2015-04-28
Madam Speaker Purick took the Chair at 10 am.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I advise of the presence in the gallery of exceptionally smart students from St Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary School accompanied by Veronica Niland, Christine Ferreira, Meaghan McCarthy, Jess Pemberton, Yasmina Day and Saysha Ham. On behalf of honourable members, welcome to Parliament House. I hope you enjoy your time here.
Members: Hear, hear!
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I have received Message No 25 from His Honour the Administrator notifying assent to the bills passed at the March Sittings. The message is dated 27 April 2015.
Honourable members, I have also received Message No 26 from His Honour the Administrator recommending to the Legislative Assembly a bill for an act that authorises an amount to be paid from the Central Holding Authority for the purposes of the agencies specified in the bill for the year ending 30 June 2016. The message is dated 24 April 2015.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I have given permission for Channel Nine, the NT News, the ABC and the Chief Minister’s photographer to film and take photos of the budget address and response.
Mr ELFERINK (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I move that, pursuant to Standing Order 89, the routine of business be reordered to allow as follows: the Treasurer to deliver the budget today at 10 am followed by consideration of the Port of Darwin Select Committee report on the Port of Darwin lease model, the luncheon suspension, Notices, Petitions, Question Time then the resumption of debate on the Appropriation (2015-2016) Bill 2015.
I further move that tomorrow Government Business, Notices and Orders of the Day be suspended so as to permit a response to the budget by the Leader of the Opposition at 10 am.
Motion agreed to.
Bill presented and read a first time.
Mr TOLLNER (Treasurer): Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time. I commend the Appropriation (2015-16) Bill and table the related papers.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr TOLLNER: This government has a clear economic plan for a better, more secure future for all Territorians and their families.
The government started on a simple plan to fix the massive Labor debt by being smarter and more efficient with government spending, while at the same time driving private enterprise investment and jobs.
This government stopped the waste and then purposely invested our funds into very specific projects to create a more sustainable economy which protects and enhances our lifestyle and social fabric.
The Northern Territory has turned the debt corner and no longer is it a stone around our neck. A great deal of this has been achieved by our public servants who have embraced change and are working hard to create a more efficient government.
Labor has run a relentless campaign claiming the Giles government would slash government jobs. Nothing could be further from the truth. We have achieved these exceptional outcomes by maintaining public service numbers and awarding them pay increases higher than any other government jurisdiction in the nation.
I am pleased to report that this $6.3bn budget achieves the goal of returning to surplus by 2017-18 as we continue to reduce the debt burden left behind by the Labor Party. As a direct result of two years of focused discipline, the fiscal balance in 2017-18 achieves the government’s target to balance the budget with a surplus of $9m, growing to $35m in 2018-19.
The focus on expenditure restraint will result in accumulative budget improvement in excess of $400m per year by the end of the budget year. The fiscal surplus in 2017-18 is on top of the Giles government already achieving a general government operating surplus in 2013-14, a full three years ahead of schedule. These efficiencies have been achieved without job cuts or reduced services and by targeting priorities and ensuring the days of Labor waste and frivolous spending are well and truly behind us.
The Giles government’s plan to grow the economy by focusing on promoting private sector enterprise has seen increases in revenues that have contributed to the improved outcome in this budget. Increased stamp duties and payroll tax receipts are a result of our focus on growing the local economy.
The improved fiscal position over the last two budgets, and the effect of bringing the Motor Accident Compensation Scheme into general government, has resulted in significantly reduced net debt levels. Net debt is now projected to be $2.6bn by 2018-19, less than half of Labor’s projected $5.5bn debt. Labor’s net debt to revenue ratio was projected to reach 98% and is now slashed to 39% in 2018-19.
Under Labor the annual interest burden was projected to soar to $425m, or well in excess of $1.1m every day. Under the Giles government the projected interest in 2015-16 has been significantly reduced by almost $300 000 per day. This is nothing short of astounding and has been achieved while delivering quality services. It has allowed the government to invest $1.39bn in targeted infrastructure projects.
In the wake of Tropical Cyclones Lam and Nathan, we have already begun the long and expensive rebuild process estimated to cost in excess of $100m. Funds Labor would have to borrow if they had remained in government have been set aside in 2015 and can be paid directly from general revenue to accommodate this effort over the months ahead.
The government’s plan is to diversify the economy and stimulate private sector investment now and beyond the INPEX construction phase.
Last year the Territory economy grew by an impressive 6.5%, surpassing previous forecasts. Since the Country Liberal Party came to government in August 2012 the economy has expanded by 11%, more than double the national growth. This strong growth in the Territory economy has been underpinned by $20.6bn in business investment over the past two years, an amount without equal in the Territory’s history. This included 9500 new jobs, an increase of 8%. The unemployment rate has averaged 4.4%, well below the national average of 5.9%.
I now want to expand on the government’s plan of putting the right building blocks in place for a better future. These building blocks are linked to improved economic and social outcomes for our community. Let us consider health and safety. We are investing large amounts into hospitals and police, but interrelated to health and safety is a range of other factors such as regional and remote economic development, jobs, education, sporting and cultural facilities, and alcohol abuse.
This budget not only supports our hospitals and police but also deals with these other interrelated factors. It addresses the causes and precursors to health and crime problems. This is good for the community on a broader scale, while supporting the wellbeing and safety of individuals.
Turning to the cost of living, we have deliberately combined a change in the First Home Owner Grant to new homes and apartments, whilst fast-tracking land release across the Territory. This has resulted in lower housing and rent costs while boosting the local economy with an expansion of the residential building sector, which also has very good synergies with a range of other industries.
We have an integrated plan for tourism. This is part of the government’s diversification plan for the economy and to bring sustainability to our tourism industry, while at the same time improving the lifestyle of Territorians. This budget provides for better products to enhance visitor experiences including parks, sporting facilities and cultural events. We have also invested heavily in roads and a range of other infrastructure such as fishing facilities. This is obviously good for the tourism sector, but plenty of Territorians will also welcome these investments.
Not only is this government focused on how we operate within our borders, but we have also worked with our neighbours to leverage opportunities that can benefit Territorians. This government has been working closely with the Western Australian, Queensland and Commonwealth governments on the northern Australian strategy. We are planning the next round of future development for the Territory.
We have strongly engaged our trading neighbours and are planning a program to take advantage of the new free trade agreements to further expand and diversify our economy. This government is pushing on all fronts to ensure we have a strong local economy and a competitive export-focused culture in our business sector.
The Giles government has been focused on its plans for a better future. I appreciate that not everyone in the Territory agreed with the government changes to the Power and Water Corporation or the Territory Insurance Office.
The government’s utilities reform agenda and the effects of structural separation are resulting in ongoing sustainable improvements in the performance of the three newly-separated utility entities. There have been considerable benefits already for business and the community following the breakup of the Power and Water Corporation, including greater transparency, reduced wholesale prices and improved reliability.
I now turn to TIO. The direct benefit to the community is that TIO is now here to stay. By freeing the organisation from government ownership it has been able to dilute its risk and bring its reinsurance costs into line with its competitors. Make no mistake, TIO would have withered on the vine if it had remained in government hands.
The decision to sell TIO also benefited our community by the immediate recycling of $200m into productive and social assets for the people of the Territory. Budget 2015-16 includes as part of this reinvestment:
$57.5m for flood mitigation across the Territory
$23.5m for regional roads to support economic development, including the Roper Highway and Tanami Road
$79.6m in tourism infrastructure, including $28.5m to complete the sealing of the Litchfield Park Road, including the lower Finniss River bridge
$25m for the completion of the Mereenie inner loop
$21.1m for enhancing the visitor experience at both Casuarina Coastal Reserve and Litchfield National Park
$41.4m in social infrastructure.
Not only is there a direct and tangible immediate benefit to the community, but these benefits will be long lasting. The balance of the TIO sale proceeds will be invested in an infrastructure fund to support the future economic wellbeing of the Territory. Again, the government is being smarter about the way we support growing our economy and this fund will provide the seed money to facilitate additional funds being invested in Territorian projects by the private sector.
Let me turn to fairness. Currently hotels and local pubs pay a levy from their electronic gaming machines into the Community Benefit Fund whereas casinos do not. In order to level the playing field for all organisations with poker machines, the government will remove this concession from casinos. It will not affect the number of machines in casinos or an individual who goes to a casino. It means casinos which have had ample time to establish their operations will be paying the same rate as hotels, which is 10%.
This new revenue, estimated to be around $8m increasing the fund to $11m, will go directly into our community so all Territorians will benefit. The government will not use the money to pay off debt or for other government-funded projects. I urge all Territory community groups to start working on their next round of applications.
In addition to the changes to the Community Benefit Fund and in line with other jurisdictions, we have also clarified that for payroll tax purposes exemptions are not provided for commercial activities undertaken by charities or for entities that promote trade, industry, commerce or professional associations. Importantly, these amendments do not affect the exemption provided to traditional charities which have a sole or dominant purpose for the relief of poverty or the advancement of education or religion.
Consistent with provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, motor accident compensation contributions will continue to rise in line with the consumer price index.
The cost of living continues to be a critical issue for all Territorians and the government is delivering on its promise to reduce this burden on families. Darwin inflation fell from 3.0% in 2013 to 2.9% in 2014 and is forecast to continue moderating over the medium term. This is evidence that the government policies aimed at reducing the cost of living pressures are working.
Following the success of the fuel summit the government is continuing to explore options to ensure that Territorians are paying a fair price for their fuel.
Budget 2015-16 includes two specific measures to reduce the tax burden on Territorians. The senior, pensioner and carer stamp duty concession has been increased from $8500 to $10 000 with effect from today. The Giles government has also abolished stamp duty on life insurance with effect from 1 July this year. In addition, Budget 2015-16 continues the government’s support for families with $20m invested through the $150 Back to School Payment Scheme, the $200 Sport Voucher Scheme and the childcare subsidy.
The Territory government’s land release program is securing a reliable supply to support affordable and accessible home ownership for all Territorians. The Bringing on Territory Land Release program is fast-tracking land release and will deliver 6500 dwellings over 10 years. In the December 2014 quarter the proportion of income required to meet home loan repayments in the Territory was 28.1%, which is well below the national average of 31.5%. In 2013-14 residential dwelling completions increased by 51% to 2146, the highest annual figure since 1999.
Growth was driven by a nearly 150% increase in the number of dwelling completions, but we now have the capacity to achieve more. Budget 2015-16 supports residential land release and related projects with $45.5m to unlock the Territory’s potential including Borroloola, Alice Springs and the development of infill land in Darwin.
This budget also invests in urban public housing, with $3m to redevelop older unit complexes across the regions, including Darwin, Tennant Creek, Katherine and Alice Springs. Further support for public housing across the Territory includes $27.5m for repairs and maintenance.
Budget 2015-16 invests heavily in all areas of law and order, with $735m to create a safer community for all Territorians. Key to this is providing an additional $8.7m dedicated to fulfilling our commitment of an additional 120 police officers across the Territory.
This budget also provides additional resources to policing services, including $2m to recruit and support an additional 13 Aboriginal community police officers; $1.7m for new protective equipment for frontline officers; and $600 000 for additional CCTV cameras in Palmerston, taking the total network to 180 cameras Territory wide.
The Giles government continues to deliver on community safety with alcohol-related assaults down by 16% in the year to February. This is due to measures including: alcohol protection orders; policing bottle shops; getting prisoners into work; mandatory alcohol rehabilitation programs; and the expansion of security cameras in crime hot spots.
Alcohol mandatory treatment is making a real difference in keeping our community safer, with more than 600 people assessed and provided with medical withdrawal, treatment and rehabilitation services since its inception in July 2013. Budget 2015-16 continues to support mandatory rehabilitation for problem drinkers, with total funding of $28.4m and expanded services in both Alice Springs and Katherine. These expanded services include an additional $7.9m to continue the construction of a purpose-built secure assessment and treatment centre in Alice Springs, and services in Darwin operating from the newly refurbished facility at Berrimah.
Budget 2015-16 continues to support the roll-out of a domestic and family violence reduction strategy with $6m, including $3m from the Commonwealth, aimed at increasing the safety of victims and their children, reducing trauma and increasing the accountability of offenders.
The budget also invests in the wider community to support safety initiatives. This includes $42m for fire and emergency services and $1.1m for the bus network to increase the safety and security of drivers and passengers.
The Giles government well understands the challenges we all face when it comes to raising our children. The government is being smarter in the way it ensures they get the best start in life. The previous Labor government saw no problem in saddling our children with $5.5bn of debt and a 98% net debt to revenue ratio. This government will not sacrifice our children’s future. Our previous budget set out to eliminate Labor’s intergenerational debt, and this budget is building on those foundations.
Our plan delivers $991m for education services, reforms and training to support students and schools so they can improve their learning outcomes and create better employment pathways. It also builds a brighter future with $152.4m for school infrastructure, including: $30.5m to continue construction of the new Henbury School for special needs students; $21.4m for stage one of a new preschool and primary school for special needs students in Palmerston; $20m in conjunction with the Commonwealth for a regional boarding facility at Nhulunbuy; $5.5m for a new 70-place child and family centre at Larapinta Primary School; and $4m to construct a preschool on the Braitling Primary School site.
Our education reforms that deliver greater flexibility and choice to school councils and principals are supported by real dollars in this budget, including $368m directly for government schools in the global budget pool plus $57.5m to meet centralised school costs. There is an additional $23m over four years increasing the transition package to $40m to provide schools with greater autonomy, and $2m to support the implementation of the independent public schools initiative which empowers schools with proven governance and leadership capabilities to tailor their school programs to meet their students’ needs and improve outcomes.
Our plan allocates almost $100m for job-ready training, including employer support schemes and vocational education and training programs. In order to better target incentives for apprentices and trainees the government is changing the way in which it provides these incentives. The payroll tax exemption for apprentices and trainees will be removed and replaced with a $4.4m direct financial incentive to employ apprentices and trainees. In addition to this the budget provides $800 000 for vocational education and training and employment pathways in schools. This includes avenues through trade training centres and pre-employment programs across the Territory in partnership with mining, pastoral, tourism and other industries.
This government believes that hard work and being a good citizen are important. I am delighted to announce a new scheme which encourages our youth to drive safely. The government will reward drivers who complete their P-plate period with an unblemished record with a free 10-year licence.
The Giles government understands that protecting our most vulnerable youth is fundamental and is investing $172.4m on a range of services to protect children from harm, including an additional $8m for out-of-home care services aimed at addressing current demand and providing safe, secure accommodation for children in protective care; $500 000 to advertise and promote foster care opportunities; $450 000 for a new neighbourhood activity centre in Sanderson; $1.1m for youth initiatives focused on localised prevention and early intervention programs; and $2.7m for the Alice Springs Youth and Community Centre Inc to support stage 3 and stage 4 upgrades.
The combination of these programs has a deliberate and specific target to provide sustainable and improved outcomes for our children and youth. More importantly, we are providing them with a tangible future which holds genuine hope and opportunity.
Keeping people healthy is a key priority of any government. By sticking to our plan to reduce waste and cut the Labor interest bill, the government has been able to increase funding in areas that deliver better health and wellbeing outcomes for Territorians. Budget 2015-16 provides for a major expansion of hospital facilities and increases to critical services. It delivers $1.42bn in total health-related expenses expenditure and $220m for new and upgraded health facilities. This includes $69m to upgrade Royal Darwin Hospital, including $40m for a staged redevelopment; $4m for additional refurbishment of the paediatric ward; and $500 000 for a wide-ranging scoping study for a stand-alone ambulatory care facility.
Royal Darwin Hospital remains the government’s main focus for tertiary health services. Under Labor the hospital was neglected and run down. Our simple plan of tackling debt and focusing funding is paying off for staff and patients at Royal Darwin Hospital. Budget 2015-16 invests $25m towards the $150m Palmerston Regional Hospital, with construction commencing later this year. The hospital will deliver 116 new beds, a 24-hour emergency department, birthing suites and medical and surgical services including cardiology, renal medicine, cancer services, and paediatric and antenatal and postnatal obstetric services. Major construction works for Palmerston Regional Hospital are expected to be completed and the hospital operational in 2018.
Other areas of important hospital upgrades and services include $34.2m to continue remediation works and upgrades at Alice Springs Hospital; $2.5m to upgrade fire safety systems at Gove District Hospital; $3.9m to operate a new 12-bed emergency medicine unit within the Royal Darwin Hospital Emergency Department; and $1.1m for the Hospital in the Home and midwifery services for the Alice Springs community. This budget also provides a $20m investment in health equipment, technology and system upgrades that will simplify the way care is delivered and enhance patient outcomes.
Mental health is an important part of Territorians’ wellbeing and Budget 2015-16 provides additional funding of $4.9m to enhance mental health services. This budget also supports the recently released three-year NT Suicide Prevention Strategic Action Plan 2015-2018. It is aimed at reducing the rates and impact of suicide and self-harm across the Territory.
The Giles government believes that the best form of welfare is a job. Improving the employment opportunities of Aboriginal Territorians is also key to breaking the cycle of welfare dependency. We will continue to roll-out and expand the successful model on the Tiwi Islands to other remote areas in the pursuit of jobs in the bush in line with our plan.
Budget 2015-16 fosters locally-led economic development projects in remote communities by providing additional funding of $18m over three years. This money will support a new Community Champions Program for a total of 13 Aboriginal communities and regions across the Territory, and an additional $4m over two years will assist Aboriginal community organisations to pursue economic development opportunities. This budget also includes $6m over three years to establish the Business in the Bush program to support Indigenous business start-ups and increase Indigenous jobs.
Other key highlights to assist people in the bush include an additional $22.4m to upgrade, repair and maintain water and sewerage infrastructure; $8.2m to improve Indigenous student outcomes as part of the government’s 10-year Indigenous education strategy; and $3m to expand telecommunication services.
The budget continues a Remote Home Ownership Program with up to 50% of all remote public housing stock potentially sold back to tenants to further the aspiration of private home ownership.
The budget also supports Indigenous culture by providing $20m towards the future development of a nationally recognised Indigenous cultural centre.
The government continues its push to strengthen the Territory’s tourism industry and visitor numbers by investing $50.4m. The government will spend about $28m of this on tourism marketing programs to build on last year’s growth of 8.5% in international tourist numbers following a decade of neglect under Labor. The remainder will be invested as follows: $8m to develop tourism infrastructure, products and marketing; $4.7m for a tourism infrastructure development fund for use across the Territory with a focus on regional, remote and Indigenous tourism products; and $1m over two years to provide free public WiFi in key locations utilised by travellers and visitors. In addition the government is investing a further $8m for continued enhancement of the Darwin Waterfront, including new facilities for the cruise ship industry.
The government has continued to drive agricultural production. International live cattle exports reached record levels in 2014 through efforts in reengaging our Asian partners. AACo’s new Livingstone abattoir has commenced production, and crocodile production is growing, as are buffalo exports.
Budget 2015-16 also strategically positions the Territory’s primary industries sector through $2m to purchase a replacement drilling rig for investigation, assessment and allocation of water resources for economic development; $1.2m over two years to support the establishment of the Central Australian Horticultural Development Program; $1.2m to implement an interest rate subsidy scheme to assist growers who were affected by the cucumber green mottle mosaic virus; and $750 000 over three years to establish a Fishery Enhancement Program for the production and release of fingerlings of target fish species such as golden snapper.
The value of mining in the Territory grew by an impressive 11.8% in 2013-14 above the 10-year average of 4.8%. However, it is clear that the Australian resources sector is moderating. The Giles government understands that commodity prices are cyclical and periods of slower growth are the ideal time to put in place the building blocks for future activity.
Budget 2015-16 continues to support the resources sector through the Creating Opportunities for Resource Exploration program, or CORE. CORE positions the Territory for when the resource sector rebounds. In addition, the government has established a competitive market process to select the proponent to construct another pipeline to connect the Territory with the east coast network. This will provide not only an incentive for gas producers, but will add an important transport and energy corridor through some of the most remote regions in Australia.
These policies have been specifically put in place by the government to stimulate and grow the economies in regional areas of the Territory and to link into benefits generated by new roads and other infrastructure.
Defence continues to be a significant component of our economy. This government is committed to supporting our Defence personnel, our Defence support industries and our relationships with other countries which participate in training and Defence operations in the Territory.
The Giles government is developing the Marine Industry Park in the East Arm logistics precinct which will support the strong and growing Defence presence in Darwin. We are enhancing the Australian Defence Forces’ ability to operate in Australian northern waters, but this major facility also has significant benefits for other marine industries. As part of an overall plan for the wider Darwin harbour it links in well with our growing off-shore drilling and maintenance industries.
I have outlined the main building blocks for growth and sustainability in this budget, but the cement for all these blocks is roads and transport infrastructure. This government is providing a record investment of $587m in transport infrastructure and road projects, including $78.5m in road maintenance. This investment will make Territorians’ lives simpler by cutting travel times, connecting businesses and creating new investment opportunities.
In addition to the road projects to be funded from the TIO sale, this budget includes the following highlights: $33.5m over three years to upgrade and seal the Pickertaramoor Road on the Tiwi Islands; $32m in conjunction with the Commonwealth to improve Outback Way roads; $27.5m to support the Regional Roads Productivity Package in conjunction with the Commonwealth; $11.5m for the duplication of Vanderlin Drive from Leanyer Recreation Park to the McMillians Road roundabout; and $4m in Palmerston for the Roystonea Avenue extension to Owston Avenue.
Territorians love their sport and being able to easily get out into the bush and enjoy all it has to offer. The Giles government is proud of the Territory lifestyle and this budget supports Territorians who want to lead a healthy, active and balanced lifestyle with greater resources for sport, recreation and cultural activities. In line with the government’s plan to create synergies with its spending, this government will invest $57.3m in sports infrastructure projects which will also tie in with tourism growth, youth projects and other important programs such as sports vouchers.
Major sporting projects in this budget include $20m to upgrade facilities and expand seating capacity at Richardson Park; $8m towards a regional tennis centre at Marrara; $12.3m for netball, athletics, riding for the disabled, lawn bowls, and golf and cycling facilities across the Territory; and $2m to upgrade remote ovals across the Territory. Budget 2015-16 supports motor sports infrastructure with $12.7m provided for facilities across the Territory, including $8m for infrastructure upgrades at the Hidden Valley Motor Sports Complex.
The budget provides for expanded sporting events for all Territorians, including the inaugural Red CentreNATS, hosting the Davis Cup quarter final, and a four nations women’s hockey test match in Darwin.
We will invest $69m to provide improved arts and cultural activities, including $18.3m incorporating funding from external sources to redevelop the Chan Building into a dedicated visual arts gallery.
The government supports development of the Territory’s fishing sector, with $6.5m to upgrade the Dundee Beach and Shady Camp boat ramps. These are in addition to the upgrades to Casuarina Coastal Reserve and Litchfield National Park facilities announced earlier.
In conclusion, we have a plan for the Territory. We have cut government waste and debt and will continue to promote jobs in the private sector. Our plan looks ahead by making deliberate decisions now, binds our society into a more sustainable economy while protecting our lifestyle and natural environment and benefits all Territorians. Our plan manages our wealth carefully and is about making our lives simpler, safer and smarter.
I commend Budget 2015-16 to the House.
Debate adjourned.
TABLED PAPER
Port of Darwin Select Committee Report on the Port of Darwin Lease Model
Mr BARRETT (Blain): Madam Speaker, I table the Port of Darwin Select Committee report on the Port of Darwin lease model which was sent to you yesterday in accordance with Standing Order 280(b).
Mr BARRETT (Blain): Madam Speaker, I move that the report be printed.
Motion agreed to.
Mr BARRETT (Blain): Madam Speaker, I move that the Assembly take note of the report.
The port committee was formed to look at the regulatory framework and the lease model outlined in the Port of Darwin Bill. The committee visited ports in Brisbane, Portland, Adelaide, Albany, Geraldton, Fremantle and, of course, Darwin. We had two hearing days, met many times during the duration of the committee and spoke to third-party operators and operators that managed and ran ports, whether that be government or private operators.
The Port of Darwin is critical infrastructure for the Northern Territory. It is a major conduit for our goods and fuel, and the primary means by which our agricultural and mining products get into the market. As the Territory grows the capacity of the port also needs to grow.
The efficiency of the port affects all of us and the prices we pay for goods and the competitiveness of our exports. To serve the Territory through efficient operation and ready capacity for developing markets the port needs money to develop its infrastructure and management to be able to deliver efficient services and to prepare the port for developing opportunities.
The Port of Darwin select committee has examined the government’s proposal to achieve this objective through leasing the port. This follows a practice which is happening worldwide and throughout Australia, where governments have transferred ports to private operators to promote trade and development.
Ports perform private and public functions and require management by both private and public interests to achieve the best outcome. It was apparent from the committee’s visits to a number of ports that each port is different, serving different markets, having different geography as well as a different economic and environmental regulatory environment.
There are also many ways to manage different aspects of a port. This is typified by Fremantle port, which has berths owned and operated by the government-owned port authority, berths owned and operated by private operators, and various multiparty arrangements for others.
There is no single best way to structure ports but ownership, management and regulation must suit the local circumstances. In looking to enhance the lease model for the Port of Darwin, the first priorities of the committee were safety and the environment. The port manages large volumes of dangerous goods and moves very large pieces of equipment. This is inherently dangerous work and safe management is paramount. The committee has made recommendations to improve consultation and the enforcement of port safety plans.
It was obvious when visiting other ports that differing environmental standards occur in different ports. Looking at the environmental standards of our port compared to Adelaide and Albany, particularly around dust suppression, there is a big difference between the way we do business and the way they do.
Albany and Geraldton have pressure-negative storage sheds for stockpiling bulk commodities going across the port. There is attention to detail to ensure dust does not get out, whether that be inert like iron ore or heavy metals like manganese. It is important in those ports that dust does not get off the wharf.
Many of these ports have cities built around them. It is important the locals are not subjected to the dust, noise and other things happening at these busy ports.
The second major theme for the committee was economic regulation. The Port of Darwin has an effective monopoly on a range of services. Protection against monopoly pricing and ensuring fair access to its services is essential.
Recent evaluations of Australia’s ports have noted the importance of promoting effective competition in port services, as well as the long-term economic harm that can arise from privatisation arrangements which limit competition. Companies interested in bidding for the port highlighted the need to control monopoly pricing and ensure access.
Port regulation is still a developing art in Australia. Different places do different things, and I believe we can learn from all of them. The light touch regulatory framework preferred by port operators has not always benefited users, and the ACCC has concluded that price monitoring does not provide an effective constraint on monopoly pricing all the time.
Accordingly, the Ports Management Bill includes a strong pricing and access regime which will need to be adequately implemented. One point of concern to the committee was that this regulatory regime only applied to the port operator. Third-party service providers, such as the owner of a bulk loader, can also have an effective monopoly over critical infrastructure for a business. The committee would therefore like to see the pricing and access regulation extended to third-party operators.
This needs some explanation. For example, if the port was leased and whoever was leasing the ship loader at East Arm Wharf decided it was no longer viable for them to run it and they would rather divest themselves of that asset, whoever took it on would effectively be given a monopoly. If we do not set up the right regulatory framework we can inadvertently create third-party monopolies within the wharf structure. We saw firsthand on our travels the effect this can have on exporters trying to use those facilities. It was not necessarily the fault of port leaseholders, but a monopoly had been inadvertently created.
It is important to note the difference between a lease and a sale. Many people are using the word ‘sale’ in relation to this. It is noted that the amount of money received from a very long-term lease equates to that of a sale. The ability to regulate, monitor and make sure that what is happening to a leased asset is within the bounds set by the Northern Territory is very important to maintain. This can be done under a lease framework but it is not so easy if something is sold. The port committee saw some evidence of that in our travels.
We also found that 99 years was clearly a better time frame for investment purposes. A lease term that long, with the right regulatory framework, would be the best option should the government be moving towards a lease because it gives the scope of time necessary for a possible leaseholder to recoup the amount of money they have outlaid in the first place and would outlay for future developments.
Another point of concern raised by witnesses and port staff was the anticompetitive potential of vertical integration. The committee therefore recommends that the port operator only be issued with a stevedoring licence if the independent regulator certifies that this will not harm competition, and that the government considers any other limitations that may be required on the port operator owning other upstream or downstream businesses.
This runs to two things. On face value it seems that having many stevedoring companies would encourage competition in that field. However, on closer examination the amount of work that exists at the moment means more competitors coming into that market would undermine the workforce and many companies would do almost nothing. These companies are unable to put large amounts of money into investment, particularly where Patrick and Qube stevedores have both outlaid huge amounts of money buying harbour cranes and the like, which are very expensive pieces of machinery. We need to ensure when bringing in competition we do not undermine the competitors in the industry.
There is also a danger with vertical integration. Power and Water shows us that vertical integration can produce cross-subsidisation in different parts of the business. We have made recommendations that go to the heart of trying to stop vertical integration so that everybody at each level of the business model – whether it be the operator, the stevedores or the exporters – operates on a level playing field.
Further work is required on consultation. Many users of the port will be affected by the proposed changes. It is important that the government speaks to them to ensure it has adequately considered the implications of the changes, and to give businesses an increased understanding of what is proposed so they can plan accordingly.
It does not surprise us to know that some businesses rely very heavily on contracts they hold, and simple things like mooring accessibility can have material effects on these businesses. Constant consultation to give businesses time to address the risks is really important.
A key element of the government’s proposal is finding a private partner with a compatible vision for development of the port. A clear risk to such an approach is maintaining consistency of vision over the 99 years of the lease. The lease terms are where the government can require that particular services be provided to a required standard.
This goes to the heart of what a business sees as viable and what a community sees. In our travels we saw an example of where assets that had been privatised then through subsequent iterations of the lease ended up – if less than a 20% profit was being made the leaseholder shut down sections of that business. This led to consternation amongst some firms because suddenly they had to use other things.
The example given was rail networks that serviced grain areas were closed because they were not making a high enough profit. There was nothing in the lease agreement to allow those sections of the rail to be handed back to the government or passed on to grain handlers to manage and maintain themselves. It was not making 26% profit so it was closed down. That meant grain users had to use roads and councils are now asking them to pay for the roads to be rebuilt.
The grain producers effectively paid for the rail twice: first building it and handing it over to the government which leased it, then they paid rent to the new owner to use the rail network. After paying for it a second time they are now not allowed to use it.
The committee is concerned there may be sections in this lease where, in the future, a leaseholder might not want to run Fort Hill Wharf. This would be detrimental to our cruise ship industry. Service obligations are necessary to ensure that does not happen.
The committee also made recommendations to ensure fair treatment of workers and appropriate control and review of foreign investment. This goes to the heart of several things. First, for workers approaching retirement we need to make sure they will not be materially affected, particularly their superannuation. They need to continue working for the government for a few years if necessary rather than taking a lump sum. We recommend there be some options in cases where that is important.
The Foreign Investment Review Board will be looking at this and we recommend that be noted. It is an Australian asset and we have military assets from various countries visiting our port facilities, and we do not want to inadvertently upset allies or business partners.
The overall theme of the committee’s findings are that in considering a lease for 99 years it is essential that long-term thinking guides government decisions. While there is the immediate benefit of getting a higher price for leasing the port, this must not come at the expense of long-term economic gains. We saw in Melbourne how a section of the port was leased to the highest bidder. However, third-party users now have to pay more to recoup that cost.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I interrupt to welcome former Senator Grant Tambling, his wife, Sandy Tambling, and their guest to Parliament House. He was a member of this Assembly too.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr BARRETT (Blain): The other trap we looked at which would not be a problem was land prices. In Brisbane, on and off the wharf there was a big difference in land prices. Land prices on the wharf had been held down and depressed so that costs to third-party users were not increased. That meant basically imports and exports were cheaper; however, when a private person came in the market needed to correct, and that led to some significant changes in rent. You will be happy to know that is not the case in the Northern Territory. Each year an independent assessment of land values is made by a bank and those values form the basis of the rent. The problem we saw in Brisbane will not happen here.
There are some positives with our port which make it attractive – location and proximity to Asia. With regard to location, it is not around a heavily populated area and that is very important. This becomes obvious when you visit ports where cities have been built around them. Much more regulation needs to be put in place to protect the residents living in the area. East Arm Wharf is quite a distance from a residential area, and the activities at Fort Hill Wharf do not need the level of regulation other ports have, such as Albany. Our proximity to Asia needs to be taken into consideration. I believe significant business cases exist to take advantage of our proximity to Asia, possibly even becoming a ‘mail sorting room’ for the Asian region for vessels coming in with large numbers of containers from Asia, Africa and America.
We have deep water access as the channel has been dredged. It is not a long channel compared to places like Brisbane, where the channel goes nautical miles out into the water and needs to be dredged out to 14 m and maintained at that level. Deep water access is much easier here. Dredging channels is easier here, and thanks to INPEX and ConocoPhillips it has already been done.
A lot of land in the area could be reclaimed or is in the process of being reclaimed. This makes a material difference for somebody leasing the wharf because a landholder model of leasing the wharf will mean that land creation effectively creates an asset for them. Quite cheaply, from dredged material, they can reclaim land and lease it for market value. That is a good business model and underpins a lot of other important developments that could happen at the wharf.
It is pretty exciting to see what is available in Darwin. The quay line can grow, breakwaters are already in place and the harbour is stable. It does not have reflective or direct wave action, particularly long period waves. In Geraldton, where they are right on the Indian Ocean, there are very long period waves. The wave can be several kilometres long and might move by only 30 cm or 40 cm, but something moving over that distance lifts the boat 30 cm or 40 cm and holds it there for a long period of time. It can snap ropes, and it is dangerous on a wharf when lines break. We saw that in Geraldton. Sometimes they had to stop loading ships because of that. We do not have that problem in Darwin. Although we have big tidal movements we have a very secure, protected and safe harbour.
The committee would like to thank those who made submissions to the inquiry and appeared before it to give evidence. It also thanks ports that welcomed it and explained their operations.
I thank my fellow committee members, the members for Drysdale, Fannie Bay and Nelson. Thank you very much for your input. Despite having different perspectives, I am proud that we were able to work cooperatively in a very tight time frame to identify key issues with the proposed leasing of the Port of Darwin. I thank the committee members for making very constructive recommendations on how it could be enhanced in order to produce this consensus report.
I also thank the Legislative Assembly staff who worked tirelessly under a tight time frame, having to travel away from their homes and families and put up with the members, which I know most Legislative Assembly staff enjoy.
Debate adjourned.
The Assembly suspended.
RESPONSE TO PETITION
Petition No 45 – Proposal to Relocate Low-level Prisoners to Old ANSTI Site
The CLERK: Honourable members, pursuant to Standing Order 100A, I inform members that a response to petition No 45 has been received and circulated to all members. The text of the response will be placed on the Legislative Assembly’s website. A copy of the response will be provided to the member who tabled the petition for distribution to the petitioners.
Continued from earlier this day.
Mr GILES (Chief Minister): Mr Deputy Speaker, it is with enormous pride as the Northern Territory Chief Minister that I commend Budget 2015-16 to Territorians. I commend the Treasurer and the Northern Territory public service for providing a funded way forward. This budget, more than any other, recognises the need to put the community at the centre of everything we do.
Having spent the last two budgets putting government finances back into shape, we are now able to make the type of investment that sees the community receive the dividends no matter where they live. This is the hallmark of a good government which has a plan and has pursued it in a measured and focused way. Budget 2015-16 implements the vision and aspirations we all have for the Northern Territory. Territorians should feel confident that the Northern Territory is in good hands. They should feel confident that we are heading in the right direction.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $1.42bn in total health-related expenditure, which is an increase of $25m in Territory government funding compared to 2014-15. It includes $40m for Royal Darwin Hospital, $34m for Alice Springs Hospital and the next stage of Palmerston Regional Hospital.
There is $991m for education services, including $152.4m for school infrastructure, $4m of which will go towards constructing a new 44-place – or 88 enrolments – preschool at Braitling Primary School, in my electorate. There is $735m to create a safer Territory, including 120 fully-funded new police officers. There is $211m to repair and maintain government assets and support the local business community. These jobs are untaken by small businesses and provide a steady, ongoing stream of work to provide certainty to our tradesmen.
The biggest sports program ever, infrastructure-wise, has been put forward, with $57.3m for sports infrastructure projects, and $20m going towards Richardson Park, the spiritual home of rugby league in the Territory.
There is $68.6m to provide improved arts and cultural activities, including an $18.3m investment in a new visual arts gallery in the Chan Building. We have set aside $20m for the establishment of a national Indigenous cultural centre to be based in the Northern Territory in partnership with Commonwealth and philanthropic support. This will be a game changer for the preservation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture from around the nation.
This type of headlining expenditure ensures everything that we do is for the benefit of Territorians. The community can have confidence that we are investing to connect us locally to the rest of Australia and the world.
Most importantly, Territorians should feel confident that with Budget 2015-16 a plan is being actioned to diversify our economy beyond singular major projects to an open, accessible, sustainable economy that not only encourages participation but demands it. In the Northern Territory everyone has a job to do, but importantly anyone who wants a job can get one.
The way forward is never simple, but it will be a smoother journey on our roads. Every major arterial route in the Northern Territory will have money invested in it. We have deliberately targeted infrastructure spending to broaden the economy and economic participation in regional and remote parts of the Territory.
We must engage with Indigenous Territorians by giving them access to the opportunities urban Territorians take for granted. We must help to deliver economic independence to reduce welfare dependency. In the Northern Territory over 50% of the land is Aboriginal, and a further 45% of the land is pastoral, falling under the native title system. Therefore approximately 95% of the land mass of the Northern Territory has some form of Aboriginal title. While the land rights movement is rightly viewed as an advance for the Aboriginal people of the Northern Territory, I want to ensure it does not hold the Northern Territory, particularly Aboriginal landowners, back from balanced, sustainable and relevant economic development opportunities.
To investigate this centrally important issue to future development in the Northern Territory a team, through the Department of the Chief Minister, will work with land councils, government agencies and the business community to pursue economic development on Indigenous land. They will look at improving the Aboriginal land administration system to better facilitate economic development. This heightened focus on how the Aboriginal land administrative system functions will leverage reforms to ensure Indigenous communities can benefit from their extensive land holdings, and the broader community can benefit from continued economic expansion and diversification.
In the meantime, Budget 2015-16 will spend $1.385bn on infrastructure, including a record investment in road and transport projects. Total transport expenditure is $587m. The roads we build today are designed to drive us to our economic future. Sealing the Mereenie inner loop is the type of investment that brings benefits to tourism, pastoral properties and Indigenous communities such as Hermannsburg and Areyonga.
For a $25m investment, Tourism NT estimates an additional $16.25m in projected annual tourism economic benefit alone. This means more visitors staying longer and spending more along the Red Centre Way and Central Australia. Improving access will open avenues for Indigenous communities to develop niche businesses, some of which I have visited in the last couple of weeks.
In turn a range of industries, including tourism, mining, pastoral and government, will be able to access them to supply services and, most importantly, the people we need to power these projects. There is a workforce in remote and regional Northern Territory which wants work and wants to build economic independence, and it is up to us, the government, to ensure we facilitate it.
The three-year $6m Business in the Bush program and the $18m Community Champions program are precisely the type of mechanisms designed to engage Indigenous communities to develop these business opportunities. The Community Champions program uses select CEOs who have been assigned one of 13 Aboriginal communities or regions whose interests and projects they will champion. Thirteen field officers will become the single front door to the Territory government for people in these remote communities to access high levels of support in pursuit of economic development. This has been modelled on the work we have done on the Tiwi Islands. The funding package includes $3.25m per year for three years for a Community Champions grants program. The grants will allow local people to focus on creating local solutions to gaining economic independence.
The Business in the Bush program targets Indigenous business development outside urban areas to support self-sustaining Indigenous wealth creation initiatives. This project includes the Bush Business Support and Growth program to support established and new businesses to build capacity and sustainability through the provision of workshops and tailored programs; the Indigenous Business Tender Support program to develop capabilities within Indigenous businesses to tender for government, private sector and major project contracts through approved accreditations and systems; the Business Technology Enabler program to support remote small businesses to upgrade technologies, access markets, improve efficiencies, increase market penetration and capitalise on the social media commerce market.
The government is spending $9m over three years towards the further expansion of mobile telecommunications and broadband services across remote Territory communities. The Indigenous Workforce Mobility project will facilitate workers in low employment regions to take up jobs where there are opportunities for work, including further on-the-job skills development, and the Indigenous Employment program will expand on the Commonwealth Stronger Futures Local Jobs for Local People program that supports employers who guarantee sustainable ongoing employment. This includes on-the-job training, partial wage subsidy and support services.
As a government we are determined to strengthen the Territory with sustainable relevant development that enhances local opportunity. In 2015-16 the new office of Aboriginal Affairs led from Alice Springs will take carriage of a suite of policy areas including engagement with local communities. The office of Aboriginal Affairs will develop an Aboriginal Affairs strategy and oversee an Indigenous economic development grant funded at $4m over two years.
Since 2012 local authorities have been established in 63 communities across the Northern Territory to give them a stronger, louder voice and identify their economic priorities. An additional $5m has been committed on an ongoing basis for local projects to give greater control to remote communities.
We view the recovery effort of ex-Tropical Cyclones Lam and Nathan as opportunities beyond the redevelopment of those affected communities. These disasters had, and will continue to have, a significant impact on communities and we acknowledge there is more work to do. We view cyclone recovery and the separate $147m allocation to construct new and upgraded houses as opportunities for Aboriginal communities to create jobs in a strong society that is equitable, proud and supports the vulnerable among them.
Tourism: this government is looking at the broader vision and aspiration of Territorians. This government is building to meet the future needs of the Territory, and Budget 2015-16 does that. Over the next two years the Territory economy is being diversified away from singular major projects towards other industries of which the tourism industry is central. Our ongoing commitment to the most visible industry, tourism, is there for all to see.
Our landscape leaves a lasting impression on those who come from around the world and around the nation to Do the NT, which is why we are spending a total of $28.2m on domestic and international marketing activity for the 2015-16 financial year. This is an additional $8m for Tourism NT. This includes highlighting the range of experiences available in our regions. During the year to September 2014 overnight visitors spent $1.4bn in the Territory. By 2020 the Giles government aims to ensure a $2.2bn visitor economy is achieved. We already have 8000 jobs directly tied to tourism. Hitting our 2020 target is expected to generate another 4300 positions.
We have been very careful to integrate decisions across government to ensure they overlap with our development aspirations for tourism. For example, Darwin’s favourite weekend escape, Lichfield National Park, has been allocated $39m. Of this, $28.5m will be spent on sealing Litchfield Park Road and constructing the Lower Finniss River bridge. Another $10.43m will be used for upgrades to Florence Falls, Tolmer Falls, Buley Rockhole, the Magnetic Termite Mound site and Sandy Creek. Tourism NT estimates an annual tourism economic benefit of $14.4m for this outlay.
In Kakadu $3m will be provided to increase the standard of the Jimbat Road, including the Kambolgie Creek crossing, in order to improve access to the Yurmikmik area. The projected annual tourism economic benefit of year-round access to this area is estimated at $8.8m and the first stage will be completed this year.
The government’s commitment to improving air access is ongoing. One month ago the new Virgin Australia Airlines service from Darwin to Alice Springs then on to Adelaide began operating three times a week. Cooperative marketing activities provided for new flights to help them get established, and we hope to eventually see this service become daily. We are also investigating a milk run connecting Katherine and Tennant Creek to Darwin and Alice Springs which, if set up, will benefit Territorians and visitors alike. Economic modelling is being undertaken.
This government is throwing down the gauntlet to the tourism industry. We are looking for game changers, projects that will be major drawcards for visitors and will generally benefit Territorians through associated spend. We are putting our money where our mouth is – $4.75m worth of it. Who has a tourism project waiting to happen? We want to hear from those people. We must look to the future and help industry prepare for it.
Even though there is plenty of potential for the current suite of projects to attract visitors, new and innovative enhancements are required to generate significant growth in the long term. Through the $4.75m Tourism Infrastructure Development Fund this government seeks to promote the development of new and improved tourism products with a special focus on regional, remote and Indigenous tourism products. In 2014-15 this program benefited 27 tourism projects worth a combined $2.8m, many of which would not have been possible without this financial assistance.
It is vital that industry understands the need for innovation and change. To stand still is to risk being left behind. For instance, the rapid transition within greater China to embrace digital platforms and applications on a daily and hourly basis enables specific marketing across cities and provinces. Therefore, we are adjusting our strategic approach in the Chinese market to strengthen certain key elements, such as an increased focus on the digital distribution partners. However, the tourism industry must understand that in order to get visitors to the Territory it may have to go to them, perhaps electronically, and then they have a good product to sell.
In the business events market, which is worth $89m for the Territory economy, we are placing added focus on the corporate incentives aspect. Through Festivals NT, working very closely with Major Events, we will be rolling out a program that is sure to cater for all tastes. We are building the Territory’s reputation as a home for top-class motor sports, investing $1m into the Red CentreNATS and an additional $3.45m to upgrade motor sports facilities in Central Australia and the Barkly.
We want to open up our parks and enhance the experiences available to visitors. We have just opened for public comment draft management plans for three Central Australia parks and reserves, which we prepared in partnership with the traditional owners, to raise their profile to visitors and attract more tourism to the NT. Last September we invited expressions of interest for new tourism and business developments in the Territory’s parks and reserves.
The Northern Territory government is working on increasing visits from cruise ships and is investing $8m in the Darwin Waterfront to make it an even more attractive and vibrant precinct for tourists and local families. In the financial year 2013-14, Darwin received 38 cruise ships generating almost 40 000 passenger days and providing a direct economic impact of $54m. These visits work well because they occur during the quieter Wet Season months.
We are constantly reviewing infrastructure and beautification opportunities in the area to ensure that these all-important first impressions for passengers getting off their cruise ship are positive. We are putting in place a $1.2m shaded walk for cruise ship passengers to the Darwin Waterfront from the terminal to the pontoon walkway leading to the waterfront to improve amenity. This will complement an additional $2m for a pontoon to be build adjacent to Stokes Hill Wharf to support harbour cruise operators and $900 000 for construction and beautification of Goyder Park, which is currently underdeveloped land adjacent to the cruise ship terminal.
This government has not only had the foresight to make these investments in the future of tourism, we have had the means to make them due to prudent fiscal management.
In regard to a strong society and a balanced environment, through the Department of the Chief Minister we will play a vital role in ensuring we protect our culture and the environment for future generations. We want a strong society that values an individual’s right to freedom in all its forms. We will spend $7m on development of the Territory community, including events and initiatives which celebrate the Territory lifestyle. An amount of $3m will go towards continued support to community organisations and initiatives through the multicultural, youth, seniors and community support grants programs.
In regard to Defence in the Northern Territory, we have long enjoyed a strong relationship with Defence, but the advantage of the Territory’s proximity to the Asian region and vast spaces for exercises has yet to be fully exploited. The Northern Territory economy is steadily expanding through growing investment and large-scale projects. Until now the Northern Territory has been viewed as a forward operating base for Australia’s military deployments and operations into the region. However, trade globalisation and geostrategic shifts among major powers are changing the dynamics which underpin such thinking. We recognise this and are now taking a new strategic reality direction for action.
The Territory’s strategic location is continuing to drive the Defence interest in northern Australia. Defence Force personnel numbers across the Territory are at approximately 6000, which equates to $300m in wages spent locally. When you add Defence families to the equation, it is estimated Defence makes up more than 6% of the Territory’s population, with 14 000 people.
Defence expenditure in the Territory represents approximately $1.5bn annually and a significant economic input into the Territory’s economy. The future capital investment is estimated to be at least $1bn already approved or in the pipeline over the next five years. The Joint Strike Fighters being based out of Tindal in 2020 will necessitate a large infrastructure project to the value of $470m to accommodate and support these new aircraft.
In addition to the Joint Strike Fighter infrastructure, other works include high-voltage power supplies to Shoal Bay Receiving Station worth $6m, flood mitigation works at RAAF Darwin costing $10m, construction of new married quarters at RAAF worth approximately $53m, and major aircraft pavement works at RAAF Tindal and RAAF Darwin in excess of $60m.
Securing opportunities for local businesses is the key to capitalising on the Defence infrastructure program, which is why the Northern Territory government is investing in a Strategic Defence Advisory Board to guide us in these efforts. The Australian Industry and Defence Network, the Industry Capability Network and the Northern Territory Chamber of Commerce, together with the Department of Business, will all have a role in implementing this strategy.
The strategy aims to connect and promote local Defence industry capabilities to the Defence Materiel Organisation so they understand what resources are available in the Northern Territory for future projects to ensure the projects do not go down south. This will ensure that the Northern Territory government remains fully engaged with the federal government, Defence industry and overseas defence to help promote, connect and develop opportunities, all with the important role of creating jobs for Territorians.
In regard to a prosperous economy, as we broaden our economy, diversify opportunities and create high-quality jobs and income for our children we will pursue major projects to give us an inheritance to reinvest. We acknowledge the benefits of major projects.
I say to the skilled men and women who come to the Territory chasing these opportunities, we want you to stay. These skills will be valuable in building our future across the Territory either directly or through the skill transfers of working alongside Territorians in the far reaches of this land.
Budget 2015-16 has $22m allocated to support the activities of the Office of the Coordinator-General for major projects, infrastructure and investment to initiate, coordinate and deliver major projects. This includes the proposed gas pipeline linking the Territory to the eastern seaboard, therefore opening up new industries and employment. This type of project builds our connectivity to the rest of Australia and Asia. Oil and gas, and other associated industries, including LNG gas processing and those supplying goods and services, maintenance and construction, have a particularly bright outlook for growth.
More than any other time in the Territory’s history there is potential for the benefits of this business and employment stimulus to be distributed to regional and remote communities. The centre of gravity for oil and gas exploration, development and production activity is expected to move from offshore to onshore. To realise this opportunity the Northern Territory government is working to secure private sector development of the North East Gas Interconnector to open up new markets for gas.
New markets will underpin investment in exploration and development that will lead to an increase in gas supply and security, supporting new industries and jobs in regional and remote communities. As we grow the oil and gas industry the Northern Territory government is also working to create the regulatory framework to ensure we protect our unique environment. We have a chance to learn from others and an opportunity to have the best environmental credentials in the world.
The first tranches of gas are coming from existing offshore and onshore fields so there is ample time to get the regulatory environment right to ensure the appropriate protections are in place.
The Coordinator-General will be funded $6.3m to continue development of a coordinated strategy on the future development of the Darwin foreshore and additional port facilities; $600 000 over three years to promote regional and remote industry participation and employment in emerging projects in the Central Australian and Barkly regions; $800 000 to support facilitation of other major projects; $6.6m to drive the development of northern Australia and engage with key stakeholders and the Territory community in showcasing and marketing northern Australia; and $1.4m to drive economic development priorities and initiatives across the Territory through leading and coordinating development and delivery of the government’s economic strategy.
The Northern Territory government, members of the Legislative Assembly and the government employees who work on these projects are determined to deliver on the aspirations of all Territorians. We must embrace our sense of country, our sense of community, our different lifestyle, and our diversity and drive ourselves towards economic independence.
Budget 2015-16 starts the process of diversifying our economy and sharing those opportunities. We cannot be a single major project driven economy. We must be more. With Budget 2015-16 we will be.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend this budget to the Legislative Assembly. I thank all those employees in the public service for bringing it together, and I thank my colleagues within and external Cabinet to for working together over two-and-a-half years to get us to a point where the budget is in a sound fiscal position where we can invest in infrastructure and grow the Territory, not just in one part, but across this great landscape.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: I have just received a document relating to pairs for the members for Goyder and Johnston. It is for the period 28 to 30 April and is signed by the government Whip, the member for Drysdale, and the opposition Whip, the member for Nightcliff.
Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE (Primary Industry and Fisheries): Mr Deputy Speaker, it is with pleasure that I respond to the 2015-16 Northern Territory government budget, the third budget handed down since the Country Liberals came to power in 2012.
In 2012 we discovered the enormous hole of debt the Labor government had dug for all Territorians, not only now but into the future – intergenerational debt. To have continued to spend in the same vein as the previous government would have buried the Northern Territory economically.
This has meant our past two budgets were, by necessity, frugal with the fat trimmed across all areas. This belt tightening and waste slashing has reaped rewards. Today this government can effectively deliver the services and facilities that Territorians deserve while still maintaining responsible fiscal management of the Northern Territory’s finances.
Today I will provide the budget reply for my portfolio responsibilities of Primary Industry and Fisheries, Land Resource Management and Public Employment.
Our fishers and farmers, pastoralists and public servants, rural and regional Territorians will benefit from the many initiatives of this budget. These initiatives will make the lives of Territorians simpler, safer and smarter. This budget will deliver quality service and investment in much-needed infrastructure that will pay dividends now and well into the future. Budget 2015-16 is about creating jobs, supporting business and growing sustainable economic development opportunities.
I turn to my Department of Land Resource Management, which will receive $50.358m in Budget 2015-16. The budget boosts investment in our land and water resources. We have allocated $2.4m per year for the next three years to the expanded program of land and water resource investigation. Undertaking detailed land suitability assessment includes planning, field surveys, analysis of data and developing high-quality spatial data sets, maps, map products and reports. These land and water assessments will provide high-quality land and water suitability information and mapping essential for underpinning successful agricultural developments.
