failed. He also sought to undermine the importance of Aboriginal Affairs by abolishing that portfolio upon taking the reins in March 2013. Some two-and-a-half years later he realised that in the terms of the electoral cycle he needed to reinstate that important portfolio.
Under his watch, housing in the bush has slowed almost to a standstill. Housing is a massive issue in our remote areas. This was recognised even by the Howard government. Under our watch, and federal Labor’s, we built houses hundreds of houses. We also fixed up hundreds of them and we knew, and still know, there is not enough. I have no doubt that those houses built under Labor in our remote communities across the Top End, in communities like Galiwinku, Milingimbi, Maningrida and Ramingining saved lives earlier this year when these communities were hit not once, but twice in the a space of a month by cyclones.
The Chief Minister cannot even deliver on the paltry amount that has been promised - no houses in Borroloola, which is a promise long overdue, and maintenance programs for housing that are failing tenants miserably. People are waiting months to have the simplest of issues resolved. Do not get me started about the empty houses in Nhulunbuy. There still remain around 170 empty houses. Yolngu people, on a daily basis, ask me, ‘Why can’t I have one of those houses? Why can they not make them available?’
There are terrible stories of overcrowding and dysfunction at some homes in Yirrkala. It is shameful. These houses were given away by Rio Tinto; no one has to buy them. But, no, the government simply does not have the political will to step forward and recognise its corporate and social responsibility to take on some of those houses to address the longest public waiting list for housing in the Northern Territory – in Nhulunbuy.
Infrastructure delivery under this government is patchy at best. Palmerston Regional Hospital is more than two-and-a-half years behind. They cannot even deliver the projects that were funded by Labor. I include in that the $50m worth of funding to build and renovate remote clinics. That schedule is way behind. Umbakumba clinic was due to start in May. The intelligence I have is that it has not started yet.
As for the infrastructure that will come with $5bn announced by the federal government, it is $5bn in concessional loans – a very competitive budget of that $5bn to be shared across the Top End, not just for the Northern Territory.
This government has stripped resources from the schools out bush. We know about the levels of disadvantage, that English is not the first language and there is a need for more teachers and local assistant teachers, but those resources have been removed and instead we got $20m for a boarding facility which the Treasurer thinks we should be grateful for. The problem is everyone I have talked to says they are fearful about sending their children there. This is a government that does not listen. His government, as the member for Araluen said and I agree, has failed the regions, even in his home town of Alice Springs where the economy has stalled and too many commercial premises are empty. There has been such a significant population decline that the seat of Araluen has collapsed.
Who can forget the Chief Minister’s recent performance in estimates. His schoolboy-like slow reading, his refusal to table information and discuss ministerial travel, and the contemptuous way he handled questions all point to one thing: he is not a leader.
Today we are censuring you not only because of your treatment of the member for Araluen, but for your leadership style. We are censuring you for the way you lead your government, where your own Speaker has to FOI the government to get details on planning in her electorate. Most importantly, we are censuring you for bringing all of us down with you and for adding to the contempt the public has for all politicians.
I am interested to see who speaks next in this debate. I dare say the two men who sit either side the Chief Minister will now get to their feet, defend him and say what a good job he does. That will surely compromise their integrity, given that those two men who sit either side of the Chief Minister stepped out in February at a 1 am media conference and said they were now the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister because they had no faith in the Chief Minister. Now we are about to see them rise to their feet, forget that damage and say they support the Chief Minister.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend this motion to the House and urge all members to support it.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE (Deputy Chief Minister): Mr Deputy Speaker, the member for Nhulunbuy was quite right in her prediction, one of the two men sitting either side of the Chief Minister has leapt to his feet to talk on this repetitive motion. We have seen these types of motions come before this House before, much as we have seen duplicitous debate in this House about water. Here we are yet again. They must have these motions Xeroxed and sitting out the back ready to go because they are so duplicitous.
I do not think I will speak for terribly long, but I will say that I am disappointed that once again this House is being used as an avenue for discussing personal matters and for personal attacks on the Chief Minister and the integrity of this government. The opposition tends, unfortunately, to focus on personal attacks and the internal machinations of the CLP rather than focusing on the issues that matter to Territorians, that is, the policies of this government as they relate to the people of the Territory. These are the things that influence the lives of Territorians and make their lives better, safer and smarter. But no, we do not see that here; it is very rare.
I pick up on a comment from the member for Nelson about the fact that there is very little policy debate in this House, and he is right. There is very little policy debate in this House because the opposition tends to focus on matters of internal politics, talking about ourselves rather than things that matter to Territorians. If there is one thing I do get it is that the people of the Northern Territory do not like politicians talking about politicians. Unfortunately, the way the opposition behave we are again doing just that.
Beyond that, this government, in its current guise led by Chief Minister Adam Giles and a team of devoted, dedicated and hard-working ministers and backbenchers, is doing a stellar job in many areas that affect the lives of the people of the Northern Territory. I am proud to be part of a team that is getting on with the job. When the opposition was in government a number of years ago we had a government that floundered at every difficult junction and shied away from making tough decisions. This government has rolled up its sleeves and got on with the business of governing the Northern Territory.
We are dedicated to ensuring an effective and efficient government working for the advancement of the Northern Territory because we are not focused on internal politics; we are just getting on with the job. We are not interested in wasting valuable parliamentary time. I said the other night that an hour of the parliament costs around about $20 000 to run. Here we are again, we started this at 2.45 pm and it is now 4 pm so we have ticked over more than $20 000 in costs to the taxpayer just to make the opposition members feel good about themselves and give them an opportunity to hear their own voices.
What we are doing as a government is far more important than what the opposition is talking about in the parliament today. We are getting on and doing things. I will go through a few of the highlights of the work ministers have done over the last two-and-half-years. This is just a tiny sample of the work happening.
In my own portfolios I have introduced measures to rebuild at-risk reef fish stocks to sustainable levels and improve the quality of NT fisheries for the future. That might sound like government imposing more regulation, but that will make a difference in the future. Our children and grandchildren will have fish to catch because this government took some tough decisions. Yes, we have upset a few people. That is what happens when you are in government; you upset people because in order to make an omelette you have to crack a few eggs. That is what we are doing, nonetheless.
We have just gone through the biggest ever plant health response in Australia’s history with the banana freckle response plan. We have finished phase one. Again, we have taken some responsible, tough decisions to do the right thing by the Territory because biosecurity is all about protecting jobs, livelihoods, industries and the environment. These are some of the tough decisions we are taking on this side of this House while we are not focusing on the internal machinations of politics.
I could talk forever about the growth in trade of cattle and buffalo into Vietnam and Indonesia. We have worked with landholders to help them through the difficulties they are facing with cucumber green mottle mosaic virus. I know water is a topical subject, but we have done something that no government has ever done before, certainly something the Labor government never considered in their 11 years, and that was to introduce a strategic policy discussion paper on water to make sure we get the future water planning for the Northern Territory right.
We are working with pastoralists on the wild dog programs to make sure that system is set up right, so they can get on, do their business and reduce and mitigate the impacts of wild dogs on cattle herds.
In the area of public employment, we have the Northern Territory public service Indigenous Employment and Career Development Strategy 2015-20, which was launched earlier this year. The Indigenous employment target set by the Chief Minister – I applaud him for that. We were sitting at about 8%, and the target for 2030 is for 16% Indigenous employment within the public sector. It is a lofty goal, but what a great goal. These are things government is doing while not focusing on internal politics.
The Chief Minister has created the Indigenous Affairs portfolio to refocus government’s attention on matters that relate to Indigenous people, trying to drive economic development, which is so right. I heard the comments by the member for Arafura earlier about the Labor government focusing only on Indigenous people in regard to keeping them welfare dependent and dependent on the Labor government. He could not have spoken truer words, but we are focused on Indigenous economic development and getting people out of the welfare cycle. I applaud the member for Arafura for his comments.
The Treasurer has done some amazing work in sorting out the Territory’s financial problems. We were in a space, when we came to government, of inheriting $5.5bn worth of project debt from the Labor Party. We have worked to reduce that significantly. By next year we should be at, or very close to, a surplus budget. These are the things we are focusing on while we are not focusing on internal politics.
In the Lands and Planning area we delivered a land release program, which is the biggest in the Northern Territory’s history, to help create 6500 homes over the next 10 years. Our reforms have delivered a planning system that is rated Australia’s best by the national Property Council.
In the area of Mines and Energy we have created the CORE initiative, which is a funding initiative of $23.8m over four years for collaborative drilling programs to enhance opportunities for our explorers and make sure they have every opportunity to come to the Territory, even in this downturn cycle, and find the next major discovery. The Hawke report was commissioned by this government. That is paving the way for the next generation of oil and gas projects in the Northern Territory.