Access to good land and water resources will underpin north Australian development, and work is continuing to identify new areas where land and water resources are suitable for economic expansion in job-creating industries such as agriculture and tourism.
Through this program we are removing the guesswork for investors and taking a considered science-based approach to the ecological sustainable development of our north. Specifically, $140 000 will be spent in Katherine and $120 000 in Alice Springs for water allocation planning, implementation, regulation and compliance monitoring.
An additional $500 000 in 2015 and 2016-17 has been allocated for the land suitability assessment team to accelerate the investigation of potential agricultural projects in regions near priority Indigenous communities. This is designed to provide Indigenous economic development opportunities in horticultural and agricultural sectors through employment, training and business-related enterprises.
My department is responsible for investigating, assessing and allocating water resources for economic development. A fundamental component of this work is the investigative drilling work undertaken by the drilling rigs based in Darwin and Alice Springs. The 2015 budget commits $2m to replace the existing Darwin drilling rig. This new drilling rig ensures the continuation of the investigative drilling program with improved safety to employees and with increased capacity to drill deeper.
An amount of $1.3m has been committed in Budget 2015-16 to continued rangeland monitoring on the pastoral estate. This continued expansion of the rangeland monitoring program, using on-ground assessment coupled with satellite data, will improve efficiencies of monitoring and ensure all 223 pastoral properties are visited in a four-year cycle.
This government is determined to increase the opportunities available for landowners, primary producers and those whose businesses depend on land and water. We have made it easier for pastoralists to use part of their properties for alternative uses to provide a buffer against hard times by creating new income streams.
The Pastoral Land Board has approved seven non-pastoral use permits since legislative amendments to the Pastoral Land Act were enacted on 1 January 2014. In support of pastoralists who use this initiative we have launched the Pastoral Business Development program. This is an innovative assistance package designed to help pastoralists make the right decisions when assessing whether diversification is appropriate for their lease. Pastoralists will receive reimbursement for engaging professional advisers for business planning, mentor support, integrated management systems and technology, employment and business solutions.
Already permits have been issued for tourism activities in Curtin Springs, Narwietooma Station and Banka Banka West Station. Irrigated agriculture of poppies will be under way at Tipperary Station in the Douglas Daly region, and a rotating onion crop at Undoolya Station in Central Australia.
Increased live cattle exports in conjunction with changes to the Pastoral Land Act are expected to encourage more mixed farming, especially broad acre cropping, over the next few years.
This budget has provided funding of $500 000 to continue weed management extension services across regional areas, such as Tennant Creek and Katherine, to help pastoralists control weed incursions and infestations.
Invasive weed species such as grader grass, prickly acacia and rubber bush are a real threat to productivity and the environmental viability of the land. Weed spread can also have an impact on the tourism industry, affecting waterways and fishing accessibility and activity.
Keeping control of threats to our natural resources is critical to realising the focus of developing northern Australia. This strong policy provides certainty for investors. It is smart, safe and a simple way to grow economic investment in the Northern Territory.
The $2.4m announced in the 2015-16 budget will provide continued monitoring of our river and ground water resources and flood forecasting to support early warning and emergency response planning.
Some $1.2m has been allocated to monitor Darwin Harbour to ensure the impacts of development are measured and reported in order that all community recreational and tourism values are maintained.
Building on the 2014-15 capital works program, a further $600 000 has been committed in this budget to upgrade barrages on the Mary River. This project will reduce the risk of saltwater intrusion to help protect significant breeding sites for our water birds and fish species, and ensure fresh water pastures for cattle.
The Mary River floodplain contains wetland conservation values of international standards, is recognised as a site of biodiversity conservation significance, and has important cultural values. These barrages will also protect the floodplains for tourism use and the economic benefits that recreational fishing brings to the Territory.
A continued $1m of funding will be used to make our communities safer from bushfires, enabling Bushfires NT staff to fight fires from the ground and the air. Population growth has led to more fires and greater areas of residential development and infrastructure requiring protection. The spread of high fire risk weeds such as gamba grass has led to more dangerous fires that can only be fought safely with aerial firefighting support.
New funding of $550 000 will support a network of strategic regional firebreaks and improved bushfire suppression operations. This strategic regional firebreak network will improve community safety and significantly improve the ability to manage and limit the effect of wildfires. A series of panel contracts in regional areas will provide standby earthmoving equipment during periods of high fire danger. The installation and maintenance of significant firebreaks and the supply of standby equipment will provide economic benefits to regional and remote communities through regular contract work for local businesses.
Introduced animal species can have an enormous economic, cultural and ecological consequence for Australian rangeland systems. My department’s flora and fauna division works with landholders to manage animal pests. Research and management of animal pests, particularly feral cats, has been allocated a further $500 000.
Ongoing funding of $400 000 for assessment and management programs for marine megafauna, including dolphins, dugongs and turtles, will be extended around the Territory coastline.
An amount of $100 000 has been allocated to enhance the integrated NT Natural Resource Management information system to improve the range of data and mapping products available to Territorians. NR Maps, as it is called, provides a web mapping interface for the department’s systems such as the Land Development Comment Information System, Water Licensing Application System, and the Weeds and Bushfire Monitoring Systems.
I turn to my Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries, which will receive $61.926m in Budget 2015-16. The Northern Territory government recognises the key role that the development of our agriculture, horticulture, pastoral and fishing industries will play in developing northern Australia. Horticulture makes a strong contribution to the Territory, both socially and economically.
This budget sees $600 000 per year for the next two years committed to advance horticultural development in Central Australia. This program will apply strategic agribusiness planning to identify where natural resource potential and market opportunities coincide to create maximum opportunity for development. The success of new agricultural enterprises in Central Australia is contingent on identifying the right output opportunities via careful market analysis. This means that new ventures will be based on niche markets or windows of opportunity in existing markets rather than the historic approach of, ‘What can I grow?’
My department will establish a project advisory team to conduct targeted marketing analysis and research, engage with agribusiness, and test market opportunities to de-risk investment and develop projects. The adoption of this form of strategic approach will develop contemporary knowledge on Central Australian production systems. It will facilitate investment, leverage funding through targeted and collaborative partnerships, and work with local stakeholders to enhance the economic and social wellbeing of communities in this region.
This government understands the value of our food production industries and is committed to ensuring their growth and success. The Northern Territory cattle industry had a bumper year for live cattle sales in 2014, and export numbers through the Darwin port set a new record surpassing the previous high of 364 944 head in 2008. This success is the result of the incredibly hard work of the cattle industry, in conjunction with this government, to restore and grow the markets for Territory beef.
There is a unique opportunity for the Northern Territory to capitalise on the rapidly increasing demand for quality food in the Asia-Pacific region. New trade relationships with Vietnam, and now Cambodia and Thailand, have seen our markets for live cattle increase. The Northern Territory government-led trade missions that helped to secure these new trading partners will continue.
Currently the Northern Territory is the largest supplier of live cattle and buffalo to Southeast Asia, and this government is determined to see this continue. Negotiations are under way to expand Australian cattle exports into Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand, and that work is ongoing.
Thailand is new on the list, while China stands as a market of significant growth potential once a number of import hurdles have been overcome. Indonesia remains our largest export market with about 251 000 head of NT cattle exported in 2014, increasing from about 244 000 head of cattle in 2013.
This government established a Live Animal Export Development Unit within my Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries in 2013. This unit worked closely with the NT Cattlemen’s Association and the NT Livestock Exporters Association Inc on a strategic and targeted approach to market development. After many years with few market options there has been a surge of interest in buffalo, especially for export to Vietnam. Programs to help the farmed buffalo sector and take sustainable harvests from the Arnhem Land herds are also being planned.
A wide range of Territorians and visitors depend upon or enjoy the healthy state of our fisheries. Recreational fishing is an integral part of the Territory lifestyle, with annual expenditure across our recreation and fishing tour sectors estimated to be over $80m. This budget continues to recognise the importance of recreational fishing to the estimated 32 000 anglers who like to wet a line.
In regard to improving access to our waterways this budget has two significant projects. There is $4.5m to upgrade the Dundee boat ramp and $2m allocated to upgrade the Shady Camp boat ramp. Improving facilities at Dundee Beach is an election commitment we are proud to realise. As this area presents environmental challenges, with sand burying the existing boat ramp slab and inhibiting self-launching on lower tides, a marine engineering consultancy was commissioned.
The consultancy report recommends removal of sand from the boat ramp and an area north of the groyne, and monitoring backfill over the course of the year. This will expose the boat ramp and ensure self-launching of boats in the short term. The information gleaned about sand movements will influence the subsequent design and construction works at the groyne. I understand the initial phase of sand removal is planned to commence as soon as possible.
This budget provides $2m to improve vessel launching at Shady Camp. A consultancy study has been commissioned to recommend how we can get the best bang for our buck. This area presents a different set of challenges because much of the terrain below the main Shady Camp barrage is black soil, which is at or below sea level. Recreational fishing reference groups will provide angler input to inform and advise the Dundee Beach and Shady Camp projects as they progress.
A study of boat ramps in the greater Darwin region will soon begin to consider potential future needs and improvements to water access on the doorstep of our city. This report will allow the Recreational Fishing Advisory Committee to consider potential options and provide advice to government on future priorities.
Members will be aware that I recently announced a package of key fishing management changes to help our coastal reef fish stocks recover. This government is now looking at novel ways to support that recovery process and improve fishing opportunities. This budget commits $750 000 to a three-year fishery enhancement project that focuses on the production and release of reef fish fingerlings into our coastal waters.
Science will be used to guide the project with fish spawned and raised at the Darwin Aquaculture Centre then released to target habitats, including established artificial reefs, natural reefs and harbour arms, to assess the restocking success. Different sizes and numbers of fingerlings will also be produced, and released fish will be tagged to allow scientists to track survival and movement.
I have also asked my department to examine the potential opportunities for designing artificial reefs as a means to increase the available habitat for reef fish in order to increase productivity and improve the quality of our coastal reef fisheries. I hope one day our coastal reef fisheries will be as enviable as our barramundi fishery currently is.
Many Aboriginal communities have strong customary links with our aquatic environments and rely on fish for food, culture and economic development opportunities. The Country Liberals government is working hard to create Indigenous employment opportunities and this budget provides $1.23m for the ongoing development of Indigenous fishing and aquaculture industries across the Top End.
My department is working hand in hand with Indigenous communities in the development of a broad range of fishery programs. We are committed to making the lives of Indigenous Territorians simpler and smarter by investing in a range of programs that deliver economic employment and development opportunities. My department’s fisheries Indigenous Development Program delivers economic employment, workplace skills and development opportunities to remote Aboriginal communities.
Indigenous development projects already under way include aquaculture enterprises focused on low technology; sea-based farming methods for oysters and giant clams; sea cucumber ranching in the open sea; a revamped Aboriginal coastal licence to assist Indigenous coastal communities develop macro fisheries; and enhancement of marine ranger programs, including the development of Certificate III in Fisheries Compliance.
This government supports the establishment of small-scale fishing and aquaculture businesses in remote communities. My department has successfully begun an Indigenous commercial fishing mentoring program to provide practical skills to aspiring Indigenous commercial fishers and assist them to establish their own fisheries business. This is another example of this government working to make life simpler, smarter and safer for Territorians.
My department is leading the way nationally in training Indigenous marine rangers, providing them with the skills and experience necessary to carry out fisheries compliance and contribute to fisheries research projects. This budget allocates $250 000 to establish an enhanced Indigenous fisheries training program in Nhulunbuy that will deliver courses and workplace experience in the development and delivery of marine industry training. This will see Nhulunbuy become the hub for trading and seafood handling, commercial fishing practices and marine safety to improve the skills and capacity of marine rangers and grow employment opportunities for Indigenous Territorians in the seafood industry.
This program will involve partnerships between the Departments of Primary Industry and Fisheries, Education and Business, as well as Nhulunbuy High School, Indigenous organisations, Indigenous marine rangers and registered training organisations. A coordinated, regionally-based training program is vital for the efficient and effective delivery of the skills needed by the marine rangers and other remote community members looking to get a job or start a business in the marine industry.
The ability of the Indigenous marine ranger groups to operate autonomously as service providers has also created significant efficiency dividends for the government. Where once government field staff spent days travelling to reach sampling sites in remote locations, now ranger groups are routinely tasked with sample collection and surveillance work. They deliver high-quality results, and the work in turn increases ranger skills and employment opportunities.
This budget also provides $20 000 to support the inaugural Darwin Boat, Travel and Leisure Show to be held in September this year. The timing of the show will coincide with another of this government’s initiatives, the inaugural Recreational Fishing Awards, to recognise the efforts and achievements of recreational fishers in improving and developing the Territory’s favourite pastime.
Turning to my portfolio responsibility of Public Employment, the 2015 budget includes initiatives which will make the Territory public service the NT employer of choice, with $2.5m allocated to the Northern Territory Public Sector Indigenous Employment and Career Development Strategy 2015-2020, specifically to establish the new Indigenous Employment and Career Development Unit within the Office of the Commissioner of Public Employment. This strategy aims to increase Indigenous employment in the Northern Territory Public Sector to 16% by 2020. The unit will drive the implementation of the strategy and provide guidance and support to all agencies across the sector in achieving this goal.
While Indigenous Territorians represent 30% of the Northern Territory’s population, they only represent 8.7% of the public sector. As one of the largest employers in the Northern Territory our public sector should be a reflection of the community we serve. For the first time, individual agencies have set targets and will focus on four key themes. The first theme sets the target for Indigenous employment and participation. As well as the global target of 16%, a target of 10% has been set for participation in senior and executive roles by the year 2020.
The second theme will focus on engagement and support to welcome new Indigenous employees and support and retain existing staff. Here agencies will ensure all Indigenous employees, including those on temporary contracts, have a career development plan in place.
Theme three will focus on attraction and retention of Indigenous people by promoting our public sector as an employer of choice. This includes strengthening networks and partnerships across all levels of government, non-government organisations and Indigenous communities.
Theme four will focus on whole-of-career development to identify and facilitate career progression and pathways.
The Northern Territory public service must commit to long-term improvement of Indigenous employment, participation and capability. We all have a role to play. As the Minister for Public Employment I will be monitoring the strategy to ensure targets are met and opportunities created.
A significant portion of public sector employees are approaching retirement age in the coming decade. At the same time, fewer young people are entering the workforce. In order to manage the challenges that arise from an ageing workforce, we will develop a Northern Territory public sector transition to retirement policy. We are investing $130 000 in this important policy to help ‘future proof’ the Northern Territory public sector. The policy will help answer questions such as where our next generation of teachers and nurses will come from, how we can better engage our older workers in developing the capabilities of new employees, and what employment arrangements will accommodate the changing needs of older workers.
Turning to my electorate of Katherine, I have to commend the Treasurer for delivering a budget that makes Territorians’ lives safer, simpler and smarter whether you live in the city, the country, the bush or the suburbs. As an important regional hub for the pastoral, horticultural, agricultural, tourism and mining sectors, service delivery and infrastructure upgrades in Katherine deliver benefits to many more Territorians than just local residents. Infrastructure upgrades and major new works in nearby communities also mean job opportunities for locals.
Under the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing, and Stronger Futures, $14.4m will be used to construct new and upgrade existing housing and provide associated infrastructure in remote Indigenous communities in the region. There will be $10.8m spent to continue construction of headworks and subdivision works to support the release of residential land in Katherine East stage two, Kalkarindji, Mataranka and Timber Creek.
There is also $3.5m for subdivision works to support the release of 35 residential blocks in Borroloola. This budget contains $5m to upgrade the Robinson and Calvert River crossings on Wollogorang Road to improve flood immunity and road safety; $4m to upgrade and seal some sections of the Roper Highway between Fizzer Creek and Ngukurr; $2.5m to seal some sections of the Lajamanu access road between Kalkarindji and Lajamanu; and, in conjunction with the Commonwealth, $1m to design two bridges over Little Horse and Big Horse Creeks on the Victoria Highway.
In Katherine the ambulance centre will be relocated out of the flood zone at a cost of $7.6m. A new administration facility at Kintore Street School, which is the final stage of the special schools redevelopment and expansion, has been funded at $2.65m.
Speedway fans across the Territory are extremely happy to learn about the $1m upgrade to the track and fencing for the Katherine Motor Sports Club. An amount of $2m will be spent on repairs and maintenance and minor works for Power and Water assets.
These are just some of the important projects funded in Budget 2015-16 that will make the lives of all Territorians safer, simpler and smarter. I am proud to be part of a government that makes the lives of Territorians better.
This is a sensible and responsible budget. This position has been made possible because of the fiscal restraint shown over the last two-and-a-half years. The opposition will bleat from the other side of the House trying convince people that we are cutting spending in all sorts of areas. However, when they read the budget and examine what it contains, the people of the Northern Territory will realise this is a very good budget with something for everybody.
I am particularly proud of this budget because it has delivered for my region of Katherine and my departments, and is also a responsible budget that will keep us on track. It is a part of our plan to make sure we have a surplus by 2017-18 and are constantly reducing the legacy of Labor’s debt. This budget continues in that vein.
I support this budget and commend the Treasurer, Treasury officials and all my colleagues on this side of the House for their support in putting together a very good budget for the Northern Territory.
Mr STYLES (Business): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I first came into this House in opposition and there were times when I despaired about where the Territory was going. My family and grandchildren are here for the long haul, as many Territorians are, even new Territorians who anticipate living here for the rest of their lives.
At that time I watched debt spiral out of control. One of the graphs I use regularly in this House is the non-financial public sector net debt. You see a flat line while the CLP was in government, then the ALP came in and around 2011-12 the then Treasurer decided borrowing a lot of money was the best way to be popular.
Sadly, the projected debt in 2014-15 was $5.5bn, which is a debt to income ratio of 98%. That means each day there is an interest bill of about $1.1m. I did not see a plan to reduce the spending, reduce the deficit, or reduce the overall debt of the Northern Territory.
It is with great pride that I look at what the Giles government has done. The feedback from business since last year’s budget has been positive. As Minister for Business I discuss these issues with businesses and ask for feedback. The feedback I have received since last December is very positive and uplifting. In fact, when one looks at the business confidence level of the Northern Territory in the most recent Sensis survey, it was a positive net +46% compared to the national of +27%. That demonstrates business has confidence in the Giles Country Liberal government.
We have a plan, as opposed to the non-plan from those opposite when they were in government. Their only plan was to keep borrowing money to keep spending. That is good until you run out of other people’s money to spend. Anyone who runs a household or has a budget knows you have to live within your means. You can borrow for a home, a car or other things, but generally you have to live within your means.
Continuing to borrow money on the MasterCard is an unsustainable predicament to put the Territory in. Fortunately there is good news on the horizon, and we know those opposite do not like good news. However, building on last year’s great budget is another great budget for the Territory. Although those opposite may like to say it is not a good budget, I ask people to listen to the speeches delivered and look at the budget papers. Check the positive news yourself.
I support the Northern Territory’s Budget 2015-16, and congratulate my colleague, the Treasurer, for delivering a budget that is bold in its thinking and helps to make life safer and simpler for Territorians. It is widely acknowledged that last year the Giles Country Liberals government delivered a good budget aimed at securing our children’s and grandchildren’s future. That is quite different from the budgets I saw from the previous government.
At the lunch today conducted by the Northern Territory Chamber of Commerce the Treasurer received a big tick from the Chamber of Commerce and the National Australia Bank, both explaining what they saw in the Territory’s budget. The business community and the NAB were both positive.
This is good news for good government in the Territory, with families and businesses all being winners. Budget 2015-16 delivers key programs to develop Territory businesses and industries to run and grow, to simplify doing business in the Territory through balanced regulation and removal of red tape, to manage the Territory’s training system to meet our current and future needs, to attract new investment to the Northern Territory and to connect Territory businesses with national and international opportunities.
I will highlight some of the key areas businesses have benefited from and outline some of the initiatives this budget will deliver to support businesses, industry and workers.
The NT Department of Business will deliver two new initiatives to create employment and economic opportunities for remote and regional Territorians. The first of these initiatives, Business NT, provides an almost $1.5m investment into business and the non-government organisation sector. This initiative includes three new business support programs that will proactively deliver business services and support across the Territory. To enable this there will be five new regionally based business development officers, a smarter business solutions program and continuation of the successful NGO support program.
The regional business development officers will be located in Nhulunbuy, Katherine, Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, creating a network of business support to ensure advancement of regional entrepreneurs, business and economic opportunities. Business development officers will be the go-to people for businesses in the regions. They will be supported by a training team and will have a toolkit to enable them to assist businesses to start, run and grow. They will travel regularly to towns and communities in their regions to engage directly with remote businesses.
The Smarter Business Solutions Program represents an enhancement and redesign of the ecoBiz NT program. Continuing with the intent of the former program, smarter business solutions provide greater flexibility. The Country Liberals government will be supporting innovative business solutions that reduce costs or improve competitiveness through operational, energy, water and waste efficiency measures. The Country Liberals government is all about reducing the cost of doing business.
The NGO Support Program recognises and supports the significant contribution this sector plays within the community in the provision of goods and services, employment opportunities and economic generation. Support under this program will focus on corporate governance, financial and commercial literacy, as well as management practices and processes that improve sustainability and accountability. The program will also support development of social enterprises, driving new revenue streams for NGOs. The program will continue to enhance the good work done through the 2014-15 pilot program developed and delivered in collaboration with the Department of Business and the Department of the Chief Minister.
The second new initiative is Business in the Bush, which is funded through Budget 2015-16 at $2m per annum for three years. Business in the Bush is an impressive suite of six interconnected programs to support business start-ups, improve the sustainability of Indigenous businesses and increase Indigenous employment participation.
The Giles Country Liberals government Business in the Bush package will grow and strengthen business enterprise and sustainable job opportunities through six key programs. The first is the Bush Business Support and Growth program aimed at increasing Indigenous business start-ups and sustaining existing Indigenous businesses.
The Indigenous Business Tender Support program helps position Indigenous enterprises to compete and win tenders, and is driven through the recent procurement reforms. This program has been trialled for the last 12 months and has demonstrated high take-up and success.
The third part is the Business Technology Enabler program, which aims to improve small to medium enterprises’ market penetration through better use of technology. Mobile technology uptake is high in the bush and there is a range of IT possibilities that will be specific to each business. For example, streamlining back office operations or improved business presence via social media. Business directories and job profiles are tried and tested initiatives that will be expanded to include communities identified in the Community Champions program.
The next is the Indigenous Workforce Mobility program, which will develop a mobile Indigenous workforce that can potentially work across a range of communities.
Finally, the Indigenous Employment program will support employers and workers in remote communities to find traineeships and opportunities for sustainable work, and job drive skill development.
The Country Liberals government’s programs are supporting new businesses to start, help secure essential contract work, utilise technology to improve businesses and provide valuable insight into the employment landscape in each town.
I turn to attracting skilled workers. Budget 2015-16 announces more than $400 000 in funding towards migration initatives to support Northern Territory businesses. This initiative will support the timely delivery of quality services to Territory businesses, employers and potential migrants through national and international marketing and promotion of Territory jobs, as well as initiatives to diversify the markets from which the Territory sources its skilled workers and migrants. These initiatives help Territory businesses to source workers for jobs they cannot fill locally.
I move to racing. The Darwin Cup is an iconic event and a highlight of the Territory’s sporting and tourism calendar. The event is much loved by locals and visitors alike who take the opportunity to frock up, relax with family and friends and enjoy our beautiful Dry Season weather. It is also an opportunity to showcase northern Australia as a top-class destination. Its impact on Territory tourism is well documented.
Budget 2015-16 delivers funding to the Darwin Turf Club to assist with construction of a pedestrian underpass at Fannie Bay Racecourse, and delivers support of $14.7m to the horse racing industry through Thoroughbred Racing of the NT.
The greyhound racing industry will also continue to be assisted with a $600 000 allocation.
I move to training. The Northern Territory government is committed to growing and skilling our workforce. Budget 2015-16 delivers $4.4m per annum ongoing from 2015-16 for The Training for the Future – Employer Support Scheme. The scheme will comprise three grants: a commencement grant of $1000 will be paid when an apprenticeship/traineeship contract is recorded with the Department of Business apprenticeship database; a completion grant of $2000 will be paid when the apprentice or trainee training record has been classified as completed in the database; and a recommended grant of $500 will be paid to an employer who employees an apprentice or trainee at some other point during their training. An example would be when an apprentice leaves the employment of a previous employer.
Other highlights include $1m, in partnership with the Australian government, to create 100 traineeships for Indigenous Territorians; $4.4m to Territory employers to support employment of apprentices and trainees; $41m, including Australian government funding, to registered training organisations to continue delivering skills training to Territorians; $22.4m to registered training organisations to continue supporting training for apprentices and trainees; $6.2m to continue support services for apprentices, trainees and employers; and $6m to continue assisting Territorians to achieve their first qualifications at Certificate III or above through private training providers.
Let me move to balanced regulation. Budget 2015-16 supports the Department of Business to deliver a balanced policy and regulatory framework that supports industry, business and community needs. Licensing NT will continue to administer the Territory’s licensing regimes for a range of gaming, liquor, racing, consumer and trading activities, including leading the development and coordination of alcohol policy and strategy across government to reduce alcohol-related harm.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $11.9m, including an additional $8.7m, for the Community Benefit Fund to provide community grants and continue gaming amelioration and research programs. In partnership with the Australia government, our government will also be delivering $1.7m to continue alcohol harm minimisation initiatives.
Budget 2015-16 also announces $7.2m to continue supporting Territory employers and workers to have safe workplaces and manage the Territory workers compensation and rehabilitation system.
Reducing red tape: regulatory costs have increased significantly over the past decade and are a barrier to growth and investment for the Northern Territory economy. Deloitte estimates that as at 2011 the cost of administering and complying with rules and regulations – both public sector regulations and the rules organisations impose on themselves – in the Northern Territory was approximately $4bn per annum. The Northern Territory is dominated by small business which can rarely afford staff to deal with unnecessary regulatory compliance. This means that efforts to reduce unnecessary regulatory costs are particularly important for the Territory economy. This budget delivers $450 000 to continue the work of the red tape abolition squad to make doing business and working in the Territory easier.
Budget 2015-16 also delivers $500 000 to continue procurement reforms to streamline processes and make it easier to do business with government.
Finally, I would like to dwell on the Asian Engagement and Trade portfolio. Asian Engagement, neglected by the previous government, is high on our agenda. We are the only capital city in Australia that is part of Asia and the only tropical capital city. Asia is our immediate neighbour and trade is something we will be concentrating on for the benefit of Territorians and the businesses which can ply their wares throughout Asia, both imports and exports.
Trade and investment are the Territory’s lifeblood. Our international economic ties, together with this government’s strong economic management, have propelled the Northern Territory to become one of the fastest-growing regions in Australia. Budget 2015-16 delivers $3.4m to sustain and build strong relationships with our Asian partners and promote international trade and investment, including a major trade expo to be held in 2016.
There are so many other initiatives in this budget but time prevents me from discussing them. I could talk about the positive things all afternoon. Suffice to say that last year’s budget was very good and this one is better. For those who will be poring over the budget papers, consider carefully reading through them, listen carefully to what people say and compare the two.
The Giles government is very proud of this budget given what we inherited from the previous Labor government. Being able to turn around what we inherited is a real credit to not only the Treasurer and the Chief Minister, but to my Cabinet colleagues and our parliamentary wing. To take a projected debt of $5.5bn and have a reduced debt in 2018-19 of approximately $2.6bn is very good news for the Territory.
It is good news for my children and my grandchildren because we are in this House to ensure our children, our grandchildren and those who follow have a bright future.
When I talk to people in business – on my way back from Gallipoli yesterday I had meetings with senior business people in Singapore who are also friends – the future is bright. They are excited about some of the things I discussed and I think they will be visiting the Territory very soon.
As Minister for Asian Engagement and Trade I believe I have a quality product and a quality government to sell. This government is keen to attract investment, do business, make sure the Territory has a bright future and make sure our children have a bright future, including the children of those opposite.
I commend Budget 2015-16 to the House and ask all members to note what is in it. I ask those in the community to note what is in the budget and to support this bill.
Mr CHANDLER (Police, Fire and Emergency Services): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I support the Northern Territory Budget 2015-16. As Minister for Police, Fire and Emergency Services, Education, Transport, Infrastructure and Veterans Support, I have collective expenditure of more than $2.4bn.
I congratulate the Treasurer on a responsible budget which recognises the hard work completed over the past two years by this government, and outlines the challenges that lay ahead to pay back Labor’s debt.
The Country Liberals government came to power in 2012 staring down a massive projected debt. We stopped the waste and evaluated government spending. We now have purposeful spending on projects aimed at creating synergies across the economy. We are focused on a more sustainable economy aimed at maintaining our great lifestyle in the Northern Territory.
The Northern Territory has turned the debt corner and no longer is it a stone around our neck. Net debt is now projected to be $2.6bn by 2018-19, less than half Labor’s projected $5.5bn debt.
The net debt to revenue ratio that Labor projected to reach 98% has been slashed to less than 40%. This is nothing short of astounding and has been achieved while delivering quality services and investing in much needed infrastructure.
The difference is stark between our financially sensible position focused on building the economy and expanding the Territory’s economic base. This budget is about making life simpler, safer and smarter for all Territorians by connecting people and creating jobs.
The Country Liberals government is making the necessary decisions today to ensure we capture the opportunities of tomorrow. Budget 2015-16 will make Territorians’ lives simpler, safer and smarter. I am proud to outline to the House budget highlights for my portfolios.
In regard to Police, Fire and Emergency Services, the Country Liberals government is committed to a growing suite of measures to keep Territorians safe at home, work and in the community. Territorians can trust the Country Liberals to take law and order seriously. Our policies are delivering, driving down crime and cutting alcohol consumption. Budget 2015-16 provides a record $401.8m for the Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services.
The Northern Territory tri-service is undeniably world-class and is now ably led by Commissioner Reece Kershaw and Deputy Commissioner Mark Payne. I congratulate these two distinguished police officers and wish them well as they reform and renew our excellent services.
Territorians can trust our government to resource the Northern Territory Police Force properly and be accountable about the resourcing. Under Labor police numbers were calculated using a head count. This crude practice over-inflated police numbers and led to a misrepresentation of real resources servicing the public.
The Commissioner has now changed the counting methodology to full-time equivalent, or FTEs. We now count one police officer as one full-time operational police officer. In the past, part-time and inoperative members were caught up in this counting. We want Territorians to know how many police there are, and this new system will achieve that while bringing consistency to government departments.
In addition to improving our counting system is our commitment to increase the number of FTE sworn police officers by 120 during this term of government. This is a serious and rock-solid commitment which is well and truly on track.
Northern Territory police will have at least 120 additional FTE sworn police officers by August 2016, guaranteed. Budget 2015-16 delivers $8.7m to help achieve this significant commitment and three recruitment squads will commence in the coming months. In addition, the Country Liberals government has committed to maintain all Commonwealth-funded positions as part of the immigration detention centre program. I have heard of no such commitment from Labor, only quibbling over numbers and buckets of funding.
Let me be crystal clear, Northern Territory police officers are Northern Territory police officers whether they are funded today, tomorrow or next year from one bucket of funding or another. They are ours, and we will count them and support them. We will recruit them, train them and count them now and after any temporary Commonwealth funding ends.
Earlier this month Recruit Squad 125 saw the latest batch of 28 police officers graduate after completing 27 weeks of training and their Diploma of Public Safety. We are proud of these 19 men and nine women who have been deployed across the Northern Territory and I wish them well in their careers. I also wish them a safe journey.
The success of this government’s policies, along with the hard work of our police, has seen crime reduced across the Territory. By ensuring we see more police officers on the front line we will continue to see great results in community safety. For example, there were 1274 criminal charges for property crime from Strike Force Trident in Darwin and Palmerston in the first three-and-a-half months of this year; 257 domestic violence orders from Strike Force Viridian in Darwin and Palmerston; 548 property crime prosecution files from Strike Force Vega in Alice Springs in less than a year; 1156.5 L of alcohol destroyed by the Divisional Support Unit in Alice Springs and surrounding camps in the last month-and-a-half; and huge inroads in the fight against domestic violence made by members of the Strike Force Disruptor in the Barkly.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $2m to recruit and support an additional 13 Aboriginal Community Police Officers. ACPOs play a vital role in the engagement between Indigenous communities and mainstream policing, as well as offering an invaluable grassroots tool to fight crime in town camps and remote communities. I look forward to working with Commissioner Kershaw to see the ACPO ranks in the Northern Territory grow over the next year. The next ACPO squad will commence at the training college on 25 May this year.
Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services is committed to growing our Indigenous workforce and meeting the NT government’s visionary commitment of 16% Indigenous employment by 2020. On 20 February 2015 the Indigenous Employment and Career Development Strategy 2015-2020 was endorsed by Cabinet. Of the Northern Territory’s population 30% is Indigenous, and the Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services will strive to have a workforce which represents this population.
This Country Liberals government is committed to investing in capabilities and resourcing of Northern Territory Police to ensure police officers and the people of the Northern Territory are kept safe. In light of operational requirements and the increased national alert level of high, Budget 2015-16 allocates $1.69m for new protective equipment for frontline officers, including 835 load-bearing vests for frontline officers which will provide enhanced ballistic protection as well as ergonomic support for the equipment carried. The funding will also supply 35 Remington R5 rifles and eight SIG SAUER 718 semi-automatic rifles to ensure our tactical units are well equipped and versatile. This investment will contribute to ensuring both the safety of our community and the police officers who protect us each day.
As a proud Palmerston member of the Country Liberals government I am happy to announce the allocation of $600 000 funding in Budget 2015-16 for the establishment of additional CCTV cameras in Palmerston, including monitoring support. The key to the success of public safety, the CCTV system ensures adequate coverage of identified antisocial behaviour and other criminal hot spots. CCTV monitoring allows police to be directed to crimes and other incidents in real time. These additional cameras will have a significant impact on crime detection and prevention, and will assist in the prosecution of offenders. The location of the new cameras will follow identified community need, as well as areas where the added infrastructure will be most effective. Anecdotal evidence clearly shows that the installation of CCTV cameras has a direct impact on antisocial behaviour and community crime. I look forward to the big impact this additional resource will have on crime in Palmerston to complement the hard work of Palmerston police.
Budget 2015-16 also supports the Northern Territory emergency services, with $625 000 allocated for the establishment of the Emergency Management Training Unit, the EMTU, within the service. This allocation will revolutionise the capacity of the Emergency Management Training Unit to provide coordinated and contemporary emergency management training to a range of government personnel and emergency response groups across the Territory. The EMTU will be responsible for delivering a range of training to personnel in government and other organisations engaged in response and recovery operations within the emergency management field.
One of the most exciting benefits of this initiative will be the development of subject matter experts in various emergency management disciplines across the Northern Territory who will be utilised to deliver a range of training packages. Through its work the EMTU will focus on best practice, strong partnerships and a service-based culture, and in doing this will significantly contribute to the safety of Territorians during times of emergency response and recovery.
The Country Liberals government has allocated $620 000 in Budget 2015-16 to fund the Central Northern Territory Fire Alarm System Transmissions, NTFAST. The software and hardware upgrade this financial year is part of a three-year $3.2m program. NTFAST is an innovative, mission-critical real time fire alarm monitoring system developed by the Northern Territory Fire and Rescue Service, and is acknowledged as leading-edge technology by the Australian IT industry. The NTFAST system ensures approximately 1000 buildings in the Northern Territory, worth billions of dollars, are protected, monitored and responded to on a 24-hour-a-day basis. NTFAST provides vital building information to responding firefighters through detailed knowledge of each site monitored.
The Country Liberals is committed to community safety, and this additional funding will enable the enhancement and maintenance of building and occupant safety through information technology and upgrades to the NTFAST fire alarm monitoring system.
Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services is well serviced by Budget 2015-16. I am proud of the initiatives announced through this budget, as well as the achievements of our strong and proud tri-service.
Moving to education, today’s students are the future of the Northern Territory. They will fuel not only the Northern Territory but also my passion: to ensure all young Territorians have a bright future. The work being achieved by teachers, principals and support staff, parents and school councils across the Northern Territory is amazing. There is nothing I love more than visiting our schools, both in the suburbs and the far-flung corners of the Northern Territory. Each school is unique and comes with its own challenges and, of course, strengths. I would be a brave minister to try to suggest I understand exactly what schools in Alice Springs, Gunbalanya, Tennant Creek or Nightcliff want and need. This is the beauty of global school budgets and the autonomy delivered to capable and passionate school councils and principals.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $1.012bn for education in the Northern Territory. This funding demonstrates the Country Liberal government’s commitment to education and the development of our schools. In contrast, the last year of the Labor government in the Northern Territory delivered a total education budget of only $898m.
Budget 2015-16 focuses on infrastructure, services, and continued support for students and schools to improve their learning outcomes and create better employment pathways. Regional expenditure, excluding infrastructure, includes more than $236m for schools in Darwin and the northern suburbs, $124.5m for schools in the Palmerston and Litchfield regions, over $102m for schools in Central Australia and almost $230m in the remainder of the Northern Territory.
There is $368m allocated directly to government schools in the global school budget – this pool plus the $57.5m to meet centralised school costs in 2015. The global school budget pool includes an additional $23m over four years to support schools with the implementation of global school budgets and the transition towards the student needs-based funding model. This brings the total additional transitional funding to $40m over four years.
Global school budgets have given schools a new level of autonomy which has resulted in decisions being made by schools for schools. Labor supports centralised top-heavy bureaucracy full of waste and corporate structures. The Country Liberals government has delivered global school budgets in schools across the Northern Territory and the program is now bearing excellent results.
As a result of global school budgets, almost every school in the Northern Territory is fully funded and resourced based on the needs of students. Nine schools are still finalising budgets. As promised, every government school in the Northern Territory has received more funding per student than in 2014. Most schools are much better off, and any school that has achieved a surplus will retain those funds for the benefit of the school in future years. Previously surplus staffing funds were returned to the department’s central funding pool.
School councils collectively had more than $39m in cash holdings in their bank accounts after all their liabilities, grant and operational funding commitments. This $39m can now be spent according to the needs of individual schools as decided by school councils and principals. More and more schools are applying for independent public school status following the successful transition of the first six schools to independent public schools in 2015.
Budget 2015-16 provides $200m in operational and capital subsidies for non-government schools across the Territory, including $145m in Commonwealth Students First funding. Unfortunately, the Labor and union scare campaign over the past few years has seen a dramatic reduction in the number of students enrolled in our public schools and a stark increase in Catholic and independent school enrolments. A total of 749 students have moved from the public school system – that includes 237 from Nhulunbuy – over the same period. Non-government enrolments went up by 417, largely in Darwin and Palmerston.
There is no justification for this. Our Territory government schools make us proud every day and are well-funded and resourced. Territory parents can be confident that more than ever our schools are funded well and resourced according to the needs of the students. The reduction in student numbers in some schools has naturally resulted in a reduction in the budget allocation which is based on enrolment and attendance. The Territory government only funds non-government schools 23.25% of the normal cost of the Territory public school student. Therefore, government school costs have reduced with the movement of students to the non-government schools. However, make no mistake, we want our public schools full of Territory kids and we are building more public schools. We want parents to be confident in our schools and want Labor and the union to stop slandering our school system. If student numbers increase so will budgets; that is an ironclad guarantee.
Budget 2015-16 also delivers $700 000 to strengthen the quality and effectiveness of education for students at Northern Territory government schools, following the review into middle years schooling, through stronger leadership, clear vision, transition support from primary to senior years and better data to monitor and improve performance.
An amount of $1m is allocated towards implementation of the 10-year strategic plan for international education, including the operation of an international education and training hub in the Territory. An amount of $2m will support the implementation of the independent public schools initiative which empowers schools with proven governance and leadership capabilities to tailor their school programs to suit their students’ needs and improve outcomes.
We are committed to expenditure on new systems and equipment for those working on the front line. We have already replaced 2700 teacher laptops and are delivering funding for important frontline upgrades to make working lives easier.
Budget 2015-16 provides practical cost-of-living support for students and families through $6.6m for the $150 Back to School Payment Scheme for each student, offsetting costs for school items such as books and uniforms; $4.5m to continue enabling all children in the year before full-time schooling to access high-quality preschool education, including in non-government schools, for an extra three hours a week to a total of 15 hours, across the Territory. No other state or territory jurisdiction offers the same support as the Territory government in that regard.
There is $6m to continue the NT Early Childhood Services Subsidy for long day and family day care services, and $1.2m over four years to establish a neighbourhood activity centre at Sanderson Middle School to provide culturally diverse activities and mentoring to encourage greater school social cohesion and engagement between young people, senior Territorians and the broader multicultural community of Darwin’s northern suburbs.
Budget 2015-16 provides $8.2m to improve Indigenous student outcomes as part of the government’s 10-year Indigenous Education Strategy, in addition to $38.1m in Commonwealth funding through the Stronger Futures national partnership agreement. Remote Indigenous students will also be supported by the new $11.6m NT Open Education Centre, with $3m support from INPEX. The centre will be a state-of-the-art facility with technology and teaching to meet the specialist education needs of senior secondary students accessing distance learning. The centre will also deliver skills and training packages in remote communities with funding support from INPEX.
Budget 2015-16 provides $152.4m for a range of education infrastructure projects which include significant investment in special education infrastructure, like $30.5m to continue construction of the new Henbury School for high-support special needs students. The tender for this project was awarded this month for a design/construct contract totalling $31.5m. There is $21.35m for construction of stage one of a new special school in Palmerston with a capacity for 84 enrolments for preschool and primary students. Stage one will include all core facilities, general learning areas, multipurpose areas and a pool. There is also $2.5m for Kintore Street School in Katherine to provide a new administration facility as the final stage of the redevelopment and expansion of a special school.
The budget delivers $20m, including $9.1m in Commonwealth funding, to construct a new state-of-the-art regional boarding facility at Nhulunbuy as part of a $49.6m package to provide remote students with improved access to secondary education. Design of the facility has seen extensive consultation with stakeholders which has resulted in a number of novel and culturally appropriate design ideas.
There is $33m allocated in the budget for repairs and maintenance and $11.6m for minor new works for schools across the Territory.
Other budget highlights include $5.5m allocated for a new child and family centre at Larapinta Primary School providing up to 70 new long day childcare places by July 2016, along with other integrated services for children and their families; $4m to construct a new 44-place, 88 enrolment, preschool at Braitling Primary School to replace Teppa Hill Preschool; $3m over three years to install tempered air systems in the assembly areas of Anula, Wagaman and Wulagi Primary Schools, including $2.12m to refurbish Wulagi Primary School and redevelop the open plan design of the school to maximise learning flexibility, and redevelopment of the front of the school, including parent access areas. There is $2m in Commonwealth funding for a childcare centre in Kalkarindji and $1.3m to increase capacity at the Bees Creek Preschool to meet demand growth.
Budget 2015-16 demonstrates the Country Liberal government’s commitment to education in the Northern Territory. Our schools will continue to grow and the services they deliver will continue to improve. I am proud to be the Education minister in a budget which delivers $1.012bn for education in the Northern Territory.
Budget 2015-16 delivers a record transport infrastructure spend of $587m which includes $496.102m for capital works and minor new works across the Northern Territory, and $78.5m for repairs and maintenance across transport infrastructure.
This spending will see an additional 219 km of sealed roads across the Territory, along with 60 km of sealed road upgrades, 68 km of unsealed upgrades and 430 km of national network and Territory roads reseals. This work is often undertaken by great Territory small businesses and provides a steady, ongoing stream of work to provide certainty to tradesmen. The budget also provides $10m in grants for the Regional Economic Infrastructure Fund. These grants have been established to advance the development of economic infrastructure in regional and remote areas, which will enable development of real sustainable local jobs and new or increased growth in business enterprises.
The grants will provide one-off financial assistance to Indigenous organisations, shires, local councils or a consortium of these for the benefit of the Northern Territory.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $33.5m over three years to seal the Pickertaramoor Road on Melville Island from Pickertaramoor to the Paru turnoff, known as Three Ways. Sealing the Pickertaramoor Road will support the new timber industry on Melville Island, and will provide more reliable access during the Wet Season for residents on the islands. The project also supports jobs, especially Indigenous employment on the Tiwi Islands. The budget provides $20m in Territory funding to improve Outback Way roads, along with a $12m Australian government contribution.
Billed as Australia’s longest short cut from Cairns to Perth, the Outback Way traverses the most remote parts of Australia and is of critical importance to the Northern Territory economy. It runs 2800 km west to east from Laverton in Western Australia to Winton in Queensland. There is $28.5m to complete the sealing of Litchfield Park Road and construct the Lower Finniss River bridge. This will slash travel times to the park for locals and provide an alternative all-weather tourist loop. Tourism NT estimates that sealing the Litchfield Park loop, including the new bridge, will deliver a much needed annual economy benefit of $14.4m.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $25m to complete sealing the Mereenie Inner Loop on Larapinta Drive. This project will seal 43 km of Larapinta Drive to complete the inner loop of the Red Centre Way tourist drive. Tourism NT estimates an annual economic benefit from sealing the road of $16.25m through visitors deciding to extend their stay in the region. It is also hoped that with increased visitor traffic the sealing will provide new employment opportunities for Aboriginal people in the area made famous by the paintings of Albert Namatjira.
The budget includes $13.5m allocated over four years, including $4m in 2015-16, to commence upgrades and seal works on the Roper Highway from Fizzer Creek to Ngukurr. This will improve all-weather access to the Ngukurr community, mining companies, pastoral stations and tourists, and Territorians can enjoy our great recreational fishing opportunities.
These works will improve all-year access for food, fuel and medical supplies from Darwin to Ngukurr, and improve driver safety and lane separation. An additional $10m over four years, including $7m in Budget 2015-16, has been provided to continue upgrading the Tanami Road. This will involve extending the sealed section of this road towards Yuendumu to improve access for communities, pastoralists and the mining sector.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $10m for rural arterial roads across the Northern Territory and is aimed at strengthening and widening selected sections of the rural arterial road network. The rural arterial network provides vital links to remote and regional parts of the Northern Territory. These roads are key freight routes and connect local communities and businesses with the rest of the Territory.
Many of these roads were built during the 1960s and 1970s and are nearing the end of their economic life. This is impacting on these corridors managing any significant growth in traffic volume.
Mrs FINOCCHIARO: A point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker! Pursuant to Standing Order 77, I seek an extension of time for the member for Brennan.
Motion agreed to.
Mr CHANDLER: Thank you, member for Drysdale.
This new funding will assist in upgrading these roads to current standards so they are capable of delivering an efficient level of long-term service to road users.
Budget 2015-16 provides $12.5m for the Bridges Renewal Programme. This program is jointly funded by the Australian and Territory governments to strengthen deficiencies in bridges in remote areas, remove load restrictions and improve productivity of the network.
The Bridges Renewal Programme, funded equally by the Australian and Northern Territory governments, funds projects on the Northern Territory’s rural highway network where strength-deficient bridges restrict heavy vehicle loads on key freight routes. The project comprises the strengthening of six bridges on the Tablelands Highway between the Barkly Highway and the Barkly Stock Route.
Transport infrastructure spending includes a further $3m to upgrade the Kambolgie Creek Crossing on Gimbat Road in Kakadu. This is an important access road and should be a game changer for locals and tourism in the area. It will provide better all-year access for visitors to the world-class natural attractions offered in Kakadu National Park.
Some $1m has been allocated for upgrades to Little Horse Creek and Big Horse Creek on the Victoria Highway to reduce the annual average time of closures to less than 12 hours. The project is jointly funded by the Territory and Australian governments at a total cost of $35.5m. The Victoria Highway is part of the national highway network and is the only sealed link between the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
A further $1m is allocated for Maningrida transport access upgrades which will provide improved freight handling facilities for the community during the Wet Season.
The Department of Transport is a forward thinking department with the best interests of developing the Territory at its heart. The department has a total operating budget of $249m in Budget 2015-16 including $47.8m to continue providing transport services, including buses and ferries, across the Northern Territory.
An amount of $1.49m is allocated for resourcing to enable the department to respond to new and high-priority capital projects in the Territory. This follows a review of resourcing within the Transport Infrastructure Planning division of the Department of Transport that identified current resourcing will not enable them to provide well-planned and managed infrastructure as stated in the Framing the Future blueprint. The review identified that while the roads program had increased over the years there had been no increase in staffing levels.
Some $1.41m, including $1.1m in ICT investment, is allocated to develop a system to increase transactional access to MVR services by external third-party providers. This will allow providers such as Australia Post to expand the range of MVR services they can deliver on behalf of the Northern Territory government and thereby improve the customer experience and access to services, particularly in remote communities where there is an increased demand. It will also create business and employment opportunities.
There is $1m allocated over two years for infrastructure-related expenditure associated with the Mt Isa to Tennant Creek rail spur project. Infrastructure is a key economic enabler for the Northern Territory. It is essential for longer term development of the Northern Territory rail network to undertake planning to establish a rail corridor.
Establishing a corridor will provide certainty for the future rail connections to the east from Mt Isa to Tennant Creek. This project is receiving serious attention from the Country Liberals government and we are engaging with the Queensland government.
There is some $1m over two years for infrastructure-related expenditure associated with the Stuart Highway duplication in Alice Springs through Heavitree Gap, which I know will be of great interest to Alice Springs members.
In addition, $720 000 is allocated for RAAF Base Tindal to operate as an alternative destination for international carriers servicing Darwin. As all members know, Darwin International Airport is a key gateway between Australia, Asia and beyond. It has seen continued growth over the last two years, with a number of international airlines providing vital connections to assist with trade, tourism and cultural links with Asia and beyond.
An amount of $410 000 will enable the development of a regional bus service on the Tiwi Islands. This will allow remote Territorians to access public transport services they have not previously been able to and will also contribute to the development of the business enterprises currently being developed on the islands, including opportunities for increased tourism.
The sum of $200 000 is to support the development and delivery of the Northern Territory Aviation Industry and Services Strategy. This additional funding will allow the department to more effectively undertake a range of aviation development activities which support the economic and social development of the Territory.
Transport infrastructure is a key focus of Budget 2015-16 and every major arterial road in the Northern Territory receives investment. The Department of Transport makes this government proud as it continues to focus on strategic future work as well as growing and improving core activities like the bus network and the MVR. Next year will undoubtedly be a big one for the department and it will be well supported by this excellent budget.
Moving to infrastructure, it makes me very proud to be Minister for Infrastructure in a Country Liberals government which is committed to a $1.626bn infrastructure program in Budget 2015-16. That $1.626bn will be focused on delivering and investing in critical public infrastructure across the Northern Territory. This record infrastructure program has been increased by more than $490m, providing additional spending to expand hospital facilities and support major industries like tourism, and increase regional infrastructure. I am pleased to outline the highlights of this record investment today.
This includes: $670.9m in capital works; $211.2m for repairs and maintenance; $77.3m for minor new works; $19.5m towards bringing on Territory land release at various regional communities; and $42.4m in flood mitigation works in Darwin and Katherine.
In the health sector, $80.35m is being invested across the Territory with $45.25m towards continuing upgrade works at Royal Darwin Hospital. There is $40m going towards outpatients and public areas and $5.25m for the paediatric ward and bathroom amenities refurbishment at the ambulatory centre. Palmerston Regional Hospital will receive an additional $25m towards its continued construction, and the Katherine Ambulance Centre will be relocated at a cost of $7.6m. Upgrades of the fire safety system at Gove District Hospital will cost $2.5m.
As I have already outlined, Budget 2015-16 delivers significant expenditure in education and transport infrastructure. The budget delivers $20m for improvements to Richardson Park; $12.65m for Motorsports NT priorities; $2m for ovals in remote communities; $0.4m for a master plan for the Hidden Valley complex; and $0.6m for a sports master plan across the Territory. The budget also delivers $2m towards Alice Springs track and field facilities and a further $2m for netball facilities. All these projects support the Developing the North strategy and create real jobs and opportunities for local contractors and small business.
The Department of Infrastructure will be investigating new procurement methodologies to ensure government delivers this record investment and ensures a consistent pipeline of works for local industry. This will be expanded on when I take a budget road show across the Territory in May. The Department of Infrastructure will be holding information sessions throughout the Territory over the coming months to inform industry of new procurement initiatives and tender processes. As work continues to roll-out across the construction industry in the coming year, I look forward to reporting on the progress of these projects.
Budget 2015-16 continues to support veterans and their families by providing a community engagement service to better represent the issues faced by veterans and to support integration of Defence families into the Territory. The Chief Minister’s Anzac Spirit Study Tour continues to promote the importance of Anzac Day and offers an exciting opportunity for secondary students to visit a battlefield of significance to Australia and the Anzacs.
The Northern Territory government is supporting Operation – Bring Them Home which aims to repatriate 25 Australian servicemen, including one Territorian killed in the Vietnam War who remains buried in Singapore and one in Malaysia. I recently travelled to Canberra to meet with the federal Minister for Veterans’ Affairs to discuss the Northern Territory government’s support of Operation – Bring Them Home, in particular the repatriation of Corporal Reg Hillier. I am pleased to say the federal minister and the Australian government are progressing consideration of this sensitive issue. The federal minister is very sympathetic to the cause and clearly understands the Northern Territory government’s position on the matter.