I applaud the Attorney-General, the Minister for Correctional Services, on his work on the Sentenced to a Job program, which is turning the lives of people in our prisons around. It is making a huge impact on the potential for inmates who are currently in prison, or have been in the past, to find meaningful work.
I cannot go any further without mentioning the Minister for Health. The Palmerston Regional Hospital will become a reality, as opposed to what the Labor government delivered in its time of government, which was a fence and a sign. That was their effort towards the Palmerston Regional Hospital.
Minister Chandler, in his Police portfolio, had CCTV cameras installed - more than we ever had before. We have the mobile cameras, which were the first in the nation, being used in hotspots in the Northern Territory. He also launched the Indigenous Education Strategy giving remote students the best chance of good schooling. In Transport he is tackling antisocial behaviour by upgrading bus security and giving transit officers more powers. There is a record spend in infrastructure in the budget of $1.385m. We are connecting people with roads, bridges and aerodromes right across the Northern Territory.
The member for Stuart, in her role as the Women’s Policy minister, has been selected by the Prime Minister as part of the panel to provide advice to COAG about reducing violence against women. In her Parks and Wildlife portfolio she is opening up our parks through an expression of interest process and creating partnerships with industry to increase visitation to the Territory’s wonderful parks and reserves through sustainable development and increased commercial partnership.
From the member for Daly, minister Higgins, we heard today the wonderful news about ticket sales for the Davis Cup. That is a world-class premiere event being held in the Northern Territory, brought to the Northern Territory by the Country Liberal government. We are able to do that because we are not focusing on internal politics, we are focusing on the things that make a difference to the lives of Territorians.
There are so many components to running a government. I know some on the cross benches have been part of a government before and others are new to the role in opposition. The work that has been done by this government, even in the last two-and-a-half years, well and truly eclipses all the work done between 2001 and 2012 when the Labor Party was in power. I acknowledge we have endured some difficult and perhaps interesting times within the ranks of our party, but we have managed to achieve an incredible amount of work, notwithstanding the internal machinations of the CLP.
We are, as a party, a broad church. We are entitled to have our opinions. And guess what? We air those opinions. I do not always agree with things the Chief Minister says and does. Guess what? When I do not agree, I talk to him about it. Likewise, I sometimes do not agree with things the member for Daly wants to do, and I talk to him about that as well. We have those robust conversations. We do not always agree on things. Despite all of that, we are getting on and governing for the people of the Northern Territory.
That is why people elected us in 2012. The people of the Northern Territory said, ‘We are sick and tired of Labor. We are sick and tired of nothing happening in the Territory. We are sick and tired of the Northern Territory having no chance of reaching its true potential.’ That is why the Country Liberals were elected to govern.
We have been getting on and doing that. There are political machinations going on in every party room across Australia every day of the week, we are no different, in many ways, to any other party in any state or in the federal arena. Nonetheless, importantly, we are getting on and doing the job for the people of the Northern Territory. I am very proud to be a part of a government that is driving so many different forward-looking agendas for the Northern Territory.
Before I finish I will talk a little about some of the things the Chief Minister is doing. Never before has anyone ever mooted a gas pipeline connecting our gas potential in the Northern Territory to the east coast. I do not think it has ever been considered anywhere. I have not seen it written in any despatches, and I have not heard it mentioned by anyone. The gas pipeline will be a game changer for the Northern Territory. That is due wholly and solely to the vision of the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, Adam Giles. That is just one example of the visionary things this government is focusing on as we move forward to the next election in 2016.
If the people of the Northern Territory want us to keep talking about ourselves, then they might throw their support behind Labor. But if they really want things to happen in the Northern Territory, then they will continue to throw their support behind the Country Liberal Party and keep us where we rightly should be, and that is driving the agenda for the future of the people of the Northern Territory.
In closing, I do not subscribe to this censure motion in any way, shape or form. I will make one quick reference to it. I will quote from the third paragraph of the censure which says:
- … for diminishing this parliament and bringing the government, this parliament and the Northern Territory into disrepute through arrogant, deceitful and disrespectful behaviour …
This is a strong government led by a strong leader, supported by a number of very strong, hard-working ministers and backbenchers, and it is a government that is working hard for the people of the Northern Territory.
Mr STYLES (Business): Mr Deputy Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition talks about trust and lies. Everything about the Opposition Leader smacks of hypocrisy. Such is the hypocrisy of the Labor Party that Terry Mills, the man they said was not fit to represent the Territory in Indonesia, is now their new found best friend.
Whilst I will not discuss or surmise why Mr Mills’ company was dismissed from that role, it was not a political assassination as was alluded to by members opposite yesterday.
The Opposition Leader speaks glowingly of Jodeen Carney, yet it was not all that long ago that he loathed her and called for her dismissal from her public service position. The Labor members opposite hail Alison Anderson as a person of substance, yet openly despised and ridiculed her when she left the Labor Party. The Labor members opposite have previously claimed that the member for Arnhem is not fit to be a Territory politician and should be sacked from parliament. The Labor Party now holds up the same person as a shining example of all that is good in a politician.
When the Opposition Leader talks about hate, he should look no further than the member for Nhulunbuy. The hate this member has for the Aboriginal member for Stuart, Bess Price, is displayed almost on a daily basis. This behaviour is akin to white supremacy. It is bullying and thuggish hatred that stems from the fact the Labor Party has never forgiven the Territory Aboriginal population for voting for the Country Liberal Party.
The Labor Party considers Territory Aborigines as their slaves, and as they are the masters the Territory Indigenous population should serve the Labor Party only. We heard that from the member for Arafura. I admire the member for Arafura and his words in relation to what he and his people think about those opposite.
I recall well many years ago a former Labor member for Central Australia, Mr Peter Toyne, was quoted on the front page of the NT News as saying, ‘You can’t keep Aboriginal people in a cultural museum’. That is what the Labor Party seems to want to do. ‘You just sit over there, do nothing and we will look after you. Be reliant on the government.’ The member for Arafura said that today. I admire the determination he has to do well for his people.
The Leader of the Opposition talks about trust; it is the same trust that resulted in the corrupt handing over of Stella Maris to Labor’s equally corrupt union mates. I find it laughable that the member for Nhulunbuy spoke about how proud she is of Clare Martin, the former Labor Chief Minister, when her party rewarded her by stabbing her in the back. I do not know whether we should talk about what happened on that fateful Sunday when the former Leader of the Opposition, the member for Karama, and the former member for Wanguri, Paul Henderson, stabbed Clare Martin in the back.
What happened at the Casuarina Club? Should we talk about that and what the member for Karama was doing there? She was supposed to be the Deputy Chief Minister, yet the former member for Arafura, Marion Scrymgour became the Deputy Chief Minister. The vitriol that came out of that little interaction is not something I want to discuss in this debate.
I am a very proud member of the Country Liberal Party and government. We have policies and we are delivering real outcomes for Territorians. I am also proud to be here standing next to and supporting Chief Minister Adam Giles. He is a man of vision, someone who has a plan and is determined to get the people of the Northern Territory into the 21st Century and progress the Territory so all Territorians have an equal say. When he became the Chief Minister he commenced a program called Community Champions, where ministers all have a community in the Northern Territory they champion, to make sure the community voice is heard.
Those opposite will interject and ask what we have achieved. We have achieved a lot, but I will get to that in a moment. Without Adam Giles’ vision and leadership we might not have that program. We have heard from other members about some of the things that are visionary. Here is a man who is determined to make sure the Territory is part of the economic development of Australia as a whole, and not only that, but also to lead the Australian economy by participating in developing the north. He has been a strident supporter of that and a leader in making that happen.
Together, as a team, the Country Liberals stand alongside the Chief Minister and we are working to deliver real outcomes for Territorians. On our side there are three female members who stand proudly to represent their constituents as part of the Country Liberals team. The reason for three other members choosing to leave is a matter only they understand. As the Deputy Chief Minister said, and as the Chief Minister said in Question Time today, it is a rough and tumble game. We have three very strong female members in our team who are always challenging us - the males - on everything, and that is their job.
We are a team of equal opportunity. For those who chose to leave and have their reasons for leaving, it is best that they explain them.
I will go through some of the things we are delivering. I will start with debt failure; these are the issues we were left with. Under Labor, debt went through the roof. In 2012 Territorians inherited from Labor a couple of things. One is a $5.5bn debt projected by 2015-16, with a net debt to revenue ratio of 98% in the Northern Territory Public Sector, and a budget deficit projection in all years of the forward estimates. We also inherited an ailing Power and Water Corporation.