We have a plan for the Territory. We have cut government waste and debt and have grown the private sector, and our plan looks ahead by making deliberate decisions. Our plan binds our society into a more sustainable economy while protecting our lifestyle and social fabric. Our plan benefits all Territorians. Our plan is careful management of our wealth and is about making our life simpler, safer and smarter.
As a minister and the member for Brennan, I am unbelievably proud of everything that falls under this collective expenditure of more than $2.4bn in my portfolios of Police, Fire and Emergency Services, Education, Transport, Infrastructure and Veterans Support.
I was brought up to believe you should leave a place in better condition than you found it, and I think the Country Liberals are doing just that.
Mr HIGGINS (Sport and Recreation): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I congratulate the Treasurer on delivering a great budget which significantly boosts the Territory’s much-loved sport and recreation, arts and cultural sectors. The government has received some criticism for the spending in these areas, but I ask honourable members and members of the public and media to remember where we have come from.
Others in this debate said when we came to government we were facing damage created by 11 years of Labor economic mismanagement. That is not an illusion. Independent experts said the Northern Territory was heading towards a dark place if Labor had continued to mismanage the coffers.
It is remarkable and a testament to some keen and responsible economic management that this government has turned the debt corner. As the Treasurer stated, debt is less than half what Labor would have racked up by now if still in power. Thanks to our sound economic management over the last two budgets our economy has surpassed expectation, growing by 6.5% this financial year.
Because of our disciplined approach to managing the Territory’s coffers we can afford a huge program to deliver quality services and investments in much-needed infrastructure that will pay dividends both now and into the future. There is no doubt Budget 2015-16 is aimed at making Territorians’ lives simpler, safer and smarter.
In my portfolio of Sport and Recreation there is a raft of appropriate spending on both infrastructure and programs. The cynics may label our allocations as unnecessary or indulgent; however, I believe in the power of sport and active recreation to enhance the community’s wellbeing. During my time as minister I have seen and heard how far-reaching, diverse and inspiring the business of sport and recreation is across the Territory. This ranges from families using the Sport Voucher or Learn to Swim Voucher for the first time for their young children, to softball competitions in remote communities, through to Jeremy Hayward and Tom O’Neill-Thorne, who were worthy recipients of the NT Sportsperson and Junior Sportsperson of the Year respectively at this year’s NT Sports Awards.
It also ranges from people who use local parks and reserves for walking and exercise through to our elite teams such as Territory Thunder, who I was pleased to see win their first NEAFL game of the season against Southport at Marrara, and again last week against Redlands Bombers, irrespective of how close that might have been.
As Sport and Recreation minister I want to see more people benefit from participating in sport and recreation using new and improved facilities. This is especially the case for children, our sporting future and the next generation of community leaders. This government wants as many children as possible to be physically active and playing sport. Not only is it good for their bodies, it is good for their minds. However, sport and recreation comes at a cost and there are many demands on the Sport and Recreation budget.
Whilst this budget provides a great boost to facilities across the Territory, we will continue to ensure we get the balance right so we have the best mix we can in organisational development, participation programs, events and places for people to play.
While all these fantastic investments will deliver great opportunities for Territorians in sport and recreation, whatever their chosen activity, the pressure of budgets for sporting services and infrastructure continues. We need to get the balance right and we believe we are doing exactly that. We still need to ensure that current and emerging needs in the sport and recreation sector are identified and prioritised so the Sport and Recreation budget can deliver the best possible value for taxpayers’ dollars.
That is why an overall sport master plan has received funding of $600 000. This will allow us to consider current facilities across the Territory and the most strategic upgrades required to meet future needs. It will also allow us to look at the critical issues facing peak sporting bodies, regional associations and clubs, remembering these are predominantly volunteer organisations, and work through where the resources should be best allocated.
This is not an exercise in applying more oil to the squeakiest wheel or meeting everyone’s needs, but a chance to really prioritise what emphasis is best for the sport and recreation sector in the future. If you are a mum or a dad, a coach, official or one of those valued volunteers running the sausage sizzle on a Saturday, we want to get your views on what emphasis we should have and how we should fund the Territory sport and recreation sector.
The master plan process and eventual product will also give us a better positioning tool for the future development of our links with sport in Asia. It will give us a comprehensive strategic direction to match up with tourism and northern development opportunities which exist through the enhancement and promotion of sport and recreation.
There is also $400 000 to develop a thorough facilities master plan for Hidden Valley to ensure ongoing development of this government-owned property is planned and meets the needs of motor sports and the community, and makes the best possible use of the available land.
These master plans are for the future, but what we are doing now is just as important. To play sport you need somewhere to play, and Budget 2015-16 provides a huge boost to the quality of sporting infrastructure across the Territory. We have already revealed expenditure across a few sports, including more than $12m for upgrades to motor sport facilities across the Territory. Motor sport as a whole is equivalent to all field sports combined. It is a big part of the lives of many in the Territory, and we are investing to make facilities safer as well as more accessible including more than $8m for Hidden Valley; $2.85m in upgrades for the Central Australian Drag Racing Association, the Arunga Park Speedway in Alice Springs and the Alice Springs Karting Club; $1m for Katherine facilities; and $500 000 for the Tennant Creek Speedway. The Top End Motor Cross Club will also receive $250 000 for track and lighting upgrades to help them meet Australian safety standards.
Other announcements made include $2m to improve netball facilities in Alice Springs. Not only will this help local players, but it will be appreciated by Alice Springs Masters Games netballers when they return in 2016. There is $2m for an athletics track in Alice Springs, the second synthetic track in the NT; $1.5m for a much-needed upgrade to the velodrome on McMillans Road; and $2m for upgrades to lawn bowls facilities at Fannie Bay and Marrara.
Not previously announced is a $20m investment for much-needed upgrades at Richardson Park. While NT Rugby League recently left the venue due to the cost of upkeep of an ageing stadium, this upgrade will bring back to life one of Darwin’s most traditional sporting venues and make available a great venue capable of hosting top-class fixtures extending to soccer and rugby union as well as a variety of community events.
With TIO Stadium at Marrara now being used all year round by AFL, either for local NTFL games or by Territory Thunder, it makes sense to start developing a dedicated rectangular stadium capable of holding our larger events.
In other allocations we know how important community ovals are, and $2m has been earmarked to upgrade remote community ovals. This is in addition to the department’s facilities grants program, which can provide up to $100 000 over two years for facilities and capital equipment projects.
Alice Springs will also benefit from $1.5m in funding to develop a new lawn bowls green, and there will be lighting at the golf course.
As you know, horse riding is popular across the Territory and Riding for the Disabled provides a valuable service. I am pleased that a total of $500 000, $250 000 each, has been allocated to the Alice Springs and Darwin centres for upgrades.
Katherine golf course has been on the same site for a long time, and over 25 years ago made the progression from dirt scrapes to grass greens. The budget provides $820 000 for the golf course to continue its development.
It was a great coup for the Territory to be selected to host the Davis Cup in July, and this budget provides $8m towards establishment of a regional tennis centre at Marrara. International Tennis Federation-standard courts provide opportunities for regional and age group tennis events attracting juniors and other players to Darwin, especially in our wonderful Dry Season.
The benefits of regional tennis events across the Territory will be significant. As you know, Southeast Asia has a growing population, and the future of the NT is inextricably linked to Asia. Growing new links with our neighbours not only promotes social development but also economic development.
The Palmerston Satellite City BMX Club will get a new all-weather cover for its track thanks to a $1.8m announcement in this budget. This is in addition to the new roof recently put in place at the Jingili BMX Club in Marrara.
I will not let the funding of sports facilities and infrastructure go to waste. We will ensure there are measureable outcomes and conditions around our funding aimed at meeting the needs of the community. If our conditions are not met the funding will be allocated to another sport. Our master plan process will work on good governance of organisations and will emphasise the importance and necessity of responsible expenditure.
I am sure the member for Nelson would be interested to know that plans for a pool in the rural area have advanced. The project is on the design list. This may not sound like much, but members would know once a project is on the design list it indicates a commitment to proceed. The reason it is not in this budget is design and construction estimates need to be completed, but I am heartened it is on this important list
It is not just about facilities. I spoke earlier about our wonderful Sport and Learn to Swim Vouchers. Cost can be a barrier to participation and vouchers ensure all parents can afford the cost of registration and other fees for their children to participate. Last year this scheme was extended to include recreation and cultural activities, and this budget will continue to fund this excellent initiative for Territory families and sport and recreation organisations.
Local community clubs are the main avenues for kids to participate in sport, and this government will again allocate nearly $200 000 for clubs to access small grants to provide equipment or other activities. The cap on individual grants in this program was recently lifted from $3000 to $5000, and peak sporting bodies and active recreation organisations will benefit by an allocation of $5.6m in the budget.
We will continue to support national level sporting events in the Territory, including games with the Parramatta Eels and the Melbourne Demons. There is also $120 000 to bring a four nations women’s hockey pre-Olympic games tournament match to Darwin in 2016. We have a strong tradition of hockey in the Territory and this exciting event builds and extends that tradition.
There is also an allocation of $600 000 to support Tennis Australia to bring the Davis Cup quarter final to Darwin.
These are amazing coups for the Northern Territory, but we also have our own homegrown event which is growing in popularity. Last year the first ever Mitchell Street Mile was a great success with Craig Mottram and Bridey Delaney among the star athletes participating. The budget provides funding for the event this year as part of the Festivals NT calendar.
Finally, there is continued funding of our Northern Territory Institute of Sport, which was created by a CLP government 19 years ago. Recently we had James McManus score a try for the Newcastle Knights in the NRL, Karyn Bailey has been selected in the Australian netball squad, Jeremy Hayward collected a silver medal with the Kookaburras at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup international hockey tournament in Malaysia, and Brooke Peris scored a goal in the Kookaburras 3:2 win over New Zealand in the eight nations Hawkes Bay Cup. All of these talented sportspeople had NTIS scholarships and the benefit of starting their journey towards sporting success through the institute.
The NTIS will benefit from nearly $3m worth of funding in the budget, including a significant focus on coaching and a new role in supporting the development of officials. We all know the important role officials play in running successful competitions and that quality coaching, especially for juniors, is very important. As such, the NTIS will be establishing a coaching and officiating centre to assist the development of talented athletes, coaches and officials.
Turning to the Arts and Museums portfolio, I am very excited about the opportunities that exist in this area. The government is committed to the arts and has allocated $45.1m in Arts and Museums, as well as an additional $19.6m for new capital works initiatives. Within the Department of Arts and Museums the portfolio responsibilities include the Northern Territory Library, the Northern Territory Archives Service, the Araluen Cultural Precinct, Arts NT and Screen Territory. The department also works closely with the independent board of management of the Museums and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory, MAGNT.
This budget delivers long-lasting cultural, social and economic benefits and provides new opportunities and infrastructure across the Territory. In Alice Springs, $20m has been committed towards the future development of an Indigenous cultural centre of national significance. Alice Springs is seen as an ideal location for the centre given it lies at the spiritual and geographical heart of Australia. The initial allocation of $20m by the Northern Territory government will provide Australia-wide community confidence in the project as a viable possibility and assist in leveraging Commonwealth, philanthropic and corporate funding to build the centre and contribute to annual operating costs.
I am excited about the announced redevelopment of the Chan Building, in Darwin’s CBD, into a dedicated visual arts gallery. The $18.3m redevelopment of this magnificent new art space will be jointly funded by the Territory government as well as generous contributions from external sources. The Chan Building will be turned into a state-of-the-art exhibition space and will include a caf and retail space bringing more people into the city centre. The redevelopment will cement Darwin’s position as a must-do arts and cultural destination.
The Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory will receive $6.7m to support its operations. Additionally, $5.3m over four years has been committed to upgrade and replace environmental control systems.
I would like to highlight the much-needed injection of $541 000 to the Northern Territory Library for a new library management system. These systems have come a long way from the cards in a drawer that some members may remember. The new library management system will provide library users easier access to catalogues using mobile devices, providing a much friendlier experience. There are nearly 100 000 individual users of the current management system and about 956 000 listed items in Territory libraries.
In total, 52 libraries, including a network of public, community and school libraries, are supported by the Northern Territory Library. The new library management system will allow libraries to better manage their collections. Providing the Northern Territory Library and the network it supports with a modern, more functional library management system is a wonderful initiative and one that will be of great advantage to library users old and new.
One of the most comprehensive plans addressing the enhancement of the Northern Territory’s much-valued heritage sites will be developed with funding support from this budget. The Northern Territory government has committed $6.1m over three years for the development and implementation of a Northern Territory heritage enhancement action plan. Expenditure will include $3.05m for enhancements of our rich pioneering and military heritage sites, which will include sites of historic interest along Territory highways; $1.2m for work to enhance privately-owned heritage places; $600 000 to enhance museums in our regional centres; $500 000 to replace signage for historical sites; and $100 000 to develop digital initiatives.
There are rich heritage sites in the Northern Territory and the action plan will provide better recognition and a more coordinated approach to their promotion. The action plan will look at better connectivity between heritage places, a coordinated signage policy and more use of technology. This will produce a more memorable visitor experience and will also make it easier for locals to embrace our history and heritage sites. As well as providing for better and more easily accessible historic sites, the outcomes from the action plan will help boost Tourism NT’s cultural tourism product. Through the budget the Territory government is making a major investment in our arts and cultural sector, which will enhance the Territory’s creative and cultural experience.
We are continuing to support regional Indigenous culture with $500 000 for the Godinymayin Yijard Rivers Arts and Culture Centre in Katherine for the next two years. This is a wonderful multipurpose arts and cultural facility which enhances artistic and cultural practice in the Katherine region. We are proud to continue supporting its operation. These investments are not just for the present but for future generations, benefitting artists as well as our local tourism and construction industries.
Turning to my responsibilities for the NT Environment Protection Authority, the EPA’s budget includes $1.025m for environment grants. These grants are for projects that deliver clear environmental benefits. Instead of six special interest groups, we have opened up funding through these grants for deserving projects which are aimed at real results for the environment.
This budget is solid and well developed, and provides for some wonderful initiatives in my portfolio which will have a positive lasting effect on our community. I, and my agency, worked hard to get these funds and it has been wonderful to work with such a dedicated group of public servants.
I commend the Treasurer on Budget 2015-16.
Moving to my electorate of Daly, some highlights include: $16.75m to complete sealing of Litchfield Park Road; $13.5m to construct a new high-level bridge over the Lower Finniss River; $10.43m for upgrade and redevelopment of day use areas, car parks, camping areas and walking tracks through Litchfield National Park; $3.2m for works related to the Middle Arm Industrial Precinct release of industrial land for gas-related development; the new Community Champions program funded at $18m over the next three years; $6m over three years to establish Business in the Bush, which will support Indigenous businesses and increase employment participation; a maximum size limit of 97 cm for barramundi and king threadfin salmon to be trialled in the Daly and Mary River Fish Management Zones to help maintain an abundance of large trophy fish that are highly sought after by anglers; and a new smart phone app to ensure all anglers know their limits.
There is $750 000 over three years for a fisheries enhancement program. This will include the production and release of fingerlings of target fish species and a study of artificial reef structures to enhance reef habitat.
Over three years there is $3.05m for enhancement of our rich pioneering and military heritage sights, which will include sights of historic interest along Territory highways.
The budget includes $20.07m to continue the development of strategic economic roads including the Arnhem Highway, Port Keats Road and the Pickertaramoor Road. For upgrades, $6.5m is available for the Dundee Beach and Shady Camp boat ramps. We have allocated $3.68m to continue upgrading the Leviathan Creek crossing on Fog Bay Road, including construction of a new bridge, associated approaches and drainage work.
There is $150 000 to conduct research and redevelopment to assist the cattle industry to efficiently supply the live export trade and the Darwin abattoir with suitably prepared stock.
There is $12.87m to provide Police, Fire and Emergency Services with nine police stations and a further three police stations funded under Stronger Futures, including one at Peppimenarti.
The budget allocates $490 000 for courts to administer justice in regional and remote communities, including Wadeye, Daly River and Jabiru.
There is $400 000 to implement alcohol harm-minimisation initiatives for Wadeye, Belyuen, Maningrida, Gunbalanya and Jabiru. To provide assessment monitoring and supervision services to community-based clients in Wadeye, Jabiru and the Tiwi Islands there is $430 000 in line with sentences and orders issued by the courts and the NT Parole Board.
I commend not only the Treasurer, but everyone involved over the last two-and-a-half years to come up with such a fantastic budget and get money for our wonderful sport and recreation, and arts and museum facilities.
Mrs PRICE (Local Government and Community Services): Mr Deputy Speaker, I congratulate the Treasurer, the Chief Minister and the rest of my Cabinet colleagues for their hard work on this bill.
This budget strikes the right balance between fiscal responsibility, building infrastructure and delivering services demanded by one of Australia’s fastest growing economies. Budget 2015-16 will make Territorians lives simpler, safer and smarter. The government has used the last two budgets to repair the damage created by 11 years of Labor economic mismanagement. We have now turned the debt corner. Debt is less than half of what Labor would have racked up by now if still in power. This means we can now afford a massive program to deliver quality services and investments in much-needed infrastructure that will pay dividends in the future.
Our successful economic management is reflected in our economic performance. Our economy has grown by 6.5% this financial year. This is only happening because of our sound economic management over the last two budgets. This demonstrates the difference between our side of government and those opposite.
I will turn to the fantastic opportunities provided by Budget 2015-16 in my portfolio areas. In the portfolio of Local Government and Community Services we have delivered on a number of election commitments, such as reforms to local government and Homelands Extra. Local government was one area those opposite totally destroyed. Super shires – super mess.
We have acted on this issue and committed $5m to support local authorities across 63 communities. Across the Territory, 756 people are members of local authorities and 209 meetings were held in the first six months of operation.
Local authority meetings discuss a range of issues including planning, budgeting, local employment and monitoring of service delivery within their respective communities.
Unlike Labor, who thinks throwing cash at a problem makes it go away, our hard work in local government is paying off. A recent snapshot of local authorities across all regional councils found that in the first six months of operation local authorities were delivering on objectives to provide a stronger local voice and greater accountability for service delivery.
Continued from 26 March 2015.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the minister for bringing the Justice Legislation Amendment Bill 2015 (Serial 119) to the House. This bill amends and updates a number of pieces of important legislation, including the Anti-Discrimination Act, the Information Act and the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act as well as procedural amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act and the Fences Act.
A key element of this bill is significant amendments to the Anti-Discrimination Act and Anti-Discrimination Regulations with the intention of improving the complaint process. As the minister said, the intention is to provide a quicker process for all parties involved in complaints to the Anti-Discrimination Commission ‘efficiently with reduced resources’.
We support the amendments before us but not without taking the opportunity to comment on some of the proposed changes. We look to the minister to acknowledge the risks attached to some elements of the proposed amendments and to hear a commitment from him, as Attorney-General, to work to ensure that unintended consequences are limited, and to continue to ensure that the primary purpose and objectives of the relevant legislation are enhanced and not detracted by the implementation of these amendments.
The Anti-Discrimination Act and the role of the Anti-Discrimination Commission is important to Territorians, so any proposed changes to that legislation should be very carefully considered. Territorians take comfort knowing the Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commission exists, that it has a strong education and awareness role in increasing understanding of what discrimination means, and assists the fair and timely resolution of incidents of discrimination.
In the Territory we take pride that we live in a strong multicultural society and that the cultural and human diversity of our community continues to expand. The last annual report of the Anti-Discrimination Commission tells us that racial discrimination continues to be the highest area of client referral to the Anti-Discrimination Commission, but discrimination also manifests itself through disability and impairment, failure to accommodate special needs, gender, sexual harassment and age. The annual report lists 21 types of discrimination where complaints were brought to the commission.
It is important that all citizens have the opportunity to pursue complaints of discrimination based on race; gender; sexual orientation; disability or impairment; an irrelevant record, be it medical or criminal; parenthood; religious belief; or even political opinions. It is equally important for all parties that cases are dealt with fairly, in a timely way and they realise sound outcomes.
Our current Anti-Discrimination Commissioner, Sally Sievers, has been clear in her approach by saying an important aim is to ensure as far as possible that relationships can be maintained and issues resolved at the earliest possible stage.
Ms Sievers has also reported that key performance indicators demonstrate this is being achieved, at least in the reporting year 2012-13, with 78% of complaints being settled, usually by conciliation. Notwithstanding, this commissioner has been active since her appointment in January 2013 in promoting work to address procedural reform, which is before us today.
As the minister outlined in his second reading speech, a key function of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and the Anti-Discrimination Act is to carry out investigations and hearings into complaints made under the act and endeavour to effect conciliation.
Currently a complaint must pass through three stages: preliminary assessment and acceptance; investigation, where the complaint is accepted; and, potentially, a hearing. Voluntary conciliation is available at any stage of the process. The minister has also outlined how the review of the Anti-Discrimination Act has identified the need to improve time lines for handling complaints.
The bill before us this evening amends the Anti-Discrimination Act to replace the investigation stage outlined in the current Part 6 of the act with a new stage that makes evaluation of the case by referral to a hearing. The minister has told us that currently, on accepting a complaint under the Anti-Discrimination Act, the commissioner must carry out an investigation and, on completing an investigation, must then determine whether there is a prima facie case for proceeding to conciliation or a hearing. If there is no prima facie case the complaint is dismissed, but if the commissioner is satisfied there is a prima facie case the complaint proceeds to conciliation. If the commissioner believes the complaint cannot be resolved by conciliation it is referred to a hearing.
Review of the operation of those provisions has demonstrated that the requirement for a prima facie test has not always been an effective way of screening to determine whether matters have reasonable grounds to proceed. The bill before us aims to remedy that by replacing the investigation stage with a new process of evaluation to establish if a complaint should proceed to a hearing. The new evaluation stage also allows for determination if a complaint should be referred to a hearing as a whole or on particular grounds.
Importantly, the bill also provides for new powers for the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to order the production of documents and witness statements to assist the evaluation of a complaint. These powers give more capacity for the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to undertake an evaluation and to progress the evaluation in a timely way.
The government proposes it is important that the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner has these powers given it is often the case that complainants acting on their own are unfamiliar with process issues and legal requirements – perhaps not surprisingly – and look to the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and her office to assist them to undertake their complaint.
One of the key improvements we support is the proposed extension of the time limitation period – the time to make a complaint – from the current six months to 12 months.
The minister reports that the commissioner already receives a large number of complaints outside the six-month statutory limit and this is increasing. We support a change that recognises the needs of complainants, including those who are living in remote parts of the Territory – a reasonable extension of the time available for aggrieved parties to consider their options, to attempt informal reconciliation, to understand their rights and to consider undertaking a complaint with supporting evidence through the Anti-Discrimination Commission.
It is also timely to make this change as it brings the Northern Territory more into line with national standards. All other jurisdictions in Australia provide at least a 12-month limitation period.
One of the key intentions of the legislation is to promote fairness, a very important value that must continue to underpin this work.
In order to streamline, the acceptance stage amendments to clause 13 enable the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to seek a response from a respondent to assist in determining whether to accept a complaint. Currently the commissioner can only assess on the complainants account of the circumstances of the alleged discrimination.
Importantly the bill provides for new powers for the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to issue a notice in writing to a party to compel production of documents or information during the evaluation of a complaint. That evaluation focuses on the likelihood of a successful outcome in a hearing should that be the final destination of the complaint.
This amendment also brings the powers of the commissioner into line with other jurisdictions. We agree that providing the commissioner with the power to compel the production of documents and information will assist the commissioner in the timely evaluation of complaints.
Clause 13 in the new section 66E provides the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner with the power to take no further action on a complaint. Currently a party can make application to have an application discontinued in specific circumstances, or a complaint can lapse. The amendment before us allows the commissioner to discontinue consideration of a complaint where it is believed no further action can be taken.
We support that power but we would like to hear more from the minister on the range of circumstances where that would be employed, how a complainant would be informed of that determination and any opportunity for discussion of options for the complainant before action is discontinued in this way.
The bill also provides a new section 79 to allow the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to direct a person to participate in conciliation. This important change supports conciliation as one pathway to timely and effective resolution of complaints.
The intention of this legislation is to now refer anti-discrimination hearings to the recently established Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal, known as NTCAT. NTCAT has been established as a key forum for judicial review of government decisions and determination of disputes. The bill refers jurisdiction for hearings under the Anti-Discrimination Act to the new Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal and we accept this change noting it allows the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to focus on evaluation and conciliation as key mechanisms for resolution of complaints.
While we understand the driver for that change, we would like to hear from the minister what arrangements will be in place to meet the specific needs of anti-discrimination complainants, for example, complainants with some cognitive impairment or with English as a second, third or even fourth language.
I have previously mentioned the importance of the evaluation stage. Part 5 of the bill amends the Information Act to include information created under the Anti-Discrimination Act as exempt under section 44 of the Information Act. That exemption is proposed because it is considered not in the public interest to enable public disclosure of that information.
The minister told us in his second reading speech that these exemptions will apply generally to information collected or provided as part of the formal complaint process, including conciliation. It also includes other information or advice provided to or by the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner that would reasonably be expected to be confidential, such as personal confidential inquiries from the public.
We support a mechanism to encourage fulsome consideration of matters which can often be deeply personal and which will assist the work of the commission.
The bill also proposes a significant change to the enabling legislation relating to the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act. Part 6 of the bill makes a number of amendments to the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act to improve operation of the act, amendments identified during NTCAT’s first six months or so of operation.
These include a more comprehensive enforcement regime, including a new offence of failing to comply with an order of NTCAT punishable by up to 100 penalty units or imprisonment for six months. The minister, in his second reading speech, also noted that such a sanction will not necessarily or adequately address all situations. He used the example that imprisonment will not necessarily assist a person to receive money owed to them under a compensation order or to give effect to the termination of a lease. He noted a warrant of seizure and sale, or a warrant of possession that can be enforced by a court bailiff, may be more appropriate in these circumstances.
New section 84 allows for monetary orders to be registrable and enforceable as an order of the court of competent jurisdiction, including all compensation orders and costs orders. The current jurisdictional limit of the Local Court is $100 000, but the next bill we will be talking to will seek to increase that. This means any monetary order below that amount is registrable and enforceable as an order of the Local Court.
Any order of NTCAT relating to an amount in excess of $100 000 is registrable and enforceable as an order of the Supreme Court. There is a separate provision relating to the enforcement of which non-monetary orders provides powers to the Supreme Court to enforce such orders. Significantly, the government proposes to make these amendments relating to enforcement retrospective so any other order made by NTCAT since its inception on 6 October 2014 is enforceable under the new enforcement provisions.
The standard we are well used to in considering and passing legislation in parliaments across the country is the presumption against retrospectivity. Retrospective application of sanctions is not usual practice, so I ask the minister to provide the Assembly, in his wrap, justification for the application of retrospectivity in these circumstances. In particular, have these amendments been constructed to provide for decisions already made by the NTCAT, which were potentially beyond current powers, and is he or his department aware of any circumstances where NTCAT orders will be enforced retrospectively under these proposed amendments? If so, can he outline the circumstances of those orders to this House?
The amendment to section 140 of the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act allows for a person to appeal against a decision made by NTCAT in its original jurisdiction. Section 140 is also being amended to insert new subsection 1A to allow the regulations to exclude specific decisions of NTCAT from becoming reviewed by NTCAT. The minister has assured us that this regulation-making power is intended to be used only in limited and appropriate circumstances. It will be important to monitor that.
Part 7 of the bill amends the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Regulations to provide, under new section 140(1A), certain suitable original decisions of NTCAT under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law. There is also a technical amendment to reduce the possibility of unintended and inefficient circumstances where it would be appropriate to exclude the original jurisdiction of NTCAT from an internal review by NTCAT under section 140.
Part 4 of the bill makes minor technical amendments to the Fences Act, which we support, to correct omission in the current legislation. There are also similar correcting amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act, including reference to the new role of NTCAT in respect to the Residential Tenancies Act.
The amendments proposed in this bill aim to significantly improve the complaint process under the Anti-Discrimination Act and the effectiveness of NTCAT. We trust this is the case.
The Office of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner is important for all Territorians – complainants and respondents – and that matters are dealt with expeditiously and fairly. It is important, indeed critical, that these important services are accessible no matter where you live or what your background or circumstances might be. It is important that any changes to anti-discrimination legislation enhance that important work in the Territory. We look to the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and the minister to stay true to that end and to report on the effectiveness and impact of these changes on key performance indicators.
I have one last bit to add to my contribution on the strength of the budget handed down today. Parts 2 and 3 of the bill amend the Anti-Discrimination Act and Anti-Discrimination Regulations – I quote from the minister’s second reading:
The budget papers show a $160 000 reduction in the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner’s budget for 2015-16 compared with the 2014-15 budget, which had an appropriation of $1.677m. It is also $460 000 less than the 2014-15 spend in the Office of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner. Also, the previous ADC has commented on the need for activities to increase the understanding of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner’s matters in the bush and bush access to ADC services. How does that reduced investment help that?
In my electorate it is a few years since we have had a visit from the ADC’s office to provide important education and training to people in workplaces, schools or anybody else who may be seeking it. I would be grateful if the minister could address this business of a reduced budget and how they can continue to do their job effectively for the benefit of all Territorians.
The opposition supports this bill, albeit requesting further explanation of the arrangements in place to ensure equity of access before NTCAT, particularly for complainants with a level of impairment that might affect their capacity to present at NTCAT, and the issue I raised regarding retrospectivity of orders made by NTCAT.
I commend the bill to the House. I thank the minister’s office for facilitating a briefing in his suite, and I thank those officers who attended to provide information.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I support the Justice Legislation Amendment Bill. My questions relate to specific clauses. I might do that now rather than go through the committee stage. I usually get a briefing but have been busy of late, and in this case I am not as prepared as I should be.
I have gone through the bill and some of my questions could have been answered in a briefing. I remember a former member for Drysdale saying you can raise these issues in the House as well, not just in a briefing.
There are improvements in the changes. My question relates to clause 10, which amends section 62. It is about authorisation to act for a complainant or respondent. New section 62(2)(2A) says:
This is a general question as to why a person or company cannot be represented without first having to get an authorisation. Why is that not a right? I presume the commissioner can say you cannot have a person as much as they can say you can. I want clarification on why an authorisation is required.
Clause 66D about a complaint declined says:
Does that exclude any other actions that person might take, for example, through work health?
Mr Elferink: The short answer is no, but there are boundaries to it.
Mr WOOD: New section 81(1)(c) deals with conclusion of conciliation and says:
Why is that there? I thought once you finished the agreement you would sign on the dotted line. Has there been an issue in relation to the legality of things not being finished off correctly?
Clause 86 relates to tribunals. My understanding of a tribunal is it is normally a public hearing. Can it be a private hearing? You either go to conciliation …
Mr Elferink: Are you in the act or the amendment?
Mr WOOD: I am looking at the amendment.
Mr Elferink: Which clause is that?
Mr WOOD: Clause 86, Division 4A.
Mr Elferink: Clause 86 or the proposed amendment to section 86? I am not trying to be cute.
Mr WOOD: I have tried to put all the amendments into the new act so I knew where they fitted.
Mr Elferink: I see what you have done.
Mr WOOD: You have repealed Division 4 and replaced it with a new Division 4. Division 4A is headed Hearing by Tribunal. Does the commissioner have the right to hear a complaint in private in the tribunal or does it have to be a public hearing?
Mr Elferink: I see what you are saying.
Mr WOOD: I did not see anything that gives a – I will keep going, minister.
Sections 95 and 96 of the act are to be repealed. Section 95 of the act is headed, ‘Parties may be legally represented’, and section 96 of the act relates to costs. I am trying to understand why they are being repealed. On the surface it sounds like you are scrapping someone’s right to be legally represented.
My observant office helper said you are amending section 170(1)(a) of the Residential Tenancies Act. We could not find it. Our Residential Tenancies Act goes to section 166. Is it me or is it an error?
Mr Elferink: Clause 66 of the bill is the reference.
Mr WOOD: It says to omit.
Mr Elferink: I know what you are saying. I will double check it.
Mr WOOD: In relation to your second reading, you said NTCAT represents a major step to improving access to justice for all Territorians. I understand it is a single body and I presume different people will appear on it. Does it improve access or is it more efficient from the government’s point of view?
Mr Elferink: I am happy to answer that.
Mr WOOD: Minister, I had trouble understanding the fourth-last paragraph of your second reading in relation to the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law where NTCAT is involved. You said:
Mr Elferink: Jurisdiction or decision?
Mr WOOD: No, jurisdiction.
Mr Elferink: I am taking the original second reading speech. The original ‘decision’ of NTCAT is in the original second reading speech. What are you reading from?
Mr WOOD: I am reading ‘jurisdiction’ so that could be a Hansard error.
Mr Elferink: Yes, I suspect so.
Mr WOOD: It could be a transposition error.
Mr Elferink: It materially affects what you are trying to deal with?
Mr WOOD: Yes, I had trouble understanding what that paragraph meant. I presume, as the member for Nhulunbuy mentioned, it has something to do with the changes to section 140 of the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act. Perhaps you could explain that.
Minister, I thank you for bringing these good changes which make it a better law. The anti-discrimination law has to work fairly for both parties so they have an equal opportunity to put their views. If you are able to answer those questions I would appreciate it.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank honourable members for the effort they have put in. It is nice to see people are looking closely and reading this legislation.
I will start with your last problem. I suspect it is a typo if you are working out of Hansard. I have the original second reading speech and the quote is:
I understand your confusion if there has been a typo because materially that sentence changes if you read the word ‘jurisdiction’ rather than ‘decision’. When it refers to a decision of NTCAT from an internal review by NTCAT under section 140 it makes a whole lot more sense than trying to oust the jurisdiction of the organisation conducting the review. I understand that caused confusion and do not know why it has happened. It makes much more sense if you read the word ‘decision’ where the word ‘jurisdiction’ appears in your paperwork.
You asked if NTCAT was just handy for government or handy for the punters. This was always designed to be handy for the punters.
It was not easy to breathe life into this and initially it will be expensive to establish. If you walk into a courtroom now – bearing in mind prior to the arrival of NTCAT you had several review processes attached to different pieces of legislation, and we are still in the process of collapsing those processes along with a raft of different legislative instruments into the NTCAT model.
It threw up a number of challenges for the average punter trying to get a decision. Perhaps I could give you an example. If I had an issue with the Mental Health Review Tribunal in relation to a mental health review matter relating to me or another person I would have to make submissions to the Mental Health Review Tribunal, which met at irregular times. The likelihood of getting into that place, particularly if it related to a relative of mine – I would have to get lawyered up to do it.
A number of other matters reviewed across government would have required reference to the Supreme Court in the first instance, particularly on points of law scattered through the statute book of the Northern Territory. I think there were 216 different reviewable types of decisions arising out of 150-odd sections of acts. There were 47 or 48 appellant bodies across the statute book, which I personally found unsatisfactory. I remember sitting in opposition saying we had to do it better.
In regard to ease of access, if you wanted to review a tax decision made by the Territory Revenue Office you went to the office, got your decision, and if you were unhappy with the decision you went back to the office to have it reviewed. You had to rely on the trust factor that the office conducting the review was doing so at arm’s length of the original decision maker in the office. You had nowhere to go beyond that unless you went to the Supreme Court on a point of law, and then you had to get all lawyered up.
For the average punter to make an application in front of NTCAT it is $49. If you walk in the front door you will be heard. It was always genuinely about an appellant body which was able to cover the field of nearly every administrative decision made across government. This can, in certain circumstances, include ministerial decisions of an administrative nature.
Moreover, NTCAT enables that to be done in the public domain. It has the flavour, nature and taste of a court so much so that we are venturing towards somewhere Queensland went, where even the small claims jurisdiction will end up with NTCAT having capacity to effectively give cover. The initial reports I have received from a number of people is they appreciate the quality of access NTCAT is giving them when they want to make an appeal against administrative decisions. The person in charge of NTCAT could just as easily sit on the bench as a magistrate or judge. That is the benchmark for the president of NTCAT.
The gentleman there at the moment, Richard Bruxner, has come from the Solicitor for the Northern Territory’s office. He is no slouch; he is a smart dude. Moreover, I hear anecdotally from the punters that he is pretty sharp and knows what he is doing.
The quality of access to justice is much higher. It is not obliged to follow the rules of evidence in the same way a court is so it can be a lot more flexible. Through that process it can become more equitable so the person making an appeal to NTCAT – the average punter – has a chance of being heard for the right price. They do not have to be represented and can still get a sense of justice from the process. That is the feedback I am getting at the moment. I am very encouraged by the things I hear.
We are the second-last jurisdiction in the country to adopt an administrative tribunal. The original AAT, the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, was a Commonwealth organ and has been adopted by all jurisdictions except Tasmania. I suspect they will have to fall into line at some point.
I hope that answers your question. It really is about the average punter getting access to what looks and smells like justice because it is justice in an administrative arm of government rather than the judiciary. It is still on the executive side of the separation of powers. It is not a chapter three court in the sense that a court in the Territory may be under its constitutional arrangements; it is where the average punter can walk away saying, ‘Yes, I got a fair hearing. I may not be happy with the result, but it was a fair hearing.’ That is what NTCAT is determined to do.
New section 170(1)(a) is a transitional provision. It probably dropped off the legislation at some point and would have been a transitional provision when the Residential Tenancies Act was breathed into life. We are checking that now, but I am sure what you are describing looks and smells like a transitional provision. I will get a nod from the people sitting next to me any second now.
In regard to legal representation in sections 95 and 96, nothing prevents a person – I am getting a nod on transitional provisions. When the legislation originally came into existence – every so often you build into the back of legislation that it will operate in such a fashion then drop off. It looks like a drop off provision.
Some pieces of legislation will come into existence then cease to exist within 10 hours. They are transitional legislations creating legal rights and responsibilities, but the act does not have to stand on the statute book.
Sections 95 and 96 were simply straightforward legal representation. Legal representation is – I understand that legislation said May. It has been a long time since I read this, but the original section said May, which created an optional environment anyhow but, having made that observation, it has gone to NTCAT. Those are the legislative changes that, when the appellant body becomes NTCAT, the capacity by NTCAT to hear those matters absorbs sections 95 and 96.
Proposed section 81(1)(c) is a discretionary provision. In legislation you create discretionary provisions, which means their existence one way or the other is of no major consequence.
Clause 66D, relating to a matter being closed off under the Anti-Discrimination Act if there was an option to make a claim in another jurisdictional area such as the work health provisions – the short answer is yes. If a claim had an overlapping quality it is almost certain that an appeal – I am trying to think of an example – or a claim of right in more than one area, for example a work health matter, it would be up to the organs constructed in that second environment.
If the anti-discrimination matter happens in the workplace and attracts a work health investigation, generally the different organs of government will independently undertake the investigation. One may choose to truncate the investigation for a number of reasons. Perhaps the matter could be solved by way of arbitration or negotiation. Perhaps the complainant has determined not to go down the path of anti-discrimination because they want to pursue a work health injury. That would depend on the circumstances of the case, but these are individual freestanding legislative instruments which mean if action in one instrument is stopped for whatever reason, it does not exclude the other authority from proceeding.
Where the complaint is clearly vexatious in nature – somebody is shopping around to pursue things – without having the work health legislation in front of me I can almost be certain the same powers exist for them as a court in relation to saying, ‘The way you are pursing this is vexatious. We have given you all the hearings we are supposed to. It will reach a point where you run into a dead end because you are just making noise.’
I encourage departments to tell people, whether it is the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner or work health, that we have passed vexatious proceedings legislation and the courts can dispose of matters where a complainant becomes tedious and vexatious in their conduct. They will not get what they are after because, for whatever reason, they will not get it. Sometimes that happens.
Why do I need an authorisation under amended section 62? The authorisation it referred to is a – jog my memory again.
Mr Wood: Under amended section 62 you need an authorisation to have someone represent you or …
Mr ELFERINK: In short I suspect it is redundant legislation. You have to be realistic about what these organisations do. For example, I do not think the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner will act in a discriminatory way. If someone wants legal representation and has to seek authorisation and has it taken away, you will find it is still within the domain of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to give permission under certain circumstances.
I do not think it has any substance one way or the other. The discretion will exist and this just amplifies the discretion. That is about as clear as mud, but if you say somebody may do something or the commissioner has to seek something, it implies discretion all the way through legislation so you have a discretionary environment whether you describe it or not. That leads me to a point made by the member for Nhulunbuy ...
Mr Wood: What about proposed section 79 and the tribunal being in private.
Mr ELFERINK: Yes, that is also discretionary. Generally with tribunals, and certainly NTCAT, the presumption is in favour of a public hearing. However, there may be circumstances in which a tribunal will choose not to go into the public environment and will enunciate its reasons. A court does exactly the same thing. The Supreme Court and the Children’s – there is a presumption in favour of closed courts.
The Court of Summary Jurisdiction, or the Local Court as it will be called shortly, and the Supreme Court will be heard in public unless for some reason a judge or magistrate determines it is necessary to close the court or give instructions. You will find with NTCAT the presumption will always be in favour of a public hearing ...
Mr Wood: There will not be any magistrates.
Mr ELFERINK: No, we will deal with that shortly. The member for Nhulunbuy expressed concern about the act setting parameters and allowing the commissioner to close off matters with unintended consequences and that type of thing.
This was sought by the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner as a way to mechanically deal with issues. She advised we needed this type of approach because sometimes it is impossible to find the complainant. The complainant has gone to New South Wales, or unfortunately had a trekking accident in Nepal, and you cannot close it off until that matter has been dealt with.
The Anti-Discrimination Commissioner said, ‘I need a mechanism to truncate these matters’. I suggest it would be inconceivable for an Anti-Discrimination Commissioner, for the sake of administrative convenience, to start truncating investigations because it is all too hard.
As the minister, if I become aware of that I would probably speak to the executive arm of government and terminate that person’s employment. In fact, I would have to do it here. It would be similar to disposing of a judge or magistrate, and the only grounds to do that would be due to mental incompetence, gross dereliction of duty or engagement in some illegality.
Truncating cases for administrative convenience would be awfully close to that type of behaviour. The current, and every previous Anti-Discrimination Commissioner, would be mortified at the thought of behaving in such a fashion.
I will go out on a limb and say I expect every future Anti-Discrimination Commissioner would apply the same rigorous standards. Such a process would have a discriminatory quality to it, therefore it would be most unlikely for an Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to behave that way.
Nevertheless, it is a fair question from the member for Nhulunbuy. I am trying to imagine how that could become manifest in a practical sense but cannot. As Attorney-General, if I was receiving complaints that this was happening there would be an interrupter.
The member also mentioned access to interpreters for matters before the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner. I expect the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner would make interpreters available if a person was unable to speak English.
It is counter-intuitive to suggest the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner would allow a matter to proceed without the person understanding what was going on. I understand the comment and am not being critical; I am just trying to see how that lands in the real world. Frankly, I cannot quite make it work in that sense.
I suspect if an Anti-Discrimination Commissioner withheld an interpreter from somebody who needed one – once again you are straying into an area where I, or any future Attorney-General, would say, ‘Have we picked the right person for the job?’
NTCAT and the presumption of retrospectivity – I am hearing you loud and clear. Like all CATs, we do not want this CAT to be a pussy; we want it to be a tiger. It needs to have teeth and it has already made a number of decisions. This issue of enforcement of decisions has come up subsequent to the creation of the organ. When the organ was originally created – I do not mean the pun. Yes I do, I like this pun – there would be teething problems. There are teething problems with NTCAT. This is one way to address those teething problems.
The need for retrospectivity is to give quality enforceability to decisions that have already been made. I thought about that when this issue came to me, and I took it to my Cabinet colleagues and I now take it to this House. I think it is within the bounds of reasonableness to embrace retrospectivity in this instance because I would hate to see a dual class of decision existing as a result of the operation of NTCAT.
If you made unenforceable decisions prior to the date of commencement of this legislation then enforceable decisions, you would be re-hearing every matter to bring it forward. I suspect the average person in the street, when casting an eye over what we do here, would conclude retrospectivity in this instance is not unreasonable in all the circumstances. I would hate to see people dragged back into NTCAT so matters could be re-heard where a decision is made which is subsequently enforceable as it defeats the purpose of NTCAT. It is meant to be accessible and convenient for people seeking justice in relatively minor matters as a general proposition.
Having made that observation, NTCAT can also – and will into the future, particularly if you look at the amendments to the Local Court Act – cast a very broad net in its capacity to make big decisions which will ultimately run into hundreds and thousands of dollars. At some stage other decisions, such as planning decisions, will also come into the orbit of NTCAT. This is not just a pseudo court sitting on the side of the executive; this organisation will provide decisions on some pretty big ticket items. That is one of the reasons we expect a person who presides on NTCAT to be eligible to take up judicial office in the Northern Territory.
I hope that answers questions and I will leave it at that. Suffice to say I thank honourable members for the trouble and time taken as it was not an easy piece of legislation. The second reading speech had a certain Tolstoyan quality to it, as did the Local Court Bill, which was even worse.
This is good legislation. Again I place on the record my thanks to the staff of AGS who appear next to me in the House today for their efforts and work. I think this will work for the true benefit and welfare of the people of the Northern Territory.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice) (by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time.
Continued from 26 March 2015.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I was not the shadow Attorney-General at the time of the second reading of this bill, but I recall the Attorney-General delivered a very lengthy speech. It was so long that it exceeded the extension of time granted. That was fine because no one would tell him his time had expired because with legislation, and other matters, sometimes a member needs extra time. It was plain to me, whilst I had not tuned into the entire content of the speech, that a good deal of work and reform had been captured in the bill.
Now I am back in the role of shadow Attorney-General I can confirm there is a good deal in this bill and more to come with, ‘Up to 153 acts, rules, regulations and by-laws’ to be amended along with repeal of the Magistrates Act, which will come along a little later.
We all understand this bill to be a significant body of work which consolidates into one act all the provisions regarding establishment and operation of the main lower courts of the Northern Territory, and in the words of the Attorney-General’s second reading speech:
This legislation to consolidate the lower courts does not include the Youth Justice Court or the Work Health Court because of the specialised type of work and cases they deal with. This is very sensible.
I am grateful to the Attorney-General’s office for facilitating a briefing for me and to the officers present. I acknowledge the enormous body of work undertaken by officers within the Department of the Attorney-General and Justice who have clearly toiled away to combine and consolidate criminal and civil jurisdictions. In so doing, they have dealt with many technical matters but also endeavoured to address some policy matters along the way. Of course, it is beholden on any government to ensure the states and territories are served with workable, contemporary legislation to best serve its citizens and it is important that such legislation be drafted in light of an evidence base.
I am pleased to see a consultation process was established a year ago to enable interested stakeholders, obviously not the least of whom is the legal fraternity, to scrutinise the draft bill and provide feedback. This is as it should be, and it is a shame the government is not always consistent with consultation where major legislative reforms are afoot. However, our Attorney-General does not do too badly in this area.
The report into the six-month consultation phase of the Local Court Bill – this rather hefty report dated 22 September and 101 pages in length – makes for very interesting reading with submissions and comments provided by the Director of Courts Administration, Chris Cox; Hon Dean Mildren AMRFD QC, retired Supreme Court justice; and our Chief Justice Hon Trevor Riley. I note it includes observations made by some of the judges, but not necessarily supported by all of them; the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency and Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Service, who put in a joint submission, John Lowndes, Chief Magistrate; and the Law Society of the Northern Territory.
I note in the Attorney-General’s second reading speech the comment:
I have not had access to all the submissions, but note that excerpts from those I just listed are included throughout the consultation report and some submissions are quoted at length, including the question of whether, under the draft bill, the term ‘magistrate’ should be changed to ‘judge’. I will come back to that matter later.
What strikes me is that not adopting all the outcomes of the consultation downplays some of the serious concerns raised. These have been considered then, for whatever reason, not adopted in this bill. That includes concerns raised by peak bodies of the legal profession like the NT Law Society, and legal institutions NAAJA and CAALAS, which do important work representing Indigenous Territorians, who, although they make up just over 30% of our population, are grossly over-represented in the justice and corrections systems. I thought their views might have carried some weight.
After reading the second reading speech, the consultation report, the submissions of the NT Law Society and the joint submission of NAAJA and CAALAS, I wondered how some of the final decisions in the bill were arrived at when there was no overwhelming support for the proposals. I acknowledge that ultimately the Attorney-General has the opportunity to accept the advice or otherwise offered during such a process.
It is not possible for me to address all aspects of this bill because I do not need the 45 minutes and an extension of time, but I want to work through some of the aspects which raised differences of opinion.
Part 3 division 2 of the bill deals with civil jurisdiction. The consultation phase canvassed if there should be an increase in the civil jurisdiction and whether the current amount of $100 000 should be retained or raised. Although the report notes there was no consensus, the upper limit of $250 000 has been implemented in this bill. I understand the explanation given during my briefing, but according to the consultation report there was divided opinion about this sum and whether it should be changed or increased. I note that members of the judiciary provided various reasons as to why the jurisdictional limit should be raised.
On the other hand, the submissions from the NT Law Society, NAAJA and CAALAS rejected any increase. NAAJA prefaces its submission with the fact it has several concerns with the draft Local Court Bill 2014. Keep in mind this was back at the initial consultation phase, and they said:
They then go on to provide comment in relation to this increase in the jurisdictional limit and their submission states:
Which has an upper limit of $250 000.
The NT Law Society goes to the jurisdictional limit, putting the case that it should remain at $100 000 and calling for an evidence base which would support the reform. The society goes on to raise concerns about increased workloads in the Local Court and the impact this will have. I quote from their submission:
I would like to hear the Attorney-General address this matter of evidence-based reform and ask that he endeavours to address the questions raised by the Law Society and provide assurances that the increased workload in the court will not negatively impact upon court users. There are already concerns among the legal fraternity that civil matters are stood down by criminal matters, which is more than just inconvenient.
Of course, criminal matters where people are in custody in holding cells beneath the court will take precedence. That is why it would be useful to know the number of cases stood down to provide a benchmark to measure the impact of the increased workload on the Local Court.
If these reforms are to be successful surely this is something the Attorney-General can commit to. I know he, more than anyone else in this House, has a vested interest in seeing justice administered smoothly and fairly in the Northern Territory.
NAAJA and CAALAS also raise in their submission the impact of an increased workload in the Local Court. Their submission says:
The matter of contempt is dealt with in Part 4, Division 4 of the bill. The Attorney-General stated in his second reading speech that:
There are contempt provisions in this bill which will allow the Local Court to have the power to punish contempt beyond the face of the court. This is an acceptable provision and one the Supreme Court has. It strengthens the power of the magistrate to ensure compliance with orders or undertakings outside the court. I note only the magistrate has the power to punish for contempt. Perhaps the Attorney-General could clarify dealing with the adequacy of provisions and dealing with contempt of court as per clause 46.
The consultation report notes that submissions have suggested, ‘that contempt proceedings should not be conducted by a magistrate who is the victim or witness to the alleged contempt’.
I could be wrong, but it seems there is no provision for that suggestion to be included and I wondered why. I am sure the Attorney-General will have an answer for me.
I note the significant increase in penalties for contempt. While recognising contempt of court is a serious offence, I query the dramatic rise. It brings the penalties in line with the relatively new NTCAT, which we were discussing in the last debate, which seem to be the only grounds for the increase from one month imprisonment and 15 penalty units to six months imprisonment and 100 penalty units. It seems to be quite a dramatic increase.
I also note the matter of provision for a right to appeal a contempt decision was raised by the Law Society. If that position is included in the bill and I have missed it I would be grateful, Attorney-General, if you could address that. Given the very serious and now increased penalties for proven contempt there would have to be some mechanism for appeal for those who wanted to pursue the path of appeal.
For something that is a matter of policy and makes no difference to the delivery of justice, people have commented they find it curious that so much time and space in the consultation process has been devoted to changing the terminology of magistrate to judge. I guess that within this bill is as good a place as any to do it given these are major reforms. The Magistrates Act will be repealed and perhaps this is as good a time as any to have that debate.
None of the submissions I have seen in the consultation paper, with the exception of one, supported the proposal for a change of title from magistrate to judge. The Law Society was quite strident in its submission to oppose the name change and highlighted a number of issues, including the name change. I will quote a few of them. The first one is, ‘see no benefit for the people of the Northern Territory nor does it promote the interests of justice’. The Law Society said, ‘It may generate greater confusion for those appearing in the Court of Summary Jurisdiction and diminish the important distinction between the two courts’.
The society is also concerned that temporary magistrates can be appointed by the minister. This is to do with the judiciary needing to be at arm’s length from the executive of government and quite independent of the executive.
Around the issue of changing the name from magistrate to judge, the Law Society warned that the NT should step lightly ahead of other jurisdictions with this renaming.
The Chief Justice is referred to in the consultation report. His comments record he does not see the need for the change, noting there is no pressing need. He also submitted that it was, ‘not appropriate for a small jurisdiction such as the Northern Territory to lead the way. The change should be a move supported on a national basis and by a much wider body of opinion.’
With all that said, and a strong case put forward by the Chief Magistrate to support the renaming, the Attorney-General has opted to adopt the name change. In his second reading speech he spoke at length in support of that decision.
I want to comment on the importance of the separation of powers and the judiciary retaining its independence at arm’s length from the executive of government. This issue was highlighted in events over a year ago with the appointment of a magistrate by the Attorney-General and the government. This raised eyebrows not only within the judiciary and the legal fraternity, but across many sectors of the Territory as well.
Whilst that magistrate has resigned from his position, I believe, as do others, that the saga has called into question the relationship between a serving magistrate and the government. The matter of a process for complaints about judicial officers was raised in the consultation phase of this bill, and whether or not there was a need to set out a legislative process for dealing with complaints about judicial officers. This matter has not been resolved through this process, but it is important that the conversation has been opened up.
It would appear from submissions that there was not support for a legislated process for various reasons. Chief Magistrate Dr John Lowndes in his submission to this question stated, amongst other things, that:
On the same subject the Law Society advocates for:
While judicial conduct is not the subject of this bill in any big way, although comment was invited in the consultation phase, it is clearly a matter which will need to progress under the guidance of the judiciary so all those in contact with the justice system can have confidence there are avenues for their concerns. I wish members of the judiciary good luck in that process. As Hon Dean Mildren submitted, given the likelihood of a high number of frivolous complaints the problem will be how to decide on the most appropriate mechanism.
I note there is a lot more to come in this reform process and that today’s bill is part of stage one. Stage two will involve consolidation and reforms to be introduced by way of a further bill in the October sittings, according to the Attorney-General’s second reading speech, with the aim to have the new Local Court Act commence operation in early 2016.
I thank the Attorney-General for bringing this bill before the House and look forward to the contributions of others. I trust the Attorney-General can address the questions raised by the opposition.
This is a difficult bill to give wholesome and unqualified support to given concerns I have raised and ones that have come through the consultation process. In the belief that not all those concerns have been addressed, nonetheless I thank the Attorney-General and again acknowledge the hard work of the officers in the Department of the Attorney-General and Justice in drafting this bill, and those who took a good deal of time to provide comment to this process.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Mr Deputy Speaker, the member for Nhulunbuy should get an honorary law degree after going through this bill. I struggled with it. There is a saying that if you put two lawyers in a phone box and ask for an opinion on something you will get 20 different answers ...
A member: Come on.
Mr WOOD: I have the evidence before me. You just have to read the report following consultation dated 22 September mentioned by the member for Nhulunbuy. There are many differences of opinion there, but when I read the beginning of the War and Peace version of the second reading it said:
That is not only a very long sentence, it made me realise this is complicated legislation. For some of us there has been a fair bit of work to understand it, so I have relied mainly on the report handed down on 22 September. The difficulty I had with that was trying to match it with the bill because numbers do not always match. The words ‘retain the current clause of the draft bill’ were in the majority. When you look at the report, a relatively minor number of issues were contentious or required some discussion.
One was the issue the member for Nhulunbuy mentioned about raising the jurisdictional limit from $100 000 to $250 000. Hon Dean Mildren supported that increase and gave a list of reasons why. John Lowndes also supported the increase. The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency, the Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Service and the Law Society argued that it should not. It reiterates what I said about putting a group of lawyers together and getting a series of opinions, and they expect me to know which one is right. I might give a third opinion, being an Independent. I will go half way between the two and say $200 000 and be done with it.
As you can see, it is not easy for someone like me to get my head around. This is a fairly difficult piece of legislation, especially if you are not knowledgeable about court systems. People involved in the court system know the funny words like ‘indictable’ and ‘summarily’, but they do not mean much to the ordinary person. I understand that the importance of this bill is to rationalise things so we can make sure we do not have bits and pieces we do not need. We can be more efficient in our legislation and in our courts.
The other interesting thing is about judges. Some people might regard it as the biggest issue in the world. There is an argument that magistrates represent, by their very name, a lower court which is the Local Court. A judge represents a higher court, but we are changing things. I hope I have read this right when I say certain crimes under a punishment regime will be called ‘offences’.
We are saying not all crimes will be called crimes. We will call crimes dealt with in the lower court ‘offences’, which leads you to believe it is not a serious crime but an offence dealt with in the Local Court.
On the other hand, the government says it does not accept that, when it comes to whether a person should be a magistrate representing a lower court as opposed to a judge representing more serious offences, which are crimes. There is a philosophical conflict in what you are trying to do. Hon Dean Mildren said he did not support the proposed change of title from magistrate to judge. The only jurisdiction in Australia where this change of title and status has occurred is former federal magistrates, who are now called judges.
The issue which should be raised tonight is that Hon Dean Mildren said in his submission:
I had a chuckle at that, but I also thought it was an important issue. I hope I am not misreading what the judge said but I thought he was saying that, especially for Aboriginal people, dealing with some of the Local Court offences we need a person who is not almighty when he goes into the community. A judge should deal with a murder trial or something really serious. We are dealing with a magistrate – and I am not putting magistrates down – who is more on the level of the people he is judging.
That is my understanding of this. When a person goes into a community let us not put them up too high; let us keep them at a level which reflects the people they are dealing with. That is a reasonable point. If I have misread what Hon Dean Mildren suggested I apologise.
Trevor Riley said there was no pressing need for the change. The Law Society said there was no benefit for the people of the Northern Territory. That is important. Is there a benefit? What is the benefit?
The Law Society said it does not promote the interests of justice, and change might create greater confusion for those appearing in the Court of Summary Jurisdiction and diminish the important distinction between the two courts. It also said the Northern Territory should not take this step lightly ahead of other jurisdictions. The Law Society said it supports continued adherence to the agreement of the Standing Council of Attorneys-General that any such change should be made unanimously.
I ask the minister, if he attended the Standing Council of Attorneys-General, did he sign his name to an agreement that there would not be any change unless it was unanimous? If so, has he broken that agreement? The legislation says we will move from calling them magistrates to judges ...
Mr Elferink: Say that again, I missed it.
Mr WOOD: The Law Society was concerned the Northern Territory should not take this step lightly ahead of other jurisdictions. The society supports continued adherence to the agreement of the Standing Council of Attorneys-General that any such change should be made unanimously.
This has been taken unilaterally. Have you broken your agreement with the Standing Council of Attorneys-General?
Mr Elferink: I suspect it was somebody else’s agreement, not mine.
Mr WOOD: Mr John Lowndes said the question is redundant as the federal government has already taken the initiative by renaming former federal magistrates as judges of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia. Mr John Lowndes says you should do it, and Hon Dean Mildren uses exactly the same reasons for not doing it. It makes it difficult, as a member of parliament, to understand the debate, and many other issues are involved.
I did my best to work through the contempt section of the bill. I had some concerns with Table 1 of the report following consultation. One issue raised which I could not match in the legislation questioned the adequacy of the contempt clause – point 12 question 8, clause 40 of the table. The suggestion is it is not adequate because it does not deal with contempt not in the face of the court.
I did not understand that. I thought it meant if you were not in the court but said something about the court you could be charged with contempt of court, for instance, if I was outside the Supreme Court and said something about the court. It raises that issue and it would be interesting to know whether that matter was covered.
I could not find anything on this, but it talked about the wider role of a Justice of the Peace when exercising powers in regional and bush courts, as in Western Australia. I thought that would be supported – perhaps magistrates do not like too many JPs pushing into their area – in outback Woop Woop where the powers of a Justice of the Peace might be increased because it is difficult to get magistrates.
The member for Nhulunbuy raised the issue of one of our magistrates and whether there was any political wrongdoing. I will not get into that argument, but that has obviously led to point 19 of the report following consultation being dealt with:
Has that gone anywhere? What is the process now, and was there any move to deal with that issue in a format that would be in an act?
Going through this document you will find people agreed and disagreed with different things. Sometimes there would be general support. It makes it hard when you read various opinions to then say, ‘I know better than those learned people. I think this legislation is crook.’ I do not think this legislation is crook. Obviously a lot of people have seen the remarks from these people. The government has had to make a decision using its legal advisers. I am pretty sure, when looking over there, that one has been around a long time and is a very wise person. I presume many of the issues raised by the judiciary have been dealt with carefully.
I imagine a lot of work has been done on this and suppose that is reflected in the War and Peace version of the second reading. There are many issues to be dealt with. What process does the government have to go through to make sure the new bill is working? Is it the normal process? I expect magistrates or judges operating under this will give you feedback if it is not working or if there are issues because it is new. It has been discussed and people are for or against it. One way to find out is put it into practice and see what happens.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank honourable members once again for their considered investigation of this bill. I congratulate any member who has managed to get through the second reading speech because I agree, War and Peace was probably slightly less complex and perhaps had a more exciting end.
However, it was a Tolstoyan effort by the draftsman of the second reading speech. They advised me the little joke in the second reading speech has been picked up by at least one observer. I confess I was not the observer. I hope the draftsman enjoyed that.
I advised the profession, upon becoming Attorney-General, that I would be an engaged and involved Attorney-General. That is what I have tried to do.
There are a number of law reform packages such as NTCAT and the bill I will be giving notice of tomorrow in relation to summary procedures – the Local Court Bill and the Justice Legislation Amendment Bill have been dealt with. I suspect that in the last-two-and-a-half years this government has probably undertaken more law reform in the Northern Territory than had been done in the 25 years previous, particularly in adopting national uniform legislation around evidence rules, serial sexual offenders legislation, the presumption in favour of joint trials in sexual offences and a number of other reforms of that nature.
I am unashamed to pursue reform, but not just for the sake of reform; it has to do something useful and I believe the bill does. This bill deals with a number of issues. I do not think it changes the powers of the court at all. However, it increases efficiency through streamlining processes so that the Court of Summary Jurisdiction and the Local Court simply become the Local Court. That is a good idea, with a couple of exceptions such as the Children’s Court, and hopefully we will have some announcements in the near future in relation to reforms in the physical domain of the Children’s Court.
I found it particularly irritating when the member for Nhulunbuy decided to revisit the appointment of Magistrate Peter Maley. I again acknowledge he has been a personal friend over a number of years. He is a former member of this House and we would not sit far from each other. I was not intending to revisit that, but unfortunately the member for Nhulunbuy raised the issue, and in fairness to the process it is worthwhile pointing out a couple of things which have become apparent since that time.
I table a letter dated 4 June from John Lawrence, head of the NT Bar Association, which raises issues he canvassed widely on radio. He saw and articulated his role as being the defender of the integrity of the judiciary, and I have no complaints with the Bar Association doing that.
I think his pronouncement of the death of democracy in the Northern Territory was overreach. Of course there were implications by fellow barrister, Jon Tippett QC, who accused Mr Lawrence of being politically motivated at the time, and that is a fight for Mr Tippett and Mr Lawrence. However, I wrote back to Mr Lawrence saying I respect the concept of the separation of powers, and I tabled my response to Mr Lawrence SC.
Let us look at what the separation of powers may or may not mean in a state or territory. I point honourable members to the Kable doctrine, which is now well established in this country but somewhat limited in the intrusion it makes in relation to the courts of the states and the territories.
The Kable doctrine imposes – as a result of cross-vesting arrangements between the states and the Commonwealth – a certain quality of separation as described in chapter three of the Australian Constitution when it comes to the Federal Court and the High Court. Through the boilermakers’ case, the description of the separation of powers has been well described and articulated, but what happens in the states is less clear. The Territory is no exception to that. The federal constitution clearly describes a separation, and if you look at the structure of the constitution you will see three chapters relating to the parliament, the executive and the judiciary to describe the separation of powers. However, the state constitutions, including the Northern Territory’s constitution, which is essentially the Self-Government Act, do not carry that same separation. That has been a matter of great conversation amongst High Court judges.
The Kable principle – I think was 1994 or 1995 – asserted if state courts were to exercise federal jurisdiction at any point they would have at least some flavour of the separation or the quality of a chapter three court.
Subsequent cases tied down the Kable principle fairly tightly in that the extent of what the Kable principle meant has been somewhat limited. The added complication in the Northern Territory – it may come up as a result of recent matters filed in the Supreme Court arising out of our paperless arrests – is that it attracts a further conversation as to whether or not we, as a territory, have a similar application of the Kable principle. Subsequent issues arise from that as well.
There was a further letter in relation to issues surrounding the separation of powers after I responded to Mr Lawrence. I have always been careful that once a magistrate or judge is appointed they are beyond the reach of the executive arm of government. It is essentially shoot it off, off it goes. There will be no shortage of opinions relating to Magistrate Maley’s conduct when he was on the bench, but a lot of the noise generated around Mr Maley was quite unfair. It was not only from the Labor Party, but other quarters as well.
I will point out a couple of things in the history here. Firstly, the Law Society returned Mr Maley’s practising certificate almost immediately. They issued a media release, if memory serves me, saying they would review the matter of Mr Maley. The matter was reviewed and his practising certificate, after he left the bench, was returned very quickly. The benchmarks of the Law Society are very high. If you remove all the gumpf and noise, where precisely was the wrongdoing on the part of former magistrate Maley in relation to being given his practising certificate back?
Secondly, the assertion that he was in some way biased was never tested in the one jurisdictional environment it should have been, which was a court of law. Apprehended bias – there is a High Court case called Ebner which deals with this issue and creates a two limb test. That case was mentioned in Mr Lawrence’s letter. In my reply I advised Mr Lawrence, or the Bar Association, that if they had an issue with a case of apprehended bias with a magistrate or judicial officer, to deal with the matter in court. That is what happened in the McNamara case, which occurred not long after I became Attorney-General. The Court of Appeal overruled the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory’s adjusted bar rulings, saying there was no apprehended bias. The test was done internally. This matter is again being trawled through by the member for Nhulunbuy because she cannot let it go.
After my letter to Mr Lawrence I received a letter from the Bar Association, which I will table in a second, which dealt with my response saying to deal with it inside the system. That letter called on me to remove myself from the decision-making process and have an oversight review into the matter. Because of my proximity to Mr Maley I was not the right person to make that call but I disagree with that. What is curious is the letter is signed 25 June and came from Alistair Wyvill SC. Mr Wyvill did not say in his letter that he was engaged in behaviour that would ultimately lead to a finding in the Supreme Court which has potential ramifications, but I will not go any further into that.
My concern is, yet again, that members opposite will trawl through this as though there had been some wrongdoing in the process. No single court or body has reviewed this process and adjudicated against Mr Maley during his time on the bench. The Law Society returned the practising certificate, and no motion has been raised against a court overseen by Mr Maley to suggest he had acted in a biased fashion.
While the newspaper wrote articles about Mr Maley nothing was every substantiated. Trawling this up again, in the absence of any evidence to support the assertions that have never been visited by a tribunal or resulted in a negative finding against Mr Maley, is disappointing.
Member for Nelson, yes you can engage in conduct which will generate a contempt proceeding outside the courtroom. That is easy, and one way is to reflect on a matter before the court in the media.
The second component is if a judge considers, as a result of the contempt proceeding, that they are biased then they will remove themselves from that contempt proceeding and leave it to another judge to adjudicate.
In relation to appeal provisions, which were also raised by the member for Nelson, there are procedure acts which deal with the appeal provisions.
Finally, I wish to touch on the title of ‘judge’. The Chief Magistrate, Judge Lowndes I will call him, made the observation that it was time the title of judge be applied to magistrates. I said I would not stand in his way but was sure there would be noise about it in the legal profession. Indeed, there has been noise around it in this House tonight.
The title of judge applies to practitioners or judicial officers in district courts in other jurisdictions where there are three tiers. One of the things Judge Lowndes raised with me was that many of the functions of the Court of Summary Jurisdiction, or the lower courts in the Territory, intrude into the domain of what would be considered matters for district courts in other jurisdictions.
There is an overlap, and I have some sympathy for that argument. Of course, federal circuit court judges used to be magistrates, and that terminology is recognised anywhere in the United States. You are either a judge of the Supreme Court of the United States or a judge dealing with regulatory matters in the lower courts. The title is recognised. There is a certain anachronistic quality to ‘magistrate’ in the same way there was an anachronistic quality to the term ‘worship’. We used to worship our magistrates and merely honour our judges. We will now honour our judges in every court in this jurisdiction and we will deal with that.
In the common vernacular the average person understands the term ‘judge’. In the American experience it has not caused deep rancour across the profession. I heard what Judge Lowndes raised with me and accordingly have acquiesced to his request. I wish him and his fellow judges all the best for the future.
Having made those observations I thank honourable members for their contributions. I thank the departmental staff for their contribution to getting this to the House today.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice) (by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time
Continued from 26 March 2015.
Mr GUNNER: (Opposition Leader): Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the bill before us, the Co-Operatives (National Uniform Legislation) Bill 2015 (Serial 114). As the minister mentioned in his second reading speech, the purpose of the bill is to adopt new national uniform legislation for the regulation of co-operatives in the NT, supporting the Australian Uniform Co-Operative Laws Agreement developed under the umbrella of COAG. The minister also noted the Australian Uniform Co-Operative Laws Agreement requires state and territories to secure passage and proclamation of relevant legislation by 18 May 2015. It is timely that we consider this bill today.
There has been a long history of consultation with the co-operative sector on the purpose and detail of this reform. As early as 1986, the Australian Agriculture Council’s Working Party on Agricultural Co-operatives recommended that consideration be given to establishing uniform co-operatives legislation across Australia after identifying that the then legislative framework created barriers to the development of national agricultural co-operatives.
In 1990 the Agricultural Council referred the matter to the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General, which established a working party to review various methods to implement a national scheme for co-operatives law. Most recently work to create a national legislative framework has been led by New South Wales, which has realised broad national support for the reforms, including support from organisations like the Law Council of Australia and Co-operatives Australia, which is the national body supporting co-operatives across Australia.
This bill seeks to join the Northern Territory to the national legislative reform. It is important to note up front that this bill relates to non-banking co-operatives, also known as general co-operatives. Banking co-operatives and finance co-operatives, such as credit unions and building societies, are separately regulated under legislation administered by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.
General co-operatives, the focus of this bill, have historically been important in Australia since the mid-19th century, particularly in regional areas where they have underpinned commerce in key sectors like the dairy and grain industries, then later the rice, sugar and cotton industries. They have also been historically important in smaller towns across Australia by providing services in healthcare, childcare and sport and recreation. During our Port of Darwin committee work we met with the grain co-operative in Western Australia and saw the investment and approach they took to regional Australia, and the work they did in and around their main job and outside it.
General co-operatives are often, but not always, not for profit. A key feature of these co-operatives is that they are member based, pride themselves on their autonomy and are based on co-operative democracy, focusing on members’ needs not just profit. Importantly, and as the minister said, they provide an organisational structure for individuals, communities and small business to acquire goods and services, or distribute goods, in economies that are increasingly dominated by large corporate organisations.
I am advised that the Northern Territory currently has four such co-operatives, two of which are based in other jurisdictions but registered in the NT. The third is involved with the mango industry, and the fourth, in Central Australia, was established to support land management services.
While there are only a small number of co-operatives in the NT likely to be affected immediately by this legislation, and some say growth of co-operatives is waning, there is still potential for the establishment of new co-operatives to support regional development and the provision of services in the NT. Co-operatives can also be important where local people want to ensure continued access to goods and services where other entities, with a primary focus on profit, withdraw their business operations from smaller communities. While a small number of such co-operatives are already operating in the Territory there is potential for them to grow and be a part of regional development in the Northern Territory, especially in our remote and regional areas.
There are also opportunities for co-operatives to enhance access to goods and services to NT residents, especially those living in regional and remote areas of the NT. An important feature of this reform is it will be much easier for existing co-operatives currently based outside the NT to consider establishing and expanding operations in the Territory.
It is important that where people in the NT want to use the co-operative business model they can be assured there is an appropriate level of regulation in place to protect members’ interests.
This legislation continues to support the features and principles underpinning co-operatives, including a strong democratic role for members, co-operative autonomy and independence. All these features are important given that the nature of these co-operatives is focused on member services rather than just profit. Importantly, the legislation aims to reduce red tape and the impact of the national regulatory framework on these often small member-based enterprises. Equally important, the bill simplifies the capacity of general co-operatives already established to work across jurisdictional boundaries.
Smaller co-operatives will benefit from the introduction of simplified financial reporting to members and removal of the obligation to lodge publically available accounts.
On the other hand, the national legislation simplifies and standardises financial reporting and auditing requirements for small co-operatives focusing on a new risk assessment approach. Legal responsibilities and duties for directors and officers of a co-operative have been updated and are now consistent with similar requirements applying to directors and officers under the Corporations Act.
These reforms provide more certainty and protection for members’ interests and individual members’ investments in co-operatives. Similarly, introduction of the enforceable undertakings, potentially supported by a court order where required, assist with compliance to the new national framework and act to enhance investor confidence in co-operatives.
The reforms also create more opportunity for co-operatives to raise funds for the use of capital units. These confer an interest in the capital of a co-operative but not the share capital, differentiating new investment through capital units from members’ establishment shares. This opens a door for co-operatives to access new flexible funding from external sources.
The bill has had a long history of consultation with affected parties and the new national framework for regulation of co-operatives is being progressively implemented across Australia. It is timely that we consider and support this bill to secure passage of the legislation to meet the national target date of 18 May 2015.
It is also timely that the government introduces this reform, hopefully opening new opportunities for establishment and operation of general co-operatives in the NT. This could be as part of agricultural development, and also to create new opportunities for these co-operatives to provide goods and services to Territorians where a co-operative business model provides more promise of access to goods and services.
I commend the bill to the House. I hope to hear future reports of how this reform has facilitated the development of more general co-operatives to benefit Territorians.
Mr STYLES (Business): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank members for their contribution to this debate. I thank my colleague, the Treasurer, Mr Tollner, for introducing this bill on my behalf whilst I was absent due to illness. The second reading speech was delivered by the member for Fong Lim, and I would like to sum up what was said in that second reading and the contribution from members opposite.
This is simply national law which is being adopted by all other jurisdictions. The Co-operatives (National Uniform Legislation) Bill 2015 will create a national framework for the registration of co-operatives. The framework will allow a co-operative to be registered in one jurisdiction to operate across borders without the need for multiple registrations. This framework will also simplify the financial reporting and auditing requirements for small co-operatives by using a risk assessment-based system that will reduce costs and red tape for those co-operatives.
This is another example of a significant red tape reduction outcome for business. Small- to medium-sized businesses struggle with red tape. Co-operatives are generally a collection of members and we encourage people to form co-operatives, but we do not want to create huge amounts of bureaucracy with associated cost.
The second reading speech points out that to be registered across borders there is an initial cost of about $1700, where under the Corporations Act companies can operate all over the place for about $400. That extra cost is incurred by business.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Mr STYLES (Business)(by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time.
Mr GILES (Chief Minister): Mr Deputy Speaker, in November 2014 my department engaged the late Frank McGuiness, formerly the Northern Territory Auditor-General, to undertake an independent investigation into the process of political donations. Sadly, Mr McGuiness passed away suddenly just days after completing his report in February 2015. Out of respect for his family, I decided not to progress that report in the February sittings and am doing so today.
Additionally, in late 2014 the Department of the Chief Minister also reviewed the Northern Territory Electoral Commission’s 2012 NT General Election Report but did not progress any of the recommendations pending completion of the recommendations of this report.
Today I table a copy of the report into political donations in the Northern Territory. Known as the McGuiness Report, it makes recommendations which go to a number of matters which I will speak to in more detail. The report notes that while there is a strong case to be made for harmonisation of electoral legislation across all jurisdictions, such a goal should be viewed as distant. Mr McGuiness advised there are no impediments to the NT reviewing its legislation with the objective of having the act reflect contemporary thinking.
I have asked my Department of the Chief Minister to work with the NT Electoral Commission to undertake a complete review of the NT Electoral Act. This will take into account the recommendations of the McGuiness Report as well as the NT Electoral Commission’s 2012 general election report, which also made a number of recommendations for legislative reform.
The legislation is complex and the review will include a comprehensive consultation process to ensure we capture the views of the community at large. I table this report today as a precursor to the consultation process to be undertaken.
Given the complexity of the act and the number of recommendations which would require legislative change, I expect any consultation period will be open for several months. I will keep the House updated about the formal consultation period and when it will commence; however, I have only recently asked the department to work with the Electoral Commissioner to draw up a plan of how that might work.
I will now go into more detail regarding the recommendations contained in the McGuiness Report. At the outset, government has not formed a formal view on any of the recommendations apart from supporting an overall review of the act. Many people have different views about the Electoral Act. Many people support publicly-funded election campaigns or want to see changes to optional preferential – first past the post – and some want to remove all electoral advertising. These ideas will be canvassed throughout the consultation process.
The recommendations are listed throughout the report so I will summarise them for the benefit of the Hansard.
In relation to the registration of political parties and third-party campaigners, registration by a political party should be a precondition to its ability to participate in an election. A political party may not be registered unless it has adopted a scheme which sets out the arrangements for regulating the party’s financial affairs, and that scheme will be approved by the Electoral Commission. Registration of a political party should be a precondition for the receipt of public funding by a party if a public funding scheme is contemplated in the future.
Provide a definition of a third-party campaigner in the act to supplement the existing definition of ‘associated entity’. Registration of a third-party campaigner should be a prerequisite for that individual or organisation to undertake activities of a political nature.
In relation to gifts and donations, the report talks about strengthening the existing definition by including a reference to the value of expenditure incurred on a party’s behalf by a third party.
Require each campaigner to maintain a campaign account that should be credited with all cash donations and from which all campaign expenditure is paid. It should be unlawful for a third-party campaigner to make payments for any electoral communication expenditure or to use political donations for any such purpose unless the payments for that expenditure are made by the official agent of the third-party campaigner from a campaign account maintained by the third-party campaigner. All donations are to be paid by the official agent into the campaign account of the third-party campaigner. The campaign account of a third-party campaigner is a separate account maintained by an approved deposit-taking institution.
In relation to reporting of donations received, a third-party campaigner should not be permitted to incur political communication expenditure unless it has received donations for the purpose and reported those donations to the Electoral Commission in the same way as any party or candidate.
The reporting of donations by a political party or candidate should move from paper-based to a method that involves the party or the candidate completing an online template that would permit immediate uploading onto the Commissioner’s website.
An officeholder of a party, an associated entity or a third-party campaigner or the agent of a campaigner should be required to lodge quarterly returns with the Electoral Commissioner setting out the details of donations received. During an election period the frequency of the reporting should be increased to weekly.
In relation to annual reporting, political parties, associated entities and third parties should be required to lodge audited annual financial statements with the Electoral Commission. Those statements should be prepared on the basis of Australian accounting standards. The term ‘auditor’ should be defined in the act and the prescribed qualifications of an auditor could be similar to those set out in Part 5 of the NT Associations Act so that costs of the audit by smaller entities are not excessive.
In relation to the role and structure of the Electoral Commission, extend the Electoral Commissioner’s role to include that of regulator of individuals and entities who are participants in the electoral process.
The Electoral Commission to be expanded to three members consisting of ex-officio, the Electoral Commissioner and two part-time commissioners, one of whom, the Chairman, should be a current or retired judge.
While not making specific recommendations, the McGuiness Report also identified other matters government might wish to consider in relation to public election funding. While the report did not make any specific recommendations, Mr McGuiness raised several policy questions in the event public funding was considered: the basis upon which public funding will be provided to political parties and candidates; the extent to which controls over private donations and electoral spending should be implemented; and the role of the NT Electoral Commission in monitoring the activities of registered political parties, candidates, third parties and groups to ensure the NT Electoral Act is not contravened.
In relation to the extent to which controls over private donations and electoral spending should be adopted, if concerns exist about the role of potentially large donors who may be able to influence political formulation, it may follow that restrictions on the amounts that can be donated may address that concern.
As advised, out of respect for the late Frank McGuiness I have not tabled the report until now. I intend to move a condolence motion later this year. It did not seem appropriate to be dealing with the budget and this matter at the same time.
The report is tabled today for all Territorians to read and form their own views. As I said, government has not formed a solid view on the report recommendations. I have asked the Department of the Chief Minister to nut out a consultation strategy. Once the consultation strategy has been provided I will announce the way forward.
I look forward to Territorians having their say on the McGuinness Report recommendations and the recommendations arising out of the Northern Territory Electoral Commission’s 2012 NT General Election Report.
Ms FYLES (Nightcliff): Mr Deputy Speaker, it is interesting timing to have this report dropped without any notice at 9 pm on budget night. It looks like you do not really want anyone to notice it but it will be interesting to read the recommendations. Obviously …
Mr GILES: A point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker! I gave notice last sittings and tabled it today.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Nightcliff, please continue.
Ms FYLES: The Labor opposition holds Frank McGuiness and his work in very high esteem. We look forward to going through the recommendations in detail to ensure Territorians can have some faith and integrity restored in their parliamentary and election processes. At this point there are a lot of unanswered questions, particularly around the Country Liberal Party, the Chief Minister and Foundation 51.
We now have the full details and will take time to look at the recommendations, but the timing – nearly 9 pm on budget night – is interesting. We will make further comment at a later date.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Honourable members, I table four travel reports from the members for Port Darwin, Namatjira, Casuarina and Johnston pursuant to paragraph 4.12 of the Remuneration Tribunal determination.
Mr GILES (Chief Minister): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the Assembly do now adjourn.
I note the most recent slur from the member for Nightcliff. Despite the point she was trying to make on political donations, she failed to adjourn the matter for further debate. It has now passed. Very good, member for Nightcliff, you failed to adjourn it.
This evening I want to express my condolences to the family and friends of Mr Alec Kruger, an author, activist and member of the Stolen Generations, who passed away in Alice Springs Hospital at the age of 90 on Sunday 15 February.
Mr Kruger was a Mudburra man, born at Donkey Camp on the banks of the Katherine River on Christmas Day 1924. As a child of mixed race, Alec Kruger was subject to the Aboriginals Ordinance 1911. At the age of three-and-a-half, Alec was taken from his mother, along with his sister Gladys, and placed in institutional care at the Kahlin Compound in Darwin where he lived for the next four years. From there he was taken to Pine Creek and later to the bungalows in Alice Springs. At the age of 10 Alec Kruger was sent to Loves Creek Station to work for the Bloomfield family where he was sent to live alone in the bush and maintain a soak for thirsty cattle without the benefit of supplies or bush skills.
It was there he was befriended and cared for by a group of Arrernte men who initiated him and taught him their traditions. Mr Kruger left Loves Creek Station at the age of 17 to join the army and was placed in an Aboriginal unit made up of young men of mixed descent.
Compared to life at Loves Creek he found life in the army to be exciting and comfortable because he had company, proper clothing and equipment, ample food, real wages and six bottles of beer a week. He was happy to be well paid and have the freedom to go wherever his uniform permitted. These entitlements were not normally extended to Aboriginal people at the time.
Mr Kruger lived life to the full. He worked as a stockman, drover, railway ganger, wharfie, seaman, bus driver and a gardener. He worked for the Department of Main Roads, the Department of Mines and at the Institute of Aboriginal Development, where he trained Aboriginal stockman. He went on to work for the Centre for Appropriate Technology where he developed equipment and training for remote communities.
Mr Kruger was a strong and determined advocate for Aboriginal land rights. He was a key contributor to the 1997 Bringing them home report that followed the two-year royal commission into the removal of Aboriginal children from their families. Mr Kruger came under the national spotlight in 1997 when he took the Commonwealth to the High Court to test the legality of ordinances that allowed authorities to remove Aboriginal children from their families throughout the 20th century. He lost that case, but the only Territory judge on the bench, Justice John Toohey, who also passed recently, supported his challenge. The fact he was willing to take on the Commonwealth is a mark of man.
Throughout his life the memory of being left alone as a child near the soaks remained a source of deep trauma to Mr Kruger, whose personal story featured prominently in the report into the Stolen Generations.
In 2007 Mr Kruger, together with Gerard Waterford, won the Human Rights Arts Non-Fiction Award for his autobiography, Alone on the Soaks: the Life and Times of Alec Kruger. The judges felt the events in Mr Kruger’s life, as depicted in the autobiography, helped understand not only what happened to Aboriginal children and their families, but also the impact of removal on their communities. Alone on the Soaks recounts Mr Kruger’s life story from the time he was taken from his family to the position he held later in life as a wise and respected man with a large and successful family.
Mr Kruger was one of the Territory’s finest citizens. He played a significant role in the history of the Northern Territory as a determined and hard-working Territorian and a staunch advocate for the rights and wellbeing of Aboriginal Australians. He said in 2008, ‘I have had an amazing life and a rough life’.
On behalf of the Northern Territory government I offer my sincere condolences to Mr Kruger’s family, his friends and to all who knew and worked with him. May he rest in peace.
Mr McCARTHY (Barkly): Mr Deputy Speaker, World War I, Powell Creek, the Somme and life outback, centenary of Anzac 1915-2015.
As we stand at the centenary of Anzac conscious of the Northern Territory’s part in World War I, it is timely to look at the situation and contribution by Territorians in 1914. In 1914, before the defeat of Germany in the Pacific and the capture of German New Guinea by Australian expeditionary forces, thought was given as to how close Darwin was to any possible front line. History now tells of what was not said at that time, that defence planners wanted as many men as possible in the Northern Territory to remain close to the overland telegraph and naval radio stations. There were simple and important reasons for needing local labour. As the war progressed, meat produced by stations turned into bully beef for our troops representing a strategic commodity and good reason for keeping scarce manpower on cattle stations.
Territorians have always been determined to contribute to the national interest, along with their fellow Australians, but because of small numbers and isolation their departure left serious gaps in a society always stretched on the frontier.
In February 1915 the Army Chief of Staff issued a statement that it was never intended to have recruiting depots in the distant parts of the Commonwealth and those wishing to enlist should head south. However, in March 1915, 16 recruits left Darwin for Townsville to be sworn in. The first official contingent from the Northern Territory sailed from Darwin on the Changsha on 25 April 1915, a significant date indeed.
It is difficult for us to grasp the realities of Territorians as the world marched to a war it thought would be over by Christmas 100 years ago. As there are few letters and diaries in the Australian War Memorial from World War I with Northern Territory service personnel on the front, I appeal to Territory families and station archives discovering such material to contact the Australian War Memorial.
With the German threat in the Pacific over and the only constraint on recruiting remaining the need to staff communications facilities and the meat industry, the demand for recruits following the Somme battles saw the establishment of a Northern Territory recruiting committee consisting of the mayor and town councillors in February 1916. By March that year 200 men had left Darwin with another 100 preparing to go, and many of their photographs can be found in the Northern Territory Library.
When the time came to create a roll of honour on 11 January 1918, records showed that 283 men had enlisted from Darwin. We know they served in all theatres of war and all arms and services of the Defence forces, where the number of decorations far exceeds what might be expected from an isolated frontier population. When a memorial was being planned in 1920 it was decided that because the Territory population was a floating one, anyone who had been identified with Territory life for 12 months prior to enlistment would be eligible to have their name inscribed. Those names can be read today in Darwin’s Bicentennial Park.
It is fitting that the footsteps of Albert Borella VC, who crossed the Territory and walked and rode across the Barkly region en route to Darwin to enlist, should be re-enacted, but World War I affected my electorate in many ways. In 1915 the town of Tennant Creek did not exist; however, the Barkly had two very important telegraph stations and a significant cattle industry contributing to the war effort, and an Aboriginal population only beginning to adjust to colonial settlement.
The irony was that a national Defence effort hungry for personnel was officially prevented from recruiting from telegraph stations, cattle stations and Aboriginal communities, yet we know despite this bureaucracy some managed to enlist. Such Territorians were essentially bending the rules to serve ‘King and Country’ and were not easy to trace. However, a boy born at Powell Creek near modern day Elliott, Corporal Frederick Prentice MM, proudly represents the legendary Anzac spirit.
Corporal Prentice was born in 1894. His father was Alfred Leslie Prentice, Justice of the Peace at Powell Creek telegraph station. His mother was an unknown Aboriginal woman, but we know there are Aboriginal people in Elliott with the surname Prentice who may be able to fill in some historical gaps. The Powell Creek telegraph station master, Walter Kell, known as Dan, and his wife Isabel had no children and adopted Frederick and an Aboriginal girl. We know from the way young Frederick Prentice is dressed in old photographs that he was raised in an Anglo rather than Aboriginal culture.
Walter Kell was promoted and moved to Unley, Adelaide in 1905. Young Frederick was sent to Kyre College, the predecessor of Scotch College in South Australia, where he excelled in athletics and received a prize for music.
In 1914, when Frederick was 20 years of age, Walter Kell was appointed station master at Wallaroo and Frederick was working at nearby Manunda Station when he evaded rules that prevented non-European enlistment. Nominating Isabel Kell as his next of kin, he enlisted and found himself posted to the 12th Battalion. In July 1916 he was awarded the Military Medal – MM – for action at Mouquet Farm in France. For those unfamiliar with awards for gallantry, at that time the Military Medal was a prestigious award and considerable recognition for bravery. Strategically, Mouquet Farm was as far as Australians got in the first battle of the Somme.
Corporal Frederick Prentice’s MM citation reads:
From history we know Corporal Frederick Prentice MM survived the Great War and received a hero’s welcome home to Wallaroo, documented in the Kadina and Wallaroo Times of 4 June 1919.
In honouring the distinguished service of Corporal Frederick Prentice MM to his country we must reflect on the ultimate tragedy of his death in 1957, where he died alone in Katherine with injuries consistent with having rolled into his campfire.
At the time described as part Maori, his contribution to country was unknown until it came out that Prentice had told a fellow worker he had served in World War I. The acting superintendent of police asked AIF base records for help in finding his next of kin. Through their diligence we know more about the life of Corporal Frederick Prentice MM. We know he was posted to an AIF pioneer battalion and was the sole survivor of his seven man machine gun section. He was at Manunda Station until Isabel’s death in 1926.
In the 1930s he was an active member of the Kalgoorlie community and featured in sport and trade union affairs. However, in the 1940s his life became less stable and his trail petered out until his death.
Indigenous Histories, in an article titled Frederick Prentice MM, Scarlett 2014, argues the Prentice tragedy was that although he was valued for his service at the time and for a period after active service, the development of post-world war Australia saw Prentice and others like him isolated from both Aboriginal and European societies. The article emphasises:
Perhaps 100 years is enough time to give us the opportunity to develop a valuable perspective on events which, for better and worse, have made us what we are as a Northern Territory.
My appeal is that we look back a century to honour the heroic lives of the sons of Anzacs whose deeds dominate the second half of the 20th century, while paying tribute to the life experience of their fathers in the Great War, a world war that claimed roughly twice as many Australian lives as World War II, a brutal war in which one in seven of those who enlisted never came home, and a war that Territorians struggled for the right to take part in.
In conclusion, I respectfully ask you to search your local records, communicate with family and friends and consult the keepers of the oral traditions to seek important information on the lives of those courageous Northern Territory men and women who marched with Borella VC and Prentice MM. I am advised that before battles 1st AIF soldiers were often told, ‘Remember where you came from’. Lest we forget.
I seek leave to table this paper as it contains the references I used to research it and also a photo of Corporal Frederick Prentice MM.
Leave granted.
Mr ELFERINK (Port Darwin): Mr Deputy Speaker, this evening I mention Callum Mallett, the new general manager at SKYCITY in Darwin. Mr Mallett was kind enough to invite me on a tour of SKYCITY recently and I am mindful that the government requires SKYCITY to pay money into the Community Benefit Fund.
SKYCITY initially demonstrated its reluctance, and I can imagine why, but having made those observations Mr Mallett was gracious in showing me around. He made his opinions on the matter clear then proceeded to give me every courtesy one could expect.
The casino operators of SKYCITY are intending to stay in Darwin. They are spending a lot of money around the casino and I received a behind the scenes tour of some of the work occurring at the casino. They are spending many millions of dollars and some of the work already completed has changed the environment of the casino substantially, giving it less of a Las Vegas quality and more of a club-type quality in many areas which is, I think, the target they are striving for.
The casino will still have gambling as one of its functions but it will also cast a wider embrace around the community and try to attract people who may not be there to gamble.
I thank Mr Mallett for his courtesy. He is an intelligent man who knows what he is doing. As a result of the courtesies he extended to me I was satisfied that the security and other protocols such an institution must have are in place.
I congratulate the operators of SKYCITY and Callum Mallett on running a highly professional organisation. Despite the recent budget announcement, I look forward to the government having a fulsome and useful relationship with SKYCITY, and I thank them for obtaining their social licence in the way they do and for their corporate citizenship in the Northern Territory.
Ms FYLES (Nightcliff): Mr Deputy Speaker, the Nightcliff Football Club has competed in the AFLNT competition in Darwin since it entered as the Works and Housing team in 1950. The club was renamed Nightcliff Football Club in the 1963-64 season. In the early 1970s the football club established the Nightcliff Sports Club, which is now an icon of the Nightcliff/Rapid Creek suburb, and the football club is a proud senior affiliate of the sports club. The football club runs teams in the premier league, division 1, under 18s, under 16s, under 14s and under 12s grades, as well as women’s competitions.
In 2014, in response to an incident of domestic violence between a male and female, both players for Nightcliff Tigers, the club worked with Charlie King, head of the NT Indigenous Males Advisory Council and NO MORE campaigner, to develop a domestic violence action plan.
After the domestic violence incident in early 2014, the club decided to ensure it was actively involved in supporting both the victim and the perpetrator and that the problem was addressed head on. Too often the causes of domestic violence are swept under the rug with the attitude it is a personal issue and outsiders should not be involved.
Club president Mark Kelly and head coach Damien Hale worked with Charlie King and the advisory council to help develop a real and workable plan for club members. Determined not to stand the player down permanently and have the problem shifted elsewhere, the club decided to support the victim and the perpetrator. The perpetrator attended counselling sessions, pleaded guilty in court and served a three-month gaol sentence.
The domestic violence action plan is not an alternative to legal avenues, it is a process which supports all club members and provides a framework for addressing domestic and family violence at an individual club and community level. Since Nightcliff Tigers’ involvements with Charlie King’s NO MORE campaign and the development of a domestic violence action plan, the club has promoted its efforts through the bus wraparound, a message showing players linking arms on a Buslink bus. This was launched in June 2014. The club has continually driven the message that domestic and family violence is everyone’s business and is not acceptable. Nightcliff Football Club was the first in Australia to develop an action plan and has led the way, with other clubs across several sporting codes following the lead.
NRL team Parramatta Eels was the second club in Australia to follow suit. The management and coaches decided to develop the action plan to ensure no one was turning a blind eye to incidents of domestic and family violence, deciding they would tackle the issue head on and not allow the problem to be moved somewhere else. New and existing players are introduced to the domestic violence action plan on culture day at the start of the season, and the management and coaches speak more generally about the incident that inspired the club to take action and discuss the NO MORE attitude to violence against women, men and children.
Not all club members were confident this approach would be successful. It has taken the original perpetrator a long time to redevelop positive relationships with the many people involved with the club. Many of those relationships will never be the same; however, that is a reality perpetrators have to live with. He was not only held accountable by the legal system but his peers too.
The efforts of the club and the perpetrator led to a contribution on the ABC television program Q&A on the forum of domestic and family violence when he asked a question via video link. I will read that question:
This is evidence of the effectiveness of the approach Nightcliff Tigers are taking and an insight into the level of accountability perpetrators have to face in order to operate within the club community.
Since enacting the plan, the Nightcliff Football Club has gone from strength to strength. They have experienced increased sponsorship, more than double their GDP in four years, and head coach Damien Hale discussed the club’s transformation into a family club, where the focus was just not on the premiership team but on the developing grades, the women’s teams and ensuring the venue and postgame celebrations were appropriate for all ages. This has brought families back to the footy and parents are eager for their children to join the Nightcliff Tigers.
I am proud that my local team has drawn a line in the sand and decided enough is enough. The management and coaches work hard to provide holistic coaching to all players and raise the levels of respect and accountability. For the first time there is a female in the men’s coaching team, a record number of women are playing for the club and everyone is sending a clear message of NO MORE.
I was delighted to see the Nightcliff Football Club’s efforts being acknowledged and rewarded this year as the recipient of the Action Against Domestic Violence Award at the NT Sports Awards. I was there that evening and it was a very inspirational inaugural award. It was a great honour for everyone involved with the club and well-earned recognition for the efforts the club as a whole made in response to an existing and ever-increasing problem in our community.
I congratulate Nightcliff Football Club on the 2014-15 season. I was proud to sponsor a weekly award this season, a club spirit award for a volunteer, player or coach, somebody in our club who made an outstanding commitment to the club each and every week.
I would like to acknowledge the role Charlie King has played in helping guide our club through this period and ensuring this program was established.
I thank everyone who supported the club this past season: the sponsors who have supported the club financially, the supporters who attended home games and the parents, partners and family members of players who have all volunteered their time. It is a wonderful club.
There is nothing better than a home game at Nightcliff Oval with children kicking the footy as soon as they can get onto the field in breaks or before and after the game. There really is a family atmosphere. You can go into the clubhouse after the game, which I did numerous times to present awards or just be there. Children were present as there is not a large drinking culture rather a genuine family atmosphere celebrating footy, sport and our community.
The club management needs to be congratulated for its efforts because it has been noted by the community and, with the award, by the larger Territory community. It was important to speak on this issue tonight in the House and to congratulate the club on an outstanding season. We did not quite get there in the premiership league, but there is always next season. Our community has a football club that is family friendly and focused on our players and members as people.
Motion agreed to; the Assembly adjourned.
VISITORS
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I advise of the presence in the gallery of exceptionally smart students from St Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary School accompanied by Veronica Niland, Christine Ferreira, Meaghan McCarthy, Jess Pemberton, Yasmina Day and Saysha Ham. On behalf of honourable members, welcome to Parliament House. I hope you enjoy your time here.
Members: Hear, hear!
MESSAGES FROM ADMINISTRATOR
Messages No 25 and 26
Messages No 25 and 26
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I have received Message No 25 from His Honour the Administrator notifying assent to the bills passed at the March Sittings. The message is dated 27 April 2015.
Honourable members, I have also received Message No 26 from His Honour the Administrator recommending to the Legislative Assembly a bill for an act that authorises an amount to be paid from the Central Holding Authority for the purposes of the agencies specified in the bill for the year ending 30 June 2016. The message is dated 24 April 2015.
STATEMENT BY SPEAKER
Permission to Film in Chamber
Permission to Film in Chamber
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I have given permission for Channel Nine, the NT News, the ABC and the Chief Minister’s photographer to film and take photos of the budget address and response.
MOTION
Reorder of Business
Reorder of Business
Mr ELFERINK (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I move that, pursuant to Standing Order 89, the routine of business be reordered to allow as follows: the Treasurer to deliver the budget today at 10 am followed by consideration of the Port of Darwin Select Committee report on the Port of Darwin lease model, the luncheon suspension, Notices, Petitions, Question Time then the resumption of debate on the Appropriation (2015-2016) Bill 2015.
I further move that tomorrow Government Business, Notices and Orders of the Day be suspended so as to permit a response to the budget by the Leader of the Opposition at 10 am.
Motion agreed to.
APPROPRIATION (2015-16) BILL
(Serial 121)
(Serial 121)
Bill presented and read a first time.
Mr TOLLNER (Treasurer): Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a second time. I commend the Appropriation (2015-16) Bill and table the related papers.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr TOLLNER: This government has a clear economic plan for a better, more secure future for all Territorians and their families.
The government started on a simple plan to fix the massive Labor debt by being smarter and more efficient with government spending, while at the same time driving private enterprise investment and jobs.
This government stopped the waste and then purposely invested our funds into very specific projects to create a more sustainable economy which protects and enhances our lifestyle and social fabric.
The Northern Territory has turned the debt corner and no longer is it a stone around our neck. A great deal of this has been achieved by our public servants who have embraced change and are working hard to create a more efficient government.
Labor has run a relentless campaign claiming the Giles government would slash government jobs. Nothing could be further from the truth. We have achieved these exceptional outcomes by maintaining public service numbers and awarding them pay increases higher than any other government jurisdiction in the nation.
I am pleased to report that this $6.3bn budget achieves the goal of returning to surplus by 2017-18 as we continue to reduce the debt burden left behind by the Labor Party. As a direct result of two years of focused discipline, the fiscal balance in 2017-18 achieves the government’s target to balance the budget with a surplus of $9m, growing to $35m in 2018-19.
The focus on expenditure restraint will result in accumulative budget improvement in excess of $400m per year by the end of the budget year. The fiscal surplus in 2017-18 is on top of the Giles government already achieving a general government operating surplus in 2013-14, a full three years ahead of schedule. These efficiencies have been achieved without job cuts or reduced services and by targeting priorities and ensuring the days of Labor waste and frivolous spending are well and truly behind us.
The Giles government’s plan to grow the economy by focusing on promoting private sector enterprise has seen increases in revenues that have contributed to the improved outcome in this budget. Increased stamp duties and payroll tax receipts are a result of our focus on growing the local economy.
The improved fiscal position over the last two budgets, and the effect of bringing the Motor Accident Compensation Scheme into general government, has resulted in significantly reduced net debt levels. Net debt is now projected to be $2.6bn by 2018-19, less than half of Labor’s projected $5.5bn debt. Labor’s net debt to revenue ratio was projected to reach 98% and is now slashed to 39% in 2018-19.
Under Labor the annual interest burden was projected to soar to $425m, or well in excess of $1.1m every day. Under the Giles government the projected interest in 2015-16 has been significantly reduced by almost $300 000 per day. This is nothing short of astounding and has been achieved while delivering quality services. It has allowed the government to invest $1.39bn in targeted infrastructure projects.
In the wake of Tropical Cyclones Lam and Nathan, we have already begun the long and expensive rebuild process estimated to cost in excess of $100m. Funds Labor would have to borrow if they had remained in government have been set aside in 2015 and can be paid directly from general revenue to accommodate this effort over the months ahead.
The government’s plan is to diversify the economy and stimulate private sector investment now and beyond the INPEX construction phase.
Last year the Territory economy grew by an impressive 6.5%, surpassing previous forecasts. Since the Country Liberal Party came to government in August 2012 the economy has expanded by 11%, more than double the national growth. This strong growth in the Territory economy has been underpinned by $20.6bn in business investment over the past two years, an amount without equal in the Territory’s history. This included 9500 new jobs, an increase of 8%. The unemployment rate has averaged 4.4%, well below the national average of 5.9%.
I now want to expand on the government’s plan of putting the right building blocks in place for a better future. These building blocks are linked to improved economic and social outcomes for our community. Let us consider health and safety. We are investing large amounts into hospitals and police, but interrelated to health and safety is a range of other factors such as regional and remote economic development, jobs, education, sporting and cultural facilities, and alcohol abuse.
This budget not only supports our hospitals and police but also deals with these other interrelated factors. It addresses the causes and precursors to health and crime problems. This is good for the community on a broader scale, while supporting the wellbeing and safety of individuals.
Turning to the cost of living, we have deliberately combined a change in the First Home Owner Grant to new homes and apartments, whilst fast-tracking land release across the Territory. This has resulted in lower housing and rent costs while boosting the local economy with an expansion of the residential building sector, which also has very good synergies with a range of other industries.
We have an integrated plan for tourism. This is part of the government’s diversification plan for the economy and to bring sustainability to our tourism industry, while at the same time improving the lifestyle of Territorians. This budget provides for better products to enhance visitor experiences including parks, sporting facilities and cultural events. We have also invested heavily in roads and a range of other infrastructure such as fishing facilities. This is obviously good for the tourism sector, but plenty of Territorians will also welcome these investments.
Not only is this government focused on how we operate within our borders, but we have also worked with our neighbours to leverage opportunities that can benefit Territorians. This government has been working closely with the Western Australian, Queensland and Commonwealth governments on the northern Australian strategy. We are planning the next round of future development for the Territory.
We have strongly engaged our trading neighbours and are planning a program to take advantage of the new free trade agreements to further expand and diversify our economy. This government is pushing on all fronts to ensure we have a strong local economy and a competitive export-focused culture in our business sector.
The Giles government has been focused on its plans for a better future. I appreciate that not everyone in the Territory agreed with the government changes to the Power and Water Corporation or the Territory Insurance Office.
The government’s utilities reform agenda and the effects of structural separation are resulting in ongoing sustainable improvements in the performance of the three newly-separated utility entities. There have been considerable benefits already for business and the community following the breakup of the Power and Water Corporation, including greater transparency, reduced wholesale prices and improved reliability.
I now turn to TIO. The direct benefit to the community is that TIO is now here to stay. By freeing the organisation from government ownership it has been able to dilute its risk and bring its reinsurance costs into line with its competitors. Make no mistake, TIO would have withered on the vine if it had remained in government hands.
The decision to sell TIO also benefited our community by the immediate recycling of $200m into productive and social assets for the people of the Territory. Budget 2015-16 includes as part of this reinvestment:
$57.5m for flood mitigation across the Territory
$23.5m for regional roads to support economic development, including the Roper Highway and Tanami Road
$79.6m in tourism infrastructure, including $28.5m to complete the sealing of the Litchfield Park Road, including the lower Finniss River bridge
$25m for the completion of the Mereenie inner loop
$21.1m for enhancing the visitor experience at both Casuarina Coastal Reserve and Litchfield National Park
$41.4m in social infrastructure.