The graph I throw around this Chamber from time to time is nothing new to people in this side or the opposition, but it shows dramatic increases in debt that would have been left by the former Labor government. Under the Giles leadership we have a reduction in the projected debt, down to about $2.67bn in 2015-16, or somewhere around there. That is a debt to income ratio of around 40%, 41%, 42%, or maybe even down to 39%. That is quite an achievement led by the Giles team, compared with what Labor left.
Under Labor, land release came to a standstill. The Commonwealth government report shows between 2006 and 2011 the Henderson Labor government failed to act as the gap between housing demand and supply skyrocketed. As the 2012 election loomed, figures showed the number of people looking for homes exceeded the number of available dwellings by a massive 10 100.
The Giles government team, led by the Chief Minister, has reduced those figures well down. On the basis of the average household size of 2.7 people per dwelling there was a shortage of about 3750 homes Territory-wide. On a per-capita basis it was harder to find a home in the Territory than anywhere else in Australia.
The previous year to that, the shortfall was 8900 and before that 4200. What you saw under Labor was a dramatically increasing shortfall of land availability and housing. What you see under this government is a reduction. These things are on the way down, as is crime and many other things.
We are seeing the start of a reduction in house and rent prices. We hear on a daily basis that the heat has gone out of the market and it is much easier for people to get affordable housing.
We had the highest fuel costs in the nation under Labor. As a result of our candidate for Casuarina in the recent by-election, Mr Harry Kypreos, who instituted a price summit, we have seen prices fall in the Northern Territory …
Mr Elferink: And stay down.
Mr STYLES: And stay down. I say well done to Harry Kypreos for creating that benefit for Territorians.
We saw the Power and Water debt failure. I hope the Treasurer, if he will speak on this, will talk about the basket case we inherited in the Power and Water Corporation.
Crime rates are on the rise under the government. In fact, two days ago my colleague, the Minister for Correctional Services, articulated that Labor’s plan was to have even more people in gaol. In fact, they built a $1.8bn gaol to accommodate the massive increase …
Mr Elferink: Now their plan is to let them go.
Mr STYLES: Yes, now their plan is to let them go. How absurd is that? What sort of leadership is that? I hope the Leader of the Opposition has taken up my challenge to make an apology to Mr John Anictomatis, Mr Andy Bruyn and Mr Michael Tennant. It will be interesting to see whether that occurs.
We have seen crime figures go down. Of course, you see spikes, but when you come off an extremely high level and go to a low level, even with some increases that is far better than where it was. There are fluctuations when you have groups of people. In small jurisdictions like ours, yes, you can have some spikes from here to there. However, at the end of the day crime overall is down, assaults are down. It is not a bad story to tell. It is all led by our Chief Minister, Adam Giles.
What a failure the Banned Drinker Register was. The opposition talks about this, which is one of the things the Chief Minister stuck with. We have, at his instigation, temporary beat location. Even the Mayor of Katherine, who for some reason decided to leave the CLP, has reported that the town has never been cleaner and quieter. These are things that were led by the Chief Minister and are a result of the Giles government.
I look at the ongoing failures of those opposite and I feel very sorry for them. I am a compassionate person and I feel a lot of compassion for them. When you are part of a group of people which has led the Territory down the path of disaster – you created this big debt, you have no wealth creation programs going, your social policy is in tatters, crime is out of control and you are building big gaols because you think you need to lock up lots of people; things were not going too well.
Then along came the Country Liberal Party, which got the economy under control, saw a brighter future and got crime under control. There are so many successes this side has had, down to good governance, but probably also down to the disastrous results the Northern Territory had when Labor was on the government benches. They achieved shameful results. We are continuing to drive economic increases in the Northern Territory. We are driving jobs and people’s bright futures.
Under the Giles-led government, we have the largest infrastructure spend in the history of the Northern Territory. The member for Nhulunbuy said , ‘The Chief Minister claims to be interested in the regions, but he is not. I know.’ I would like to know what the member for Nhulunbuy knows about what the Chief Minister says in Cabinet, in our wing meetings and to staff who are part of the team driving the Northern Territory forward. They are part of the team that is creating economic wealth in the Northern Territory and putting together the pipeline, the prawn farms, the railway we are trying to get from Tennant Creek to Mount Isa, the new ports, exports and everything we are doing that is driving the Territory forward to create jobs.
Probably one of the best things to happen to regional, rural and remote Northern Territory is Adam Giles. He has shifted the focus from the Labor-held seats in the northern suburbs to the bush and has a more equitable program for people in the bush. I look at what the Department of Business is doing in business development programs for people in the bush.
Let us talk about increasing Aboriginal participation in the labour force, a priority of this government. Apart from being my priority, it is the Chief Minister’s priority. He is driving it to make sure people in the bush get a fair go.
The Department of Business supports Aboriginal workforce participation through the Indigenous Workforce Participation Initiatives program and Local Jobs for Local People Indigenous traineeships programs. The Northern Territory government, under the Giles leadership, recognises that Indigenous businesses have the capability to deliver contracted services. However, many have difficulty navigating the tender process. The Indigenous Business Support Tender Support program is an initiative of Adam Giles with a suite of support programs offered by the Department of Business and is available to any eligible Aboriginal business.
These are new initiatives that were never even thought of under Labor. They stand in this House and profess, ‘We are the party for Aboriginal people’. You heard from the member for Arafura, who said that is not quite correct. I did not hear what the member for Stuart had to say, but I am sure it is along the vein that when Labor was in government not much was achieved on behalf of Aboriginal people.
You heard the Chief Minister in Question Time today talk about what is happening on the Tiwi Islands and that a major Japanese company has signed a deal with the Tiwi Islands. That is something Labor did not want to happen. They wanted it to go away. I often wonder is Labor jealous that we have had so many successes on this side, because when you look at the facts, they reveal the Territory has achieved a lot and is moving forward. We are moving forward rapidly and that is great for the Northern Territory.
It must be sad to sit on that side when your team has had a go and made complete mess of it, and someone else comes along with a new team and fixes so many of the problems. I do not blame them for feeling a bit sad or upset, even angry. They should look at the good things in the Territory and not continually talk down the economy of the Northern Territory and try to scaremonger. Get the story right.
Talking of scaremongering, I recall earlier this week in the House, I think it was last Tuesday, after the sad incident of the shooting of the guy in the northern suburbs of Darwin. The police had reported that it seemed like these people knew one another. Yet the member for Nhulunbuy tried to run a scare campaign that this was a drive-by shooting.
Drive-by shootings are random shootings at people. She was trying to scare our community and get some cheap political headlines in the paper saying, ‘This is terrible; what is the Territory coming to?’ That is simply scaring people and not demonstrating the facts of the event known to the public.
I read the paper too, and that is what I knew. I knew that the paper was reporting something about the people involved probably being known to one another; that is the story. The news reports said that appeared to be the case. It was reported in the paper on Sunday. I will say again for the benefit of those listening, the member for Nhulunbuy called it a ‘drive-by shooting’. It was a very sad event.
The failures of the former Labor government - some of the team are still there from the previous government, one of whom is the deputy leader and also the Opposition Leader. They need to watch what they say and what they are doing with scaremongering in the community.
I will reiterate what I said a few minutes ago; I am very proud to be a member of the Country Liberals team led by Adam Giles.
I assure all Territorians that this team is working extremely hard, as was articulated by the Deputy Chief Minister. Everyone is working hard: the backbenchers, the ministers and the staff working for us. We are a very proud team. We have made a lot of progress and have achieved a lot. Sadly, Labor is still knocking us for all those achievements.
The Assembly divided:
- Ayes 11 Noes 13
Ms Anderson Mr Barrett
Ms Fyles Mr Chandler
Mr Gunner Mr Conlan
Mrs Lambley Mr Elferink
Ms Lawrie Mrs Finocchiaro
Ms Lee Mr Giles
Mr McCarthy Mr Higgins
Ms Manison Mr Kurrupuwu
Ms Moss Mrs Price
Mr Vowles Ms Purick
Ms Walker Mr Styles
Mr Tollner
Mr Westra van Holthe
MOTION
Note Statement – Recreational Fishing in the Northern Territory
Note Statement – Recreational Fishing in the Northern Territory
Continued from earlier this day.
Mr VOWLES (Johnston): Mr Deputy Speaker, I read out before lunch the media release from AFANT about the water restrictions and what that means for them. There was no acknowledgement of AFANT’s concern about development of Glyde Point as a dirty port impacting on mangrove habitats and recreational fishing opportunities on our Darwin doorstep.
We have also heard AFANT being very vocal about concerns with this government’s approach to monitoring and regulating mining activity, including legacy mines, that potentially impacts on our aquatic systems and fish resources. Let us not forget it was AFANT which brought the issue of iron ore dust affecting marine life at the Bing Bong port and, joining with the traditional owners of the McArthur River area, expressed concerns about pollutants from the mine site, mine management and potential impacts on local fish resources.
While speaking of AFANT, I acknowledge the great work of Craig Ingram for his two-and-a-half years as CEO, particularly for progressing the development of AFANT as a very credible and effective representative body.
I welcome the new CEO of the Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the Northern Territory, Tristan Sloan. Tristan comes to this job well credentialed, with university qualifications in applied science, specialising in fisheries. I look forward to working with him and the board in the near future.
It is timely to note that despite the rosy picture the minister tries to paint, the CLP still has a way to go in delivering its promises to recreational fishers. Here are some of the concerns raised at the last AGM at AFANT in March this year:
There is a need for greater resourcing and support for Water Police to both address water safety issues and the regulation of fisheries regulations.
More support is needed for tag-and-reward schemes to involve recreational fishers in monitoring the health of our fish population.
There is a need to progress a resolution of outstanding Blue Mud Bay access issues
settlement of issues on the Finniss River and the stability of existing agreements in other places
the CLP’s deal making which has reduced access to fishing areas around the Tiwi Islands for recreational fishers
after two-and-a-half years there has been no real progress on fulfilling the election promise of a new Dundee boat ramp
the future of East Arm boat ramp, with the continuing infrastructure development there
unresolved issues relating to access to Catalina Creek in Darwin Harbour for fishers
the CLP plans, both short and long-term, for Shady Camp
a scoping study for potential boat ramps in the Darwin metro region
the potential closure of Cooper Creek in western Arnhem Land to commercial fishers.
There is also a call to protect our waterways and fishing resources from speculative projects that could be promoted under the northern Australian development agenda, particularly the harvesting of environmental water flows and other projects that could adversely impact on fishery resources. There were concerns raised about the monitoring and regulation of Roper mining operations, including potential breaches of environmental requirements and the need for risk management of these mining operations under administration.
The minister’s statement also notes the importance of continuing support for Indigenous land and marine ranger groups. We will always support these programs and their development. However, we remain gravely concerned about cuts in federal support for these groups, particularly under the IAS grants scheme. We look to the minister to update us on what he knows and is doing to ensure adequate federal funding for these groups in Northern Territory, and for a commitment to fight on the rangers’ behalf for more support and to find ways for the NT government to ensure no lessening of support for these groups to ensure their stability and continued development should funding gaps emerge.
The ranger groups are an important part of the management of our resources, and safer, more sustainable access to water ways, particularly in remote parts of the Territory for recreational fishers. Fisheries are important to the Northern Territory, both in commercial and amateur forms. It is important, and part of our great Territory lifestyle.
I hope when it comes to serious issues about fisheries, we can have a bipartisan approach. It is politics. The main thing is to look after our fisheries and keep the interests of commercial and amateur fisherman at the forefront of any decisions the government makes. I am very thankful for the briefings I have had. I know the minister has worked hard in this area, and it means a lot to both parties to make sure we get it right.
We will continue to develop practical and progressive Labor policies supporting sustainable use of our fisheries resources. It is important for the Territory’s fisheries and our fishers, both commercial and amateur, that when we can, we have bipartisan support to further develop the future of this industry.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE (Primary Industry and Fisheries): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank all the members who contributed to this statement. By and large, those contributions were very meaningful and I enjoyed hearing some of the comments and views espoused by members on this side of the House and those opposite.
Picking up on some comments made by the last speaker, the member for Johnston, I agree that fishing should largely be dealt with in a bipartisan way. Regardless of politics, we still have the same resource in the oceans and rivers, and it is about finding a way to manage those resources going forward.
We all want to see sustainable fisheries in the future. That is why I have done a lot in the last two-and-a-half years to make sure those fisheries are in the best condition they can be now and in the future.
Quite often I hear very reasoned debates coming from the opposition spokesman on fisheries, the member for Johnston. Every now and then he throws in some politics. I am still not quite with him when he talks about water allocations and refers to some of the comments made by stakeholder groups in that area, but that is the nature of this job.
I will wrap up by saying a few things about the contribution from the member for Drysdale. I completely agree with her comments. She loves fishing and knows many people who like fishing. I admire her vision in stocking the Palmerston lakes with fish to bring the community together and provide more accessible locations for fishing for Territorians living in the Palmerston region with limited access to transport. It is a very interesting concept. The member for Drysdale and I have been working on this for a while and the department has been heavily engaged in looking at how and if it can become a reality.
For the most part, this government’s direction to protect and enhance recreational fishing in the Northern Territory is important and on the right track. We always hear calls for additional scientific research and monitoring of our fisheries. I could not agree more wholeheartedly. We have been working on developing and implementing a strategy that will ensure the long-term sustainability of our fisheries, which will include ongoing monitoring to ensure the continued health of our fish stocks and the environment.
Although I give ministerial statements on fishing generally – this one is about recreational fishing in the Northern Territory – a lot of detail is not included about the type of research work occurring. I could probably stand here for several hours talking about the multiple research projects under way in the department of Fisheries. Some of our recent research has led to changes to the coastal line fishery area to combat the decline of a number of our important reef stocks, such as golden snapper and jewfish. That is just one example of the research and monitoring under way.
That dovetails with a lot of work being done by the aquatic health unit within the Land Resource Management department, as well. Monitoring the health of our water ways and harbour is also critical to make sure we have healthy environments for sustainable fish stocks across the Top End.
Since I delivered this recreational fishing statement last year, there has been progress in all those areas. We have delivered on our promise to introduce a resource sharing framework to protect Territory fisheries in the future. The framework, which I launched in May this year, will ensure Top End waterways are used in a sustainable and fair way.
Fisheries across the Territory have a maximum annual harvest. It is important we have the right mix between traditional, recreational and also commercial fishers. The Fisheries Resource Sharing Framework provides a clear and simple process to guide government decisions about fisheries usage, ensuring a fair, transparent and equitable system.
All future fisheries management decisions will be made in alignment with the framework to give fishers confidence in the process. This is part of the government’s commitment to a fair, reasonable, equitable and transparent modus operandi when it comes to managing our fisheries. That framework was developed in conjunction with the NT Seafood Council, the Amateur Fishermen’s Association of the Northern Territory, the Northern Land Council and the NT Guided Fishing Industry Association.
The Northern Territory government consulted widely with the community to ensure the framework is representative of all user groups. I am proud to say the Fisheries Resource Sharing Framework has struck the right balance for sustainable, equitable and optimal use of the Territory’s aquatic resources. The Northern Territory is renowned for the great outdoor lifestyle and abundant fisheries, and this framework will make sure it is protected long into the future. The framework is consistent with national guidelines around best practice for fisheries management.
Quite frankly, we are at the leading edge with much of the fisheries work being done within the Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries. I congratulate the fisheries division of Primary Industry and Fisheries and the staff who work there. They do an incredible job. They have been providing me with sound advice over the past two-and-three-quarter years. Since becoming the minister, I have learnt a heck of a lot about the fisheries of the Northern Territory. I am pleased the member for Johnston has acknowledged the briefings he has received and the work that goes into those briefings. Of course, I am happy to continue to provide them for you.
It is a sad, though, that the member for Barkly, in his contribution, made some negative remarks. Is it not time he removed his rose-coloured glasses and looked at history with 20:20 vision? Under the former Labor government, there were few new initiatives to grow the recreational fishing industry for small business. There were few, if any, new initiatives to create opportunities for Territorians and visitors to land a metrey. By contrast, the Country Liberals government has proudly made many advances to recreational fishing opportunities, and we are determined to protect this industry and pastime for future generations.
Following on from that theme, fisheries management is a combination of a few things. The member for Johnston mentioned artificial reefs. In this budget we have announced $250 000 for a scoping study for artificial reefs around the Darwin region. I am hopeful that will lead to an artificial reef program at some point. That goes to the nub of the point I want to make that one component of fisheries management is making sure you have a good budget allocation from the overall Territory budget. Without that budget allocation, they are the programs we cannot get up and running. If there is any advice I can offer a future minister for Fisheries, it is to make sure he or she pushes hard to get those budget allocations so you can drive that new generation of fisheries management for the good of our kids and grandkids.
The other component of fisheries management is getting sound advice and making sure you have the right people in the Fisheries department to provide it, and then having the courage to make what are sometimes quite tough decisions. I spoke in the previous debate about the tough decisions government has to make at times. It is important that ministers have the mettle to make those tough calls. I made some changes to the coastal line fishery in the last few months. Arguably some of those modifications to the fishery could have been made when the sustainability issues of golden snapper and jewfish were first raised in 2009, and in the years between 2009 and 2012. The previous Fisheries minister – I think for that period of time it was the former member for Casuarina Kon Vatskalis – did not have the courage to make those decisions. That is another component, as well.