Not only is there a direct and tangible immediate benefit to the community, but these benefits will be long lasting. The balance of the TIO sale proceeds will be invested in an infrastructure fund to support the future economic wellbeing of the Territory. Again, the government is being smarter about the way we support growing our economy and this fund will provide the seed money to facilitate additional funds being invested in Territorian projects by the private sector.
Let me turn to fairness. Currently hotels and local pubs pay a levy from their electronic gaming machines into the Community Benefit Fund whereas casinos do not. In order to level the playing field for all organisations with poker machines, the government will remove this concession from casinos. It will not affect the number of machines in casinos or an individual who goes to a casino. It means casinos which have had ample time to establish their operations will be paying the same rate as hotels, which is 10%.
This new revenue, estimated to be around $8m increasing the fund to $11m, will go directly into our community so all Territorians will benefit. The government will not use the money to pay off debt or for other government-funded projects. I urge all Territory community groups to start working on their next round of applications.
In addition to the changes to the Community Benefit Fund and in line with other jurisdictions, we have also clarified that for payroll tax purposes exemptions are not provided for commercial activities undertaken by charities or for entities that promote trade, industry, commerce or professional associations. Importantly, these amendments do not affect the exemption provided to traditional charities which have a sole or dominant purpose for the relief of poverty or the advancement of education or religion.
Consistent with provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, motor accident compensation contributions will continue to rise in line with the consumer price index.
The cost of living continues to be a critical issue for all Territorians and the government is delivering on its promise to reduce this burden on families. Darwin inflation fell from 3.0% in 2013 to 2.9% in 2014 and is forecast to continue moderating over the medium term. This is evidence that the government policies aimed at reducing the cost of living pressures are working.
Following the success of the fuel summit the government is continuing to explore options to ensure that Territorians are paying a fair price for their fuel.
Budget 2015-16 includes two specific measures to reduce the tax burden on Territorians. The senior, pensioner and carer stamp duty concession has been increased from $8500 to $10 000 with effect from today. The Giles government has also abolished stamp duty on life insurance with effect from 1 July this year. In addition, Budget 2015-16 continues the government’s support for families with $20m invested through the $150 Back to School Payment Scheme, the $200 Sport Voucher Scheme and the childcare subsidy.
The Territory government’s land release program is securing a reliable supply to support affordable and accessible home ownership for all Territorians. The Bringing on Territory Land Release program is fast-tracking land release and will deliver 6500 dwellings over 10 years. In the December 2014 quarter the proportion of income required to meet home loan repayments in the Territory was 28.1%, which is well below the national average of 31.5%. In 2013-14 residential dwelling completions increased by 51% to 2146, the highest annual figure since 1999.
Growth was driven by a nearly 150% increase in the number of dwelling completions, but we now have the capacity to achieve more. Budget 2015-16 supports residential land release and related projects with $45.5m to unlock the Territory’s potential including Borroloola, Alice Springs and the development of infill land in Darwin.
This budget also invests in urban public housing, with $3m to redevelop older unit complexes across the regions, including Darwin, Tennant Creek, Katherine and Alice Springs. Further support for public housing across the Territory includes $27.5m for repairs and maintenance.
Budget 2015-16 invests heavily in all areas of law and order, with $735m to create a safer community for all Territorians. Key to this is providing an additional $8.7m dedicated to fulfilling our commitment of an additional 120 police officers across the Territory.
This budget also provides additional resources to policing services, including $2m to recruit and support an additional 13 Aboriginal community police officers; $1.7m for new protective equipment for frontline officers; and $600 000 for additional CCTV cameras in Palmerston, taking the total network to 180 cameras Territory wide.
The Giles government continues to deliver on community safety with alcohol-related assaults down by 16% in the year to February. This is due to measures including: alcohol protection orders; policing bottle shops; getting prisoners into work; mandatory alcohol rehabilitation programs; and the expansion of security cameras in crime hot spots.
Alcohol mandatory treatment is making a real difference in keeping our community safer, with more than 600 people assessed and provided with medical withdrawal, treatment and rehabilitation services since its inception in July 2013. Budget 2015-16 continues to support mandatory rehabilitation for problem drinkers, with total funding of $28.4m and expanded services in both Alice Springs and Katherine. These expanded services include an additional $7.9m to continue the construction of a purpose-built secure assessment and treatment centre in Alice Springs, and services in Darwin operating from the newly refurbished facility at Berrimah.
Budget 2015-16 continues to support the roll-out of a domestic and family violence reduction strategy with $6m, including $3m from the Commonwealth, aimed at increasing the safety of victims and their children, reducing trauma and increasing the accountability of offenders.
The budget also invests in the wider community to support safety initiatives. This includes $42m for fire and emergency services and $1.1m for the bus network to increase the safety and security of drivers and passengers.
The Giles government well understands the challenges we all face when it comes to raising our children. The government is being smarter in the way it ensures they get the best start in life. The previous Labor government saw no problem in saddling our children with $5.5bn of debt and a 98% net debt to revenue ratio. This government will not sacrifice our children’s future. Our previous budget set out to eliminate Labor’s intergenerational debt, and this budget is building on those foundations.
Our plan delivers $991m for education services, reforms and training to support students and schools so they can improve their learning outcomes and create better employment pathways. It also builds a brighter future with $152.4m for school infrastructure, including: $30.5m to continue construction of the new Henbury School for special needs students; $21.4m for stage one of a new preschool and primary school for special needs students in Palmerston; $20m in conjunction with the Commonwealth for a regional boarding facility at Nhulunbuy; $5.5m for a new 70-place child and family centre at Larapinta Primary School; and $4m to construct a preschool on the Braitling Primary School site.
Our education reforms that deliver greater flexibility and choice to school councils and principals are supported by real dollars in this budget, including $368m directly for government schools in the global budget pool plus $57.5m to meet centralised school costs. There is an additional $23m over four years increasing the transition package to $40m to provide schools with greater autonomy, and $2m to support the implementation of the independent public schools initiative which empowers schools with proven governance and leadership capabilities to tailor their school programs to meet their students’ needs and improve outcomes.
Our plan allocates almost $100m for job-ready training, including employer support schemes and vocational education and training programs. In order to better target incentives for apprentices and trainees the government is changing the way in which it provides these incentives. The payroll tax exemption for apprentices and trainees will be removed and replaced with a $4.4m direct financial incentive to employ apprentices and trainees. In addition to this the budget provides $800 000 for vocational education and training and employment pathways in schools. This includes avenues through trade training centres and pre-employment programs across the Territory in partnership with mining, pastoral, tourism and other industries.
This government believes that hard work and being a good citizen are important. I am delighted to announce a new scheme which encourages our youth to drive safely. The government will reward drivers who complete their P-plate period with an unblemished record with a free 10-year licence.
The Giles government understands that protecting our most vulnerable youth is fundamental and is investing $172.4m on a range of services to protect children from harm, including an additional $8m for out-of-home care services aimed at addressing current demand and providing safe, secure accommodation for children in protective care; $500 000 to advertise and promote foster care opportunities; $450 000 for a new neighbourhood activity centre in Sanderson; $1.1m for youth initiatives focused on localised prevention and early intervention programs; and $2.7m for the Alice Springs Youth and Community Centre Inc to support stage 3 and stage 4 upgrades.
The combination of these programs has a deliberate and specific target to provide sustainable and improved outcomes for our children and youth. More importantly, we are providing them with a tangible future which holds genuine hope and opportunity.
Keeping people healthy is a key priority of any government. By sticking to our plan to reduce waste and cut the Labor interest bill, the government has been able to increase funding in areas that deliver better health and wellbeing outcomes for Territorians. Budget 2015-16 provides for a major expansion of hospital facilities and increases to critical services. It delivers $1.42bn in total health-related expenses expenditure and $220m for new and upgraded health facilities. This includes $69m to upgrade Royal Darwin Hospital, including $40m for a staged redevelopment; $4m for additional refurbishment of the paediatric ward; and $500 000 for a wide-ranging scoping study for a stand-alone ambulatory care facility.
Royal Darwin Hospital remains the government’s main focus for tertiary health services. Under Labor the hospital was neglected and run down. Our simple plan of tackling debt and focusing funding is paying off for staff and patients at Royal Darwin Hospital. Budget 2015-16 invests $25m towards the $150m Palmerston Regional Hospital, with construction commencing later this year. The hospital will deliver 116 new beds, a 24-hour emergency department, birthing suites and medical and surgical services including cardiology, renal medicine, cancer services, and paediatric and antenatal and postnatal obstetric services. Major construction works for Palmerston Regional Hospital are expected to be completed and the hospital operational in 2018.
Other areas of important hospital upgrades and services include $34.2m to continue remediation works and upgrades at Alice Springs Hospital; $2.5m to upgrade fire safety systems at Gove District Hospital; $3.9m to operate a new 12-bed emergency medicine unit within the Royal Darwin Hospital Emergency Department; and $1.1m for the Hospital in the Home and midwifery services for the Alice Springs community. This budget also provides a $20m investment in health equipment, technology and system upgrades that will simplify the way care is delivered and enhance patient outcomes.
Mental health is an important part of Territorians’ wellbeing and Budget 2015-16 provides additional funding of $4.9m to enhance mental health services. This budget also supports the recently released three-year NT Suicide Prevention Strategic Action Plan 2015-2018. It is aimed at reducing the rates and impact of suicide and self-harm across the Territory.
The Giles government believes that the best form of welfare is a job. Improving the employment opportunities of Aboriginal Territorians is also key to breaking the cycle of welfare dependency. We will continue to roll-out and expand the successful model on the Tiwi Islands to other remote areas in the pursuit of jobs in the bush in line with our plan.
Budget 2015-16 fosters locally-led economic development projects in remote communities by providing additional funding of $18m over three years. This money will support a new Community Champions Program for a total of 13 Aboriginal communities and regions across the Territory, and an additional $4m over two years will assist Aboriginal community organisations to pursue economic development opportunities. This budget also includes $6m over three years to establish the Business in the Bush program to support Indigenous business start-ups and increase Indigenous jobs.
Other key highlights to assist people in the bush include an additional $22.4m to upgrade, repair and maintain water and sewerage infrastructure; $8.2m to improve Indigenous student outcomes as part of the government’s 10-year Indigenous education strategy; and $3m to expand telecommunication services.
The budget continues a Remote Home Ownership Program with up to 50% of all remote public housing stock potentially sold back to tenants to further the aspiration of private home ownership.
The budget also supports Indigenous culture by providing $20m towards the future development of a nationally recognised Indigenous cultural centre.
The government continues its push to strengthen the Territory’s tourism industry and visitor numbers by investing $50.4m. The government will spend about $28m of this on tourism marketing programs to build on last year’s growth of 8.5% in international tourist numbers following a decade of neglect under Labor. The remainder will be invested as follows: $8m to develop tourism infrastructure, products and marketing; $4.7m for a tourism infrastructure development fund for use across the Territory with a focus on regional, remote and Indigenous tourism products; and $1m over two years to provide free public WiFi in key locations utilised by travellers and visitors. In addition the government is investing a further $8m for continued enhancement of the Darwin Waterfront, including new facilities for the cruise ship industry.
The government has continued to drive agricultural production. International live cattle exports reached record levels in 2014 through efforts in reengaging our Asian partners. AACo’s new Livingstone abattoir has commenced production, and crocodile production is growing, as are buffalo exports.
Budget 2015-16 also strategically positions the Territory’s primary industries sector through $2m to purchase a replacement drilling rig for investigation, assessment and allocation of water resources for economic development; $1.2m over two years to support the establishment of the Central Australian Horticultural Development Program; $1.2m to implement an interest rate subsidy scheme to assist growers who were affected by the cucumber green mottle mosaic virus; and $750 000 over three years to establish a Fishery Enhancement Program for the production and release of fingerlings of target fish species such as golden snapper.
The value of mining in the Territory grew by an impressive 11.8% in 2013-14 above the 10-year average of 4.8%. However, it is clear that the Australian resources sector is moderating. The Giles government understands that commodity prices are cyclical and periods of slower growth are the ideal time to put in place the building blocks for future activity.
Budget 2015-16 continues to support the resources sector through the Creating Opportunities for Resource Exploration program, or CORE. CORE positions the Territory for when the resource sector rebounds. In addition, the government has established a competitive market process to select the proponent to construct another pipeline to connect the Territory with the east coast network. This will provide not only an incentive for gas producers, but will add an important transport and energy corridor through some of the most remote regions in Australia.
These policies have been specifically put in place by the government to stimulate and grow the economies in regional areas of the Territory and to link into benefits generated by new roads and other infrastructure.
Defence continues to be a significant component of our economy. This government is committed to supporting our Defence personnel, our Defence support industries and our relationships with other countries which participate in training and Defence operations in the Territory.
The Giles government is developing the Marine Industry Park in the East Arm logistics precinct which will support the strong and growing Defence presence in Darwin. We are enhancing the Australian Defence Forces’ ability to operate in Australian northern waters, but this major facility also has significant benefits for other marine industries. As part of an overall plan for the wider Darwin harbour it links in well with our growing off-shore drilling and maintenance industries.
I have outlined the main building blocks for growth and sustainability in this budget, but the cement for all these blocks is roads and transport infrastructure. This government is providing a record investment of $587m in transport infrastructure and road projects, including $78.5m in road maintenance. This investment will make Territorians’ lives simpler by cutting travel times, connecting businesses and creating new investment opportunities.
In addition to the road projects to be funded from the TIO sale, this budget includes the following highlights: $33.5m over three years to upgrade and seal the Pickertaramoor Road on the Tiwi Islands; $32m in conjunction with the Commonwealth to improve Outback Way roads; $27.5m to support the Regional Roads Productivity Package in conjunction with the Commonwealth; $11.5m for the duplication of Vanderlin Drive from Leanyer Recreation Park to the McMillians Road roundabout; and $4m in Palmerston for the Roystonea Avenue extension to Owston Avenue.
Territorians love their sport and being able to easily get out into the bush and enjoy all it has to offer. The Giles government is proud of the Territory lifestyle and this budget supports Territorians who want to lead a healthy, active and balanced lifestyle with greater resources for sport, recreation and cultural activities. In line with the government’s plan to create synergies with its spending, this government will invest $57.3m in sports infrastructure projects which will also tie in with tourism growth, youth projects and other important programs such as sports vouchers.
Major sporting projects in this budget include $20m to upgrade facilities and expand seating capacity at Richardson Park; $8m towards a regional tennis centre at Marrara; $12.3m for netball, athletics, riding for the disabled, lawn bowls, and golf and cycling facilities across the Territory; and $2m to upgrade remote ovals across the Territory. Budget 2015-16 supports motor sports infrastructure with $12.7m provided for facilities across the Territory, including $8m for infrastructure upgrades at the Hidden Valley Motor Sports Complex.
The budget provides for expanded sporting events for all Territorians, including the inaugural Red CentreNATS, hosting the Davis Cup quarter final, and a four nations women’s hockey test match in Darwin.
We will invest $69m to provide improved arts and cultural activities, including $18.3m incorporating funding from external sources to redevelop the Chan Building into a dedicated visual arts gallery.
The government supports development of the Territory’s fishing sector, with $6.5m to upgrade the Dundee Beach and Shady Camp boat ramps. These are in addition to the upgrades to Casuarina Coastal Reserve and Litchfield National Park facilities announced earlier.
In conclusion, we have a plan for the Territory. We have cut government waste and debt and will continue to promote jobs in the private sector. Our plan looks ahead by making deliberate decisions now, binds our society into a more sustainable economy while protecting our lifestyle and natural environment and benefits all Territorians. Our plan manages our wealth carefully and is about making our lives simpler, safer and smarter.
I commend Budget 2015-16 to the House.
Debate adjourned.
TABLED PAPER
Port of Darwin Select Committee Report on the Port of Darwin Lease Model
Mr BARRETT (Blain): Madam Speaker, I table the Port of Darwin Select Committee report on the Port of Darwin lease model which was sent to you yesterday in accordance with Standing Order 280(b).
MOTION
Print Paper – Port of Darwin Select Committee Report on the Port of Darwin Lease Model
Print Paper – Port of Darwin Select Committee Report on the Port of Darwin Lease Model
Mr BARRETT (Blain): Madam Speaker, I move that the report be printed.
Motion agreed to.
MOTION
Note Paper – Port of Darwin Select Committee Report on the Port of Darwin Lease Model
Note Paper – Port of Darwin Select Committee Report on the Port of Darwin Lease Model
Mr BARRETT (Blain): Madam Speaker, I move that the Assembly take note of the report.
The port committee was formed to look at the regulatory framework and the lease model outlined in the Port of Darwin Bill. The committee visited ports in Brisbane, Portland, Adelaide, Albany, Geraldton, Fremantle and, of course, Darwin. We had two hearing days, met many times during the duration of the committee and spoke to third-party operators and operators that managed and ran ports, whether that be government or private operators.
The Port of Darwin is critical infrastructure for the Northern Territory. It is a major conduit for our goods and fuel, and the primary means by which our agricultural and mining products get into the market. As the Territory grows the capacity of the port also needs to grow.
The efficiency of the port affects all of us and the prices we pay for goods and the competitiveness of our exports. To serve the Territory through efficient operation and ready capacity for developing markets the port needs money to develop its infrastructure and management to be able to deliver efficient services and to prepare the port for developing opportunities.
The Port of Darwin select committee has examined the government’s proposal to achieve this objective through leasing the port. This follows a practice which is happening worldwide and throughout Australia, where governments have transferred ports to private operators to promote trade and development.
Ports perform private and public functions and require management by both private and public interests to achieve the best outcome. It was apparent from the committee’s visits to a number of ports that each port is different, serving different markets, having different geography as well as a different economic and environmental regulatory environment.
There are also many ways to manage different aspects of a port. This is typified by Fremantle port, which has berths owned and operated by the government-owned port authority, berths owned and operated by private operators, and various multiparty arrangements for others.
There is no single best way to structure ports but ownership, management and regulation must suit the local circumstances. In looking to enhance the lease model for the Port of Darwin, the first priorities of the committee were safety and the environment. The port manages large volumes of dangerous goods and moves very large pieces of equipment. This is inherently dangerous work and safe management is paramount. The committee has made recommendations to improve consultation and the enforcement of port safety plans.
It was obvious when visiting other ports that differing environmental standards occur in different ports. Looking at the environmental standards of our port compared to Adelaide and Albany, particularly around dust suppression, there is a big difference between the way we do business and the way they do.
Albany and Geraldton have pressure-negative storage sheds for stockpiling bulk commodities going across the port. There is attention to detail to ensure dust does not get out, whether that be inert like iron ore or heavy metals like manganese. It is important in those ports that dust does not get off the wharf.
Many of these ports have cities built around them. It is important the locals are not subjected to the dust, noise and other things happening at these busy ports.
The second major theme for the committee was economic regulation. The Port of Darwin has an effective monopoly on a range of services. Protection against monopoly pricing and ensuring fair access to its services is essential.
Recent evaluations of Australia’s ports have noted the importance of promoting effective competition in port services, as well as the long-term economic harm that can arise from privatisation arrangements which limit competition. Companies interested in bidding for the port highlighted the need to control monopoly pricing and ensure access.
Port regulation is still a developing art in Australia. Different places do different things, and I believe we can learn from all of them. The light touch regulatory framework preferred by port operators has not always benefited users, and the ACCC has concluded that price monitoring does not provide an effective constraint on monopoly pricing all the time.
Accordingly, the Ports Management Bill includes a strong pricing and access regime which will need to be adequately implemented. One point of concern to the committee was that this regulatory regime only applied to the port operator. Third-party service providers, such as the owner of a bulk loader, can also have an effective monopoly over critical infrastructure for a business. The committee would therefore like to see the pricing and access regulation extended to third-party operators.
This needs some explanation. For example, if the port was leased and whoever was leasing the ship loader at East Arm Wharf decided it was no longer viable for them to run it and they would rather divest themselves of that asset, whoever took it on would effectively be given a monopoly. If we do not set up the right regulatory framework we can inadvertently create third-party monopolies within the wharf structure. We saw firsthand on our travels the effect this can have on exporters trying to use those facilities. It was not necessarily the fault of port leaseholders, but a monopoly had been inadvertently created.
It is important to note the difference between a lease and a sale. Many people are using the word ‘sale’ in relation to this. It is noted that the amount of money received from a very long-term lease equates to that of a sale. The ability to regulate, monitor and make sure that what is happening to a leased asset is within the bounds set by the Northern Territory is very important to maintain. This can be done under a lease framework but it is not so easy if something is sold. The port committee saw some evidence of that in our travels.
We also found that 99 years was clearly a better time frame for investment purposes. A lease term that long, with the right regulatory framework, would be the best option should the government be moving towards a lease because it gives the scope of time necessary for a possible leaseholder to recoup the amount of money they have outlaid in the first place and would outlay for future developments.
Another point of concern raised by witnesses and port staff was the anticompetitive potential of vertical integration. The committee therefore recommends that the port operator only be issued with a stevedoring licence if the independent regulator certifies that this will not harm competition, and that the government considers any other limitations that may be required on the port operator owning other upstream or downstream businesses.
This runs to two things. On face value it seems that having many stevedoring companies would encourage competition in that field. However, on closer examination the amount of work that exists at the moment means more competitors coming into that market would undermine the workforce and many companies would do almost nothing. These companies are unable to put large amounts of money into investment, particularly where Patrick and Qube stevedores have both outlaid huge amounts of money buying harbour cranes and the like, which are very expensive pieces of machinery. We need to ensure when bringing in competition we do not undermine the competitors in the industry.
There is also a danger with vertical integration. Power and Water shows us that vertical integration can produce cross-subsidisation in different parts of the business. We have made recommendations that go to the heart of trying to stop vertical integration so that everybody at each level of the business model – whether it be the operator, the stevedores or the exporters – operates on a level playing field.
Further work is required on consultation. Many users of the port will be affected by the proposed changes. It is important that the government speaks to them to ensure it has adequately considered the implications of the changes, and to give businesses an increased understanding of what is proposed so they can plan accordingly.
It does not surprise us to know that some businesses rely very heavily on contracts they hold, and simple things like mooring accessibility can have material effects on these businesses. Constant consultation to give businesses time to address the risks is really important.
A key element of the government’s proposal is finding a private partner with a compatible vision for development of the port. A clear risk to such an approach is maintaining consistency of vision over the 99 years of the lease. The lease terms are where the government can require that particular services be provided to a required standard.
This goes to the heart of what a business sees as viable and what a community sees. In our travels we saw an example of where assets that had been privatised then through subsequent iterations of the lease ended up – if less than a 20% profit was being made the leaseholder shut down sections of that business. This led to consternation amongst some firms because suddenly they had to use other things.
The example given was rail networks that serviced grain areas were closed because they were not making a high enough profit. There was nothing in the lease agreement to allow those sections of the rail to be handed back to the government or passed on to grain handlers to manage and maintain themselves. It was not making 26% profit so it was closed down. That meant grain users had to use roads and councils are now asking them to pay for the roads to be rebuilt.
The grain producers effectively paid for the rail twice: first building it and handing it over to the government which leased it, then they paid rent to the new owner to use the rail network. After paying for it a second time they are now not allowed to use it.
The committee is concerned there may be sections in this lease where, in the future, a leaseholder might not want to run Fort Hill Wharf. This would be detrimental to our cruise ship industry. Service obligations are necessary to ensure that does not happen.
The committee also made recommendations to ensure fair treatment of workers and appropriate control and review of foreign investment. This goes to the heart of several things. First, for workers approaching retirement we need to make sure they will not be materially affected, particularly their superannuation. They need to continue working for the government for a few years if necessary rather than taking a lump sum. We recommend there be some options in cases where that is important.
The Foreign Investment Review Board will be looking at this and we recommend that be noted. It is an Australian asset and we have military assets from various countries visiting our port facilities, and we do not want to inadvertently upset allies or business partners.
The overall theme of the committee’s findings are that in considering a lease for 99 years it is essential that long-term thinking guides government decisions. While there is the immediate benefit of getting a higher price for leasing the port, this must not come at the expense of long-term economic gains. We saw in Melbourne how a section of the port was leased to the highest bidder. However, third-party users now have to pay more to recoup that cost.
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Distinguished Visitors
Distinguished Visitors
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I interrupt to welcome former Senator Grant Tambling, his wife, Sandy Tambling, and their guest to Parliament House. He was a member of this Assembly too.
Members: Hear, hear!
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Mr BARRETT (Blain): The other trap we looked at which would not be a problem was land prices. In Brisbane, on and off the wharf there was a big difference in land prices. Land prices on the wharf had been held down and depressed so that costs to third-party users were not increased. That meant basically imports and exports were cheaper; however, when a private person came in the market needed to correct, and that led to some significant changes in rent. You will be happy to know that is not the case in the Northern Territory. Each year an independent assessment of land values is made by a bank and those values form the basis of the rent. The problem we saw in Brisbane will not happen here.
There are some positives with our port which make it attractive – location and proximity to Asia. With regard to location, it is not around a heavily populated area and that is very important. This becomes obvious when you visit ports where cities have been built around them. Much more regulation needs to be put in place to protect the residents living in the area. East Arm Wharf is quite a distance from a residential area, and the activities at Fort Hill Wharf do not need the level of regulation other ports have, such as Albany. Our proximity to Asia needs to be taken into consideration. I believe significant business cases exist to take advantage of our proximity to Asia, possibly even becoming a ‘mail sorting room’ for the Asian region for vessels coming in with large numbers of containers from Asia, Africa and America.
We have deep water access as the channel has been dredged. It is not a long channel compared to places like Brisbane, where the channel goes nautical miles out into the water and needs to be dredged out to 14 m and maintained at that level. Deep water access is much easier here. Dredging channels is easier here, and thanks to INPEX and ConocoPhillips it has already been done.
A lot of land in the area could be reclaimed or is in the process of being reclaimed. This makes a material difference for somebody leasing the wharf because a landholder model of leasing the wharf will mean that land creation effectively creates an asset for them. Quite cheaply, from dredged material, they can reclaim land and lease it for market value. That is a good business model and underpins a lot of other important developments that could happen at the wharf.
It is pretty exciting to see what is available in Darwin. The quay line can grow, breakwaters are already in place and the harbour is stable. It does not have reflective or direct wave action, particularly long period waves. In Geraldton, where they are right on the Indian Ocean, there are very long period waves. The wave can be several kilometres long and might move by only 30 cm or 40 cm, but something moving over that distance lifts the boat 30 cm or 40 cm and holds it there for a long period of time. It can snap ropes, and it is dangerous on a wharf when lines break. We saw that in Geraldton. Sometimes they had to stop loading ships because of that. We do not have that problem in Darwin. Although we have big tidal movements we have a very secure, protected and safe harbour.
The committee would like to thank those who made submissions to the inquiry and appeared before it to give evidence. It also thanks ports that welcomed it and explained their operations.
I thank my fellow committee members, the members for Drysdale, Fannie Bay and Nelson. Thank you very much for your input. Despite having different perspectives, I am proud that we were able to work cooperatively in a very tight time frame to identify key issues with the proposed leasing of the Port of Darwin. I thank the committee members for making very constructive recommendations on how it could be enhanced in order to produce this consensus report.
I also thank the Legislative Assembly staff who worked tirelessly under a tight time frame, having to travel away from their homes and families and put up with the members, which I know most Legislative Assembly staff enjoy.
Debate adjourned.
The Assembly suspended.
RESPONSE TO PETITION
Petition No 45 – Proposal to Relocate Low-level Prisoners to Old ANSTI Site
The CLERK: Honourable members, pursuant to Standing Order 100A, I inform members that a response to petition No 45 has been received and circulated to all members. The text of the response will be placed on the Legislative Assembly’s website. A copy of the response will be provided to the member who tabled the petition for distribution to the petitioners.
- Petition No 45
Proposal to Relocate Low-level Prisoners to Old ANSTI Site
Date presented: 25 March 2015
Presented by: Ms Purick
Referred to: Minister for Corrections
Date response due: 15 September 2015
Date response received: 23 April 2015
Date response presented: 28 April 2015
Response:
I remain committed to expanding the services available to assist prisoners to reintegrate into the community and make healthy lifestyle choices, as I believe these will have a positive impact on government's commitment to reducing recidivism rates. At a community consultation meeting hosted at the proposed facility on 21 March 2015, I did advise the public that in light of the strong opposition to the facility and the presence of open rated prisoners in the community that the proposal would not proceed. I confirm the verbal commitment made to the public on the day and advise there is no intention to proceed with the proposal to develop the facility at 175 Bees Creek Road as a transitional accommodation facility for prisoners.
APPROPRIATION (2015-16) BILL
(Serial 121)
(Serial 121)
Continued from earlier this day.
Mr GILES (Chief Minister): Mr Deputy Speaker, it is with enormous pride as the Northern Territory Chief Minister that I commend Budget 2015-16 to Territorians. I commend the Treasurer and the Northern Territory public service for providing a funded way forward. This budget, more than any other, recognises the need to put the community at the centre of everything we do.
Having spent the last two budgets putting government finances back into shape, we are now able to make the type of investment that sees the community receive the dividends no matter where they live. This is the hallmark of a good government which has a plan and has pursued it in a measured and focused way. Budget 2015-16 implements the vision and aspirations we all have for the Northern Territory. Territorians should feel confident that the Northern Territory is in good hands. They should feel confident that we are heading in the right direction.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $1.42bn in total health-related expenditure, which is an increase of $25m in Territory government funding compared to 2014-15. It includes $40m for Royal Darwin Hospital, $34m for Alice Springs Hospital and the next stage of Palmerston Regional Hospital.
There is $991m for education services, including $152.4m for school infrastructure, $4m of which will go towards constructing a new 44-place – or 88 enrolments – preschool at Braitling Primary School, in my electorate. There is $735m to create a safer Territory, including 120 fully-funded new police officers. There is $211m to repair and maintain government assets and support the local business community. These jobs are untaken by small businesses and provide a steady, ongoing stream of work to provide certainty to our tradesmen.
The biggest sports program ever, infrastructure-wise, has been put forward, with $57.3m for sports infrastructure projects, and $20m going towards Richardson Park, the spiritual home of rugby league in the Territory.
There is $68.6m to provide improved arts and cultural activities, including an $18.3m investment in a new visual arts gallery in the Chan Building. We have set aside $20m for the establishment of a national Indigenous cultural centre to be based in the Northern Territory in partnership with Commonwealth and philanthropic support. This will be a game changer for the preservation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture from around the nation.
This type of headlining expenditure ensures everything that we do is for the benefit of Territorians. The community can have confidence that we are investing to connect us locally to the rest of Australia and the world.
Most importantly, Territorians should feel confident that with Budget 2015-16 a plan is being actioned to diversify our economy beyond singular major projects to an open, accessible, sustainable economy that not only encourages participation but demands it. In the Northern Territory everyone has a job to do, but importantly anyone who wants a job can get one.
The way forward is never simple, but it will be a smoother journey on our roads. Every major arterial route in the Northern Territory will have money invested in it. We have deliberately targeted infrastructure spending to broaden the economy and economic participation in regional and remote parts of the Territory.
We must engage with Indigenous Territorians by giving them access to the opportunities urban Territorians take for granted. We must help to deliver economic independence to reduce welfare dependency. In the Northern Territory over 50% of the land is Aboriginal, and a further 45% of the land is pastoral, falling under the native title system. Therefore approximately 95% of the land mass of the Northern Territory has some form of Aboriginal title. While the land rights movement is rightly viewed as an advance for the Aboriginal people of the Northern Territory, I want to ensure it does not hold the Northern Territory, particularly Aboriginal landowners, back from balanced, sustainable and relevant economic development opportunities.
To investigate this centrally important issue to future development in the Northern Territory a team, through the Department of the Chief Minister, will work with land councils, government agencies and the business community to pursue economic development on Indigenous land. They will look at improving the Aboriginal land administration system to better facilitate economic development. This heightened focus on how the Aboriginal land administrative system functions will leverage reforms to ensure Indigenous communities can benefit from their extensive land holdings, and the broader community can benefit from continued economic expansion and diversification.
In the meantime, Budget 2015-16 will spend $1.385bn on infrastructure, including a record investment in road and transport projects. Total transport expenditure is $587m. The roads we build today are designed to drive us to our economic future. Sealing the Mereenie inner loop is the type of investment that brings benefits to tourism, pastoral properties and Indigenous communities such as Hermannsburg and Areyonga.
For a $25m investment, Tourism NT estimates an additional $16.25m in projected annual tourism economic benefit alone. This means more visitors staying longer and spending more along the Red Centre Way and Central Australia. Improving access will open avenues for Indigenous communities to develop niche businesses, some of which I have visited in the last couple of weeks.
In turn a range of industries, including tourism, mining, pastoral and government, will be able to access them to supply services and, most importantly, the people we need to power these projects. There is a workforce in remote and regional Northern Territory which wants work and wants to build economic independence, and it is up to us, the government, to ensure we facilitate it.
The three-year $6m Business in the Bush program and the $18m Community Champions program are precisely the type of mechanisms designed to engage Indigenous communities to develop these business opportunities. The Community Champions program uses select CEOs who have been assigned one of 13 Aboriginal communities or regions whose interests and projects they will champion. Thirteen field officers will become the single front door to the Territory government for people in these remote communities to access high levels of support in pursuit of economic development. This has been modelled on the work we have done on the Tiwi Islands. The funding package includes $3.25m per year for three years for a Community Champions grants program. The grants will allow local people to focus on creating local solutions to gaining economic independence.
The Business in the Bush program targets Indigenous business development outside urban areas to support self-sustaining Indigenous wealth creation initiatives. This project includes the Bush Business Support and Growth program to support established and new businesses to build capacity and sustainability through the provision of workshops and tailored programs; the Indigenous Business Tender Support program to develop capabilities within Indigenous businesses to tender for government, private sector and major project contracts through approved accreditations and systems; the Business Technology Enabler program to support remote small businesses to upgrade technologies, access markets, improve efficiencies, increase market penetration and capitalise on the social media commerce market.
The government is spending $9m over three years towards the further expansion of mobile telecommunications and broadband services across remote Territory communities. The Indigenous Workforce Mobility project will facilitate workers in low employment regions to take up jobs where there are opportunities for work, including further on-the-job skills development, and the Indigenous Employment program will expand on the Commonwealth Stronger Futures Local Jobs for Local People program that supports employers who guarantee sustainable ongoing employment. This includes on-the-job training, partial wage subsidy and support services.
As a government we are determined to strengthen the Territory with sustainable relevant development that enhances local opportunity. In 2015-16 the new office of Aboriginal Affairs led from Alice Springs will take carriage of a suite of policy areas including engagement with local communities. The office of Aboriginal Affairs will develop an Aboriginal Affairs strategy and oversee an Indigenous economic development grant funded at $4m over two years.
Since 2012 local authorities have been established in 63 communities across the Northern Territory to give them a stronger, louder voice and identify their economic priorities. An additional $5m has been committed on an ongoing basis for local projects to give greater control to remote communities.
We view the recovery effort of ex-Tropical Cyclones Lam and Nathan as opportunities beyond the redevelopment of those affected communities. These disasters had, and will continue to have, a significant impact on communities and we acknowledge there is more work to do. We view cyclone recovery and the separate $147m allocation to construct new and upgraded houses as opportunities for Aboriginal communities to create jobs in a strong society that is equitable, proud and supports the vulnerable among them.
Tourism: this government is looking at the broader vision and aspiration of Territorians. This government is building to meet the future needs of the Territory, and Budget 2015-16 does that. Over the next two years the Territory economy is being diversified away from singular major projects towards other industries of which the tourism industry is central. Our ongoing commitment to the most visible industry, tourism, is there for all to see.
Our landscape leaves a lasting impression on those who come from around the world and around the nation to Do the NT, which is why we are spending a total of $28.2m on domestic and international marketing activity for the 2015-16 financial year. This is an additional $8m for Tourism NT. This includes highlighting the range of experiences available in our regions. During the year to September 2014 overnight visitors spent $1.4bn in the Territory. By 2020 the Giles government aims to ensure a $2.2bn visitor economy is achieved. We already have 8000 jobs directly tied to tourism. Hitting our 2020 target is expected to generate another 4300 positions.
We have been very careful to integrate decisions across government to ensure they overlap with our development aspirations for tourism. For example, Darwin’s favourite weekend escape, Lichfield National Park, has been allocated $39m. Of this, $28.5m will be spent on sealing Litchfield Park Road and constructing the Lower Finniss River bridge. Another $10.43m will be used for upgrades to Florence Falls, Tolmer Falls, Buley Rockhole, the Magnetic Termite Mound site and Sandy Creek. Tourism NT estimates an annual tourism economic benefit of $14.4m for this outlay.
In Kakadu $3m will be provided to increase the standard of the Jimbat Road, including the Kambolgie Creek crossing, in order to improve access to the Yurmikmik area. The projected annual tourism economic benefit of year-round access to this area is estimated at $8.8m and the first stage will be completed this year.
The government’s commitment to improving air access is ongoing. One month ago the new Virgin Australia Airlines service from Darwin to Alice Springs then on to Adelaide began operating three times a week. Cooperative marketing activities provided for new flights to help them get established, and we hope to eventually see this service become daily. We are also investigating a milk run connecting Katherine and Tennant Creek to Darwin and Alice Springs which, if set up, will benefit Territorians and visitors alike. Economic modelling is being undertaken.
This government is throwing down the gauntlet to the tourism industry. We are looking for game changers, projects that will be major drawcards for visitors and will generally benefit Territorians through associated spend. We are putting our money where our mouth is – $4.75m worth of it. Who has a tourism project waiting to happen? We want to hear from those people. We must look to the future and help industry prepare for it.
Even though there is plenty of potential for the current suite of projects to attract visitors, new and innovative enhancements are required to generate significant growth in the long term. Through the $4.75m Tourism Infrastructure Development Fund this government seeks to promote the development of new and improved tourism products with a special focus on regional, remote and Indigenous tourism products. In 2014-15 this program benefited 27 tourism projects worth a combined $2.8m, many of which would not have been possible without this financial assistance.
It is vital that industry understands the need for innovation and change. To stand still is to risk being left behind. For instance, the rapid transition within greater China to embrace digital platforms and applications on a daily and hourly basis enables specific marketing across cities and provinces. Therefore, we are adjusting our strategic approach in the Chinese market to strengthen certain key elements, such as an increased focus on the digital distribution partners. However, the tourism industry must understand that in order to get visitors to the Territory it may have to go to them, perhaps electronically, and then they have a good product to sell.
In the business events market, which is worth $89m for the Territory economy, we are placing added focus on the corporate incentives aspect. Through Festivals NT, working very closely with Major Events, we will be rolling out a program that is sure to cater for all tastes. We are building the Territory’s reputation as a home for top-class motor sports, investing $1m into the Red CentreNATS and an additional $3.45m to upgrade motor sports facilities in Central Australia and the Barkly.
We want to open up our parks and enhance the experiences available to visitors. We have just opened for public comment draft management plans for three Central Australia parks and reserves, which we prepared in partnership with the traditional owners, to raise their profile to visitors and attract more tourism to the NT. Last September we invited expressions of interest for new tourism and business developments in the Territory’s parks and reserves.
The Northern Territory government is working on increasing visits from cruise ships and is investing $8m in the Darwin Waterfront to make it an even more attractive and vibrant precinct for tourists and local families. In the financial year 2013-14, Darwin received 38 cruise ships generating almost 40 000 passenger days and providing a direct economic impact of $54m. These visits work well because they occur during the quieter Wet Season months.
We are constantly reviewing infrastructure and beautification opportunities in the area to ensure that these all-important first impressions for passengers getting off their cruise ship are positive. We are putting in place a $1.2m shaded walk for cruise ship passengers to the Darwin Waterfront from the terminal to the pontoon walkway leading to the waterfront to improve amenity. This will complement an additional $2m for a pontoon to be build adjacent to Stokes Hill Wharf to support harbour cruise operators and $900 000 for construction and beautification of Goyder Park, which is currently underdeveloped land adjacent to the cruise ship terminal.
This government has not only had the foresight to make these investments in the future of tourism, we have had the means to make them due to prudent fiscal management.
In regard to a strong society and a balanced environment, through the Department of the Chief Minister we will play a vital role in ensuring we protect our culture and the environment for future generations. We want a strong society that values an individual’s right to freedom in all its forms. We will spend $7m on development of the Territory community, including events and initiatives which celebrate the Territory lifestyle. An amount of $3m will go towards continued support to community organisations and initiatives through the multicultural, youth, seniors and community support grants programs.
In regard to Defence in the Northern Territory, we have long enjoyed a strong relationship with Defence, but the advantage of the Territory’s proximity to the Asian region and vast spaces for exercises has yet to be fully exploited. The Northern Territory economy is steadily expanding through growing investment and large-scale projects. Until now the Northern Territory has been viewed as a forward operating base for Australia’s military deployments and operations into the region. However, trade globalisation and geostrategic shifts among major powers are changing the dynamics which underpin such thinking. We recognise this and are now taking a new strategic reality direction for action.
The Territory’s strategic location is continuing to drive the Defence interest in northern Australia. Defence Force personnel numbers across the Territory are at approximately 6000, which equates to $300m in wages spent locally. When you add Defence families to the equation, it is estimated Defence makes up more than 6% of the Territory’s population, with 14 000 people.
Defence expenditure in the Territory represents approximately $1.5bn annually and a significant economic input into the Territory’s economy. The future capital investment is estimated to be at least $1bn already approved or in the pipeline over the next five years. The Joint Strike Fighters being based out of Tindal in 2020 will necessitate a large infrastructure project to the value of $470m to accommodate and support these new aircraft.
In addition to the Joint Strike Fighter infrastructure, other works include high-voltage power supplies to Shoal Bay Receiving Station worth $6m, flood mitigation works at RAAF Darwin costing $10m, construction of new married quarters at RAAF worth approximately $53m, and major aircraft pavement works at RAAF Tindal and RAAF Darwin in excess of $60m.
Securing opportunities for local businesses is the key to capitalising on the Defence infrastructure program, which is why the Northern Territory government is investing in a Strategic Defence Advisory Board to guide us in these efforts. The Australian Industry and Defence Network, the Industry Capability Network and the Northern Territory Chamber of Commerce, together with the Department of Business, will all have a role in implementing this strategy.
The strategy aims to connect and promote local Defence industry capabilities to the Defence Materiel Organisation so they understand what resources are available in the Northern Territory for future projects to ensure the projects do not go down south. This will ensure that the Northern Territory government remains fully engaged with the federal government, Defence industry and overseas defence to help promote, connect and develop opportunities, all with the important role of creating jobs for Territorians.
In regard to a prosperous economy, as we broaden our economy, diversify opportunities and create high-quality jobs and income for our children we will pursue major projects to give us an inheritance to reinvest. We acknowledge the benefits of major projects.
I say to the skilled men and women who come to the Territory chasing these opportunities, we want you to stay. These skills will be valuable in building our future across the Territory either directly or through the skill transfers of working alongside Territorians in the far reaches of this land.
Budget 2015-16 has $22m allocated to support the activities of the Office of the Coordinator-General for major projects, infrastructure and investment to initiate, coordinate and deliver major projects. This includes the proposed gas pipeline linking the Territory to the eastern seaboard, therefore opening up new industries and employment. This type of project builds our connectivity to the rest of Australia and Asia. Oil and gas, and other associated industries, including LNG gas processing and those supplying goods and services, maintenance and construction, have a particularly bright outlook for growth.
More than any other time in the Territory’s history there is potential for the benefits of this business and employment stimulus to be distributed to regional and remote communities. The centre of gravity for oil and gas exploration, development and production activity is expected to move from offshore to onshore. To realise this opportunity the Northern Territory government is working to secure private sector development of the North East Gas Interconnector to open up new markets for gas.
New markets will underpin investment in exploration and development that will lead to an increase in gas supply and security, supporting new industries and jobs in regional and remote communities. As we grow the oil and gas industry the Northern Territory government is also working to create the regulatory framework to ensure we protect our unique environment. We have a chance to learn from others and an opportunity to have the best environmental credentials in the world.
The first tranches of gas are coming from existing offshore and onshore fields so there is ample time to get the regulatory environment right to ensure the appropriate protections are in place.
The Coordinator-General will be funded $6.3m to continue development of a coordinated strategy on the future development of the Darwin foreshore and additional port facilities; $600 000 over three years to promote regional and remote industry participation and employment in emerging projects in the Central Australian and Barkly regions; $800 000 to support facilitation of other major projects; $6.6m to drive the development of northern Australia and engage with key stakeholders and the Territory community in showcasing and marketing northern Australia; and $1.4m to drive economic development priorities and initiatives across the Territory through leading and coordinating development and delivery of the government’s economic strategy.
The Northern Territory government, members of the Legislative Assembly and the government employees who work on these projects are determined to deliver on the aspirations of all Territorians. We must embrace our sense of country, our sense of community, our different lifestyle, and our diversity and drive ourselves towards economic independence.
Budget 2015-16 starts the process of diversifying our economy and sharing those opportunities. We cannot be a single major project driven economy. We must be more. With Budget 2015-16 we will be.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend this budget to the Legislative Assembly. I thank all those employees in the public service for bringing it together, and I thank my colleagues within and external Cabinet to for working together over two-and-a-half years to get us to a point where the budget is in a sound fiscal position where we can invest in infrastructure and grow the Territory, not just in one part, but across this great landscape.
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Pairing Arrangement
Members for Goyder and Johnston
Pairing Arrangement
Members for Goyder and Johnston
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: I have just received a document relating to pairs for the members for Goyder and Johnston. It is for the period 28 to 30 April and is signed by the government Whip, the member for Drysdale, and the opposition Whip, the member for Nightcliff.
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Mr WESTRA van HOLTHE (Primary Industry and Fisheries): Mr Deputy Speaker, it is with pleasure that I respond to the 2015-16 Northern Territory government budget, the third budget handed down since the Country Liberals came to power in 2012.
In 2012 we discovered the enormous hole of debt the Labor government had dug for all Territorians, not only now but into the future – intergenerational debt. To have continued to spend in the same vein as the previous government would have buried the Northern Territory economically.
This has meant our past two budgets were, by necessity, frugal with the fat trimmed across all areas. This belt tightening and waste slashing has reaped rewards. Today this government can effectively deliver the services and facilities that Territorians deserve while still maintaining responsible fiscal management of the Northern Territory’s finances.
Today I will provide the budget reply for my portfolio responsibilities of Primary Industry and Fisheries, Land Resource Management and Public Employment.
Our fishers and farmers, pastoralists and public servants, rural and regional Territorians will benefit from the many initiatives of this budget. These initiatives will make the lives of Territorians simpler, safer and smarter. This budget will deliver quality service and investment in much-needed infrastructure that will pay dividends now and well into the future. Budget 2015-16 is about creating jobs, supporting business and growing sustainable economic development opportunities.
I turn to my Department of Land Resource Management, which will receive $50.358m in Budget 2015-16. The budget boosts investment in our land and water resources. We have allocated $2.4m per year for the next three years to the expanded program of land and water resource investigation. Undertaking detailed land suitability assessment includes planning, field surveys, analysis of data and developing high-quality spatial data sets, maps, map products and reports. These land and water assessments will provide high-quality land and water suitability information and mapping essential for underpinning successful agricultural developments.
Access to good land and water resources will underpin north Australian development, and work is continuing to identify new areas where land and water resources are suitable for economic expansion in job-creating industries such as agriculture and tourism.
Through this program we are removing the guesswork for investors and taking a considered science-based approach to the ecological sustainable development of our north. Specifically, $140 000 will be spent in Katherine and $120 000 in Alice Springs for water allocation planning, implementation, regulation and compliance monitoring.
An additional $500 000 in 2015 and 2016-17 has been allocated for the land suitability assessment team to accelerate the investigation of potential agricultural projects in regions near priority Indigenous communities. This is designed to provide Indigenous economic development opportunities in horticultural and agricultural sectors through employment, training and business-related enterprises.
My department is responsible for investigating, assessing and allocating water resources for economic development. A fundamental component of this work is the investigative drilling work undertaken by the drilling rigs based in Darwin and Alice Springs. The 2015 budget commits $2m to replace the existing Darwin drilling rig. This new drilling rig ensures the continuation of the investigative drilling program with improved safety to employees and with increased capacity to drill deeper.
An amount of $1.3m has been committed in Budget 2015-16 to continued rangeland monitoring on the pastoral estate. This continued expansion of the rangeland monitoring program, using on-ground assessment coupled with satellite data, will improve efficiencies of monitoring and ensure all 223 pastoral properties are visited in a four-year cycle.
This government is determined to increase the opportunities available for landowners, primary producers and those whose businesses depend on land and water. We have made it easier for pastoralists to use part of their properties for alternative uses to provide a buffer against hard times by creating new income streams.
The Pastoral Land Board has approved seven non-pastoral use permits since legislative amendments to the Pastoral Land Act were enacted on 1 January 2014. In support of pastoralists who use this initiative we have launched the Pastoral Business Development program. This is an innovative assistance package designed to help pastoralists make the right decisions when assessing whether diversification is appropriate for their lease. Pastoralists will receive reimbursement for engaging professional advisers for business planning, mentor support, integrated management systems and technology, employment and business solutions.
Already permits have been issued for tourism activities in Curtin Springs, Narwietooma Station and Banka Banka West Station. Irrigated agriculture of poppies will be under way at Tipperary Station in the Douglas Daly region, and a rotating onion crop at Undoolya Station in Central Australia.
Increased live cattle exports in conjunction with changes to the Pastoral Land Act are expected to encourage more mixed farming, especially broad acre cropping, over the next few years.
This budget has provided funding of $500 000 to continue weed management extension services across regional areas, such as Tennant Creek and Katherine, to help pastoralists control weed incursions and infestations.
Invasive weed species such as grader grass, prickly acacia and rubber bush are a real threat to productivity and the environmental viability of the land. Weed spread can also have an impact on the tourism industry, affecting waterways and fishing accessibility and activity.
Keeping control of threats to our natural resources is critical to realising the focus of developing northern Australia. This strong policy provides certainty for investors. It is smart, safe and a simple way to grow economic investment in the Northern Territory.
The $2.4m announced in the 2015-16 budget will provide continued monitoring of our river and ground water resources and flood forecasting to support early warning and emergency response planning.
Some $1.2m has been allocated to monitor Darwin Harbour to ensure the impacts of development are measured and reported in order that all community recreational and tourism values are maintained.
Building on the 2014-15 capital works program, a further $600 000 has been committed in this budget to upgrade barrages on the Mary River. This project will reduce the risk of saltwater intrusion to help protect significant breeding sites for our water birds and fish species, and ensure fresh water pastures for cattle.
The Mary River floodplain contains wetland conservation values of international standards, is recognised as a site of biodiversity conservation significance, and has important cultural values. These barrages will also protect the floodplains for tourism use and the economic benefits that recreational fishing brings to the Territory.
A continued $1m of funding will be used to make our communities safer from bushfires, enabling Bushfires NT staff to fight fires from the ground and the air. Population growth has led to more fires and greater areas of residential development and infrastructure requiring protection. The spread of high fire risk weeds such as gamba grass has led to more dangerous fires that can only be fought safely with aerial firefighting support.
New funding of $550 000 will support a network of strategic regional firebreaks and improved bushfire suppression operations. This strategic regional firebreak network will improve community safety and significantly improve the ability to manage and limit the effect of wildfires. A series of panel contracts in regional areas will provide standby earthmoving equipment during periods of high fire danger. The installation and maintenance of significant firebreaks and the supply of standby equipment will provide economic benefits to regional and remote communities through regular contract work for local businesses.
Introduced animal species can have an enormous economic, cultural and ecological consequence for Australian rangeland systems. My department’s flora and fauna division works with landholders to manage animal pests. Research and management of animal pests, particularly feral cats, has been allocated a further $500 000.
Ongoing funding of $400 000 for assessment and management programs for marine megafauna, including dolphins, dugongs and turtles, will be extended around the Territory coastline.
An amount of $100 000 has been allocated to enhance the integrated NT Natural Resource Management information system to improve the range of data and mapping products available to Territorians. NR Maps, as it is called, provides a web mapping interface for the department’s systems such as the Land Development Comment Information System, Water Licensing Application System, and the Weeds and Bushfire Monitoring Systems.
I turn to my Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries, which will receive $61.926m in Budget 2015-16. The Northern Territory government recognises the key role that the development of our agriculture, horticulture, pastoral and fishing industries will play in developing northern Australia. Horticulture makes a strong contribution to the Territory, both socially and economically.
This budget sees $600 000 per year for the next two years committed to advance horticultural development in Central Australia. This program will apply strategic agribusiness planning to identify where natural resource potential and market opportunities coincide to create maximum opportunity for development. The success of new agricultural enterprises in Central Australia is contingent on identifying the right output opportunities via careful market analysis. This means that new ventures will be based on niche markets or windows of opportunity in existing markets rather than the historic approach of, ‘What can I grow?’
My department will establish a project advisory team to conduct targeted marketing analysis and research, engage with agribusiness, and test market opportunities to de-risk investment and develop projects. The adoption of this form of strategic approach will develop contemporary knowledge on Central Australian production systems. It will facilitate investment, leverage funding through targeted and collaborative partnerships, and work with local stakeholders to enhance the economic and social wellbeing of communities in this region.
This government understands the value of our food production industries and is committed to ensuring their growth and success. The Northern Territory cattle industry had a bumper year for live cattle sales in 2014, and export numbers through the Darwin port set a new record surpassing the previous high of 364 944 head in 2008. This success is the result of the incredibly hard work of the cattle industry, in conjunction with this government, to restore and grow the markets for Territory beef.
There is a unique opportunity for the Northern Territory to capitalise on the rapidly increasing demand for quality food in the Asia-Pacific region. New trade relationships with Vietnam, and now Cambodia and Thailand, have seen our markets for live cattle increase. The Northern Territory government-led trade missions that helped to secure these new trading partners will continue.
Currently the Northern Territory is the largest supplier of live cattle and buffalo to Southeast Asia, and this government is determined to see this continue. Negotiations are under way to expand Australian cattle exports into Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand, and that work is ongoing.
Thailand is new on the list, while China stands as a market of significant growth potential once a number of import hurdles have been overcome. Indonesia remains our largest export market with about 251 000 head of NT cattle exported in 2014, increasing from about 244 000 head of cattle in 2013.
This government established a Live Animal Export Development Unit within my Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries in 2013. This unit worked closely with the NT Cattlemen’s Association and the NT Livestock Exporters Association Inc on a strategic and targeted approach to market development. After many years with few market options there has been a surge of interest in buffalo, especially for export to Vietnam. Programs to help the farmed buffalo sector and take sustainable harvests from the Arnhem Land herds are also being planned.
A wide range of Territorians and visitors depend upon or enjoy the healthy state of our fisheries. Recreational fishing is an integral part of the Territory lifestyle, with annual expenditure across our recreation and fishing tour sectors estimated to be over $80m. This budget continues to recognise the importance of recreational fishing to the estimated 32 000 anglers who like to wet a line.
In regard to improving access to our waterways this budget has two significant projects. There is $4.5m to upgrade the Dundee boat ramp and $2m allocated to upgrade the Shady Camp boat ramp. Improving facilities at Dundee Beach is an election commitment we are proud to realise. As this area presents environmental challenges, with sand burying the existing boat ramp slab and inhibiting self-launching on lower tides, a marine engineering consultancy was commissioned.
The consultancy report recommends removal of sand from the boat ramp and an area north of the groyne, and monitoring backfill over the course of the year. This will expose the boat ramp and ensure self-launching of boats in the short term. The information gleaned about sand movements will influence the subsequent design and construction works at the groyne. I understand the initial phase of sand removal is planned to commence as soon as possible.
This budget provides $2m to improve vessel launching at Shady Camp. A consultancy study has been commissioned to recommend how we can get the best bang for our buck. This area presents a different set of challenges because much of the terrain below the main Shady Camp barrage is black soil, which is at or below sea level. Recreational fishing reference groups will provide angler input to inform and advise the Dundee Beach and Shady Camp projects as they progress.
A study of boat ramps in the greater Darwin region will soon begin to consider potential future needs and improvements to water access on the doorstep of our city. This report will allow the Recreational Fishing Advisory Committee to consider potential options and provide advice to government on future priorities.
Members will be aware that I recently announced a package of key fishing management changes to help our coastal reef fish stocks recover. This government is now looking at novel ways to support that recovery process and improve fishing opportunities. This budget commits $750 000 to a three-year fishery enhancement project that focuses on the production and release of reef fish fingerlings into our coastal waters.
Science will be used to guide the project with fish spawned and raised at the Darwin Aquaculture Centre then released to target habitats, including established artificial reefs, natural reefs and harbour arms, to assess the restocking success. Different sizes and numbers of fingerlings will also be produced, and released fish will be tagged to allow scientists to track survival and movement.
I have also asked my department to examine the potential opportunities for designing artificial reefs as a means to increase the available habitat for reef fish in order to increase productivity and improve the quality of our coastal reef fisheries. I hope one day our coastal reef fisheries will be as enviable as our barramundi fishery currently is.
Many Aboriginal communities have strong customary links with our aquatic environments and rely on fish for food, culture and economic development opportunities. The Country Liberals government is working hard to create Indigenous employment opportunities and this budget provides $1.23m for the ongoing development of Indigenous fishing and aquaculture industries across the Top End.
My department is working hand in hand with Indigenous communities in the development of a broad range of fishery programs. We are committed to making the lives of Indigenous Territorians simpler and smarter by investing in a range of programs that deliver economic employment and development opportunities. My department’s fisheries Indigenous Development Program delivers economic employment, workplace skills and development opportunities to remote Aboriginal communities.
Indigenous development projects already under way include aquaculture enterprises focused on low technology; sea-based farming methods for oysters and giant clams; sea cucumber ranching in the open sea; a revamped Aboriginal coastal licence to assist Indigenous coastal communities develop macro fisheries; and enhancement of marine ranger programs, including the development of Certificate III in Fisheries Compliance.
This government supports the establishment of small-scale fishing and aquaculture businesses in remote communities. My department has successfully begun an Indigenous commercial fishing mentoring program to provide practical skills to aspiring Indigenous commercial fishers and assist them to establish their own fisheries business. This is another example of this government working to make life simpler, smarter and safer for Territorians.
My department is leading the way nationally in training Indigenous marine rangers, providing them with the skills and experience necessary to carry out fisheries compliance and contribute to fisheries research projects. This budget allocates $250 000 to establish an enhanced Indigenous fisheries training program in Nhulunbuy that will deliver courses and workplace experience in the development and delivery of marine industry training. This will see Nhulunbuy become the hub for trading and seafood handling, commercial fishing practices and marine safety to improve the skills and capacity of marine rangers and grow employment opportunities for Indigenous Territorians in the seafood industry.
This program will involve partnerships between the Departments of Primary Industry and Fisheries, Education and Business, as well as Nhulunbuy High School, Indigenous organisations, Indigenous marine rangers and registered training organisations. A coordinated, regionally-based training program is vital for the efficient and effective delivery of the skills needed by the marine rangers and other remote community members looking to get a job or start a business in the marine industry.
The ability of the Indigenous marine ranger groups to operate autonomously as service providers has also created significant efficiency dividends for the government. Where once government field staff spent days travelling to reach sampling sites in remote locations, now ranger groups are routinely tasked with sample collection and surveillance work. They deliver high-quality results, and the work in turn increases ranger skills and employment opportunities.
This budget also provides $20 000 to support the inaugural Darwin Boat, Travel and Leisure Show to be held in September this year. The timing of the show will coincide with another of this government’s initiatives, the inaugural Recreational Fishing Awards, to recognise the efforts and achievements of recreational fishers in improving and developing the Territory’s favourite pastime.
Turning to my portfolio responsibility of Public Employment, the 2015 budget includes initiatives which will make the Territory public service the NT employer of choice, with $2.5m allocated to the Northern Territory Public Sector Indigenous Employment and Career Development Strategy 2015-2020, specifically to establish the new Indigenous Employment and Career Development Unit within the Office of the Commissioner of Public Employment. This strategy aims to increase Indigenous employment in the Northern Territory Public Sector to 16% by 2020. The unit will drive the implementation of the strategy and provide guidance and support to all agencies across the sector in achieving this goal.
While Indigenous Territorians represent 30% of the Northern Territory’s population, they only represent 8.7% of the public sector. As one of the largest employers in the Northern Territory our public sector should be a reflection of the community we serve. For the first time, individual agencies have set targets and will focus on four key themes. The first theme sets the target for Indigenous employment and participation. As well as the global target of 16%, a target of 10% has been set for participation in senior and executive roles by the year 2020.
The second theme will focus on engagement and support to welcome new Indigenous employees and support and retain existing staff. Here agencies will ensure all Indigenous employees, including those on temporary contracts, have a career development plan in place.
Theme three will focus on attraction and retention of Indigenous people by promoting our public sector as an employer of choice. This includes strengthening networks and partnerships across all levels of government, non-government organisations and Indigenous communities.
Theme four will focus on whole-of-career development to identify and facilitate career progression and pathways.
The Northern Territory public service must commit to long-term improvement of Indigenous employment, participation and capability. We all have a role to play. As the Minister for Public Employment I will be monitoring the strategy to ensure targets are met and opportunities created.
A significant portion of public sector employees are approaching retirement age in the coming decade. At the same time, fewer young people are entering the workforce. In order to manage the challenges that arise from an ageing workforce, we will develop a Northern Territory public sector transition to retirement policy. We are investing $130 000 in this important policy to help ‘future proof’ the Northern Territory public sector. The policy will help answer questions such as where our next generation of teachers and nurses will come from, how we can better engage our older workers in developing the capabilities of new employees, and what employment arrangements will accommodate the changing needs of older workers.
Turning to my electorate of Katherine, I have to commend the Treasurer for delivering a budget that makes Territorians’ lives safer, simpler and smarter whether you live in the city, the country, the bush or the suburbs. As an important regional hub for the pastoral, horticultural, agricultural, tourism and mining sectors, service delivery and infrastructure upgrades in Katherine deliver benefits to many more Territorians than just local residents. Infrastructure upgrades and major new works in nearby communities also mean job opportunities for locals.
Under the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing, and Stronger Futures, $14.4m will be used to construct new and upgrade existing housing and provide associated infrastructure in remote Indigenous communities in the region. There will be $10.8m spent to continue construction of headworks and subdivision works to support the release of residential land in Katherine East stage two, Kalkarindji, Mataranka and Timber Creek.
There is also $3.5m for subdivision works to support the release of 35 residential blocks in Borroloola. This budget contains $5m to upgrade the Robinson and Calvert River crossings on Wollogorang Road to improve flood immunity and road safety; $4m to upgrade and seal some sections of the Roper Highway between Fizzer Creek and Ngukurr; $2.5m to seal some sections of the Lajamanu access road between Kalkarindji and Lajamanu; and, in conjunction with the Commonwealth, $1m to design two bridges over Little Horse and Big Horse Creeks on the Victoria Highway.
In Katherine the ambulance centre will be relocated out of the flood zone at a cost of $7.6m. A new administration facility at Kintore Street School, which is the final stage of the special schools redevelopment and expansion, has been funded at $2.65m.
Speedway fans across the Territory are extremely happy to learn about the $1m upgrade to the track and fencing for the Katherine Motor Sports Club. An amount of $2m will be spent on repairs and maintenance and minor works for Power and Water assets.
These are just some of the important projects funded in Budget 2015-16 that will make the lives of all Territorians safer, simpler and smarter. I am proud to be part of a government that makes the lives of Territorians better.
This is a sensible and responsible budget. This position has been made possible because of the fiscal restraint shown over the last two-and-a-half years. The opposition will bleat from the other side of the House trying convince people that we are cutting spending in all sorts of areas. However, when they read the budget and examine what it contains, the people of the Northern Territory will realise this is a very good budget with something for everybody.
I am particularly proud of this budget because it has delivered for my region of Katherine and my departments, and is also a responsible budget that will keep us on track. It is a part of our plan to make sure we have a surplus by 2017-18 and are constantly reducing the legacy of Labor’s debt. This budget continues in that vein.
I support this budget and commend the Treasurer, Treasury officials and all my colleagues on this side of the House for their support in putting together a very good budget for the Northern Territory.
Mr STYLES (Business): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I first came into this House in opposition and there were times when I despaired about where the Territory was going. My family and grandchildren are here for the long haul, as many Territorians are, even new Territorians who anticipate living here for the rest of their lives.
At that time I watched debt spiral out of control. One of the graphs I use regularly in this House is the non-financial public sector net debt. You see a flat line while the CLP was in government, then the ALP came in and around 2011-12 the then Treasurer decided borrowing a lot of money was the best way to be popular.
Sadly, the projected debt in 2014-15 was $5.5bn, which is a debt to income ratio of 98%. That means each day there is an interest bill of about $1.1m. I did not see a plan to reduce the spending, reduce the deficit, or reduce the overall debt of the Northern Territory.
It is with great pride that I look at what the Giles government has done. The feedback from business since last year’s budget has been positive. As Minister for Business I discuss these issues with businesses and ask for feedback. The feedback I have received since last December is very positive and uplifting. In fact, when one looks at the business confidence level of the Northern Territory in the most recent Sensis survey, it was a positive net +46% compared to the national of +27%. That demonstrates business has confidence in the Giles Country Liberal government.
We have a plan, as opposed to the non-plan from those opposite when they were in government. Their only plan was to keep borrowing money to keep spending. That is good until you run out of other people’s money to spend. Anyone who runs a household or has a budget knows you have to live within your means. You can borrow for a home, a car or other things, but generally you have to live within your means.
Continuing to borrow money on the MasterCard is an unsustainable predicament to put the Territory in. Fortunately there is good news on the horizon, and we know those opposite do not like good news. However, building on last year’s great budget is another great budget for the Territory. Although those opposite may like to say it is not a good budget, I ask people to listen to the speeches delivered and look at the budget papers. Check the positive news yourself.
I support the Northern Territory’s Budget 2015-16, and congratulate my colleague, the Treasurer, for delivering a budget that is bold in its thinking and helps to make life safer and simpler for Territorians. It is widely acknowledged that last year the Giles Country Liberals government delivered a good budget aimed at securing our children’s and grandchildren’s future. That is quite different from the budgets I saw from the previous government.
At the lunch today conducted by the Northern Territory Chamber of Commerce the Treasurer received a big tick from the Chamber of Commerce and the National Australia Bank, both explaining what they saw in the Territory’s budget. The business community and the NAB were both positive.
This is good news for good government in the Territory, with families and businesses all being winners. Budget 2015-16 delivers key programs to develop Territory businesses and industries to run and grow, to simplify doing business in the Territory through balanced regulation and removal of red tape, to manage the Territory’s training system to meet our current and future needs, to attract new investment to the Northern Territory and to connect Territory businesses with national and international opportunities.
I will highlight some of the key areas businesses have benefited from and outline some of the initiatives this budget will deliver to support businesses, industry and workers.
The NT Department of Business will deliver two new initiatives to create employment and economic opportunities for remote and regional Territorians. The first of these initiatives, Business NT, provides an almost $1.5m investment into business and the non-government organisation sector. This initiative includes three new business support programs that will proactively deliver business services and support across the Territory. To enable this there will be five new regionally based business development officers, a smarter business solutions program and continuation of the successful NGO support program.
The regional business development officers will be located in Nhulunbuy, Katherine, Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, creating a network of business support to ensure advancement of regional entrepreneurs, business and economic opportunities. Business development officers will be the go-to people for businesses in the regions. They will be supported by a training team and will have a toolkit to enable them to assist businesses to start, run and grow. They will travel regularly to towns and communities in their regions to engage directly with remote businesses.
The Smarter Business Solutions Program represents an enhancement and redesign of the ecoBiz NT program. Continuing with the intent of the former program, smarter business solutions provide greater flexibility. The Country Liberals government will be supporting innovative business solutions that reduce costs or improve competitiveness through operational, energy, water and waste efficiency measures. The Country Liberals government is all about reducing the cost of doing business.
The NGO Support Program recognises and supports the significant contribution this sector plays within the community in the provision of goods and services, employment opportunities and economic generation. Support under this program will focus on corporate governance, financial and commercial literacy, as well as management practices and processes that improve sustainability and accountability. The program will also support development of social enterprises, driving new revenue streams for NGOs. The program will continue to enhance the good work done through the 2014-15 pilot program developed and delivered in collaboration with the Department of Business and the Department of the Chief Minister.
The second new initiative is Business in the Bush, which is funded through Budget 2015-16 at $2m per annum for three years. Business in the Bush is an impressive suite of six interconnected programs to support business start-ups, improve the sustainability of Indigenous businesses and increase Indigenous employment participation.
The Giles Country Liberals government Business in the Bush package will grow and strengthen business enterprise and sustainable job opportunities through six key programs. The first is the Bush Business Support and Growth program aimed at increasing Indigenous business start-ups and sustaining existing Indigenous businesses.
The Indigenous Business Tender Support program helps position Indigenous enterprises to compete and win tenders, and is driven through the recent procurement reforms. This program has been trialled for the last 12 months and has demonstrated high take-up and success.
The third part is the Business Technology Enabler program, which aims to improve small to medium enterprises’ market penetration through better use of technology. Mobile technology uptake is high in the bush and there is a range of IT possibilities that will be specific to each business. For example, streamlining back office operations or improved business presence via social media. Business directories and job profiles are tried and tested initiatives that will be expanded to include communities identified in the Community Champions program.
The next is the Indigenous Workforce Mobility program, which will develop a mobile Indigenous workforce that can potentially work across a range of communities.
Finally, the Indigenous Employment program will support employers and workers in remote communities to find traineeships and opportunities for sustainable work, and job drive skill development.
The Country Liberals government’s programs are supporting new businesses to start, help secure essential contract work, utilise technology to improve businesses and provide valuable insight into the employment landscape in each town.
I turn to attracting skilled workers. Budget 2015-16 announces more than $400 000 in funding towards migration initatives to support Northern Territory businesses. This initiative will support the timely delivery of quality services to Territory businesses, employers and potential migrants through national and international marketing and promotion of Territory jobs, as well as initiatives to diversify the markets from which the Territory sources its skilled workers and migrants. These initiatives help Territory businesses to source workers for jobs they cannot fill locally.
I move to racing. The Darwin Cup is an iconic event and a highlight of the Territory’s sporting and tourism calendar. The event is much loved by locals and visitors alike who take the opportunity to frock up, relax with family and friends and enjoy our beautiful Dry Season weather. It is also an opportunity to showcase northern Australia as a top-class destination. Its impact on Territory tourism is well documented.
Budget 2015-16 delivers funding to the Darwin Turf Club to assist with construction of a pedestrian underpass at Fannie Bay Racecourse, and delivers support of $14.7m to the horse racing industry through Thoroughbred Racing of the NT.
The greyhound racing industry will also continue to be assisted with a $600 000 allocation.
I move to training. The Northern Territory government is committed to growing and skilling our workforce. Budget 2015-16 delivers $4.4m per annum ongoing from 2015-16 for The Training for the Future – Employer Support Scheme. The scheme will comprise three grants: a commencement grant of $1000 will be paid when an apprenticeship/traineeship contract is recorded with the Department of Business apprenticeship database; a completion grant of $2000 will be paid when the apprentice or trainee training record has been classified as completed in the database; and a recommended grant of $500 will be paid to an employer who employees an apprentice or trainee at some other point during their training. An example would be when an apprentice leaves the employment of a previous employer.
Other highlights include $1m, in partnership with the Australian government, to create 100 traineeships for Indigenous Territorians; $4.4m to Territory employers to support employment of apprentices and trainees; $41m, including Australian government funding, to registered training organisations to continue delivering skills training to Territorians; $22.4m to registered training organisations to continue supporting training for apprentices and trainees; $6.2m to continue support services for apprentices, trainees and employers; and $6m to continue assisting Territorians to achieve their first qualifications at Certificate III or above through private training providers.
Let me move to balanced regulation. Budget 2015-16 supports the Department of Business to deliver a balanced policy and regulatory framework that supports industry, business and community needs. Licensing NT will continue to administer the Territory’s licensing regimes for a range of gaming, liquor, racing, consumer and trading activities, including leading the development and coordination of alcohol policy and strategy across government to reduce alcohol-related harm.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $11.9m, including an additional $8.7m, for the Community Benefit Fund to provide community grants and continue gaming amelioration and research programs. In partnership with the Australia government, our government will also be delivering $1.7m to continue alcohol harm minimisation initiatives.
Budget 2015-16 also announces $7.2m to continue supporting Territory employers and workers to have safe workplaces and manage the Territory workers compensation and rehabilitation system.
Reducing red tape: regulatory costs have increased significantly over the past decade and are a barrier to growth and investment for the Northern Territory economy. Deloitte estimates that as at 2011 the cost of administering and complying with rules and regulations – both public sector regulations and the rules organisations impose on themselves – in the Northern Territory was approximately $4bn per annum. The Northern Territory is dominated by small business which can rarely afford staff to deal with unnecessary regulatory compliance. This means that efforts to reduce unnecessary regulatory costs are particularly important for the Territory economy. This budget delivers $450 000 to continue the work of the red tape abolition squad to make doing business and working in the Territory easier.
Budget 2015-16 also delivers $500 000 to continue procurement reforms to streamline processes and make it easier to do business with government.
Finally, I would like to dwell on the Asian Engagement and Trade portfolio. Asian Engagement, neglected by the previous government, is high on our agenda. We are the only capital city in Australia that is part of Asia and the only tropical capital city. Asia is our immediate neighbour and trade is something we will be concentrating on for the benefit of Territorians and the businesses which can ply their wares throughout Asia, both imports and exports.
Trade and investment are the Territory’s lifeblood. Our international economic ties, together with this government’s strong economic management, have propelled the Northern Territory to become one of the fastest-growing regions in Australia. Budget 2015-16 delivers $3.4m to sustain and build strong relationships with our Asian partners and promote international trade and investment, including a major trade expo to be held in 2016.
There are so many other initiatives in this budget but time prevents me from discussing them. I could talk about the positive things all afternoon. Suffice to say that last year’s budget was very good and this one is better. For those who will be poring over the budget papers, consider carefully reading through them, listen carefully to what people say and compare the two.
The Giles government is very proud of this budget given what we inherited from the previous Labor government. Being able to turn around what we inherited is a real credit to not only the Treasurer and the Chief Minister, but to my Cabinet colleagues and our parliamentary wing. To take a projected debt of $5.5bn and have a reduced debt in 2018-19 of approximately $2.6bn is very good news for the Territory.
It is good news for my children and my grandchildren because we are in this House to ensure our children, our grandchildren and those who follow have a bright future.
When I talk to people in business – on my way back from Gallipoli yesterday I had meetings with senior business people in Singapore who are also friends – the future is bright. They are excited about some of the things I discussed and I think they will be visiting the Territory very soon.
As Minister for Asian Engagement and Trade I believe I have a quality product and a quality government to sell. This government is keen to attract investment, do business, make sure the Territory has a bright future and make sure our children have a bright future, including the children of those opposite.
I commend Budget 2015-16 to the House and ask all members to note what is in it. I ask those in the community to note what is in the budget and to support this bill.
Mr CHANDLER (Police, Fire and Emergency Services): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I support the Northern Territory Budget 2015-16. As Minister for Police, Fire and Emergency Services, Education, Transport, Infrastructure and Veterans Support, I have collective expenditure of more than $2.4bn.
I congratulate the Treasurer on a responsible budget which recognises the hard work completed over the past two years by this government, and outlines the challenges that lay ahead to pay back Labor’s debt.
The Country Liberals government came to power in 2012 staring down a massive projected debt. We stopped the waste and evaluated government spending. We now have purposeful spending on projects aimed at creating synergies across the economy. We are focused on a more sustainable economy aimed at maintaining our great lifestyle in the Northern Territory.
The Northern Territory has turned the debt corner and no longer is it a stone around our neck. Net debt is now projected to be $2.6bn by 2018-19, less than half Labor’s projected $5.5bn debt.
The net debt to revenue ratio that Labor projected to reach 98% has been slashed to less than 40%. This is nothing short of astounding and has been achieved while delivering quality services and investing in much needed infrastructure.
The difference is stark between our financially sensible position focused on building the economy and expanding the Territory’s economic base. This budget is about making life simpler, safer and smarter for all Territorians by connecting people and creating jobs.
The Country Liberals government is making the necessary decisions today to ensure we capture the opportunities of tomorrow. Budget 2015-16 will make Territorians’ lives simpler, safer and smarter. I am proud to outline to the House budget highlights for my portfolios.
In regard to Police, Fire and Emergency Services, the Country Liberals government is committed to a growing suite of measures to keep Territorians safe at home, work and in the community. Territorians can trust the Country Liberals to take law and order seriously. Our policies are delivering, driving down crime and cutting alcohol consumption. Budget 2015-16 provides a record $401.8m for the Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services.
The Northern Territory tri-service is undeniably world-class and is now ably led by Commissioner Reece Kershaw and Deputy Commissioner Mark Payne. I congratulate these two distinguished police officers and wish them well as they reform and renew our excellent services.
Territorians can trust our government to resource the Northern Territory Police Force properly and be accountable about the resourcing. Under Labor police numbers were calculated using a head count. This crude practice over-inflated police numbers and led to a misrepresentation of real resources servicing the public.
The Commissioner has now changed the counting methodology to full-time equivalent, or FTEs. We now count one police officer as one full-time operational police officer. In the past, part-time and inoperative members were caught up in this counting. We want Territorians to know how many police there are, and this new system will achieve that while bringing consistency to government departments.
In addition to improving our counting system is our commitment to increase the number of FTE sworn police officers by 120 during this term of government. This is a serious and rock-solid commitment which is well and truly on track.
Northern Territory police will have at least 120 additional FTE sworn police officers by August 2016, guaranteed. Budget 2015-16 delivers $8.7m to help achieve this significant commitment and three recruitment squads will commence in the coming months. In addition, the Country Liberals government has committed to maintain all Commonwealth-funded positions as part of the immigration detention centre program. I have heard of no such commitment from Labor, only quibbling over numbers and buckets of funding.
Let me be crystal clear, Northern Territory police officers are Northern Territory police officers whether they are funded today, tomorrow or next year from one bucket of funding or another. They are ours, and we will count them and support them. We will recruit them, train them and count them now and after any temporary Commonwealth funding ends.
Earlier this month Recruit Squad 125 saw the latest batch of 28 police officers graduate after completing 27 weeks of training and their Diploma of Public Safety. We are proud of these 19 men and nine women who have been deployed across the Northern Territory and I wish them well in their careers. I also wish them a safe journey.
The success of this government’s policies, along with the hard work of our police, has seen crime reduced across the Territory. By ensuring we see more police officers on the front line we will continue to see great results in community safety. For example, there were 1274 criminal charges for property crime from Strike Force Trident in Darwin and Palmerston in the first three-and-a-half months of this year; 257 domestic violence orders from Strike Force Viridian in Darwin and Palmerston; 548 property crime prosecution files from Strike Force Vega in Alice Springs in less than a year; 1156.5 L of alcohol destroyed by the Divisional Support Unit in Alice Springs and surrounding camps in the last month-and-a-half; and huge inroads in the fight against domestic violence made by members of the Strike Force Disruptor in the Barkly.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $2m to recruit and support an additional 13 Aboriginal Community Police Officers. ACPOs play a vital role in the engagement between Indigenous communities and mainstream policing, as well as offering an invaluable grassroots tool to fight crime in town camps and remote communities. I look forward to working with Commissioner Kershaw to see the ACPO ranks in the Northern Territory grow over the next year. The next ACPO squad will commence at the training college on 25 May this year.
Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services is committed to growing our Indigenous workforce and meeting the NT government’s visionary commitment of 16% Indigenous employment by 2020. On 20 February 2015 the Indigenous Employment and Career Development Strategy 2015-2020 was endorsed by Cabinet. Of the Northern Territory’s population 30% is Indigenous, and the Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services will strive to have a workforce which represents this population.
This Country Liberals government is committed to investing in capabilities and resourcing of Northern Territory Police to ensure police officers and the people of the Northern Territory are kept safe. In light of operational requirements and the increased national alert level of high, Budget 2015-16 allocates $1.69m for new protective equipment for frontline officers, including 835 load-bearing vests for frontline officers which will provide enhanced ballistic protection as well as ergonomic support for the equipment carried. The funding will also supply 35 Remington R5 rifles and eight SIG SAUER 718 semi-automatic rifles to ensure our tactical units are well equipped and versatile. This investment will contribute to ensuring both the safety of our community and the police officers who protect us each day.
As a proud Palmerston member of the Country Liberals government I am happy to announce the allocation of $600 000 funding in Budget 2015-16 for the establishment of additional CCTV cameras in Palmerston, including monitoring support. The key to the success of public safety, the CCTV system ensures adequate coverage of identified antisocial behaviour and other criminal hot spots. CCTV monitoring allows police to be directed to crimes and other incidents in real time. These additional cameras will have a significant impact on crime detection and prevention, and will assist in the prosecution of offenders. The location of the new cameras will follow identified community need, as well as areas where the added infrastructure will be most effective. Anecdotal evidence clearly shows that the installation of CCTV cameras has a direct impact on antisocial behaviour and community crime. I look forward to the big impact this additional resource will have on crime in Palmerston to complement the hard work of Palmerston police.
Budget 2015-16 also supports the Northern Territory emergency services, with $625 000 allocated for the establishment of the Emergency Management Training Unit, the EMTU, within the service. This allocation will revolutionise the capacity of the Emergency Management Training Unit to provide coordinated and contemporary emergency management training to a range of government personnel and emergency response groups across the Territory. The EMTU will be responsible for delivering a range of training to personnel in government and other organisations engaged in response and recovery operations within the emergency management field.
One of the most exciting benefits of this initiative will be the development of subject matter experts in various emergency management disciplines across the Northern Territory who will be utilised to deliver a range of training packages. Through its work the EMTU will focus on best practice, strong partnerships and a service-based culture, and in doing this will significantly contribute to the safety of Territorians during times of emergency response and recovery.
The Country Liberals government has allocated $620 000 in Budget 2015-16 to fund the Central Northern Territory Fire Alarm System Transmissions, NTFAST. The software and hardware upgrade this financial year is part of a three-year $3.2m program. NTFAST is an innovative, mission-critical real time fire alarm monitoring system developed by the Northern Territory Fire and Rescue Service, and is acknowledged as leading-edge technology by the Australian IT industry. The NTFAST system ensures approximately 1000 buildings in the Northern Territory, worth billions of dollars, are protected, monitored and responded to on a 24-hour-a-day basis. NTFAST provides vital building information to responding firefighters through detailed knowledge of each site monitored.
The Country Liberals is committed to community safety, and this additional funding will enable the enhancement and maintenance of building and occupant safety through information technology and upgrades to the NTFAST fire alarm monitoring system.
Northern Territory Police, Fire and Emergency Services is well serviced by Budget 2015-16. I am proud of the initiatives announced through this budget, as well as the achievements of our strong and proud tri-service.
Moving to education, today’s students are the future of the Northern Territory. They will fuel not only the Northern Territory but also my passion: to ensure all young Territorians have a bright future. The work being achieved by teachers, principals and support staff, parents and school councils across the Northern Territory is amazing. There is nothing I love more than visiting our schools, both in the suburbs and the far-flung corners of the Northern Territory. Each school is unique and comes with its own challenges and, of course, strengths. I would be a brave minister to try to suggest I understand exactly what schools in Alice Springs, Gunbalanya, Tennant Creek or Nightcliff want and need. This is the beauty of global school budgets and the autonomy delivered to capable and passionate school councils and principals.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $1.012bn for education in the Northern Territory. This funding demonstrates the Country Liberal government’s commitment to education and the development of our schools. In contrast, the last year of the Labor government in the Northern Territory delivered a total education budget of only $898m.
Budget 2015-16 focuses on infrastructure, services, and continued support for students and schools to improve their learning outcomes and create better employment pathways. Regional expenditure, excluding infrastructure, includes more than $236m for schools in Darwin and the northern suburbs, $124.5m for schools in the Palmerston and Litchfield regions, over $102m for schools in Central Australia and almost $230m in the remainder of the Northern Territory.
There is $368m allocated directly to government schools in the global school budget – this pool plus the $57.5m to meet centralised school costs in 2015. The global school budget pool includes an additional $23m over four years to support schools with the implementation of global school budgets and the transition towards the student needs-based funding model. This brings the total additional transitional funding to $40m over four years.
Global school budgets have given schools a new level of autonomy which has resulted in decisions being made by schools for schools. Labor supports centralised top-heavy bureaucracy full of waste and corporate structures. The Country Liberals government has delivered global school budgets in schools across the Northern Territory and the program is now bearing excellent results.
As a result of global school budgets, almost every school in the Northern Territory is fully funded and resourced based on the needs of students. Nine schools are still finalising budgets. As promised, every government school in the Northern Territory has received more funding per student than in 2014. Most schools are much better off, and any school that has achieved a surplus will retain those funds for the benefit of the school in future years. Previously surplus staffing funds were returned to the department’s central funding pool.
School councils collectively had more than $39m in cash holdings in their bank accounts after all their liabilities, grant and operational funding commitments. This $39m can now be spent according to the needs of individual schools as decided by school councils and principals. More and more schools are applying for independent public school status following the successful transition of the first six schools to independent public schools in 2015.
Budget 2015-16 provides $200m in operational and capital subsidies for non-government schools across the Territory, including $145m in Commonwealth Students First funding. Unfortunately, the Labor and union scare campaign over the past few years has seen a dramatic reduction in the number of students enrolled in our public schools and a stark increase in Catholic and independent school enrolments. A total of 749 students have moved from the public school system – that includes 237 from Nhulunbuy – over the same period. Non-government enrolments went up by 417, largely in Darwin and Palmerston.
There is no justification for this. Our Territory government schools make us proud every day and are well-funded and resourced. Territory parents can be confident that more than ever our schools are funded well and resourced according to the needs of the students. The reduction in student numbers in some schools has naturally resulted in a reduction in the budget allocation which is based on enrolment and attendance. The Territory government only funds non-government schools 23.25% of the normal cost of the Territory public school student. Therefore, government school costs have reduced with the movement of students to the non-government schools. However, make no mistake, we want our public schools full of Territory kids and we are building more public schools. We want parents to be confident in our schools and want Labor and the union to stop slandering our school system. If student numbers increase so will budgets; that is an ironclad guarantee.
Budget 2015-16 also delivers $700 000 to strengthen the quality and effectiveness of education for students at Northern Territory government schools, following the review into middle years schooling, through stronger leadership, clear vision, transition support from primary to senior years and better data to monitor and improve performance.
An amount of $1m is allocated towards implementation of the 10-year strategic plan for international education, including the operation of an international education and training hub in the Territory. An amount of $2m will support the implementation of the independent public schools initiative which empowers schools with proven governance and leadership capabilities to tailor their school programs to suit their students’ needs and improve outcomes.
We are committed to expenditure on new systems and equipment for those working on the front line. We have already replaced 2700 teacher laptops and are delivering funding for important frontline upgrades to make working lives easier.
Budget 2015-16 provides practical cost-of-living support for students and families through $6.6m for the $150 Back to School Payment Scheme for each student, offsetting costs for school items such as books and uniforms; $4.5m to continue enabling all children in the year before full-time schooling to access high-quality preschool education, including in non-government schools, for an extra three hours a week to a total of 15 hours, across the Territory. No other state or territory jurisdiction offers the same support as the Territory government in that regard.
There is $6m to continue the NT Early Childhood Services Subsidy for long day and family day care services, and $1.2m over four years to establish a neighbourhood activity centre at Sanderson Middle School to provide culturally diverse activities and mentoring to encourage greater school social cohesion and engagement between young people, senior Territorians and the broader multicultural community of Darwin’s northern suburbs.
Budget 2015-16 provides $8.2m to improve Indigenous student outcomes as part of the government’s 10-year Indigenous Education Strategy, in addition to $38.1m in Commonwealth funding through the Stronger Futures national partnership agreement. Remote Indigenous students will also be supported by the new $11.6m NT Open Education Centre, with $3m support from INPEX. The centre will be a state-of-the-art facility with technology and teaching to meet the specialist education needs of senior secondary students accessing distance learning. The centre will also deliver skills and training packages in remote communities with funding support from INPEX.
Budget 2015-16 provides $152.4m for a range of education infrastructure projects which include significant investment in special education infrastructure, like $30.5m to continue construction of the new Henbury School for high-support special needs students. The tender for this project was awarded this month for a design/construct contract totalling $31.5m. There is $21.35m for construction of stage one of a new special school in Palmerston with a capacity for 84 enrolments for preschool and primary students. Stage one will include all core facilities, general learning areas, multipurpose areas and a pool. There is also $2.5m for Kintore Street School in Katherine to provide a new administration facility as the final stage of the redevelopment and expansion of a special school.
The budget delivers $20m, including $9.1m in Commonwealth funding, to construct a new state-of-the-art regional boarding facility at Nhulunbuy as part of a $49.6m package to provide remote students with improved access to secondary education. Design of the facility has seen extensive consultation with stakeholders which has resulted in a number of novel and culturally appropriate design ideas.
There is $33m allocated in the budget for repairs and maintenance and $11.6m for minor new works for schools across the Territory.
Other budget highlights include $5.5m allocated for a new child and family centre at Larapinta Primary School providing up to 70 new long day childcare places by July 2016, along with other integrated services for children and their families; $4m to construct a new 44-place, 88 enrolment, preschool at Braitling Primary School to replace Teppa Hill Preschool; $3m over three years to install tempered air systems in the assembly areas of Anula, Wagaman and Wulagi Primary Schools, including $2.12m to refurbish Wulagi Primary School and redevelop the open plan design of the school to maximise learning flexibility, and redevelopment of the front of the school, including parent access areas. There is $2m in Commonwealth funding for a childcare centre in Kalkarindji and $1.3m to increase capacity at the Bees Creek Preschool to meet demand growth.
Budget 2015-16 demonstrates the Country Liberal government’s commitment to education in the Northern Territory. Our schools will continue to grow and the services they deliver will continue to improve. I am proud to be the Education minister in a budget which delivers $1.012bn for education in the Northern Territory.
Budget 2015-16 delivers a record transport infrastructure spend of $587m which includes $496.102m for capital works and minor new works across the Northern Territory, and $78.5m for repairs and maintenance across transport infrastructure.
This spending will see an additional 219 km of sealed roads across the Territory, along with 60 km of sealed road upgrades, 68 km of unsealed upgrades and 430 km of national network and Territory roads reseals. This work is often undertaken by great Territory small businesses and provides a steady, ongoing stream of work to provide certainty to tradesmen. The budget also provides $10m in grants for the Regional Economic Infrastructure Fund. These grants have been established to advance the development of economic infrastructure in regional and remote areas, which will enable development of real sustainable local jobs and new or increased growth in business enterprises.
The grants will provide one-off financial assistance to Indigenous organisations, shires, local councils or a consortium of these for the benefit of the Northern Territory.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $33.5m over three years to seal the Pickertaramoor Road on Melville Island from Pickertaramoor to the Paru turnoff, known as Three Ways. Sealing the Pickertaramoor Road will support the new timber industry on Melville Island, and will provide more reliable access during the Wet Season for residents on the islands. The project also supports jobs, especially Indigenous employment on the Tiwi Islands. The budget provides $20m in Territory funding to improve Outback Way roads, along with a $12m Australian government contribution.
Billed as Australia’s longest short cut from Cairns to Perth, the Outback Way traverses the most remote parts of Australia and is of critical importance to the Northern Territory economy. It runs 2800 km west to east from Laverton in Western Australia to Winton in Queensland. There is $28.5m to complete the sealing of Litchfield Park Road and construct the Lower Finniss River bridge. This will slash travel times to the park for locals and provide an alternative all-weather tourist loop. Tourism NT estimates that sealing the Litchfield Park loop, including the new bridge, will deliver a much needed annual economy benefit of $14.4m.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $25m to complete sealing the Mereenie Inner Loop on Larapinta Drive. This project will seal 43 km of Larapinta Drive to complete the inner loop of the Red Centre Way tourist drive. Tourism NT estimates an annual economic benefit from sealing the road of $16.25m through visitors deciding to extend their stay in the region. It is also hoped that with increased visitor traffic the sealing will provide new employment opportunities for Aboriginal people in the area made famous by the paintings of Albert Namatjira.
The budget includes $13.5m allocated over four years, including $4m in 2015-16, to commence upgrades and seal works on the Roper Highway from Fizzer Creek to Ngukurr. This will improve all-weather access to the Ngukurr community, mining companies, pastoral stations and tourists, and Territorians can enjoy our great recreational fishing opportunities.
These works will improve all-year access for food, fuel and medical supplies from Darwin to Ngukurr, and improve driver safety and lane separation. An additional $10m over four years, including $7m in Budget 2015-16, has been provided to continue upgrading the Tanami Road. This will involve extending the sealed section of this road towards Yuendumu to improve access for communities, pastoralists and the mining sector.
Budget 2015-16 delivers $10m for rural arterial roads across the Northern Territory and is aimed at strengthening and widening selected sections of the rural arterial road network. The rural arterial network provides vital links to remote and regional parts of the Northern Territory. These roads are key freight routes and connect local communities and businesses with the rest of the Territory.
Many of these roads were built during the 1960s and 1970s and are nearing the end of their economic life. This is impacting on these corridors managing any significant growth in traffic volume.
Mrs FINOCCHIARO: A point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker! Pursuant to Standing Order 77, I seek an extension of time for the member for Brennan.
Motion agreed to.
Mr CHANDLER: Thank you, member for Drysdale.
This new funding will assist in upgrading these roads to current standards so they are capable of delivering an efficient level of long-term service to road users.
Budget 2015-16 provides $12.5m for the Bridges Renewal Programme. This program is jointly funded by the Australian and Territory governments to strengthen deficiencies in bridges in remote areas, remove load restrictions and improve productivity of the network.
The Bridges Renewal Programme, funded equally by the Australian and Northern Territory governments, funds projects on the Northern Territory’s rural highway network where strength-deficient bridges restrict heavy vehicle loads on key freight routes. The project comprises the strengthening of six bridges on the Tablelands Highway between the Barkly Highway and the Barkly Stock Route.
Transport infrastructure spending includes a further $3m to upgrade the Kambolgie Creek Crossing on Gimbat Road in Kakadu. This is an important access road and should be a game changer for locals and tourism in the area. It will provide better all-year access for visitors to the world-class natural attractions offered in Kakadu National Park.
Some $1m has been allocated for upgrades to Little Horse Creek and Big Horse Creek on the Victoria Highway to reduce the annual average time of closures to less than 12 hours. The project is jointly funded by the Territory and Australian governments at a total cost of $35.5m. The Victoria Highway is part of the national highway network and is the only sealed link between the Northern Territory and Western Australia.
A further $1m is allocated for Maningrida transport access upgrades which will provide improved freight handling facilities for the community during the Wet Season.
The Department of Transport is a forward thinking department with the best interests of developing the Territory at its heart. The department has a total operating budget of $249m in Budget 2015-16 including $47.8m to continue providing transport services, including buses and ferries, across the Northern Territory.
An amount of $1.49m is allocated for resourcing to enable the department to respond to new and high-priority capital projects in the Territory. This follows a review of resourcing within the Transport Infrastructure Planning division of the Department of Transport that identified current resourcing will not enable them to provide well-planned and managed infrastructure as stated in the Framing the Future blueprint. The review identified that while the roads program had increased over the years there had been no increase in staffing levels.
Some $1.41m, including $1.1m in ICT investment, is allocated to develop a system to increase transactional access to MVR services by external third-party providers. This will allow providers such as Australia Post to expand the range of MVR services they can deliver on behalf of the Northern Territory government and thereby improve the customer experience and access to services, particularly in remote communities where there is an increased demand. It will also create business and employment opportunities.
There is $1m allocated over two years for infrastructure-related expenditure associated with the Mt Isa to Tennant Creek rail spur project. Infrastructure is a key economic enabler for the Northern Territory. It is essential for longer term development of the Northern Territory rail network to undertake planning to establish a rail corridor.
Establishing a corridor will provide certainty for the future rail connections to the east from Mt Isa to Tennant Creek. This project is receiving serious attention from the Country Liberals government and we are engaging with the Queensland government.
There is some $1m over two years for infrastructure-related expenditure associated with the Stuart Highway duplication in Alice Springs through Heavitree Gap, which I know will be of great interest to Alice Springs members.
In addition, $720 000 is allocated for RAAF Base Tindal to operate as an alternative destination for international carriers servicing Darwin. As all members know, Darwin International Airport is a key gateway between Australia, Asia and beyond. It has seen continued growth over the last two years, with a number of international airlines providing vital connections to assist with trade, tourism and cultural links with Asia and beyond.
An amount of $410 000 will enable the development of a regional bus service on the Tiwi Islands. This will allow remote Territorians to access public transport services they have not previously been able to and will also contribute to the development of the business enterprises currently being developed on the islands, including opportunities for increased tourism.
The sum of $200 000 is to support the development and delivery of the Northern Territory Aviation Industry and Services Strategy. This additional funding will allow the department to more effectively undertake a range of aviation development activities which support the economic and social development of the Territory.
Transport infrastructure is a key focus of Budget 2015-16 and every major arterial road in the Northern Territory receives investment. The Department of Transport makes this government proud as it continues to focus on strategic future work as well as growing and improving core activities like the bus network and the MVR. Next year will undoubtedly be a big one for the department and it will be well supported by this excellent budget.
Moving to infrastructure, it makes me very proud to be Minister for Infrastructure in a Country Liberals government which is committed to a $1.626bn infrastructure program in Budget 2015-16. That $1.626bn will be focused on delivering and investing in critical public infrastructure across the Northern Territory. This record infrastructure program has been increased by more than $490m, providing additional spending to expand hospital facilities and support major industries like tourism, and increase regional infrastructure. I am pleased to outline the highlights of this record investment today.
This includes: $670.9m in capital works; $211.2m for repairs and maintenance; $77.3m for minor new works; $19.5m towards bringing on Territory land release at various regional communities; and $42.4m in flood mitigation works in Darwin and Katherine.
In the health sector, $80.35m is being invested across the Territory with $45.25m towards continuing upgrade works at Royal Darwin Hospital. There is $40m going towards outpatients and public areas and $5.25m for the paediatric ward and bathroom amenities refurbishment at the ambulatory centre. Palmerston Regional Hospital will receive an additional $25m towards its continued construction, and the Katherine Ambulance Centre will be relocated at a cost of $7.6m. Upgrades of the fire safety system at Gove District Hospital will cost $2.5m.
As I have already outlined, Budget 2015-16 delivers significant expenditure in education and transport infrastructure. The budget delivers $20m for improvements to Richardson Park; $12.65m for Motorsports NT priorities; $2m for ovals in remote communities; $0.4m for a master plan for the Hidden Valley complex; and $0.6m for a sports master plan across the Territory. The budget also delivers $2m towards Alice Springs track and field facilities and a further $2m for netball facilities. All these projects support the Developing the North strategy and create real jobs and opportunities for local contractors and small business.
The Department of Infrastructure will be investigating new procurement methodologies to ensure government delivers this record investment and ensures a consistent pipeline of works for local industry. This will be expanded on when I take a budget road show across the Territory in May. The Department of Infrastructure will be holding information sessions throughout the Territory over the coming months to inform industry of new procurement initiatives and tender processes. As work continues to roll-out across the construction industry in the coming year, I look forward to reporting on the progress of these projects.
Budget 2015-16 continues to support veterans and their families by providing a community engagement service to better represent the issues faced by veterans and to support integration of Defence families into the Territory. The Chief Minister’s Anzac Spirit Study Tour continues to promote the importance of Anzac Day and offers an exciting opportunity for secondary students to visit a battlefield of significance to Australia and the Anzacs.
The Northern Territory government is supporting Operation – Bring Them Home which aims to repatriate 25 Australian servicemen, including one Territorian killed in the Vietnam War who remains buried in Singapore and one in Malaysia. I recently travelled to Canberra to meet with the federal Minister for Veterans’ Affairs to discuss the Northern Territory government’s support of Operation – Bring Them Home, in particular the repatriation of Corporal Reg Hillier. I am pleased to say the federal minister and the Australian government are progressing consideration of this sensitive issue. The federal minister is very sympathetic to the cause and clearly understands the Northern Territory government’s position on the matter.
We have a plan for the Territory. We have cut government waste and debt and have grown the private sector, and our plan looks ahead by making deliberate decisions. Our plan binds our society into a more sustainable economy while protecting our lifestyle and social fabric. Our plan benefits all Territorians. Our plan is careful management of our wealth and is about making our life simpler, safer and smarter.
As a minister and the member for Brennan, I am unbelievably proud of everything that falls under this collective expenditure of more than $2.4bn in my portfolios of Police, Fire and Emergency Services, Education, Transport, Infrastructure and Veterans Support.
I was brought up to believe you should leave a place in better condition than you found it, and I think the Country Liberals are doing just that.
Mr HIGGINS (Sport and Recreation): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I congratulate the Treasurer on delivering a great budget which significantly boosts the Territory’s much-loved sport and recreation, arts and cultural sectors. The government has received some criticism for the spending in these areas, but I ask honourable members and members of the public and media to remember where we have come from.
Others in this debate said when we came to government we were facing damage created by 11 years of Labor economic mismanagement. That is not an illusion. Independent experts said the Northern Territory was heading towards a dark place if Labor had continued to mismanage the coffers.
It is remarkable and a testament to some keen and responsible economic management that this government has turned the debt corner. As the Treasurer stated, debt is less than half what Labor would have racked up by now if still in power. Thanks to our sound economic management over the last two budgets our economy has surpassed expectation, growing by 6.5% this financial year.
Because of our disciplined approach to managing the Territory’s coffers we can afford a huge program to deliver quality services and investments in much-needed infrastructure that will pay dividends both now and into the future. There is no doubt Budget 2015-16 is aimed at making Territorians’ lives simpler, safer and smarter.
In my portfolio of Sport and Recreation there is a raft of appropriate spending on both infrastructure and programs. The cynics may label our allocations as unnecessary or indulgent; however, I believe in the power of sport and active recreation to enhance the community’s wellbeing. During my time as minister I have seen and heard how far-reaching, diverse and inspiring the business of sport and recreation is across the Territory. This ranges from families using the Sport Voucher or Learn to Swim Voucher for the first time for their young children, to softball competitions in remote communities, through to Jeremy Hayward and Tom O’Neill-Thorne, who were worthy recipients of the NT Sportsperson and Junior Sportsperson of the Year respectively at this year’s NT Sports Awards.
It also ranges from people who use local parks and reserves for walking and exercise through to our elite teams such as Territory Thunder, who I was pleased to see win their first NEAFL game of the season against Southport at Marrara, and again last week against Redlands Bombers, irrespective of how close that might have been.
As Sport and Recreation minister I want to see more people benefit from participating in sport and recreation using new and improved facilities. This is especially the case for children, our sporting future and the next generation of community leaders. This government wants as many children as possible to be physically active and playing sport. Not only is it good for their bodies, it is good for their minds. However, sport and recreation comes at a cost and there are many demands on the Sport and Recreation budget.
Whilst this budget provides a great boost to facilities across the Territory, we will continue to ensure we get the balance right so we have the best mix we can in organisational development, participation programs, events and places for people to play.
While all these fantastic investments will deliver great opportunities for Territorians in sport and recreation, whatever their chosen activity, the pressure of budgets for sporting services and infrastructure continues. We need to get the balance right and we believe we are doing exactly that. We still need to ensure that current and emerging needs in the sport and recreation sector are identified and prioritised so the Sport and Recreation budget can deliver the best possible value for taxpayers’ dollars.
That is why an overall sport master plan has received funding of $600 000. This will allow us to consider current facilities across the Territory and the most strategic upgrades required to meet future needs. It will also allow us to look at the critical issues facing peak sporting bodies, regional associations and clubs, remembering these are predominantly volunteer organisations, and work through where the resources should be best allocated.
This is not an exercise in applying more oil to the squeakiest wheel or meeting everyone’s needs, but a chance to really prioritise what emphasis is best for the sport and recreation sector in the future. If you are a mum or a dad, a coach, official or one of those valued volunteers running the sausage sizzle on a Saturday, we want to get your views on what emphasis we should have and how we should fund the Territory sport and recreation sector.
The master plan process and eventual product will also give us a better positioning tool for the future development of our links with sport in Asia. It will give us a comprehensive strategic direction to match up with tourism and northern development opportunities which exist through the enhancement and promotion of sport and recreation.
There is also $400 000 to develop a thorough facilities master plan for Hidden Valley to ensure ongoing development of this government-owned property is planned and meets the needs of motor sports and the community, and makes the best possible use of the available land.
These master plans are for the future, but what we are doing now is just as important. To play sport you need somewhere to play, and Budget 2015-16 provides a huge boost to the quality of sporting infrastructure across the Territory. We have already revealed expenditure across a few sports, including more than $12m for upgrades to motor sport facilities across the Territory. Motor sport as a whole is equivalent to all field sports combined. It is a big part of the lives of many in the Territory, and we are investing to make facilities safer as well as more accessible including more than $8m for Hidden Valley; $2.85m in upgrades for the Central Australian Drag Racing Association, the Arunga Park Speedway in Alice Springs and the Alice Springs Karting Club; $1m for Katherine facilities; and $500 000 for the Tennant Creek Speedway. The Top End Motor Cross Club will also receive $250 000 for track and lighting upgrades to help them meet Australian safety standards.
Other announcements made include $2m to improve netball facilities in Alice Springs. Not only will this help local players, but it will be appreciated by Alice Springs Masters Games netballers when they return in 2016. There is $2m for an athletics track in Alice Springs, the second synthetic track in the NT; $1.5m for a much-needed upgrade to the velodrome on McMillans Road; and $2m for upgrades to lawn bowls facilities at Fannie Bay and Marrara.