The other thing is to be a bit visionary about fisheries and make sure you have some big ideas. We all know our big ideas will, no doubt, get pared back in the budget process; that is a pretty normal. But be visionary about fisheries in the Northern Territory and that will bode well for those fisheries in the future.
In the statement I announced the removal of the Mary River seasonal closure. All reports since then indicate that Territorians and visitors have relished the opportunity to fish on the Mary, particularly around Shady Camp, over the past few months in what was previously the closed season. That is one of the achievements we have made in supporting, growing and enhancing the Territory’s recreational fishing opportunities.
One of the big things that came out of that was the growth for businesses around the Shady Camp area. They reported some significant increases in business now the closed season has been done away with. That is an almost unintended consequence of making what we believed to be a sound decision based on the science around that fishery.
Other achievements for the government include closing Finke and Chambers Bays to commercial barramundi fishing, establishing the Recreational Fishing Advisory Committee, implementing the Recreational Fishery Development Plan, establishing a recreational fishing data survey program to better understand recreational fishing patterns in the Territory, reaching seven agreements with traditional owners around the Territory for ongoing access for fishers to waters affected by Blue Mud Bay, implementing a comprehensive safety and recreational fishing education program in conjunction with the Marine Safety Division, and, of course, the announcement of the seasonal closure of Mary River being removed. Recreational fishers can now fish year round at the iconic Shady Camp barrage and along the Mary River.
The member for Johnston mentioned a range of programs. I am pleased this government has been supporting the ranger programs since we have been in government, and will continue to do so. I notice the funding for ranger programs flowing on through support of the Blue Mud Bay decision coming from the Commonwealth. We have also announced in this budget additional support for those ranger programs.
Recreational fishing is an important social and traditional activity for many Territorians. I am really proud of the work this government has done and the support I have had from my colleagues. I am very lucky I have been the minister for Fisheries since being elected in 2012, and I have had really stellar support from all my colleagues on this side of the House to further the agenda for recreational fishing in the Northern Territory.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend the statement to the House.
Motion agreed to; statement noted.
TABLED PAPER
Answers to Questions Taken on Notice during Estimate Committee
Answers to Questions Taken on Notice during Estimate Committee
Mrs FINOCCHIARO (Drysdale): Mr Deputy Speaker, I table the answers to questions taken on notice during the Estimates Committee’s consideration of estimates of proposed expenditure contained in the schedule to the Appropriation Bill 2015-16, and the government Owned Corporations Scrutiny Committee’s consideration of the activities, performance, practices and financial management of the Power and Water Corporation, Jacana Energy and Territory Generation.
MOTION
Print Paper – Answers to Questions Taken on Notice during Estimates Committee
Print Paper – Answers to Questions Taken on Notice during Estimates Committee
Mrs FINOCCHIARO (Drysdale): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the report be printed.
Motion agreed to.
MOTION
Note Statement – Blue Mud Bay Fishing Agreements
Note Statement – Blue Mud Bay Fishing Agreements
Continued from 26 November 2014.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE (Primary Industry and Fisheries): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the Chief Minister and ministers Higgins and Styles for their input on this important issue.
The history we know. In 2008 the High Court of Australia handed down its decision with regard to Blue Mud Bay. The High Court found the Fisheries Act is valid in tidal waters over Aboriginal land but a permit is required to enter and remain on those lands. Those intertidal waters are the area between the low water and high water mark.
The Blue Mud Bay decision presented a range of practical problems, not least the inability for either fishers or traditional owners to identify the extent of the waters that overlie that Aboriginal land. This government is committed to reaching agreements which provide a practical win/win solution for traditional owners and recreational and commercial fishers. These agreements will allow ongoing access to affected waters by recreational and commercial fishers. They will provide greater opportunities for traditional owners to be involved in managing and benefiting from fishing activity, not just in the narrow band affected by the intertidal waters, but right across their sea country.
The Country Liberal government has allocated $2.7 m from this year’s budget for Blue Mud agreements. The formal allocation of this funding will ensure the delivery of a range of initiatives, including marine ranger program training and support and access payments to traditional owners for the term of those agreements already reached. I make that point again on the back of comments in the last debate about this government’s support for ranger programs.
I am proud to say that seven agreements have been reached for the following regions: the upper Daly, the Daly River mouth to Cape Ford, the McArthur River and Sir Edward Pellew Group of Islands, the Minimini and Murgenella Region, Nhulunbuy, Wadeye and the Tiwi Islands. New fishing brochures have been developed for the Daly River, Tiwi Islands and Borroloola areas which acknowledge the permission granted by traditional owners to visit their land. They also outline a code of conduct for fishers, which is very important. I am pleased to inform the House that a Nhulunbuy fishing brochure is in its final drafting stage. I am sure the member for Nhulunbuy will be pleased to hear that.
These communities have worked in partnership with my Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries to develop the brochures and provide local artwork for the design. These programs are successfully delivering economic growth for Indigenous communities. The Blue Mud Bay agreements are seeing an increase in employment and workplace skills along with development opportunities for remote Aboriginal communities.
The Country Liberals government is committed to giving traditional owners across the Territory coastline the opportunity to consider the government’s offer to enable ongoing permit-free access to intertidal waters overlying Aboriginal land. That resolve has not changed. While the seven agreements reached to date encompass most key recreational fishing areas, formal negotiations have not been able to be progressed in some key commercial fishing areas. However, traditional owners from a number of coastal communities in Arnhem Land, including Baniyala, which is Blue Mud Bay – where the Blue Mud Bay case actually began – Ramingining, Millingimbi and Ngukurr/Numbulwar have shown they have a keen interest in holding negotiations with government over individual agreements for those areas.
Government is keen to progress these negotiations as soon as it is practical to allow traditional owners the opportunity to consider a formal agreement. At this stage the Northern Land Council has extended the interim arrangements until the end of December this year. I once again thank the Northern Land Council for extending that period of time to allow their traditional owners to negotiate with the government on Blue Mud Bay.
Given the number of community meetings that will still be required, it is clear that further time is required to allow these discussions to progress. Government has made it clear it is prepared to continue to devote resources to the further negotiations to ensure all traditional owners have the opportunity to consider an offer for an agreement that will provide opportunities and the improved management of their sea country.
In February this year 17 marine rangers from four different ranger groups participated in Certificate II Fisheries Compliance training in Maningrida. In May this year 12 marine rangers and 10 land-based rangers became the first ever to undertake Certificate III Fisheries Compliance training for Indigenous rangers in Darwin. They commenced that training and it was fantastic. Their final exams are scheduled for the end of August this year.
Fisheries regulations amendments to enhance the Aboriginal coastal licences will be implemented from 1 July 2015 and will provide small business opportunities for Indigenous Territorians and hopefully see an increase in the availability of fresh seafood for remote community stores. This was a topic I discussed only last week with the Chairman of the Northern Land Council about having more opportunities for Indigenous people on coastal areas to engage in small-scale commercial fishing opportunities. That is coming to fruition. To help facilitate this commitment, the Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries has established a commercial fishing mentoring program to provide training to interested communities.
Amendments to the Fisheries Act are also being drafted which include new provisions for fisheries inspectors that will allow appropriately qualified and experienced marine rangers to have enforcement powers. There is a turn up for the books.
There are many benefits of the Blue Mud Bay agreement, including: actively involving Aboriginal Territorians in aquatic resource management; improving the efficiency of marine surveillance, compliance and scientific research; building small business capacity in remote communities; providing locally caught fresh seafood for health and cultural benefits; increasing the capacity of Indigenous Marine Ranger groups to operate under fee-for-service arrangements; and, importantly, genuine engagement with communities.
I remain optimistic about the future for all the Blue Mud Bay negotiations, and I look forward to updating the House on this very important matter in the future. I commend the statement to the House.
Motion agreed to; statement noted.
TABLED PAPER
Travel Reports for Members for Arafura and Greatorex
Travel Reports for Members for Arafura and Greatorex
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Honourable members, I table a report from the member for Arafura, pursuant to the RTD clause 4.12 and also the member for Greatorex, who has been working hard travelling to Darwin in preparation for sittings.
ADJOURNMENT
Mr ELFERINK (Leader of Government Business): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the Assembly do now adjourn.
Mrs FINOCCHIARO (Drysdale): Mr Deputy Speaker, last year Palmerston welcomed a passionate group of volunteers who got together to establish the Palmerston Athletics Club under the leadership of Priya Wickremasena.