Not previously announced is a $20m investment for much-needed upgrades at Richardson Park. While NT Rugby League recently left the venue due to the cost of upkeep of an ageing stadium, this upgrade will bring back to life one of Darwin’s most traditional sporting venues and make available a great venue capable of hosting top-class fixtures extending to soccer and rugby union as well as a variety of community events.
With TIO Stadium at Marrara now being used all year round by AFL, either for local NTFL games or by Territory Thunder, it makes sense to start developing a dedicated rectangular stadium capable of holding our larger events.
In other allocations we know how important community ovals are, and $2m has been earmarked to upgrade remote community ovals. This is in addition to the department’s facilities grants program, which can provide up to $100 000 over two years for facilities and capital equipment projects.
Alice Springs will also benefit from $1.5m in funding to develop a new lawn bowls green, and there will be lighting at the golf course.
As you know, horse riding is popular across the Territory and Riding for the Disabled provides a valuable service. I am pleased that a total of $500 000, $250 000 each, has been allocated to the Alice Springs and Darwin centres for upgrades.
Katherine golf course has been on the same site for a long time, and over 25 years ago made the progression from dirt scrapes to grass greens. The budget provides $820 000 for the golf course to continue its development.
It was a great coup for the Territory to be selected to host the Davis Cup in July, and this budget provides $8m towards establishment of a regional tennis centre at Marrara. International Tennis Federation-standard courts provide opportunities for regional and age group tennis events attracting juniors and other players to Darwin, especially in our wonderful Dry Season.
The benefits of regional tennis events across the Territory will be significant. As you know, Southeast Asia has a growing population, and the future of the NT is inextricably linked to Asia. Growing new links with our neighbours not only promotes social development but also economic development.
The Palmerston Satellite City BMX Club will get a new all-weather cover for its track thanks to a $1.8m announcement in this budget. This is in addition to the new roof recently put in place at the Jingili BMX Club in Marrara.
I will not let the funding of sports facilities and infrastructure go to waste. We will ensure there are measureable outcomes and conditions around our funding aimed at meeting the needs of the community. If our conditions are not met the funding will be allocated to another sport. Our master plan process will work on good governance of organisations and will emphasise the importance and necessity of responsible expenditure.
I am sure the member for Nelson would be interested to know that plans for a pool in the rural area have advanced. The project is on the design list. This may not sound like much, but members would know once a project is on the design list it indicates a commitment to proceed. The reason it is not in this budget is design and construction estimates need to be completed, but I am heartened it is on this important list
It is not just about facilities. I spoke earlier about our wonderful Sport and Learn to Swim Vouchers. Cost can be a barrier to participation and vouchers ensure all parents can afford the cost of registration and other fees for their children to participate. Last year this scheme was extended to include recreation and cultural activities, and this budget will continue to fund this excellent initiative for Territory families and sport and recreation organisations.
Local community clubs are the main avenues for kids to participate in sport, and this government will again allocate nearly $200 000 for clubs to access small grants to provide equipment or other activities. The cap on individual grants in this program was recently lifted from $3000 to $5000, and peak sporting bodies and active recreation organisations will benefit by an allocation of $5.6m in the budget.
We will continue to support national level sporting events in the Territory, including games with the Parramatta Eels and the Melbourne Demons. There is also $120 000 to bring a four nations women’s hockey pre-Olympic games tournament match to Darwin in 2016. We have a strong tradition of hockey in the Territory and this exciting event builds and extends that tradition.
There is also an allocation of $600 000 to support Tennis Australia to bring the Davis Cup quarter final to Darwin.
These are amazing coups for the Northern Territory, but we also have our own homegrown event which is growing in popularity. Last year the first ever Mitchell Street Mile was a great success with Craig Mottram and Bridey Delaney among the star athletes participating. The budget provides funding for the event this year as part of the Festivals NT calendar.
Finally, there is continued funding of our Northern Territory Institute of Sport, which was created by a CLP government 19 years ago. Recently we had James McManus score a try for the Newcastle Knights in the NRL, Karyn Bailey has been selected in the Australian netball squad, Jeremy Hayward collected a silver medal with the Kookaburras at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup international hockey tournament in Malaysia, and Brooke Peris scored a goal in the Kookaburras 3:2 win over New Zealand in the eight nations Hawkes Bay Cup. All of these talented sportspeople had NTIS scholarships and the benefit of starting their journey towards sporting success through the institute.
The NTIS will benefit from nearly $3m worth of funding in the budget, including a significant focus on coaching and a new role in supporting the development of officials. We all know the important role officials play in running successful competitions and that quality coaching, especially for juniors, is very important. As such, the NTIS will be establishing a coaching and officiating centre to assist the development of talented athletes, coaches and officials.
Turning to the Arts and Museums portfolio, I am very excited about the opportunities that exist in this area. The government is committed to the arts and has allocated $45.1m in Arts and Museums, as well as an additional $19.6m for new capital works initiatives. Within the Department of Arts and Museums the portfolio responsibilities include the Northern Territory Library, the Northern Territory Archives Service, the Araluen Cultural Precinct, Arts NT and Screen Territory. The department also works closely with the independent board of management of the Museums and Art Galleries of the Northern Territory, MAGNT.
This budget delivers long-lasting cultural, social and economic benefits and provides new opportunities and infrastructure across the Territory. In Alice Springs, $20m has been committed towards the future development of an Indigenous cultural centre of national significance. Alice Springs is seen as an ideal location for the centre given it lies at the spiritual and geographical heart of Australia. The initial allocation of $20m by the Northern Territory government will provide Australia-wide community confidence in the project as a viable possibility and assist in leveraging Commonwealth, philanthropic and corporate funding to build the centre and contribute to annual operating costs.
I am excited about the announced redevelopment of the Chan Building, in Darwin’s CBD, into a dedicated visual arts gallery. The $18.3m redevelopment of this magnificent new art space will be jointly funded by the Territory government as well as generous contributions from external sources. The Chan Building will be turned into a state-of-the-art exhibition space and will include a caf and retail space bringing more people into the city centre. The redevelopment will cement Darwin’s position as a must-do arts and cultural destination.
The Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory will receive $6.7m to support its operations. Additionally, $5.3m over four years has been committed to upgrade and replace environmental control systems.
I would like to highlight the much-needed injection of $541 000 to the Northern Territory Library for a new library management system. These systems have come a long way from the cards in a drawer that some members may remember. The new library management system will provide library users easier access to catalogues using mobile devices, providing a much friendlier experience. There are nearly 100 000 individual users of the current management system and about 956 000 listed items in Territory libraries.
In total, 52 libraries, including a network of public, community and school libraries, are supported by the Northern Territory Library. The new library management system will allow libraries to better manage their collections. Providing the Northern Territory Library and the network it supports with a modern, more functional library management system is a wonderful initiative and one that will be of great advantage to library users old and new.
One of the most comprehensive plans addressing the enhancement of the Northern Territory’s much-valued heritage sites will be developed with funding support from this budget. The Northern Territory government has committed $6.1m over three years for the development and implementation of a Northern Territory heritage enhancement action plan. Expenditure will include $3.05m for enhancements of our rich pioneering and military heritage sites, which will include sites of historic interest along Territory highways; $1.2m for work to enhance privately-owned heritage places; $600 000 to enhance museums in our regional centres; $500 000 to replace signage for historical sites; and $100 000 to develop digital initiatives.
There are rich heritage sites in the Northern Territory and the action plan will provide better recognition and a more coordinated approach to their promotion. The action plan will look at better connectivity between heritage places, a coordinated signage policy and more use of technology. This will produce a more memorable visitor experience and will also make it easier for locals to embrace our history and heritage sites. As well as providing for better and more easily accessible historic sites, the outcomes from the action plan will help boost Tourism NT’s cultural tourism product. Through the budget the Territory government is making a major investment in our arts and cultural sector, which will enhance the Territory’s creative and cultural experience.
We are continuing to support regional Indigenous culture with $500 000 for the Godinymayin Yijard Rivers Arts and Culture Centre in Katherine for the next two years. This is a wonderful multipurpose arts and cultural facility which enhances artistic and cultural practice in the Katherine region. We are proud to continue supporting its operation. These investments are not just for the present but for future generations, benefitting artists as well as our local tourism and construction industries.
Turning to my responsibilities for the NT Environment Protection Authority, the EPA’s budget includes $1.025m for environment grants. These grants are for projects that deliver clear environmental benefits. Instead of six special interest groups, we have opened up funding through these grants for deserving projects which are aimed at real results for the environment.
This budget is solid and well developed, and provides for some wonderful initiatives in my portfolio which will have a positive lasting effect on our community. I, and my agency, worked hard to get these funds and it has been wonderful to work with such a dedicated group of public servants.
I commend the Treasurer on Budget 2015-16.
Moving to my electorate of Daly, some highlights include: $16.75m to complete sealing of Litchfield Park Road; $13.5m to construct a new high-level bridge over the Lower Finniss River; $10.43m for upgrade and redevelopment of day use areas, car parks, camping areas and walking tracks through Litchfield National Park; $3.2m for works related to the Middle Arm Industrial Precinct release of industrial land for gas-related development; the new Community Champions program funded at $18m over the next three years; $6m over three years to establish Business in the Bush, which will support Indigenous businesses and increase employment participation; a maximum size limit of 97 cm for barramundi and king threadfin salmon to be trialled in the Daly and Mary River Fish Management Zones to help maintain an abundance of large trophy fish that are highly sought after by anglers; and a new smart phone app to ensure all anglers know their limits.
There is $750 000 over three years for a fisheries enhancement program. This will include the production and release of fingerlings of target fish species and a study of artificial reef structures to enhance reef habitat.
Over three years there is $3.05m for enhancement of our rich pioneering and military heritage sights, which will include sights of historic interest along Territory highways.
The budget includes $20.07m to continue the development of strategic economic roads including the Arnhem Highway, Port Keats Road and the Pickertaramoor Road. For upgrades, $6.5m is available for the Dundee Beach and Shady Camp boat ramps. We have allocated $3.68m to continue upgrading the Leviathan Creek crossing on Fog Bay Road, including construction of a new bridge, associated approaches and drainage work.
There is $150 000 to conduct research and redevelopment to assist the cattle industry to efficiently supply the live export trade and the Darwin abattoir with suitably prepared stock.
There is $12.87m to provide Police, Fire and Emergency Services with nine police stations and a further three police stations funded under Stronger Futures, including one at Peppimenarti.
The budget allocates $490 000 for courts to administer justice in regional and remote communities, including Wadeye, Daly River and Jabiru.
There is $400 000 to implement alcohol harm-minimisation initiatives for Wadeye, Belyuen, Maningrida, Gunbalanya and Jabiru. To provide assessment monitoring and supervision services to community-based clients in Wadeye, Jabiru and the Tiwi Islands there is $430 000 in line with sentences and orders issued by the courts and the NT Parole Board.
I commend not only the Treasurer, but everyone involved over the last two-and-a-half years to come up with such a fantastic budget and get money for our wonderful sport and recreation, and arts and museum facilities.
Mrs PRICE (Local Government and Community Services): Mr Deputy Speaker, I congratulate the Treasurer, the Chief Minister and the rest of my Cabinet colleagues for their hard work on this bill.
This budget strikes the right balance between fiscal responsibility, building infrastructure and delivering services demanded by one of Australia’s fastest growing economies. Budget 2015-16 will make Territorians lives simpler, safer and smarter. The government has used the last two budgets to repair the damage created by 11 years of Labor economic mismanagement. We have now turned the debt corner. Debt is less than half of what Labor would have racked up by now if still in power. This means we can now afford a massive program to deliver quality services and investments in much-needed infrastructure that will pay dividends in the future.
Our successful economic management is reflected in our economic performance. Our economy has grown by 6.5% this financial year. This is only happening because of our sound economic management over the last two budgets. This demonstrates the difference between our side of government and those opposite.
I will turn to the fantastic opportunities provided by Budget 2015-16 in my portfolio areas. In the portfolio of Local Government and Community Services we have delivered on a number of election commitments, such as reforms to local government and Homelands Extra. Local government was one area those opposite totally destroyed. Super shires – super mess.
We have acted on this issue and committed $5m to support local authorities across 63 communities. Across the Territory, 756 people are members of local authorities and 209 meetings were held in the first six months of operation.
Local authority meetings discuss a range of issues including planning, budgeting, local employment and monitoring of service delivery within their respective communities.
Unlike Labor, who thinks throwing cash at a problem makes it go away, our hard work in local government is paying off. A recent snapshot of local authorities across all regional councils found that in the first six months of operation local authorities were delivering on objectives to provide a stronger local voice and greater accountability for service delivery.
It is anticipated that further improvements will be made to local authorities, including reducing the minimum number of meetings per year, approaches to assist reaching quorums and greater resourcing and support.
However, that is not all we have done in the area of local government. Our government has devolved support activities and greater self-management to the local government sector itself.
Budget 2015-16 continues to provide $7.9m in Indigenous job development funding to support regional councils, providing local government services with the opportunity to receive a 50% subsidy to employ Indigenous staff working in the area of local government service delivery.
Support is now being delivered through the Local Government Association of the Northern Territory, LGANT. This budget continues annual funding to LGANT of up to $1m to deliver agreed strategies and actions. I am pleased that LGANT has increased services, such as governance training, to the regional councils.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $0.8m funding for local government to deliver service delivery and policy work. This includes reviews of legislation such as the Cemeteries Act. Some very forward thinking suggestions have been put into a discussion paper for public consultation. The discussion paper can be found on my department’s website and I encourage everyone to make a submission. We want to develop a new Cemeteries Act that will lead the way in Australia and provide for the variety of options a diverse place like the Territory should have.
Other policy work includes a review of the Local Government Act, which closes this week. The submissions will be considered by a working party which will eventually make recommendations to me. Again, it is funding linked with outcomes.
The newest council, the West Daly Regional Council, has an active CEO, a full complement of staff, and planning and service delivery activities are in full operation. The department has not forgotten the West Daly Regional Council. I am pleased the council is progressively looking at ways to make operational savings.
The department is supporting the official manager appointed to the Tiwi Islands Regional Council. The manager will work with council staff and the community to help things get back on track. The manager will investigate and report to me by 30 June 2015.
The department is also working with the official manager of Litchfield Council, who will also report to me by 30 June 2015.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $3.25m for special purpose grants and the Family Safe Environment Fund, FSEF. Special purpose grants are for councils to undertake specific projects. Applications for these grants are open to councils twice per year to improve community infrastructure and local government service delivery outcomes.
FSEF grants are available to assist councils address issues of antisocial behaviour and to discourage acts of vandalism and graffiti in parklands and open spaces, with $0.25m available annually. This is another way we are making the lives of Territorians safer.
Speaking of making lives simpler, safer and smarter, Budget 2015-16 provides $120.6m for remote service delivery and infrastructure. Over $38m will be spent on delivering services to homelands and town camps. Budget 2015-16 also provides $21.3m to be spent on providing municipal and essential services addressing sewerage, power, water, water issues, waste disposal, environmental health activities and dog programs.
An amount of $7.3m will also be spent on providing housing repairs and maintenance to homelands, outstations and town camps throughout the Territory. Included in the homelands and outstations funding is an amount of $4m for municipal essential services special purpose grants for the purchase of major capital items and capital projects to assist with the improvement of service delivery to homelands.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $6m for repairs and maintenance of eligible homeland dwellings through the Northern Territory government’s Homelands Extra Allowance program. The Homelands Extra Allowance program provides $5200 to successful applicants to be applied towards housing repairs and maintenance. In this financial year alone, some $4m of this funding has already been committed. The $6m from the 2015-16 budget will consolidate this government’s commitment to approving living conditions for homelands and outstation residents. This program clearly shows how we are delivering our election promises.
Budget 2015-16 also supports our homelands program, which delivers services to approximately 10 000 Aboriginal Territorians living on 351 homelands, and in 30 communities and 45 town camps across the Northern Territory. Services are delivered through 36 regional service providers, 29 of which are Indigenous organisations. Each of these service providers employs local Indigenous people in real jobs.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $22.35m for major capital works in remote Indigenous communities to improve essential services at Angurugu, Yuendumu, Ali Curung, Ngukurr, Robinson River, Wadeye and Numbulwar. At Angurugu, $5.95m has been allocated for the replacement of failing asbestos cement sewer pipes in highest risk areas and the construction of a new sewer outfall. An amount of $3.1m has also been allocated to Yuendumu for water investigation to identify a new water source that will provide the community with a secure water supply into the future. A total of $5m has been committed to replacing Ali Curung’s sewerage system infrastructure with full gravity reticulation in the highest risk areas of the community.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $5.1m for improvements to the Ngukurr water supply. Phase one of this project is to connect the Ngukurr water supply to a new bore field with good quality water located approximately 5 km or 6 km from the community.
Phase two is to upgrade Ngukurr water storage by installing a new 1 ML ground level tank to replace the existing storage tank that is nearing the end of its life. Budget 2015-16 also provides $1.6m for construction of a new ground level water storage tank at Robinson River, $1m for the replacement of all asbestos water mains at Wadeye, and $0.6m for the replacement of the water storage tank at Numbulwar.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $75.2m in funding for the delivery of the Indigenous Essential Services recurrent grant. This allocation includes capital funding of $17.6m for asset replacement and $15.8m for repairs and maintenance. As of 31 December 2014, a total of 132 essential services operators were employed through IES to provide daily onsite services in remote communities, with 40 of these employees being Indigenous.
Budget 2015-16 also provides over $4m for the continuation of the Northern Territory remote community public building Asbestos Removal Program. This program has already undertaken inspections at 30 communities with removal works completed at 11 communities. Budget 2015-16 will continue the preliminary works under way at a further four communities. Accredited asbestos removal training has been successfully delivered in seven communities with 64 participants. A total of 58 local Indigenous participants have completed the training and 55 successful trainees have been employed in asbestos removal and remediation works in their communities.
Budget 2015-16 also continues the work to secure leases over the Northern Territory government’s infrastructure across 73 communities. Significant progress has been made to date with 876 lots out of approximately 1389 now secured by long-term leases. Investment by Northern Territory government agencies in major infrastructure such as health centres, schools, police stations, government employee housing and essential services will continue to acquire secure tenure.
My department is the central coordinating point for all Northern Territory government agencies to secure these leases which will underpin investment and construction of this much-needed infrastructure. There are now 57 community housing leases and two housing management agreements in place in remote communities across the Territory representing approximately 4000 housing lots.
My department continues to manage the $7m three-year rolling program for cadastral survey plans to be prepared in approximately 50 remote communities. The cadastral surveys will formalise land boundaries, a vital component for establishing a property market in remote communities. This work can help grow prosperity for Indigenous people by transforming remote towns into places that are properly planned and designed. This project will also support home ownership and economic development.
My department is also providing support to the Power and Water Corporation for the Northern Territory Solar Energy Transformation Program. This program requires secure tenure in 35 sites across the Northern Territory.
Budget 2015-16 provides $6.89m for the Aboriginal Interpreter Service. Since its inception in 2000 the AIS has continued to grow and deliver interpreting services for non-English speaking Aboriginal Territorians, particularly in the areas of health, law, education and social services. The AIS employs 60 staff located in Darwin, Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine, Nhulunbuy, Wurrumiyanga, Wadeye and Groote Eylandt. The AIS also currently employs 230 Aboriginal interpreters on casual contracts in remote communities and towns across the Northern Territory under the new determination for casual employment of Aboriginal language interpreters.
During this financial year alone the AIS has delivered more than 25 600 hours of interpreting through 4600 individual job assignments in 34 languages. The AIS training section delivers training to new recruits through induction sessions on legal, health, mentoring, and ongoing personal development. AIS interpreters progress through four levels to be competent in their work and to obtain specific nationally-accredited qualifications.
Budget 2015-16 will see AIS continue conducting induction training sessions for new recruits this year in Darwin, Katherine, Tennant Creek, Alice Springs, Wadeye, Groote Eylandt and Gapuwiyak. Budget 2015-16 will also continue the work with interpreter training, with sessions being delivered to government agencies including Northern Territory Police, the Department of Health, Northern Territory courts, Centrelink, Northern Territory Emergency Services, Correctional Services and other agencies. More than 50 working interpreter training sessions have been delivered this financial year with more than 650 attendees.
Budget 2015-16 will continue the AIS delivering a Diploma of Interpreting to students, in partnership with Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $0.79m for the Interpreting and Translating Service NT. During the past two years ITSNT has been proactive in recruiting across a number of African languages, including Swahili, Sudanese, Arabic, Ma’di, Lingala, Aramaic, Kakwa, Kikongo, Kirundi, Oromo and languages from southeast Ghana and Somalia.
The service now has in excess of 20 African interpreters locally recruited. This employment opens pathways to accessing mainstream government services, which in turn promotes greater participation in the unique Territory lifestyle at a neighbourhood level.
ITSNT has in excess of 150 locally-recruited interpreters across 59 ethnic languages and demand continues to grow. ITSNT encourages and supports interpreters to attain formal accreditation in their chosen languages. Formal training and accreditation builds on the professionalism of the interpreter and provides opportunity for ITSNT to expand interpreting services widely across government and the private sector.
ITSNT provides a valuable much-needed language service in the Territory. It is identified through the Australian government’s permanent migration intake that the provision of language support underpins a future direction to expand populations in regional areas. It is widely accepted that an appropriately skilled workforce is paramount to the future growth of Darwin and the Northern Territory, and our ability to recognise the diversity and needs of other cultures choosing to settle here will lay the foundation for a successful outcome.
ITSNT works in collaboration with non-government community organisations in identifying what languages are emerging and provides the necessary language support for those looking to settle in this unique part of Australia.
The Interpreting and Translation Service NT was nominated and won an award for its exceptional achievement in supporting African communities and refugees in the Northern Territory. It is the first time in its long history of providing face-to-face interpreting and translating services that they have been recognised for their efforts.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $0.8m for continuation of the fantastic First Circles program. First Circles was founded on the principle of respect for Aboriginal cultural knowledge, history and language which is intrinsically linked to the NT government’s strategic framework, Framing the Future, and building on a confident culture that celebrates the diversity of all Territorians.
First Circles ensures that Aboriginal people can provide advice on the development and implementation of policy directly to government. A key focus of First Circles is developing regions and their economies. First Circles has branches established in the Top End and Central Australia with 15 members each. They will meet with Cabinet throughout the year.
This collaborative model of consultation is an Australian first; never before has a group had a direct voice into an Australian Cabinet.
Women’s Policy will continue to make a real difference to women and girls across the Territory. Budget 2015-16 provides grant funding to support and advance women and women’s groups to be safe, healthy, driven to attain economic security, and be leaders in their communities, towns and cities. This includes education scholarships for women to Charles Darwin University and International Women’s Day grants.
My government is commited to reducing violence against women and their children, with an annual $27 000 financial commitment to Our Watch and ANROWS. The Office of Women’s Policy works alongside these organisations to ensure violence against women and their children is no longer tolerated.
I turn to my portfolio of Housing and the government business division of NT Home Ownership. Our government’s vision is to provide an affordable and accessible housing system for eligible Territorians with options that are appropriate to their housing needs.
Budget 2015-16 will continue our hard work to progress people from homelessness to home ownership. Budget 2015-16 provides $332m for the delivery of housing across the Territory, allowing this government to provide the right house in the right place at the right time for eligible Territorians.
We are all aware of the devastation from Tropical Cyclones Lam and Nathan on East Arnhem Land communities in February and March this year. These cyclones had a significant impact on the department’s social housing stock in Arnhem Land communities, particularly in Galiwinku.
In Galiwinku a large number of homes were destroyed or severely damaged and a number of housing residents were displaced. This government is committed to rebuilding and restoring these communities and we are working hard to do this in a timely manner.
Budget 2015-16 has provided $50m for housing repairs and replacements pending a full assessment of the damage, the cost of repair and finalisation of the sources of funding. This work has been made a priority by this government.
Budget 2015-16 provides $265m for our housing capital works program that continues this government’s strong commitment to the bush. This includes $11.5m allocated for government employee housing in remote communities, including $4.5m for teacher housing, allowing us to place more teachers in the bush.
This program allows the department to provide approximately 18 houses for government employee accommodation in up to 10 locations, supporting agencies including the Departments of Health, Correctional Services, NT Police Fire and Emergency Services, Education and Parks and Wildlife.
Budget 2015-16 provides over $220m to improve housing for Indigenous people living in remote communities. This includes a range of services such as tenancy management and liaising and working closely with our clients, as well as the provision of important maintenance work on their homes.
This includes an allocation of $147m for the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing and Stronger Futures in the Northern Territory. These programs for housing works, namely rebuilds and refurbishments, are for remote Indigenous communities. Budget 2015-16 will deliver 52 new houses across five communities and upgrades to existing houses in communities across the Northern Territory.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $73.3m for the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing for property and tenancy management. This includes $57.7m in funding supplemented by $15.6m in rent collections.
Budget 2015-16 provides $1.5m as part of a $4.5m multiyear program to continue implementation of the Remote Home Ownership Program. As you know, I am passionate about residents in our remote Territory communities becoming homeowners in the future. This important investment provides assistance in helping remote residents achieve home ownership.
We want our tenants to have pride in their homes. Budget 2015-16 provides $27.5m for my department to deliver repairs and maintenance to maintain the quality of urban public housing and government employee housing stock across the Territory. This is an increase of almost 14% and an additional $3.2m more than last year, demonstrating our commitment to housing in the Territory, unlike the lies and misreporting seen in the media lately. This $3.2m forms part of the $5.2m increase over the next two years.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $3m for the Public Housing capital works program to continue upgrading and refurbishing urban public housing complexes across the Territory.
Additional funding of $0.2m has been provided in Budget 2015-16 to revamp the aesthetics and streetscape appeal of prominent older public housing complexes in Darwin. Budget 2015-16 also provides $13.8m through the minor new works program for upgrading urban public housing and government employee housing throughout the Northern Territory.
Budget 2015-16 provides a further $6m over two years, including $3m in 2015-16, to fund property management expenses in relation to public and government employee housing.
Talking about fantastic outcomes, Budget 2015-16 continues our government’s commitment to increasing the supply of affordable housing and easing cost pressure on families. Budget 2015-16 provides $9.9m towards a number of initiatives under the Real Housing for Growth plan, including the National Rental Affordability Scheme, Venture Housing dwellings, home ownership opportunities and head-leasing dwellings as affordable rental accommodation.
Through these initiatives 488 affordable rental and home ownership dwellings have been delivered so far, with approximately a further 500 in the pipeline. Approximately a further 300 dwellings are subject to further negotiations. Through the Real Housing for Growth Head-Leasing Initiative, properties are leased from the private rental market and sublet to key service industry workers at 30% below market rate. This has been a huge success thus far and we are very keen to continue the great work in this area for Territorians who need a helping hand.
The head-leasing initiative will receive an increase of $3.2m in Budget 2015-16, making a total of $9.1m …
Ms FYLES: A point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker! I request the member have an extension of time, pursuant to Standing Order 77.
Motion agreed to.
Mrs PRICE: Budget 2015-16 is also a commitment towards Northern Territory home ownership. It helps Territorians buy their own home by providing a range of services to assist, including home loan products, grants and subsidies.
This government recognises the increasing complexity of our community’s social housing needs and the requirement to provide services that helps people move from homelessness and supported accommodation to social housing, private rentals and affordable home ownership. To this end, Budget 2015-16 provides $1m to develop a strategy to improve the use of the Northern Territory government’s existing public housing stock and review the effectiveness of existing housing programs.
Budget 2015-16 also reinforces the Northern Territory government’s commitment to society’s most vulnerable, providing $10.6m over two years. This includes $5.3m in 2015-16 to match the Commonwealth government’s funding under the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness. This funding is vital to assisting our most vulnerable get off the streets and into supported accommodation.
I am proud of this budget. It is an investment of vital funding that will enable my department to continue its hard work in the provision of housing services to Territorians in need.
In my portfolio area of Parks and Wildlife, Budget 2015-16 provides the largest ever investment of $78.14m in our parks and reserves. These benefits include better facilities and infrastructure upgrades to our parks and reserves that will, no doubt, boost tourism and local economies across the Territory. Millions of people visit our great parks and reserves throughout the Territory every year, and why would they not with such wonderful waterholes to swim in, scenic settings to picnic and camp at, great trails and tracks to walk along and majestic wildlife to see. Visiting Territory parks provides an encounter that often cannot be experienced anywhere else in the world. Budget 2015-16 confirms the commitment to our parks and reserves to make them even better for Territorians to enjoy.
Starting in the Top End, where most people live and visit, we are making our parks and reserves even better through investment that will enhance the visitor experience for decades to come. Budget 2015-16 provides $10.43m for infrastructure for Litchfield National Park, a favourite weekend retreat for many families who live in the Top End. These include $4.83m to upgrade the Florence Falls site, including 11 additional two-wheel drive campsites and 17 additional four-wheel drive campsites, new paths, toilet and ablution facilities, sealing the road between the two-wheel drive and four-wheel drive campgrounds, and redesigning the car parking area; and $3.32m towards improving facilities at Tolmer Falls by providing new picnic and toilet facilities, a new half-day walk and improvements to the existing platform.
Also, $1.56m will go towards redesigning Buley Rockhole facilities, including moving the car park to a better location and creating a new day use area; $0.71m to provide additional campsites and toilet facilities at Sandy Creek campground; and $1.1m to replace and install boardwalks and toilet facilities at the Magnetic Termite Mounds site. Delivery of these key infrastructure priorities will see the number of overnight camping sites increased from 83 to 106, meaning more visitors are able to stay in the park overnight leading to greater expenditure throughout the Darwin region.
Opening up and improving new areas also means the more than 330 0000 people who visit Litchfield National Park annually will be better dispersed throughout the park, thus reducing overcrowding at the more popular attractions such as Buley Rockhole and Florence and Wangi Falls.
Budget 2015-16 provides $10.68m for the hugely popular Casuarina Coastal Reserve, which has more than 930 visitors per year. These projects include $2.49m to revitalise Dripstone Cliffs through replacing the car park and providing new picnic facilities; $2.9m to provide a new picnic area at Rapid Creek and seal and fence the 1 km road between Dripstone Cliffs and Rapid Creek, fence and rehabilitate beach access tracks, and rehabilitate off-road tracks; $490 000 to upgrade the toilet block and the picnic facilities at Dripstone Park; $380 000 to upgrade picnic facilities and mountain bike tracks at Lee Point; $2.82m to upgrade existing paths and install new paths and tracks across the reserve; $790 000 to expand car parking and install lighting and CCTV at Buffalo Creek; $380 000 to upgrade and replace facilities, plant additional trees and install signage across the reserve; and $430 000 to install lighting in the free beach car park.
In addition to creating great infrastructure to support the growing visitor base, this investment will help disperse visitors throughout the park, helping to maintain the peaceful and natural values enjoyed by visitors.
Delivering these upgrades will assist Tourism NT meet its target to grow the visitor economy in the Northern Territory to 2.2 billion by 2020 as measured by overnight expenditure. I encourage anyone listening to today’s broadcast of parliament to go to the Parks and Wildlife website, www.parksandwildlife.nt.gov.au to check out the Litchfield National Park and Casuarina Coastal Reserve Experience Development Plans 2015 which have recently been released and outline what is to happen at these great natural attractions.
Budget 2015-16 provides $0.5m for the George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens. The botanic gardens had a big increase in visitors in the last calendar year, with 290 000 people taking advantage of the new Eva’s Caf, the Territory Made Pop-Up Markets, school holiday programs and Segway Tours NT. The $0.5m will upgrade the walking paths and increase car parking space at the George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens to cater for increased visitation at the site.
Budget 2015-16 also provides $165 000 for improvements to the Munbililla campground in Limmen National Park to enhance reliability of power supply to the site, increasing attractiveness to commercial operators.
Further down the track in the Katherine region, Budget 2015-16 provides $400 000 at Elsey National Park to reinstate the existing boardwalk bridge closer to the swimming pool, making the pools more accessible and ensuring the thermal pool environment is protected while allowing for the continuation of a high-profile tourism experience. There is $300 000 to establish a new campground along the Jatbula Trail, including Biddlecombe Cascade, Crystal Falls, 17 Mile Falls, Sandy Camp Pool and Sweetwater Pool.
In the Alice region, Budget 2015-16 provides $375 000 for upgrade of the Kings Canyon car park and visitor information facilities within Watarrka National Park, creating a new sense of arrival at the entry to the park. This will see visitor information, including key safety messages, developed into a high-quality, purpose-designed shelter.
There will be $400 000 towards the staged upgrade of infrastructure along the Larapinta Trail in line with the development plan. This will include shelters and toilets at main camp nodes, development of new group camp sites, water supplies and construction of new trail alignments. There is $200 000 for the ongoing management of the Olive Pink Botanic Gardens. The 16-acre area that is now the Olive Pink Botanic Gardens was first gazetted in 1956 as the Australian Arid Regions Floral Reserve.
I will speak to the rest of the budget later on. I commend the bill to the House.
Mrs FINOCCHIARO (Drysdale): Mr Deputy Speaker, I also congratulate the Treasurer on a budget that delivers for Territorians. In my budget contribution I will focus on my electorate and the Palmerston region, which has not washed up too badly. There are many good things to talk about and I will focus on the few that caught my attention.
When the Treasurer announced changes to the Community Benefit Fund it caught my attention. That is a fantastic program and one I promote in my electorate. It is something that Palmerston community groups are familiar with and regular recipients of, especially those small $5000 grants, which are perfect for small community groups.
I am pleased the government has decided to levy casinos. If clubs and pubs have to pay money from their gaming revenue to the Community Benefit Fund then I see no reason why the casinos should not also stump up the money. That is an excellent change and from 1 July we will receive those funds. This will see a boost of $8m to the Community Benefit Fund, upping it to $11m a year, which is wonderful. I will speak to all my community groups in Palmerston to make sure they are aware of the increase. There is more money to go around and we want a lot of it in Palmerston.
I will be single-minded in my approach to expending that money. Treasurer, I am pleased you have sourced that money because Palmerston will happily take it off the books for you.
I was pleased to hear the Housing minister’s contribution. As the local member I have a lot of interface with Housing as a number of my constituents are Territory Housing tenants. I deal with the minister and her staff a lot to resolve constituent inquiries, especially relating to repairs and maintenance. I thank the minister and the department for their excellent work and for dealing with my constituent concerns promptly and thoroughly. There has been a vast improvement in housing since we came into government and that has been obvious in my dealings with Housing at a constituent level.
This budget sees $27.5m for urban public housing repairs and maintenance, an additional $3.2m compared to last year. The funding will go a long way to repairing leaky taps, drainage issues, flyscreens, windows and other maintenance issues. Constituents in my electorate, many of whom reside in Territory Housing homes, will welcome the additional resourcing. The department does a great job with what it has and I am pleased the R&M budget has been increased.
Bus safety is something I and my colleagues the members for Blain and Brennan are interested in. We hear a lot from people concerned about bus safety at depots or while travelling on buses.
This budget delivers an additional $1.1m for bus safety, which is fantastic news. It does not sound like much, and I am sure the critics will say we need a lot more; however, this $1.1m will increase security patrols at interchanges, provide an additional transit and safety officer patrol team and an additional patrol vehicle. This is substantial and will make a significant impact on creating safer public transport. It will also enhance our reporting and communication technology, provide additional training and support to drivers, and will include CCTV enhancement on buses and at bus interchanges. Not many people would know how much a fan of CCTV I am, so it is pleasing to see this money channelled into transit safety.
There is a lot more we can do and behind the scenes my colleagues, the members for Blain and Brennan, and I are discussing how we can increase transit safety. However, this is an excellent step in the right direction and I commend the Minister for Transport and my Cabinet colleagues on that initiative.
I support the incentive for P-plate drivers. Last year 466 P-plate drivers – a huge number – were caught speeding, drink-driving or committing other traffic offences. That requires attention from the government and also requires education. The department has developed a great initiative to offer a free 10-year licence to P-plate drivers who complete their P-plate period with an unblemished record. Hopefully P-plate drivers will understand in their formative years of driving that safe driving is not just for their own safety or their best friend or mate in the car, but for all Territorians. Hopefully this initiative will reduce that number. I do not want to see 466 P-plate drivers caught for traffic infringements.
In future years we can measure if this initiative made any difference. It is not just a great initiative, it also helps with the cost of living as P-plate drivers are usually young Territorians. It will improve driver safety and remove the hassle of going to MVR for 10 years for a licence. In my experience the less you are there the better. That is not because MVR staff are not wonderful or it is not a nice place to visit, but it is a very busy place. Our government has done a lot to minimise the number of times Territorians have to attend the MVR by using a range of online mobile phone apps and various other initiatives. That is great for all Territorians. Hopefully this makes a huge difference and next year we can measure the statistics.
My colleague, the Minister for Education and Minister for Transport, made an excellent announcement regarding additional funding for a Darwin special needs bus. There is quite a focus in this budget on special needs, which is fantastic and should be applauded. The budget calls it the Darwin special needs bus so I made immediate inquiries to ensure it extended to Palmerston special needs students. I am pleased to say it does.
The department currently has six students on the waiting list and this new initiative will accommodate up to 15, so there is plenty of room for students who need extra support to get to school. It is great for working parents who need support to ensure their child is getting to and from school every day. It is a great initiative.
Another initiative for education is the $200 000 new camp kitchen and indoor activity centre at Batchelor Outdoor Education Centre. Those of my colleagues who have been around long enough would probably have been to a school camp at Batchelor Outdoor Education Centre. Member for Blain, you might even have taken me there as my teacher. I fondly remember my – I think it was Year 6 – camp at Batchelor Outdoor Education Centre. It is a great facility. Just about every school student in the Northern Territory gets to enjoy that facility at some point so $200 000 for a new camp kitchen and indoor activity centre will be very welcome and will serve young Territorians for many years to come.
While we are talking about education, I want to mention the special needs school being built in Bellamack. This budget commits $21.35m for stage one, which is a new preschool, primary school and middle school catering for up to 84 students. That is amazing. This year we have heard a lot about Henbury, a fantastic school which deserves the money and improvements coming its way. However, it is fantastic to hear about a purpose-built facility for Palmerston.
The member for Brennan is fiercely passionate about education, particularly special needs, and the three Palmerston members are excited about this facility being built at Bellamack. It will complement the existing school annexes at Woodroffe and the special education centre at Palmerston Senior College. Many Palmerston and rural families will be excited to see this project get off the ground. I look forward to seeing the bricks and mortar of that project.
It is no surprise things like the Back to School Scheme and the Sport Vouchers and Learn to Swim Vouchers we have created to help parents with the cost of sending kids to school or ensuring young Territorians are water safe and can swim – in our climate water is a foundation of our recreational activities and it is important that we invest in giving Territorians, as young as babies, the greatest opportunity to learn to swim. We have lots of fantastic initiatives, including the Sport Voucher, to encourage young Territorians to participate in recreational activities. All those fantastic initiatives continue and I am glad to see they have been boosted in this budget. I am sure Territory parents are relieved that hundreds of dollars have been made available to them through various schemes to ease costs as much as possible.
The budget also includes $2.3m for the continued operation of Palmerston Water Park. Over previous Country Liberals budgets we have seen enhancements to the water park, including additional shade structures, which was a criticism of the water park when Labor built it. They put the giant waterslide in and not much else. We have slowly been enhancing this recreational area so families can enjoy it and spend the day there. Slowly we are seeing increased numbers of Palmerston families visiting the water park. The inaugural Palmerston Sun Fun Run was held at the water park a month ago. It proved to be a great venue capable of holding a lot of people with a lot of family engagement. We look forward to continued investment in the water park.
One very exciting line item in this budget is $1.98m in capital grants for Satellite City BMX Club. They are in Brisbane at the moment for the nationals proudly representing the Northern Territory and Palmerston. I had the pleasure of speaking to Stephen Van Anholt, president of Satellite City, earlier today to see if he had heard the news. He said he had heard on the grapevine whilst in Brisbane in between training and racing, and was pleased to hear $1.98m was confirmed.
Satellite City is a wonderful club in Palmerston located at Marlow Lagoon with a great family culture. The volunteers are excellent, and they are all wonderful people who are very deserving of this money. They want to expend these funds on putting a roof over the track. It is no secret to Territorians that we have big Wet Seasons, and if you have a dirt track that is not covered then every year you have a wash out. The club is now in the process, following the Wet, of fixing the track. On 11 April they had their first of what will be many working bees to get it up to speed before the season starts. Having this track under cover, much like Jingili, means they can train all year round and be in better form and able to perform better at national competitions. When speaking to Stephen today he said riders who had a chance to train hard at Jingili over the Wet – you could see the difference in their performance at the national titles. It will make a huge difference to how much use the club gets out of this facility and how much volunteer time it will take after the Wet Season to get the grounds back into working order so they can race during the Dry Season. That is an excellent budget initiative and they are very excited about it.
Another wonderful budget line item was $250 000 to Riding for the Disabled at Marlow Lagoon. I was with Ian and Lesley Monro, who run Riding for the Disabled in Palmerston, on 2 April and we had a good chat, looked at the facilities and discussed the needs and demands of RDA. They do a wonderful job in the Top End. It was great to see the volunteers maintaining and caring for the horses and preparing for the school groups coming in to learn to ride. They will be over the moon. I called Ian and Lesley today and received their message bank, so they should be receiving a very excited message on their phone from me tomorrow morning. They are wonderful people who donate so much of their time, love and energy into something they believe in. They have had a spate of vandalism, theft and nuisance incidents where people were letting the horses out, stealing their car and things like that. In the wake of some bad news recently for Ian and Lesley this is bright news and I am sure they will spend the money very well.
Wishart Road is in the electorate of Drysdale. A big industrial precinct is slowly but surely developing in that area. This budget allocates another $3.2m for the Wishart Road development and the release of stage two, which will be a 70 ha transport industry precinct. That industrial subdivision is coming along nicely. It is great to see further funds being allocated to ensure it continues to grow. Its proximity to East Arm is a no-brainer and we look forward to seeing it grow.
Another win for Palmerston was the $4m allocated to continue Roystonea Avenue past Lambrick Avenue down to Owston Avenue. That was the member for Blain’s project, and all of us in Palmerston are keen to see the final part of the road developed. Extending Roystonea Avenue has made it fantastic. Palmerston is growing into the rural area on the right side of the Stuart Highway. The $4m allocation is great.
Another group that has done well out of this budget is the Top End MotoX Club. The club is in Marlow Lagoon and the $250 000 will upgrade the track and lighting. They will be thrilled about that.
This budget has allocated a large amount of money to motor sports. I am pleased Palmerston motor sports are getting a fair share of the pie.
It would be remiss of me not to mention Palmerston Regional Hospital. There is $35.5m in Territory and Commonwealth funding to continue work on the hospital. It is fantastic to see what is happening at the intersection of the Stuart Highway and Temple Terrace. The intersection and duplication of Temple Terrace is progressing and will provide excellent access to the site. I am glad to hear construction will start soon. Everyone in Palmerston is looking forward to this project, so it is great to see some meat on the bones in the budget.
Seniors do not miss out in this budget, which is a huge relief for me. I spend a lot of time with seniors in Palmerston. Around budget time seniors get nervous about what will happen with the Pensioner and Carer Concession Scheme. I am pleased to say it is enhanced by increasing the stamp duty concession from $8500 to $10 000 effective today. This provides more opportunities for senior Territorians to get into their own homes. There are no other changes to the Pensioner and Carer Concession Scheme.
My most exciting budget item is $600 000 for additional CCTV cameras in Palmerston, including the network support, which takes our CCTV network up to 180 cameras. I have been calling for additional CCTV in Palmerston for a long time. We have a lot of CCTV in the CBD, but there can always be more. I look forward to my colleagues exploring how we could roll-out CCTV in our suburban centres, for example, Gray and Moulden shops. They are hubs in our community, attract a lot of people and have a lot of businesses so they could benefit from CCTV.
Police in Palmerston do an excellent job. I cannot thank Daniel Sheahan and Rob Jordan and the team enough for what they do. They are so switched on; they have their finger on the pulse in Palmerston. If you need to know anything they know what happened, who did it and what they are planning next. It is an amazing unit and we are lucky to have them.
I am pleased the CCTV delivery has made it into this budget because it is one thing for police to apprehend and charge someone but another to secure a court conviction and have that person dealt with by the corrections system.
CCTV provides twofold support for police. It allows them to have their finger on the pulse and as problems arise they can immediately respond because the CCTV is monitoring at all times. Once the police have done all the hard work CCTV can provide invaluable evidence to secure a conviction.
I am a huge fan of CCTV and am proud it has made its way into the budget as it has been a passion of mine. We look forward to learning the locations of CCTV cameras and I know Palmerston police are pleased to have the extra support.
Royal Darwin Hospital is also getting some much-needed support in this budget, which is great. I want to mention the $15m for paediatrics, something people in my electorate will be interested in. Whilst there is a lot of money for many other things in health, $15m for paediatrics is fantastic.
My second favourite thing in the budget is probably $750 000 for a fisheries enhancement program for production and release of fingerlings of target fish species such as golden snapper and, I believe, barramundi. Over the past year I have mentioned the neighbourhood fishing program operating successfully in Texas. I saw Palmerston as an opportunity to increase our community’s engagement in recreational activities and the unique Territory lifestyle.
Palmerston is full of lakes. We have Marlow Lagoon, Sanctuary Lakes in Gunn, Durack and soon will have Durack Heights all with lakes. I would like to see those lakes full of barra and other fish so Territorians can throw a line and do something that is iconic and part of being Territorian.
Last year we enhanced the jetty at Palmerston boat ramp by installing two shade structures. I am pleased the Minister for Primary Industry and Fisheries agreed to that project. Families can now fish on the jetty in shade and comfort. It is wonderful to see people on their folding chairs with their feet on the rails enjoying the shade.
No bus goes to the boat ramp. If kids are riding bikes it is generally a long way to go, depending on their age. I see a huge opportunity for neighbourhood fishing where kids ride their bikes and families walk or catch a local bus to enjoy fishing as a pastime.
The department’s fish breeding program is promising because it means I can get my hands on a few thousand fingerlings and hopefully do something community minded with them. It is an exciting prospect and brings me one step closer to delivering a neighbourhood fishing program in Palmerston.
I thank the Treasurer for including so many measures for Palmerston. Obviously the benefits from the budget for Palmerston are much broader, but I have focused on a few budget line items. Again, hats off to Satellite City, Riding for the Disabled and Top End MotoX. It is fantastic news and I am pleased we can support those organisations.
I commend the budget to the House.
Mr KURRUPUWU (Arafura): Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend the budget to the Assembly. No matter where they live, this is a good budget for Territorians. The previous budget focused on the past and fixing Labor’s huge debt. It is good that this year the budget focuses on the Northern Territory’s future by investing in infrastructure that will help diversify our economy. This diversification is needed to help stop our economy coming to a halt when the INPEX project finishes.
This government has also worked hard to create new economies in remote communities. By creating new economies we create jobs. This means that people can find employment and get out of the welfare trap. I have spoken many times in this House about what has been happening on the Tiwi Islands. Over the last few years the Country Liberals government has been working closely with the Tiwi Land Council to put in place the building blocks for the growing economy. These include a landmark land use agreement between the government and the Tiwi Land Council, the design of an MOU with Tiwi Plantations Corporations for Tiwi woodchips, investing in and upgrading the boat landing, construction of Port Melville, investing in and supporting the Tiwi ferry, investing in tourism opportunities and the list goes on.
Recently this House recorded a commitment from the Chief Minister to work and support the community as it moves away from welfare dependency and creates its own economies, jobs and wealth. The Chief Minister having honoured that commitment can be seen firsthand on the Tiwi Islands. The huge increase in optimism for the future of the Tiwi Islands is down to the hard work of the Giles government and the Tiwi Land Council.
In the 11 years Labor was in government nothing changed and the future was bleak. They lobbied against private investment in Port Melville because they thought it would impact their negotiation around the East Arm Marine Supply Base. They were happy to watch the timber planation rot to boost the chance of development in Darwin, sacrificing future jobs in the bush for their union mates in the city.
Thankfully the Tiwi Land Council and Tiwi Plantations Corporations continue to fight for their people and local jobs. Thankfully there was a change in government in 2012.
Credit must also go to the Treasurer, who is working to get Northern Territory finances back in order. Despite the mess and huge debt Labor left, the Treasurer has managed to get the books in order. We are able to properly invest in infrastructure for the Territory’s future, today. I am very pleased to see some of these investment dollars will be spent on Pickertaramoor Road on the Tiwi Islands. Not only will the upgrading and sealing of this road make travelling around Melville Island safer, but it will also allow for a safer and faster road to Port Melville where the woodchips from the plantation will be exported.
One of the key things needed to sustain new jobs and business ventures is getting employees from their home to the workplace. That is one reason I lobbied strongly for a regional bus service on the Tiwi Islands. I thank the Chief Minister, the Treasurer and all my colleagues for their support in making this happen. Not only will this make movement around the island easier, it will also make getting to Wurrumiyanga ferry terminal easier for those who live on Melville Island or other parts of Bathurst Island.
Restarting the Tiwi Islands ferry service from Darwin to Wurrumiyanga was something I took to the 2012 election. I am proud to say this government got it up and running again and continues to support it by injecting another $700 000 to keep it going. Only the Country Liberals government supports the Tiwi ferry service. The Tiwi Islands can be a blueprint for other communities who want to build economies and jobs. I invite people to come to the Tiwi Islands to talk about what is happening and how they can do the same in their communities.
There is significant funding to foster economic development in remote communities in this budget. There is also significant funding for the Community Champions program. One of the communities identified in this program is Maningrida. I look forward to working with minister Styles to progress economic development outcomes in Maningrida.
I will continue to work with traditional owners and other organisations to deliver real jobs and real outcomes in the bush. I was glad to see funding for an additional three classrooms at Maningrida as education must play a huge part in making our communities strong and prosperous places.
Another key part of helping communities to prosper is to make them safe. I am glad to see Minjilang and Warruwi in my electorate will receive funding towards policing and police stations. Police are more than just law enforcement officers in our remote communities; they play a significant role in the day-to-day life of our community.
After I have a better look at the budget I will go around my electorate to tell my constituents what it means for them. This is a good budget for Territorians, for remote communities and for those who want to get out of the welfare dependency trap. As the Treasurer said, the best form of welfare is a job. This government is trying to create opportunities to bring jobs to communities and should be commended for it.
I commend the bill to the House.
Debate adjourned.
JUSTICE LEGISLATION AMENDMENT BILL
(Serial 119)
(Serial 119)
Continued from 26 March 2015.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the minister for bringing the Justice Legislation Amendment Bill 2015 (Serial 119) to the House. This bill amends and updates a number of pieces of important legislation, including the Anti-Discrimination Act, the Information Act and the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act as well as procedural amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act and the Fences Act.
A key element of this bill is significant amendments to the Anti-Discrimination Act and Anti-Discrimination Regulations with the intention of improving the complaint process. As the minister said, the intention is to provide a quicker process for all parties involved in complaints to the Anti-Discrimination Commission ‘efficiently with reduced resources’.
We support the amendments before us but not without taking the opportunity to comment on some of the proposed changes. We look to the minister to acknowledge the risks attached to some elements of the proposed amendments and to hear a commitment from him, as Attorney-General, to work to ensure that unintended consequences are limited, and to continue to ensure that the primary purpose and objectives of the relevant legislation are enhanced and not detracted by the implementation of these amendments.
The Anti-Discrimination Act and the role of the Anti-Discrimination Commission is important to Territorians, so any proposed changes to that legislation should be very carefully considered. Territorians take comfort knowing the Northern Territory Anti-Discrimination Commission exists, that it has a strong education and awareness role in increasing understanding of what discrimination means, and assists the fair and timely resolution of incidents of discrimination.
In the Territory we take pride that we live in a strong multicultural society and that the cultural and human diversity of our community continues to expand. The last annual report of the Anti-Discrimination Commission tells us that racial discrimination continues to be the highest area of client referral to the Anti-Discrimination Commission, but discrimination also manifests itself through disability and impairment, failure to accommodate special needs, gender, sexual harassment and age. The annual report lists 21 types of discrimination where complaints were brought to the commission.
It is important that all citizens have the opportunity to pursue complaints of discrimination based on race; gender; sexual orientation; disability or impairment; an irrelevant record, be it medical or criminal; parenthood; religious belief; or even political opinions. It is equally important for all parties that cases are dealt with fairly, in a timely way and they realise sound outcomes.
Our current Anti-Discrimination Commissioner, Sally Sievers, has been clear in her approach by saying an important aim is to ensure as far as possible that relationships can be maintained and issues resolved at the earliest possible stage.
Ms Sievers has also reported that key performance indicators demonstrate this is being achieved, at least in the reporting year 2012-13, with 78% of complaints being settled, usually by conciliation. Notwithstanding, this commissioner has been active since her appointment in January 2013 in promoting work to address procedural reform, which is before us today.
As the minister outlined in his second reading speech, a key function of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and the Anti-Discrimination Act is to carry out investigations and hearings into complaints made under the act and endeavour to effect conciliation.