The interim committee, made up of John Bowden, the General Manager of NT Athletics; Aaron McMahon from Defence Athletics and founder of Slim Digital; and Priya Wickremasena, a masters athlete and Athletics Australia registered coach, established a vision and mission for the club, a location from which it would operate, a constitution and structure under which it would be governed, and now in 2015 we are seeing the fruits of their hard work with the commencement of the club’s first season from 19 April 2015. The interim committee kindly sought my endorsement as local member and I wholeheartedly endorsed their dream to see a Palmerston athletics club.
The interim committee then took their proposal to the Palmerston community and sought office bearers and members. Kelly Poe, a local mum, stepped up and took on some committee responsibilities. Peter Archer and Darryl Miller, both Palmerston dads who are also Australian qualified coaches, also stepped up to regularly contribute to the club’s activities. Lee Wilson, the NT Manager of Life. Be In It, has also assisted the Palmerston Athletics Club a great deal. He has promoted the club within the school community which has greatly helped to increase the number of youth members.
The club’s overarching goal is to promote athletics and fitness in the Northern Territory. The club wants to encourage young Territorians to engage with athletics and develop basic running, throwing and jumping skills, which are the three skills that form the basis of all sports and games.
A Facebook page has been established so members and friends can keep track of the club’s progress. Everyone is invited to like the page which is called Palmerston Athletics Club.
The club acknowledges how important parents are in fostering a healthy lifestyle for their children and encouraging them to participate in sports. As Priya always says, there are not many 10-year-olds who wake up on Sunday morning and drive themselves to athletics training. In order for young people to participate, there is a valuable contribution being made by parents. In recognition of that contribution, Palmerston Athletics Club has decided that as a part of its offering to its members and as part of its philosophy, something must be offered to engage parents who bring their children to training. The club has a model of community-engaged athletics, which is a commitment by the club to ensure all children’s training session involve the parents so mums and dad, aunties, uncles, grandparents and carers are all running around during training. This commitment has been tremendously successful and is a major achievement of the club.
For parents, it is a great way to spend time with their children, foster their child’s participation in athletics, and get a little fitness training themselves while they are at it. The engagement of parents in training sessions was a key part of the club’s mission statement and was set as a key performance indicator to gauge the success of the club. It is a key part of the club’s commitment to promoting a healthy, active lifestyle for all Territorians. I am pleased to report to the parliament that the club is succeeding.
The club is also keenly fostering what it calls pending medals. These are young athletes with tremendous potential who, with the right training and support, could compete for Australia at the Commonwealth and Olympic games. The club takes a responsibility to identify young talent early and create pathways for them to excel. Additional specialised training is provided for its pending medals, who are provided the best technical coaching training available. This is a huge commitment for the club, which is still establishing itself and has limited resources.
The club is looking forward to the upcoming NT championships and believes it will compete strongly in this competition. I look forward to receiving updates from the club on how its members went.
In the short lifespan of this club it has made a concerted effort to build close relationships with other athletics clubs, including the Darwin Athletics Club. Every Friday night Palmerston seniors compete against Darwin seniors at Marrara. Palmerston also recently participated in an annual interclub competition at which its 100 m relay team did a fantastic job.
In the future, the club would like to see a synthetic track built in Palmerston and believe that this facility would not only benefit athletics but also other sports that could use the track for agility training and conditioning work.
The Palmerston Athletics Club trains at Northline Oval on Sunday mornings from 10 am to 11 am. Everyone is invited to attend one of the sessions to see firsthand the way families can engage in club activities. I commend Priya and his committee for their hard work and passion for the Palmerston Athletics Club. I look forward to attending one of its training sessions and for the ongoing success of its membership.
Ms PURICK (Goyder): Mr Deputy Speaker, I rise this evening to talk about a group of people in the rural area, the Friends of Taminmin Library, and the wonderful community work they do and the enjoyment they bring to so many people. Before I speak about the people involved with that group, I will talk a little about the history of libraries because it is interesting and it goes to the heart of what these people try to do. They not only read books, journals and magazines but they spread the word and are keepers of history.
The word library comes from the Latin word liber, which means book. For as long as there have been people to record and document information about the world around them, there have been libraries in which to store that information. In the prehistoric age people drew pictures on the walls of caves in order to pass knowledge along. These caves could be considered the very first libraries in the world.
As the world changed, language also changed and evolved. As languages developed the peoples of the ancient world also found new ways to store and transfer their records. The Sumerians were credited with inventing writing and libraries around 300 BC. They lived in what is now called Iraq. They wrote by breaking reeds and pressing them into clay tablets. It must have been pretty tricky but it was all they had at the time. This type of writing is called cuneiform, which is Latin for wedge. Sumerians kept their tablets in temples and used them to keep records of grain harvests and to write hymns.
Archaeologists have uncovered several libraries from around this period. One library from a city called Ebla has over 15 000 tablets which contain writings about many topics, including plants, animals and maths. The most famous Sumerian text is called the Epic of Gilgamesh. This epic poem, written around 2000 BC, is all about the adventures of Gilgamesh, the ruler of the ancient city of Uruk and became a very desirable book to collectors around the world at the time.
Around that time libraries were also starting to be established in Alexandria, Egypt, and they kept the written language – the Egyptians had hieroglyphics which were picture symbols and stood for sounds and ideas. Over the years there were tremendous libraries set up that stored all the information across that empire.
The Dead Sea Scrolls – in 1947 a shepherd in Jordan made one of the most important discoveries of the 20th century. When looking for a lost goat in the caves near the Dead Sea, in one of the caves the shepherd found seven scrolls inside broken clay jars. The scrolls were made of animal skin and wrapped in cloth. The shepherd took the scrolls and sold them in Bethlehem. In 1948 the scholars in Jerusalem announced that the scrolls, which were written between 150 BC and 70 CE, contained books from the Hebrew Bible. Archaeologists then excavated other caves around the Dead Sea and by 1956 they had found over 800 texts in 11 different caves. The site where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found is called Qumran and was home to a group called the Essenes, one of the three sects of ancient Judaism.
There were also libraries set up in China, probably around 2000 BC. There were libraries set up in Japan in about 700 BC, in India – Islamic libraries, Roman libraries and then Western European libraries. Libraries started to be established in the Renaissance period and it was fashionable to gather in libraries to learn and read, and to hear other people read because in those days not a lot of people could read. They relied upon the people of the day, some of them nobly called clerks, who read to others.
Many people know about the Dewey Decimal Classification system used in most libraries around the western world but not many people know about the person who invented it. It was a gentleman by the name of Melvil Dewey and he was a compulsive innovator, which sounds very interesting. He was born in 1851, and everyone is familiar with his signature achievement, the Dewey Decimal Classification system, but not so much about the man.
He was born in Upstate New York, and the story says he could not stop thinking about number 10. As an adolescent, Dewey fell hard for the metric system whose great superiority, as he wrote in a high school essay:
- … over all others consists in the fact that all its scales are purely decimal.
He thought 10 was a magical number. Dewey was convinced it was no accident he was born on 10 December, the same day the French National Assembly adopted the platinum metre bar in 1799.
At the Lake Placid Club, the cooperative resort in the Adirondacks that he established in 1895, the number 10 ruled. He charged members a $10 annual fee, life time memberships were $1000 or $10 cubed. He required that guests turn off their lights at exactly 10 pm, the same time the overnight train from the club left for Manhattan. This was a man who was addicted to writing 10-page letters, and even preferred to sleep decimally – that is, for 10 hours each night.
Moreover, Dewey’s worship of the number 10 was closely related to other obsessions that also dated back to his boyhood. At age five he was already alphabetising the spices in his mother’s pantry. He was a perfectionist. Dewey was preoccupied with order, details, rules and lists, symptoms of a form of illness known to psychiatrists as Obsessive Compulsive Personality Disorder. However, he was a clever man and went on to do great things in his life in the world of libraries and in education.
He has left us a system most libraries use today. The Dewey system can be very complicated, but is basically built on sound principles that make it ideal as a general knowledge organisational tool. The system is divided into 10 main classes which together cover the entire world of knowledge. Each main class is further divided into 10 divisions and each division into 10 sections. Not all the numbers for the divisions and the sections have been used. Sometimes you can have subjects of books that go into different systems.
I will not go into the full detail because I could not follow some of the words I was reading. However, it goes to the heart of what I am trying to say, and that is there are people not only in the rural area with the Friends of Taminmin Library but elsewhere who value the current and future importance of our libraries.
The Friends of Taminmin Library is a group of people based at Taminmin College Library. Taminmin library is a jointly-used library with two separate parts operating as one entity for both Taminmin College and the rural community. Recently, the long-time and much loved teacher librarian, Liz Short, retired, and the new teacher librarian is Tracy Wing. Liz had been with the library and the school for many years and was very popular. She is now having a lovely time in retirement enjoying her grandchildren but still comes back to the library for various functions.
The library also has been very lucky and fortunate to have stable staff throughout 2014 and into 2015. On the college side, there was Liz Short and now Tracy Wing, and Robyn Bishop as the college library technician. On the community side there is Iris Beale, the library manager; Dianne Wilcox is in inter-library loans; Jul Moulday runs the country borrowing service; Lyn Carseldine is in children’s services; and Grace Craddock has proven she can do everything and is a real delight. All those people make the library a very special place.
The Friends of Taminmin Library meet there on a regular basis. They are involved in putting on morning tea and events, and in March this year they had the AGM for the community library. It is my great pleasure to let the Chamber people know that again Sandra Parker, who is a very keen and dedicated person when it comes to Friends of Taminmin Library, was selected chairman. Anna Durbridge was selected as vice chairman, Lyn Gerdes is the secretary, treasurer is Shelly Grobler, and the public officer is Sandra Parker. Other people on the committee are Robin Hempel, John Ottway, Angie Wallace, Pauline Fitzmaurice, Gisela Erfurt, Anna Rosencranz and Pat Jones. All those people do quite a lot to make the Friends of Taminmin Library the successful organisation it is.
They hold book fairs and go to the Berry Springs market on a regular basis to sell second-hand books. They are only too happy to show people round the library and welcome them to the world of books and words. Congratulations to those people for being so much part of our rural community. I wish them well for this year and the future.
Ms MANISON (Wanguri): Mr Deputy Speaker, this evening I place my congratulations on the record to some of my local schools for some wonderful recent events which were opened up to the broader community.
Firstly, to the Leanyer School community for the successful Walk Safely to School Day. This is a wonderful event where all the students gather at the top of VRD Drive and make the walk to school, along VRD Drive and Leanyer Drive. I attended last year to join the walk and this year I attended again. To see the numbers grow significantly from year to year is a wonderful thing. It was great to see the involvement of the school-based constable and to have the police there doing the speed checks, reminding the community about the school zones and speeding. Overall it was a wonderful event, and very well organised this year by teacher, Fran Selvadurai. It was the first time she organised the event. She did a wonderful job, so well done. It was a pleasure to join them and see the positive message being sent to children, parents and the broader community about safety, especially during peak hours when children are making their way to school and heading home at the end of the school day.
I also place my congratulations on the record to the Wanguri school community on its recent twilight sports carnival. It was another successful sports day for the school. Congratulations to Dundas house on taking out the sports carnival this year, followed closely by Wellington. Third place was Palmerston and fourth was Victoria. A special thanks goes to Anne Goodman, who organised the events, and to all the parents who volunteered to take part in the sports carnival. They also ran the barbecue, something I am always happy to support and donate snags to; it helps the school raise funds. The school wanted to thank students and staff from Dripstone and the SEDA students who helped with the events and scoring on the day. Well done; it was another great sports carnival for the year, for Gail Quigley and her school. I am looking forward to seeing the event again next year.
I also say congratulations to the Holy Spirit school community; it was great to attend the presentation for their sports carnival last week where, after a very tight day of competition, Angelo was successful in winning on 376 points, McAuley came in second on 371, Strele on 344 came in third, and Gsell came in on fourth place with 342 points. There were some very tight finishes on the day and very close results.
The students and staff put a great effort into the sports carnival. It was a wonderful turnout again, with parents and grandparents coming along to watch everybody compete in events. The result of the carnival is that 54 students are now qualified to represent Holy Spirit at the Darwin region athletics carnival, scheduled to take place on 31 July at Arafura stadium.
A very big thanks and congratulations goes to their wonderful Assistant Principal, Paula Sellars, for coordinating the early childhood and primary school carnivals. The students prepared for the carnival through their weekly PE sessions. The school would also like to thank, Sally Riley, from the SEDA school who came out with 27 of her students and assisted with marshalling events. It was a great day for all, capped off with a beautiful day.
Patrick Johnson, a legendary Australian sprinter and record holder for 100 m sprinting, also came along to cheer on the students at Holy Spirit and played another role of inspiring those kids getting out there on the track. Thank you, Patrick, for coming along and encouraging them, and well done to Holy Spirit school.
Lastly, I place my congratulations on the record to the Darwin Malayalee Association, a wonderful community organisation which supports many people who move over to the Territory from the Kerala region in India. I have the pleasure a few times every year of attending their wonderful events. This was the first time I attended their sports carnival, which took place in Alawa.
I came in on the last night of events, on the Sunday night, where they were finishing up with a tug-of-war. I have never seen anything quite like it. It followed on from many other events, including football – or soccer as I call it – and cricket. The tug-of-war was the end event and I do not think I have ever seen such fierce competition between groups in a tug-of-war. I never quite realised the pride and tradition in the Darwin Malayalee community for the event. It was fierce to say the least – very heated, lots of cheering, yelling and passion. It was very tightly contested. Well done, it was quite a sight. I am sure they would more than welcome other people to come and watch. It was spectacular.
Well done on a wonderful event, particularly to the President, Mr Salas Abraham; the Public Relations Officer, Mr Tomy Jacob; and, of course, Jennifer for her hospitality on the evening. The Malayalee Association does a wonderful job of welcoming people to the Darwin community, giving them the support they need as they get used to life in the Territory. More broadly, they also contribute to the Darwin community. I am sure they will be helping out in huge numbers this weekend at India on Mindil.
Congratulations to the Darwin Malayalee Association. I am hoping to get to your sports carnival again next year and see that wonderful event.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for allowing me the spot ahead of his good self.
I wish to adjourn on a number of matters back home in my wonderful electorate of Nhulunbuy where, despite what we have been through in the last 18 months, many good things still happen.
Nhulunbuy High School recently held its swimming carnival on 29 April 2015 in our beautiful town pool. The winning team was Giddies, whose 2015 House Captains and Vice Captains are Sam Smith, Mahlia Snowden, John-Paul Gilmore and Meagan Morris.
In the championship scores, the Under 13 Male champion was Clancy Brennan and runner up Marley Skertchly. The Under 13 Female champion was Charli Appo and the runner up was Wanetta Willis.
The Under 14 Male champion was Callan Carey and the runner up was Harry Pitkin.
The Under 14 Female champion was Teagan Stiff and the runner up was Cooper Bartlett.
The Under 15 Male champion was Macallaster Barnett and the runners up tied were Tallis Naughton and William Smith.
The Under 15 Female champion was Cheyenne Reynolds and the runner up Mahlia Snowden.
The Under 16 Male champion was Jack Pitkin and the runner up was Cameron Stiff.
The Under 16 Female champion was Bandjirrang Yunupingu.
The Open Male champion was Alex Parfitt and the runner up Caleb Epiha.
The Open Female champion was Abbey-Rose Vaggs and the runner up was Meagan Morris.
Congratulations to all of those kids. Obviously it is not just about the championship side of things in running the school swimming carnival. There are a lot of fun things that happen during the day for kids who do not want to be in those competitive-type events lining up for medals. It is always a fun day at the Nhulunbuy High School swimming carnival.
I acknowledge the hard work I know teachers put into running the day, particularly those from the PE department. It is a great day out for the students, the teachers and the mums and dads who go along and visit the carnival during the day. It is always well attended, so well done to everybody involved.
In the last sittings I talked about an Arnhem region school sport trip into Darwin. That was the Under 12 Aussie Rules boys. There has been another one and this time it was the school sport girls’ soccer trip. I thank Jeremy Robinson, our School Sport Coordinator for Arnhem, who provided me with these words. He organised the Arnhem girls’ soccer team to compete in the Under 12 soccer competition held in Darwin.
The team undertook a 16-hour drive to Darwin, travelling on the Lirrwi Tourism four-wheel-drive bus, picking up six additional team members at the Ramingining/Arnhem Highway turnoff. The girls got to practise together for the very first time half-an-hour before their first game. Some of these girls had never played soccer in their lives.
The Arnhem region played a total of eight games of which they won one game against the Darwin Dingoes. – one goal to zero – and they drew two games. All players, coaches, chaperones and support staff should be greatly acknowledged for their enthusiasm and effort.
The team was made up of students from Nhulunbuy Christian School, Nhulunbuy Primary School, Nhulunbuy High School, Yirrkala School and Ramingining School. The players were Leila Dunn, who is Captain; Dhandiya Garrawurra; Madajula Garawirrtja; Bundatja Gumara; Nanukula Burarrwanga; Meagan O’Dwyer; Tiana Inglis; Lowena Mununggurritj; Phoebe Lamboa; Richelle Malibirr; Vanessa Gaykamangu; Zoe Malibirr; Brandy Dhamarrandji; and Shakayla Gaykamangu. The coaches were Lee Gordon and Tina Trudgen. Goodness me! That makes me feel old. I used to teach Tina Trudgen a long time ago.
The chaperones were Rakrakpuy from Yirrkala and Shirley from Ramingining. Denzel Shine from Nhulunbuy High School – I know Denzel and his family – also travelled with the group to work as referee for three days at the boy’s competition.
The sponsors who helped to make this trip possible included me; I was very happy to give a financial contribution that helped with the purchase of food for the journey. Other important sponsors were Lirrwi Tourism; Rirratjingu Aboriginal Corporation; Miwatj Health; the Department of Education; Cheryl O’Dwyer, one of the parents who travelled; and Dave Neenan at Gove Rentals for the support vehicle.
The journey and the participation in this school sport competition struck a chord with some Darwinites. It featured on the ABC Radio Facebook page and I know Liz Trevaskis – I think it was – did an interview with Jeremy Robinson and some of the kids. It was a delightful story. It was a 16 hour journey to get here with some of them playing soccer for the first time, meeting together for the first time as a team, and then making the long journey back to Nhulunbuy.
I will also talk about the RSPCA Million Paws Walk, which was coordinated in Nhulunbuy on Sunday 17 May. As we know, the Million Paws Walk was occurring right around the country. There were an estimated 35 dogs which participated in the event and I think at least $2000 was raised to support our own Nhulunbuy RSPCA.
I was one of the sponsors of the event. I walked the walk – along with other dog owners – with my dear little miniature Dachshund, Pippa Von Kransky. On his little legs I was not sure he was going to make the whole distance but he was pretty keen and we managed to cover what was probably about a four kilometre walk.
Congratulations to Jacob Mery, and I thank him for his fantastic efforts. He donated the earnings from his doggy treat sales that were recently held in Nhulunbuy. Other sponsors included Shonane Beazley on behalf of Thirsty Camel, who provided a selection of delicious homemade cakes; Marion Adams from Woolworths, who provided the voucher for the raffle; and Sally Dutton, who provided delicious sushi.
It was not just about getting together and going for a walk with the dogs, there were little activities to keep the dogs and their owners occupied as everybody was getting organised to head off on the walk, and then when we returned there were plenty of refreshments and food for people to participate in.
A special thank you must go to all the RSPCA volunteers who worked tirelessly to bring this event to Gove, especially Liz Brown. Liz Brown, or Thin Lizzy as she is known, is instrumental with her work with the RSPCA as a kennel manager and fund raiser. Liz, along with other RSPCA volunteers, has provided a vital role in the past 18 months where, in the downturn Nhulunbuy has been through, we have lost our full-time vet, the wonderful Dr Sue Samuelsson, because her husband lost his job. They have two small children and she had to move to Darwin. She still owns the premises and the practice but it has been incredibly difficult for her to try to run it from Darwin. I want to acknowledge not only the great job Dr Samuelsson has done in supporting RSPCA, but our RSPCA volunteers who have stepped up and provided advice to pet owners, particularly when the call goes out general on social media, on Gove noticeboard Facebook, where someone says there is something wrong with their dog or cat, asking what it might be.
I apologise if I have left somebody out but there are other fabulous RSPCA volunteers in Nhulunbuy, including Richard Lewis, Sharon Asplin, Linda Alexander, Scott Halliday, Anta van Gelder, Cheryl O’Dwyer, Murray Wilson and family, and Deb Barba. A shout out must also go to Pep Phelan for contributing her photography skills. Pep is a relatively new arrival to our town. She is a great community member and it does not matter where you go, you will always see Pep out with her camera.
I suspect that Nhulunbuy Corporation was somehow involved in supporting this event. I know our fabulous CE Angela MacMillan is also a lover of dogs. She has two dogs and I know she is involved in the walk, so I daresay the NCL was involved.
I also want to highlight the efforts of our Rotary Club in recently conducting a quiz night. Twenty-nine teams entered the event. It is always a fabulous night and it raises money for the community. They work tirelessly to run these events, and I want to acknowledge each and every one of them even though I have run out of time to list their names.
Mr BARRETT (Blain): Mr Deputy Speaker, tonight I will talk about some issues in Palmerston. There has been some unrest there. The council is looking to change the rating system from a flat rate to a UCV-linked system. The UCV-linked system takes the unimproved capital value of the land and multiplies it by a particular multiple which creates a value, and that value reflects people’s rates. They have also set a threshold level of $277 000 at the moment.
In effect, for most people in Palmerston their rates are not moving, but people living on blocks valued higher than $277 000 will see their rates move quite drastically. In some cases, particularly for people who live in the Marlow Lagoon area and some of the new blocks in Bellamack that are semi-country blocks, their rates will go up more than 100%. That is a heck of a lot of money, and many people living in the Marlow Lagoon area who bought their home many years ago, some of whom are pensioners, do not have the capacity to come up with a 125% increase in rates.
This system has been peddled as being fairer, but Marlow Lagoon residents, and a growing number of other residents in the Palmerston area affected by this, believe it is not fair at all. The rate rise is intended to raise about $1.7m. The reasons they need to raise $1.7m at this point are not the issue. The issue is they are proposing to do something which puts the burden of this revenue measure on a low number of people.
Currently in Palmerston there are about 12 082 residential properties, 299 commercial properties and 214 industrial properties. For the 2015-16 year it is estimated there will be $12 582 residential properties, 299 commercial properties and 268 industrial properties. For the 2014-15 financial year the estimated rates income is about $16.7m made up of people in residential properties – the vast majority – about $14.7, and the rest are smaller numbers: $1.5m for commercial properties and $0.5m for industrial properties.
They are trying to get about $18.4m made up of $16.17m from residential properties, $1.7m from commercial properties and $500 000 or so from industrial properties. They have about $30m in the bank, which is a truckload of money, particularly considering the current situation of the Northern Territory government which has a deficit budget and a debt which we are trying to rein back in. Looking at it from this perspective, we assess it and think the change really has been made quite quickly. A letter went out to residents saying, ‘This is a proposal and by the way there will be a vote about this on the 30th’.
That precipitated a big reaction from many people in the community, and that number is growing. While it is not the job of NT government to tell council how they should and should not collect rates and and do their revenue modelling, it is our responsibility as elected members in our electorates to represent our constituents.
There are many people who have contacted me about this who are very concerned. I call on the council to delay this decision and better consult with people. Most of the complaints we have been receiving are that council’s consultative process has been poor, and I witnessed a few events that corroborate that. We have to agree with the complainants on this point.
On this issue the council appears to be out of touch with the community and has been less than forthcoming in its explanations as to the need for the change to move to a UCV-based rate as opposed to a flat rate.
Of the 13 150 rateable places in Palmerston and the $1.7m they are looking to raise means about $130 per ratepayer. That is an increase of about 10% and it may be the case they do not feel it is good politics to add more than a 10% rate rise to people in Palmerston, particularly when several people came to their positions as aldermen saying they would resist rate rises. With that in mind, they need to go back to the drawing board and reassess some of the spending initiatives they have and the method they are using to calculate this.
The Country Liberal Party has been working very hard to bring down the cost of living. We have been working hard with fuels, land prices and dwellings. We have seen rent and land value come down, particularly in my electorate of Blain which is a growing area and has many new families and young people looking to enter the market. I see it on a day-to-day basis. We also see the government working hard with things like the sports voucher initiative, trying to get parents extra income so they can afford to send their kids to sporting events.
In my electorate when parents come to me and say their kid has made a state side to represent the Northern Territory, I give them $200 to help their kids. We all know that historically Darwin has been an expensive place to live and we do everything we can as local members and as a government to work on ways of improving this.
This rate rise of plus 10% per rateable block will be another impost on people in terms of the costs of living. Given we are working so hard to combat that at this level, I also call on council to look at the way it is doing things. If it needs to increase rates above CPI, with $30m in the bank, then I wonder at whether or not it is taking enough time to be concerned about the spending it is doing and sustaining its core business of looking after what ratepayers need it to look after, such as collecting bins, looking after roads, footpaths, stray dogs and such things that fall in the purview of the Palmerston City Council.
In closing, I call on the Palmerston City Council to be more consultative, which I believe they have failed to do to date. Alderman on the council have called me and asked for help in this matter because they know this whole thing is being ignored. I call on them to at least expand the time period they have put forward for consultation, past the 30th and begin to listen to the people in Palmerston and respect their views.
Motion agreed to; the Assembly adjourned.
Last updated: 04 Aug 2016