Currently a complaint must pass through three stages: preliminary assessment and acceptance; investigation, where the complaint is accepted; and, potentially, a hearing. Voluntary conciliation is available at any stage of the process. The minister has also outlined how the review of the Anti-Discrimination Act has identified the need to improve time lines for handling complaints.
The bill before us this evening amends the Anti-Discrimination Act to replace the investigation stage outlined in the current Part 6 of the act with a new stage that makes evaluation of the case by referral to a hearing. The minister has told us that currently, on accepting a complaint under the Anti-Discrimination Act, the commissioner must carry out an investigation and, on completing an investigation, must then determine whether there is a prima facie case for proceeding to conciliation or a hearing. If there is no prima facie case the complaint is dismissed, but if the commissioner is satisfied there is a prima facie case the complaint proceeds to conciliation. If the commissioner believes the complaint cannot be resolved by conciliation it is referred to a hearing.
Review of the operation of those provisions has demonstrated that the requirement for a prima facie test has not always been an effective way of screening to determine whether matters have reasonable grounds to proceed. The bill before us aims to remedy that by replacing the investigation stage with a new process of evaluation to establish if a complaint should proceed to a hearing. The new evaluation stage also allows for determination if a complaint should be referred to a hearing as a whole or on particular grounds.
Importantly, the bill also provides for new powers for the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to order the production of documents and witness statements to assist the evaluation of a complaint. These powers give more capacity for the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to undertake an evaluation and to progress the evaluation in a timely way.
The government proposes it is important that the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner has these powers given it is often the case that complainants acting on their own are unfamiliar with process issues and legal requirements – perhaps not surprisingly – and look to the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and her office to assist them to undertake their complaint.
One of the key improvements we support is the proposed extension of the time limitation period – the time to make a complaint – from the current six months to 12 months.
The minister reports that the commissioner already receives a large number of complaints outside the six-month statutory limit and this is increasing. We support a change that recognises the needs of complainants, including those who are living in remote parts of the Territory – a reasonable extension of the time available for aggrieved parties to consider their options, to attempt informal reconciliation, to understand their rights and to consider undertaking a complaint with supporting evidence through the Anti-Discrimination Commission.
It is also timely to make this change as it brings the Northern Territory more into line with national standards. All other jurisdictions in Australia provide at least a 12-month limitation period.
One of the key intentions of the legislation is to promote fairness, a very important value that must continue to underpin this work.
In order to streamline, the acceptance stage amendments to clause 13 enable the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to seek a response from a respondent to assist in determining whether to accept a complaint. Currently the commissioner can only assess on the complainants account of the circumstances of the alleged discrimination.
Importantly the bill provides for new powers for the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to issue a notice in writing to a party to compel production of documents or information during the evaluation of a complaint. That evaluation focuses on the likelihood of a successful outcome in a hearing should that be the final destination of the complaint.
This amendment also brings the powers of the commissioner into line with other jurisdictions. We agree that providing the commissioner with the power to compel the production of documents and information will assist the commissioner in the timely evaluation of complaints.
Clause 13 in the new section 66E provides the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner with the power to take no further action on a complaint. Currently a party can make application to have an application discontinued in specific circumstances, or a complaint can lapse. The amendment before us allows the commissioner to discontinue consideration of a complaint where it is believed no further action can be taken.
We support that power but we would like to hear more from the minister on the range of circumstances where that would be employed, how a complainant would be informed of that determination and any opportunity for discussion of options for the complainant before action is discontinued in this way.
The bill also provides a new section 79 to allow the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to direct a person to participate in conciliation. This important change supports conciliation as one pathway to timely and effective resolution of complaints.
The intention of this legislation is to now refer anti-discrimination hearings to the recently established Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal, known as NTCAT. NTCAT has been established as a key forum for judicial review of government decisions and determination of disputes. The bill refers jurisdiction for hearings under the Anti-Discrimination Act to the new Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal and we accept this change noting it allows the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to focus on evaluation and conciliation as key mechanisms for resolution of complaints.
While we understand the driver for that change, we would like to hear from the minister what arrangements will be in place to meet the specific needs of anti-discrimination complainants, for example, complainants with some cognitive impairment or with English as a second, third or even fourth language.
I have previously mentioned the importance of the evaluation stage. Part 5 of the bill amends the Information Act to include information created under the Anti-Discrimination Act as exempt under section 44 of the Information Act. That exemption is proposed because it is considered not in the public interest to enable public disclosure of that information.
The minister told us in his second reading speech that these exemptions will apply generally to information collected or provided as part of the formal complaint process, including conciliation. It also includes other information or advice provided to or by the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner that would reasonably be expected to be confidential, such as personal confidential inquiries from the public.
We support a mechanism to encourage fulsome consideration of matters which can often be deeply personal and which will assist the work of the commission.
The bill also proposes a significant change to the enabling legislation relating to the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act. Part 6 of the bill makes a number of amendments to the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act to improve operation of the act, amendments identified during NTCAT’s first six months or so of operation.
These include a more comprehensive enforcement regime, including a new offence of failing to comply with an order of NTCAT punishable by up to 100 penalty units or imprisonment for six months. The minister, in his second reading speech, also noted that such a sanction will not necessarily or adequately address all situations. He used the example that imprisonment will not necessarily assist a person to receive money owed to them under a compensation order or to give effect to the termination of a lease. He noted a warrant of seizure and sale, or a warrant of possession that can be enforced by a court bailiff, may be more appropriate in these circumstances.
New section 84 allows for monetary orders to be registrable and enforceable as an order of the court of competent jurisdiction, including all compensation orders and costs orders. The current jurisdictional limit of the Local Court is $100 000, but the next bill we will be talking to will seek to increase that. This means any monetary order below that amount is registrable and enforceable as an order of the Local Court.
Any order of NTCAT relating to an amount in excess of $100 000 is registrable and enforceable as an order of the Supreme Court. There is a separate provision relating to the enforcement of which non-monetary orders provides powers to the Supreme Court to enforce such orders. Significantly, the government proposes to make these amendments relating to enforcement retrospective so any other order made by NTCAT since its inception on 6 October 2014 is enforceable under the new enforcement provisions.
The standard we are well used to in considering and passing legislation in parliaments across the country is the presumption against retrospectivity. Retrospective application of sanctions is not usual practice, so I ask the minister to provide the Assembly, in his wrap, justification for the application of retrospectivity in these circumstances. In particular, have these amendments been constructed to provide for decisions already made by the NTCAT, which were potentially beyond current powers, and is he or his department aware of any circumstances where NTCAT orders will be enforced retrospectively under these proposed amendments? If so, can he outline the circumstances of those orders to this House?
The amendment to section 140 of the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act allows for a person to appeal against a decision made by NTCAT in its original jurisdiction. Section 140 is also being amended to insert new subsection 1A to allow the regulations to exclude specific decisions of NTCAT from becoming reviewed by NTCAT. The minister has assured us that this regulation-making power is intended to be used only in limited and appropriate circumstances. It will be important to monitor that.
Part 7 of the bill amends the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Regulations to provide, under new section 140(1A), certain suitable original decisions of NTCAT under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law. There is also a technical amendment to reduce the possibility of unintended and inefficient circumstances where it would be appropriate to exclude the original jurisdiction of NTCAT from an internal review by NTCAT under section 140.
Part 4 of the bill makes minor technical amendments to the Fences Act, which we support, to correct omission in the current legislation. There are also similar correcting amendments to the Residential Tenancies Act, including reference to the new role of NTCAT in respect to the Residential Tenancies Act.
The amendments proposed in this bill aim to significantly improve the complaint process under the Anti-Discrimination Act and the effectiveness of NTCAT. We trust this is the case.
The Office of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner is important for all Territorians – complainants and respondents – and that matters are dealt with expeditiously and fairly. It is important, indeed critical, that these important services are accessible no matter where you live or what your background or circumstances might be. It is important that any changes to anti-discrimination legislation enhance that important work in the Territory. We look to the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner and the minister to stay true to that end and to report on the effectiveness and impact of these changes on key performance indicators.
I have one last bit to add to my contribution on the strength of the budget handed down today. Parts 2 and 3 of the bill amend the Anti-Discrimination Act and Anti-Discrimination Regulations – I quote from the minister’s second reading:
… to reform the complaint process to provide a quicker process for parties to enable the process to operate more efficiently with reduced resources.
The budget papers show a $160 000 reduction in the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner’s budget for 2015-16 compared with the 2014-15 budget, which had an appropriation of $1.677m. It is also $460 000 less than the 2014-15 spend in the Office of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner. Also, the previous ADC has commented on the need for activities to increase the understanding of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner’s matters in the bush and bush access to ADC services. How does that reduced investment help that?
In my electorate it is a few years since we have had a visit from the ADC’s office to provide important education and training to people in workplaces, schools or anybody else who may be seeking it. I would be grateful if the minister could address this business of a reduced budget and how they can continue to do their job effectively for the benefit of all Territorians.
The opposition supports this bill, albeit requesting further explanation of the arrangements in place to ensure equity of access before NTCAT, particularly for complainants with a level of impairment that might affect their capacity to present at NTCAT, and the issue I raised regarding retrospectivity of orders made by NTCAT.
I commend the bill to the House. I thank the minister’s office for facilitating a briefing in his suite, and I thank those officers who attended to provide information.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I support the Justice Legislation Amendment Bill. My questions relate to specific clauses. I might do that now rather than go through the committee stage. I usually get a briefing but have been busy of late, and in this case I am not as prepared as I should be.
I have gone through the bill and some of my questions could have been answered in a briefing. I remember a former member for Drysdale saying you can raise these issues in the House as well, not just in a briefing.
There are improvements in the changes. My question relates to clause 10, which amends section 62. It is about authorisation to act for a complainant or respondent. New section 62(2)(2A) says:
- An authorisation under subsection (1) or (2) may be on any conditions the Commissioner considers appropriate.
This is a general question as to why a person or company cannot be represented without first having to get an authorisation. Why is that not a right? I presume the commissioner can say you cannot have a person as much as they can say you can. I want clarification on why an authorisation is required.
Clause 66D about a complaint declined says:
- If a complaint is declined under section 66:
(a) the Commissioner must provide the complainant with written reasons as to why the complaint was declined; and
(b) the complaint lapses and the complainant cannot make another complaint in relation to the same conduct.
Does that exclude any other actions that person might take, for example, through work health?
Mr Elferink: The short answer is no, but there are boundaries to it.
Mr WOOD: New section 81(1)(c) deals with conclusion of conciliation and says:
- (c) notify the complainant and the respondent that proceedings in relation to the complaint have ceased.
Why is that there? I thought once you finished the agreement you would sign on the dotted line. Has there been an issue in relation to the legality of things not being finished off correctly?
Clause 86 relates to tribunals. My understanding of a tribunal is it is normally a public hearing. Can it be a private hearing? You either go to conciliation …
Mr Elferink: Are you in the act or the amendment?
Mr WOOD: I am looking at the amendment.
Mr Elferink: Which clause is that?
Mr WOOD: Clause 86, Division 4A.
Mr Elferink: Clause 86 or the proposed amendment to section 86? I am not trying to be cute.
Mr WOOD: I have tried to put all the amendments into the new act so I knew where they fitted.
Mr Elferink: I see what you have done.
Mr WOOD: You have repealed Division 4 and replaced it with a new Division 4. Division 4A is headed Hearing by Tribunal. Does the commissioner have the right to hear a complaint in private in the tribunal or does it have to be a public hearing?
Mr Elferink: I see what you are saying.
Mr WOOD: I did not see anything that gives a – I will keep going, minister.
Sections 95 and 96 of the act are to be repealed. Section 95 of the act is headed, ‘Parties may be legally represented’, and section 96 of the act relates to costs. I am trying to understand why they are being repealed. On the surface it sounds like you are scrapping someone’s right to be legally represented.
My observant office helper said you are amending section 170(1)(a) of the Residential Tenancies Act. We could not find it. Our Residential Tenancies Act goes to section 166. Is it me or is it an error?
Mr Elferink: Clause 66 of the bill is the reference.
Mr WOOD: It says to omit.
Mr Elferink: I know what you are saying. I will double check it.
Mr WOOD: In relation to your second reading, you said NTCAT represents a major step to improving access to justice for all Territorians. I understand it is a single body and I presume different people will appear on it. Does it improve access or is it more efficient from the government’s point of view?
Mr Elferink: I am happy to answer that.
Mr WOOD: Minister, I had trouble understanding the fourth-last paragraph of your second reading in relation to the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law where NTCAT is involved. You said:
- Therefore, in the case of reviews under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law where NTCAT has an original decision referred to it under section 196 or 197 of the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, this would result in the situation where there would be duplication, that is, two full hearings before a panel of three. This introduces a new appeal right that does not currently exist and is not what was intended by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. This is the type of unintended and inefficient circumstance where it would be appropriate to exclude the original jurisdiction of NTCAT from an internal review by NTCAT under section 140.
Mr Elferink: Jurisdiction or decision?
Mr WOOD: No, jurisdiction.
Mr Elferink: I am taking the original second reading speech. The original ‘decision’ of NTCAT is in the original second reading speech. What are you reading from?
Mr WOOD: I am reading ‘jurisdiction’ so that could be a Hansard error.
Mr Elferink: Yes, I suspect so.
Mr WOOD: It could be a transposition error.
Mr Elferink: It materially affects what you are trying to deal with?
Mr WOOD: Yes, I had trouble understanding what that paragraph meant. I presume, as the member for Nhulunbuy mentioned, it has something to do with the changes to section 140 of the Northern Territory Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act. Perhaps you could explain that.
Minister, I thank you for bringing these good changes which make it a better law. The anti-discrimination law has to work fairly for both parties so they have an equal opportunity to put their views. If you are able to answer those questions I would appreciate it.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank honourable members for the effort they have put in. It is nice to see people are looking closely and reading this legislation.
I will start with your last problem. I suspect it is a typo if you are working out of Hansard. I have the original second reading speech and the quote is:
- This is the type of unintended and inefficient circumstance where it would be appropriate to exclude the original decision of NTCAT from an internal review by NTCAT under section 140.
I understand your confusion if there has been a typo because materially that sentence changes if you read the word ‘jurisdiction’ rather than ‘decision’. When it refers to a decision of NTCAT from an internal review by NTCAT under section 140 it makes a whole lot more sense than trying to oust the jurisdiction of the organisation conducting the review. I understand that caused confusion and do not know why it has happened. It makes much more sense if you read the word ‘decision’ where the word ‘jurisdiction’ appears in your paperwork.
You asked if NTCAT was just handy for government or handy for the punters. This was always designed to be handy for the punters.
It was not easy to breathe life into this and initially it will be expensive to establish. If you walk into a courtroom now – bearing in mind prior to the arrival of NTCAT you had several review processes attached to different pieces of legislation, and we are still in the process of collapsing those processes along with a raft of different legislative instruments into the NTCAT model.
It threw up a number of challenges for the average punter trying to get a decision. Perhaps I could give you an example. If I had an issue with the Mental Health Review Tribunal in relation to a mental health review matter relating to me or another person I would have to make submissions to the Mental Health Review Tribunal, which met at irregular times. The likelihood of getting into that place, particularly if it related to a relative of mine – I would have to get lawyered up to do it.
A number of other matters reviewed across government would have required reference to the Supreme Court in the first instance, particularly on points of law scattered through the statute book of the Northern Territory. I think there were 216 different reviewable types of decisions arising out of 150-odd sections of acts. There were 47 or 48 appellant bodies across the statute book, which I personally found unsatisfactory. I remember sitting in opposition saying we had to do it better.
In regard to ease of access, if you wanted to review a tax decision made by the Territory Revenue Office you went to the office, got your decision, and if you were unhappy with the decision you went back to the office to have it reviewed. You had to rely on the trust factor that the office conducting the review was doing so at arm’s length of the original decision maker in the office. You had nowhere to go beyond that unless you went to the Supreme Court on a point of law, and then you had to get all lawyered up.
For the average punter to make an application in front of NTCAT it is $49. If you walk in the front door you will be heard. It was always genuinely about an appellant body which was able to cover the field of nearly every administrative decision made across government. This can, in certain circumstances, include ministerial decisions of an administrative nature.
Moreover, NTCAT enables that to be done in the public domain. It has the flavour, nature and taste of a court so much so that we are venturing towards somewhere Queensland went, where even the small claims jurisdiction will end up with NTCAT having capacity to effectively give cover. The initial reports I have received from a number of people is they appreciate the quality of access NTCAT is giving them when they want to make an appeal against administrative decisions. The person in charge of NTCAT could just as easily sit on the bench as a magistrate or judge. That is the benchmark for the president of NTCAT.
The gentleman there at the moment, Richard Bruxner, has come from the Solicitor for the Northern Territory’s office. He is no slouch; he is a smart dude. Moreover, I hear anecdotally from the punters that he is pretty sharp and knows what he is doing.
The quality of access to justice is much higher. It is not obliged to follow the rules of evidence in the same way a court is so it can be a lot more flexible. Through that process it can become more equitable so the person making an appeal to NTCAT – the average punter – has a chance of being heard for the right price. They do not have to be represented and can still get a sense of justice from the process. That is the feedback I am getting at the moment. I am very encouraged by the things I hear.
We are the second-last jurisdiction in the country to adopt an administrative tribunal. The original AAT, the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, was a Commonwealth organ and has been adopted by all jurisdictions except Tasmania. I suspect they will have to fall into line at some point.
I hope that answers your question. It really is about the average punter getting access to what looks and smells like justice because it is justice in an administrative arm of government rather than the judiciary. It is still on the executive side of the separation of powers. It is not a chapter three court in the sense that a court in the Territory may be under its constitutional arrangements; it is where the average punter can walk away saying, ‘Yes, I got a fair hearing. I may not be happy with the result, but it was a fair hearing.’ That is what NTCAT is determined to do.
New section 170(1)(a) is a transitional provision. It probably dropped off the legislation at some point and would have been a transitional provision when the Residential Tenancies Act was breathed into life. We are checking that now, but I am sure what you are describing looks and smells like a transitional provision. I will get a nod from the people sitting next to me any second now.
In regard to legal representation in sections 95 and 96, nothing prevents a person – I am getting a nod on transitional provisions. When the legislation originally came into existence – every so often you build into the back of legislation that it will operate in such a fashion then drop off. It looks like a drop off provision.
Some pieces of legislation will come into existence then cease to exist within 10 hours. They are transitional legislations creating legal rights and responsibilities, but the act does not have to stand on the statute book.
Sections 95 and 96 were simply straightforward legal representation. Legal representation is – I understand that legislation said May. It has been a long time since I read this, but the original section said May, which created an optional environment anyhow but, having made that observation, it has gone to NTCAT. Those are the legislative changes that, when the appellant body becomes NTCAT, the capacity by NTCAT to hear those matters absorbs sections 95 and 96.
Proposed section 81(1)(c) is a discretionary provision. In legislation you create discretionary provisions, which means their existence one way or the other is of no major consequence.
Clause 66D, relating to a matter being closed off under the Anti-Discrimination Act if there was an option to make a claim in another jurisdictional area such as the work health provisions – the short answer is yes. If a claim had an overlapping quality it is almost certain that an appeal – I am trying to think of an example – or a claim of right in more than one area, for example a work health matter, it would be up to the organs constructed in that second environment.
If the anti-discrimination matter happens in the workplace and attracts a work health investigation, generally the different organs of government will independently undertake the investigation. One may choose to truncate the investigation for a number of reasons. Perhaps the matter could be solved by way of arbitration or negotiation. Perhaps the complainant has determined not to go down the path of anti-discrimination because they want to pursue a work health injury. That would depend on the circumstances of the case, but these are individual freestanding legislative instruments which mean if action in one instrument is stopped for whatever reason, it does not exclude the other authority from proceeding.
Where the complaint is clearly vexatious in nature – somebody is shopping around to pursue things – without having the work health legislation in front of me I can almost be certain the same powers exist for them as a court in relation to saying, ‘The way you are pursing this is vexatious. We have given you all the hearings we are supposed to. It will reach a point where you run into a dead end because you are just making noise.’
I encourage departments to tell people, whether it is the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner or work health, that we have passed vexatious proceedings legislation and the courts can dispose of matters where a complainant becomes tedious and vexatious in their conduct. They will not get what they are after because, for whatever reason, they will not get it. Sometimes that happens.
Why do I need an authorisation under amended section 62? The authorisation it referred to is a – jog my memory again.
Mr Wood: Under amended section 62 you need an authorisation to have someone represent you or …
Mr ELFERINK: In short I suspect it is redundant legislation. You have to be realistic about what these organisations do. For example, I do not think the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner will act in a discriminatory way. If someone wants legal representation and has to seek authorisation and has it taken away, you will find it is still within the domain of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to give permission under certain circumstances.
I do not think it has any substance one way or the other. The discretion will exist and this just amplifies the discretion. That is about as clear as mud, but if you say somebody may do something or the commissioner has to seek something, it implies discretion all the way through legislation so you have a discretionary environment whether you describe it or not. That leads me to a point made by the member for Nhulunbuy ...
Mr Wood: What about proposed section 79 and the tribunal being in private.
Mr ELFERINK: Yes, that is also discretionary. Generally with tribunals, and certainly NTCAT, the presumption is in favour of a public hearing. However, there may be circumstances in which a tribunal will choose not to go into the public environment and will enunciate its reasons. A court does exactly the same thing. The Supreme Court and the Children’s – there is a presumption in favour of closed courts.
The Court of Summary Jurisdiction, or the Local Court as it will be called shortly, and the Supreme Court will be heard in public unless for some reason a judge or magistrate determines it is necessary to close the court or give instructions. You will find with NTCAT the presumption will always be in favour of a public hearing ...
Mr Wood: There will not be any magistrates.
Mr ELFERINK: No, we will deal with that shortly. The member for Nhulunbuy expressed concern about the act setting parameters and allowing the commissioner to close off matters with unintended consequences and that type of thing.
This was sought by the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner as a way to mechanically deal with issues. She advised we needed this type of approach because sometimes it is impossible to find the complainant. The complainant has gone to New South Wales, or unfortunately had a trekking accident in Nepal, and you cannot close it off until that matter has been dealt with.
The Anti-Discrimination Commissioner said, ‘I need a mechanism to truncate these matters’. I suggest it would be inconceivable for an Anti-Discrimination Commissioner, for the sake of administrative convenience, to start truncating investigations because it is all too hard.
As the minister, if I become aware of that I would probably speak to the executive arm of government and terminate that person’s employment. In fact, I would have to do it here. It would be similar to disposing of a judge or magistrate, and the only grounds to do that would be due to mental incompetence, gross dereliction of duty or engagement in some illegality.
Truncating cases for administrative convenience would be awfully close to that type of behaviour. The current, and every previous Anti-Discrimination Commissioner, would be mortified at the thought of behaving in such a fashion.
I will go out on a limb and say I expect every future Anti-Discrimination Commissioner would apply the same rigorous standards. Such a process would have a discriminatory quality to it, therefore it would be most unlikely for an Anti-Discrimination Commissioner to behave that way.
Nevertheless, it is a fair question from the member for Nhulunbuy. I am trying to imagine how that could become manifest in a practical sense but cannot. As Attorney-General, if I was receiving complaints that this was happening there would be an interrupter.
The member also mentioned access to interpreters for matters before the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner. I expect the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner would make interpreters available if a person was unable to speak English.
It is counter-intuitive to suggest the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner would allow a matter to proceed without the person understanding what was going on. I understand the comment and am not being critical; I am just trying to see how that lands in the real world. Frankly, I cannot quite make it work in that sense.
I suspect if an Anti-Discrimination Commissioner withheld an interpreter from somebody who needed one – once again you are straying into an area where I, or any future Attorney-General, would say, ‘Have we picked the right person for the job?’
NTCAT and the presumption of retrospectivity – I am hearing you loud and clear. Like all CATs, we do not want this CAT to be a pussy; we want it to be a tiger. It needs to have teeth and it has already made a number of decisions. This issue of enforcement of decisions has come up subsequent to the creation of the organ. When the organ was originally created – I do not mean the pun. Yes I do, I like this pun – there would be teething problems. There are teething problems with NTCAT. This is one way to address those teething problems.
The need for retrospectivity is to give quality enforceability to decisions that have already been made. I thought about that when this issue came to me, and I took it to my Cabinet colleagues and I now take it to this House. I think it is within the bounds of reasonableness to embrace retrospectivity in this instance because I would hate to see a dual class of decision existing as a result of the operation of NTCAT.
If you made unenforceable decisions prior to the date of commencement of this legislation then enforceable decisions, you would be re-hearing every matter to bring it forward. I suspect the average person in the street, when casting an eye over what we do here, would conclude retrospectivity in this instance is not unreasonable in all the circumstances. I would hate to see people dragged back into NTCAT so matters could be re-heard where a decision is made which is subsequently enforceable as it defeats the purpose of NTCAT. It is meant to be accessible and convenient for people seeking justice in relatively minor matters as a general proposition.
Having made that observation, NTCAT can also – and will into the future, particularly if you look at the amendments to the Local Court Act – cast a very broad net in its capacity to make big decisions which will ultimately run into hundreds and thousands of dollars. At some stage other decisions, such as planning decisions, will also come into the orbit of NTCAT. This is not just a pseudo court sitting on the side of the executive; this organisation will provide decisions on some pretty big ticket items. That is one of the reasons we expect a person who presides on NTCAT to be eligible to take up judicial office in the Northern Territory.
I hope that answers questions and I will leave it at that. Suffice to say I thank honourable members for the trouble and time taken as it was not an easy piece of legislation. The second reading speech had a certain Tolstoyan quality to it, as did the Local Court Bill, which was even worse.
This is good legislation. Again I place on the record my thanks to the staff of AGS who appear next to me in the House today for their efforts and work. I think this will work for the true benefit and welfare of the people of the Northern Territory.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice) (by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time.
LOCAL COURT BILL
(Serial 120)
(Serial 120)
Continued from 26 March 2015.
Ms WALKER (Nhulunbuy): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I was not the shadow Attorney-General at the time of the second reading of this bill, but I recall the Attorney-General delivered a very lengthy speech. It was so long that it exceeded the extension of time granted. That was fine because no one would tell him his time had expired because with legislation, and other matters, sometimes a member needs extra time. It was plain to me, whilst I had not tuned into the entire content of the speech, that a good deal of work and reform had been captured in the bill.
Now I am back in the role of shadow Attorney-General I can confirm there is a good deal in this bill and more to come with, ‘Up to 153 acts, rules, regulations and by-laws’ to be amended along with repeal of the Magistrates Act, which will come along a little later.
We all understand this bill to be a significant body of work which consolidates into one act all the provisions regarding establishment and operation of the main lower courts of the Northern Territory, and in the words of the Attorney-General’s second reading speech:
- … the consolidation of the Local Court and Court of Summary Jurisdiction; resolution of inconsistencies between the jurisdictions, for example in the area of contempt; rationalisation of standard quasi-judicial and non-judicial officers within the lower courts; reflecting current practices and be sufficiently flexible to cater for future changes to practice; modernisation and create consistency in terminology; rationalising provisions regarding sentencing jurisdiction and offences that can be dealt with summarily; and increasing the size of the civil jurisdiction of the Local Court.
This legislation to consolidate the lower courts does not include the Youth Justice Court or the Work Health Court because of the specialised type of work and cases they deal with. This is very sensible.
I am grateful to the Attorney-General’s office for facilitating a briefing for me and to the officers present. I acknowledge the enormous body of work undertaken by officers within the Department of the Attorney-General and Justice who have clearly toiled away to combine and consolidate criminal and civil jurisdictions. In so doing, they have dealt with many technical matters but also endeavoured to address some policy matters along the way. Of course, it is beholden on any government to ensure the states and territories are served with workable, contemporary legislation to best serve its citizens and it is important that such legislation be drafted in light of an evidence base.
I am pleased to see a consultation process was established a year ago to enable interested stakeholders, obviously not the least of whom is the legal fraternity, to scrutinise the draft bill and provide feedback. This is as it should be, and it is a shame the government is not always consistent with consultation where major legislative reforms are afoot. However, our Attorney-General does not do too badly in this area.
The report into the six-month consultation phase of the Local Court Bill – this rather hefty report dated 22 September and 101 pages in length – makes for very interesting reading with submissions and comments provided by the Director of Courts Administration, Chris Cox; Hon Dean Mildren AMRFD QC, retired Supreme Court justice; and our Chief Justice Hon Trevor Riley. I note it includes observations made by some of the judges, but not necessarily supported by all of them; the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency and Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Service, who put in a joint submission, John Lowndes, Chief Magistrate; and the Law Society of the Northern Territory.
I note in the Attorney-General’s second reading speech the comment:
- The Local Court Bill 2015 adopts most, but not all, of the outcomes of the consultation.
I have not had access to all the submissions, but note that excerpts from those I just listed are included throughout the consultation report and some submissions are quoted at length, including the question of whether, under the draft bill, the term ‘magistrate’ should be changed to ‘judge’. I will come back to that matter later.
What strikes me is that not adopting all the outcomes of the consultation downplays some of the serious concerns raised. These have been considered then, for whatever reason, not adopted in this bill. That includes concerns raised by peak bodies of the legal profession like the NT Law Society, and legal institutions NAAJA and CAALAS, which do important work representing Indigenous Territorians, who, although they make up just over 30% of our population, are grossly over-represented in the justice and corrections systems. I thought their views might have carried some weight.
After reading the second reading speech, the consultation report, the submissions of the NT Law Society and the joint submission of NAAJA and CAALAS, I wondered how some of the final decisions in the bill were arrived at when there was no overwhelming support for the proposals. I acknowledge that ultimately the Attorney-General has the opportunity to accept the advice or otherwise offered during such a process.
It is not possible for me to address all aspects of this bill because I do not need the 45 minutes and an extension of time, but I want to work through some of the aspects which raised differences of opinion.
Part 3 division 2 of the bill deals with civil jurisdiction. The consultation phase canvassed if there should be an increase in the civil jurisdiction and whether the current amount of $100 000 should be retained or raised. Although the report notes there was no consensus, the upper limit of $250 000 has been implemented in this bill. I understand the explanation given during my briefing, but according to the consultation report there was divided opinion about this sum and whether it should be changed or increased. I note that members of the judiciary provided various reasons as to why the jurisdictional limit should be raised.
On the other hand, the submissions from the NT Law Society, NAAJA and CAALAS rejected any increase. NAAJA prefaces its submission with the fact it has several concerns with the draft Local Court Bill 2014. Keep in mind this was back at the initial consultation phase, and they said:
- Our central concern is that the proposed changes will disproportionately affect Aboriginal people.
They then go on to provide comment in relation to this increase in the jurisdictional limit and their submission states:
- NAAJA and CAALAS do not support the proposed increase of jurisdictional limit to $250 000. In our view, this would bring the Northern Territory out of step with other jurisdictions in Australia that do not have an intermediate court. It should be noted that the Northern Territory is a much busier jurisdiction than the ACT.
Which has an upper limit of $250 000.
- We consider that the jurisdictional limit should remain at $100 000’.
The NT Law Society goes to the jurisdictional limit, putting the case that it should remain at $100 000 and calling for an evidence base which would support the reform. The society goes on to raise concerns about increased workloads in the Local Court and the impact this will have. I quote from their submission:
- Increasing the jurisdictional limit will increase the already overworked workload of the Court to the detriment of Court users. Court users need to be assured that the Local Court can provide prompt and cost effective justice in relation to substantial and controversial claims. Users have commented that it is the procedures employed by the Local Court that result in costs being incurred by litigants, costs which are out of proportion to the subject matter of the dispute.
- The Society supports evidence based reform. The Society would welcome analysis of the Local Court performance and particularly:
qualitative analysis of Local Court decision making.
Are there opportunities to improve decision making at first instance?
If so how can they be implemented?
Quantitative analysis of the impact of court processes on the cost and the timeliness of decisions would also be informative.
I would like to hear the Attorney-General address this matter of evidence-based reform and ask that he endeavours to address the questions raised by the Law Society and provide assurances that the increased workload in the court will not negatively impact upon court users. There are already concerns among the legal fraternity that civil matters are stood down by criminal matters, which is more than just inconvenient.
Of course, criminal matters where people are in custody in holding cells beneath the court will take precedence. That is why it would be useful to know the number of cases stood down to provide a benchmark to measure the impact of the increased workload on the Local Court.
If these reforms are to be successful surely this is something the Attorney-General can commit to. I know he, more than anyone else in this House, has a vested interest in seeing justice administered smoothly and fairly in the Northern Territory.
NAAJA and CAALAS also raise in their submission the impact of an increased workload in the Local Court. Their submission says:
- … if more matters are to be dealt with by Courts of Summary Jurisdiction, it is essential that Magistrates Courts be better resourced, to better meet the needs of victims, witnesses, and for improved access to interpreters and other support services. This is particularly the case when considering the dire lack of resourcing for remote bush courts at the present time. They are simply not in a position to be dealing with even more matters, particularly those at the upper end of their jurisdiction.
The matter of contempt is dealt with in Part 4, Division 4 of the bill. The Attorney-General stated in his second reading speech that:
- … clear express contempt provisions are integral in legislation establishing a court of inferior jurisdiction.
There are contempt provisions in this bill which will allow the Local Court to have the power to punish contempt beyond the face of the court. This is an acceptable provision and one the Supreme Court has. It strengthens the power of the magistrate to ensure compliance with orders or undertakings outside the court. I note only the magistrate has the power to punish for contempt. Perhaps the Attorney-General could clarify dealing with the adequacy of provisions and dealing with contempt of court as per clause 46.
The consultation report notes that submissions have suggested, ‘that contempt proceedings should not be conducted by a magistrate who is the victim or witness to the alleged contempt’.
I could be wrong, but it seems there is no provision for that suggestion to be included and I wondered why. I am sure the Attorney-General will have an answer for me.
I note the significant increase in penalties for contempt. While recognising contempt of court is a serious offence, I query the dramatic rise. It brings the penalties in line with the relatively new NTCAT, which we were discussing in the last debate, which seem to be the only grounds for the increase from one month imprisonment and 15 penalty units to six months imprisonment and 100 penalty units. It seems to be quite a dramatic increase.
I also note the matter of provision for a right to appeal a contempt decision was raised by the Law Society. If that position is included in the bill and I have missed it I would be grateful, Attorney-General, if you could address that. Given the very serious and now increased penalties for proven contempt there would have to be some mechanism for appeal for those who wanted to pursue the path of appeal.
For something that is a matter of policy and makes no difference to the delivery of justice, people have commented they find it curious that so much time and space in the consultation process has been devoted to changing the terminology of magistrate to judge. I guess that within this bill is as good a place as any to do it given these are major reforms. The Magistrates Act will be repealed and perhaps this is as good a time as any to have that debate.
None of the submissions I have seen in the consultation paper, with the exception of one, supported the proposal for a change of title from magistrate to judge. The Law Society was quite strident in its submission to oppose the name change and highlighted a number of issues, including the name change. I will quote a few of them. The first one is, ‘see no benefit for the people of the Northern Territory nor does it promote the interests of justice’. The Law Society said, ‘It may generate greater confusion for those appearing in the Court of Summary Jurisdiction and diminish the important distinction between the two courts’.
The society is also concerned that temporary magistrates can be appointed by the minister. This is to do with the judiciary needing to be at arm’s length from the executive of government and quite independent of the executive.
Around the issue of changing the name from magistrate to judge, the Law Society warned that the NT should step lightly ahead of other jurisdictions with this renaming.
The Chief Justice is referred to in the consultation report. His comments record he does not see the need for the change, noting there is no pressing need. He also submitted that it was, ‘not appropriate for a small jurisdiction such as the Northern Territory to lead the way. The change should be a move supported on a national basis and by a much wider body of opinion.’
With all that said, and a strong case put forward by the Chief Magistrate to support the renaming, the Attorney-General has opted to adopt the name change. In his second reading speech he spoke at length in support of that decision.
I want to comment on the importance of the separation of powers and the judiciary retaining its independence at arm’s length from the executive of government. This issue was highlighted in events over a year ago with the appointment of a magistrate by the Attorney-General and the government. This raised eyebrows not only within the judiciary and the legal fraternity, but across many sectors of the Territory as well.
Whilst that magistrate has resigned from his position, I believe, as do others, that the saga has called into question the relationship between a serving magistrate and the government. The matter of a process for complaints about judicial officers was raised in the consultation phase of this bill, and whether or not there was a need to set out a legislative process for dealing with complaints about judicial officers. This matter has not been resolved through this process, but it is important that the conversation has been opened up.
It would appear from submissions that there was not support for a legislated process for various reasons. Chief Magistrate Dr John Lowndes in his submission to this question stated, amongst other things, that:
- The need for a structured system of dealing with complaints in the Northern Territory is a matter that needs to be subject of a separate and comprehensive review. It would be premature to recommend the incorporation of a mechanism for dealing with complaints in the Local Court Bill.
On the same subject the Law Society advocates for:
- … heads of jurisdiction to implement a transparent mechanism open to all Court users to register complaints about judicial conduct.
While judicial conduct is not the subject of this bill in any big way, although comment was invited in the consultation phase, it is clearly a matter which will need to progress under the guidance of the judiciary so all those in contact with the justice system can have confidence there are avenues for their concerns. I wish members of the judiciary good luck in that process. As Hon Dean Mildren submitted, given the likelihood of a high number of frivolous complaints the problem will be how to decide on the most appropriate mechanism.
I note there is a lot more to come in this reform process and that today’s bill is part of stage one. Stage two will involve consolidation and reforms to be introduced by way of a further bill in the October sittings, according to the Attorney-General’s second reading speech, with the aim to have the new Local Court Act commence operation in early 2016.
I thank the Attorney-General for bringing this bill before the House and look forward to the contributions of others. I trust the Attorney-General can address the questions raised by the opposition.
This is a difficult bill to give wholesome and unqualified support to given concerns I have raised and ones that have come through the consultation process. In the belief that not all those concerns have been addressed, nonetheless I thank the Attorney-General and again acknowledge the hard work of the officers in the Department of the Attorney-General and Justice in drafting this bill, and those who took a good deal of time to provide comment to this process.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Mr Deputy Speaker, the member for Nhulunbuy should get an honorary law degree after going through this bill. I struggled with it. There is a saying that if you put two lawyers in a phone box and ask for an opinion on something you will get 20 different answers ...
A member: Come on.
Mr WOOD: I have the evidence before me. You just have to read the report following consultation dated 22 September mentioned by the member for Nhulunbuy. There are many differences of opinion there, but when I read the beginning of the War and Peace version of the second reading it said:
- The main purpose of this bill is to consolidate into one act all the key provisions regarding the establishment and operation of the main lower courts of the Northern Territory. This involves the consolidation of the Local Court and the Court of Summary Jurisdiction; resolution of inconsistencies between the jurisdictions, for example in the area of contempt; rationalisation of standard quasi-judicial and non-judicial officers within the lower courts; reflecting current practices and be sufficiently flexible to cater for future changes to practice; modernisation and create consistence in terminology; rationalising provisions regarding sentencing jurisdiction and offences that can be dealt with summarily; and increasing the size of the civil jurisdiction of the Local Court.
That is not only a very long sentence, it made me realise this is complicated legislation. For some of us there has been a fair bit of work to understand it, so I have relied mainly on the report handed down on 22 September. The difficulty I had with that was trying to match it with the bill because numbers do not always match. The words ‘retain the current clause of the draft bill’ were in the majority. When you look at the report, a relatively minor number of issues were contentious or required some discussion.
One was the issue the member for Nhulunbuy mentioned about raising the jurisdictional limit from $100 000 to $250 000. Hon Dean Mildren supported that increase and gave a list of reasons why. John Lowndes also supported the increase. The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency, the Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Service and the Law Society argued that it should not. It reiterates what I said about putting a group of lawyers together and getting a series of opinions, and they expect me to know which one is right. I might give a third opinion, being an Independent. I will go half way between the two and say $200 000 and be done with it.
As you can see, it is not easy for someone like me to get my head around. This is a fairly difficult piece of legislation, especially if you are not knowledgeable about court systems. People involved in the court system know the funny words like ‘indictable’ and ‘summarily’, but they do not mean much to the ordinary person. I understand that the importance of this bill is to rationalise things so we can make sure we do not have bits and pieces we do not need. We can be more efficient in our legislation and in our courts.
The other interesting thing is about judges. Some people might regard it as the biggest issue in the world. There is an argument that magistrates represent, by their very name, a lower court which is the Local Court. A judge represents a higher court, but we are changing things. I hope I have read this right when I say certain crimes under a punishment regime will be called ‘offences’.
We are saying not all crimes will be called crimes. We will call crimes dealt with in the lower court ‘offences’, which leads you to believe it is not a serious crime but an offence dealt with in the Local Court.
On the other hand, the government says it does not accept that, when it comes to whether a person should be a magistrate representing a lower court as opposed to a judge representing more serious offences, which are crimes. There is a philosophical conflict in what you are trying to do. Hon Dean Mildren said he did not support the proposed change of title from magistrate to judge. The only jurisdiction in Australia where this change of title and status has occurred is former federal magistrates, who are now called judges.
The issue which should be raised tonight is that Hon Dean Mildren said in his submission:
- It is true that magistrates adjudicate, and for that reason they are judges, but that does not entitle them to be called “Judge” with a capital “J”. The courts over which the magistrates preside deal with the vast majority of the litigation which comes before the courts, and whilst they are entitled to the utmost respect because they are dealing with the general public on a daily basis, many of whom are Aboriginal or not represented by lawyers, it would be inappropriate to make the proceedings any more formal than is strictly necessary. There is no objection to calling them “Your Honour” as a courtesy title, but I think “Judge” takes the matter too far. It is not suggested that it would be easier to recruit more capable people if their title were to be changed, and I cannot see how calling them “Judge” would make any improvement except to the egos of some of the incumbents ...
I had a chuckle at that, but I also thought it was an important issue. I hope I am not misreading what the judge said but I thought he was saying that, especially for Aboriginal people, dealing with some of the Local Court offences we need a person who is not almighty when he goes into the community. A judge should deal with a murder trial or something really serious. We are dealing with a magistrate – and I am not putting magistrates down – who is more on the level of the people he is judging.
That is my understanding of this. When a person goes into a community let us not put them up too high; let us keep them at a level which reflects the people they are dealing with. That is a reasonable point. If I have misread what Hon Dean Mildren suggested I apologise.
Trevor Riley said there was no pressing need for the change. The Law Society said there was no benefit for the people of the Northern Territory. That is important. Is there a benefit? What is the benefit?
The Law Society said it does not promote the interests of justice, and change might create greater confusion for those appearing in the Court of Summary Jurisdiction and diminish the important distinction between the two courts. It also said the Northern Territory should not take this step lightly ahead of other jurisdictions. The Law Society said it supports continued adherence to the agreement of the Standing Council of Attorneys-General that any such change should be made unanimously.
I ask the minister, if he attended the Standing Council of Attorneys-General, did he sign his name to an agreement that there would not be any change unless it was unanimous? If so, has he broken that agreement? The legislation says we will move from calling them magistrates to judges ...
Mr Elferink: Say that again, I missed it.
Mr WOOD: The Law Society was concerned the Northern Territory should not take this step lightly ahead of other jurisdictions. The society supports continued adherence to the agreement of the Standing Council of Attorneys-General that any such change should be made unanimously.
This has been taken unilaterally. Have you broken your agreement with the Standing Council of Attorneys-General?
Mr Elferink: I suspect it was somebody else’s agreement, not mine.
Mr WOOD: Mr John Lowndes said the question is redundant as the federal government has already taken the initiative by renaming former federal magistrates as judges of the Federal Circuit Court of Australia. Mr John Lowndes says you should do it, and Hon Dean Mildren uses exactly the same reasons for not doing it. It makes it difficult, as a member of parliament, to understand the debate, and many other issues are involved.
I did my best to work through the contempt section of the bill. I had some concerns with Table 1 of the report following consultation. One issue raised which I could not match in the legislation questioned the adequacy of the contempt clause – point 12 question 8, clause 40 of the table. The suggestion is it is not adequate because it does not deal with contempt not in the face of the court.
I did not understand that. I thought it meant if you were not in the court but said something about the court you could be charged with contempt of court, for instance, if I was outside the Supreme Court and said something about the court. It raises that issue and it would be interesting to know whether that matter was covered.
I could not find anything on this, but it talked about the wider role of a Justice of the Peace when exercising powers in regional and bush courts, as in Western Australia. I thought that would be supported – perhaps magistrates do not like too many JPs pushing into their area – in outback Woop Woop where the powers of a Justice of the Peace might be increased because it is difficult to get magistrates.
The member for Nhulunbuy raised the issue of one of our magistrates and whether there was any political wrongdoing. I will not get into that argument, but that has obviously led to point 19 of the report following consultation being dealt with:
- Legislated process for dealing with complaints about judicial officers (question 13).
No support for a legislated process. Various suggestions made as to how to improve the current non-legislated process.
Has that gone anywhere? What is the process now, and was there any move to deal with that issue in a format that would be in an act?
Going through this document you will find people agreed and disagreed with different things. Sometimes there would be general support. It makes it hard when you read various opinions to then say, ‘I know better than those learned people. I think this legislation is crook.’ I do not think this legislation is crook. Obviously a lot of people have seen the remarks from these people. The government has had to make a decision using its legal advisers. I am pretty sure, when looking over there, that one has been around a long time and is a very wise person. I presume many of the issues raised by the judiciary have been dealt with carefully.
I imagine a lot of work has been done on this and suppose that is reflected in the War and Peace version of the second reading. There are many issues to be dealt with. What process does the government have to go through to make sure the new bill is working? Is it the normal process? I expect magistrates or judges operating under this will give you feedback if it is not working or if there are issues because it is new. It has been discussed and people are for or against it. One way to find out is put it into practice and see what happens.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank honourable members once again for their considered investigation of this bill. I congratulate any member who has managed to get through the second reading speech because I agree, War and Peace was probably slightly less complex and perhaps had a more exciting end.
However, it was a Tolstoyan effort by the draftsman of the second reading speech. They advised me the little joke in the second reading speech has been picked up by at least one observer. I confess I was not the observer. I hope the draftsman enjoyed that.
I advised the profession, upon becoming Attorney-General, that I would be an engaged and involved Attorney-General. That is what I have tried to do.
There are a number of law reform packages such as NTCAT and the bill I will be giving notice of tomorrow in relation to summary procedures – the Local Court Bill and the Justice Legislation Amendment Bill have been dealt with. I suspect that in the last-two-and-a-half years this government has probably undertaken more law reform in the Northern Territory than had been done in the 25 years previous, particularly in adopting national uniform legislation around evidence rules, serial sexual offenders legislation, the presumption in favour of joint trials in sexual offences and a number of other reforms of that nature.
I am unashamed to pursue reform, but not just for the sake of reform; it has to do something useful and I believe the bill does. This bill deals with a number of issues. I do not think it changes the powers of the court at all. However, it increases efficiency through streamlining processes so that the Court of Summary Jurisdiction and the Local Court simply become the Local Court. That is a good idea, with a couple of exceptions such as the Children’s Court, and hopefully we will have some announcements in the near future in relation to reforms in the physical domain of the Children’s Court.
I found it particularly irritating when the member for Nhulunbuy decided to revisit the appointment of Magistrate Peter Maley. I again acknowledge he has been a personal friend over a number of years. He is a former member of this House and we would not sit far from each other. I was not intending to revisit that, but unfortunately the member for Nhulunbuy raised the issue, and in fairness to the process it is worthwhile pointing out a couple of things which have become apparent since that time.
I table a letter dated 4 June from John Lawrence, head of the NT Bar Association, which raises issues he canvassed widely on radio. He saw and articulated his role as being the defender of the integrity of the judiciary, and I have no complaints with the Bar Association doing that.
I think his pronouncement of the death of democracy in the Northern Territory was overreach. Of course there were implications by fellow barrister, Jon Tippett QC, who accused Mr Lawrence of being politically motivated at the time, and that is a fight for Mr Tippett and Mr Lawrence. However, I wrote back to Mr Lawrence saying I respect the concept of the separation of powers, and I tabled my response to Mr Lawrence SC.
Let us look at what the separation of powers may or may not mean in a state or territory. I point honourable members to the Kable doctrine, which is now well established in this country but somewhat limited in the intrusion it makes in relation to the courts of the states and the territories.
The Kable doctrine imposes – as a result of cross-vesting arrangements between the states and the Commonwealth – a certain quality of separation as described in chapter three of the Australian Constitution when it comes to the Federal Court and the High Court. Through the boilermakers’ case, the description of the separation of powers has been well described and articulated, but what happens in the states is less clear. The Territory is no exception to that. The federal constitution clearly describes a separation, and if you look at the structure of the constitution you will see three chapters relating to the parliament, the executive and the judiciary to describe the separation of powers. However, the state constitutions, including the Northern Territory’s constitution, which is essentially the Self-Government Act, do not carry that same separation. That has been a matter of great conversation amongst High Court judges.
The Kable principle – I think was 1994 or 1995 – asserted if state courts were to exercise federal jurisdiction at any point they would have at least some flavour of the separation or the quality of a chapter three court.
Subsequent cases tied down the Kable principle fairly tightly in that the extent of what the Kable principle meant has been somewhat limited. The added complication in the Northern Territory – it may come up as a result of recent matters filed in the Supreme Court arising out of our paperless arrests – is that it attracts a further conversation as to whether or not we, as a territory, have a similar application of the Kable principle. Subsequent issues arise from that as well.
There was a further letter in relation to issues surrounding the separation of powers after I responded to Mr Lawrence. I have always been careful that once a magistrate or judge is appointed they are beyond the reach of the executive arm of government. It is essentially shoot it off, off it goes. There will be no shortage of opinions relating to Magistrate Maley’s conduct when he was on the bench, but a lot of the noise generated around Mr Maley was quite unfair. It was not only from the Labor Party, but other quarters as well.
I will point out a couple of things in the history here. Firstly, the Law Society returned Mr Maley’s practising certificate almost immediately. They issued a media release, if memory serves me, saying they would review the matter of Mr Maley. The matter was reviewed and his practising certificate, after he left the bench, was returned very quickly. The benchmarks of the Law Society are very high. If you remove all the gumpf and noise, where precisely was the wrongdoing on the part of former magistrate Maley in relation to being given his practising certificate back?
Secondly, the assertion that he was in some way biased was never tested in the one jurisdictional environment it should have been, which was a court of law. Apprehended bias – there is a High Court case called Ebner which deals with this issue and creates a two limb test. That case was mentioned in Mr Lawrence’s letter. In my reply I advised Mr Lawrence, or the Bar Association, that if they had an issue with a case of apprehended bias with a magistrate or judicial officer, to deal with the matter in court. That is what happened in the McNamara case, which occurred not long after I became Attorney-General. The Court of Appeal overruled the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory’s adjusted bar rulings, saying there was no apprehended bias. The test was done internally. This matter is again being trawled through by the member for Nhulunbuy because she cannot let it go.
After my letter to Mr Lawrence I received a letter from the Bar Association, which I will table in a second, which dealt with my response saying to deal with it inside the system. That letter called on me to remove myself from the decision-making process and have an oversight review into the matter. Because of my proximity to Mr Maley I was not the right person to make that call but I disagree with that. What is curious is the letter is signed 25 June and came from Alistair Wyvill SC. Mr Wyvill did not say in his letter that he was engaged in behaviour that would ultimately lead to a finding in the Supreme Court which has potential ramifications, but I will not go any further into that.
My concern is, yet again, that members opposite will trawl through this as though there had been some wrongdoing in the process. No single court or body has reviewed this process and adjudicated against Mr Maley during his time on the bench. The Law Society returned the practising certificate, and no motion has been raised against a court overseen by Mr Maley to suggest he had acted in a biased fashion.
While the newspaper wrote articles about Mr Maley nothing was every substantiated. Trawling this up again, in the absence of any evidence to support the assertions that have never been visited by a tribunal or resulted in a negative finding against Mr Maley, is disappointing.
Member for Nelson, yes you can engage in conduct which will generate a contempt proceeding outside the courtroom. That is easy, and one way is to reflect on a matter before the court in the media.
The second component is if a judge considers, as a result of the contempt proceeding, that they are biased then they will remove themselves from that contempt proceeding and leave it to another judge to adjudicate.
In relation to appeal provisions, which were also raised by the member for Nelson, there are procedure acts which deal with the appeal provisions.
Finally, I wish to touch on the title of ‘judge’. The Chief Magistrate, Judge Lowndes I will call him, made the observation that it was time the title of judge be applied to magistrates. I said I would not stand in his way but was sure there would be noise about it in the legal profession. Indeed, there has been noise around it in this House tonight.
The title of judge applies to practitioners or judicial officers in district courts in other jurisdictions where there are three tiers. One of the things Judge Lowndes raised with me was that many of the functions of the Court of Summary Jurisdiction, or the lower courts in the Territory, intrude into the domain of what would be considered matters for district courts in other jurisdictions.
There is an overlap, and I have some sympathy for that argument. Of course, federal circuit court judges used to be magistrates, and that terminology is recognised anywhere in the United States. You are either a judge of the Supreme Court of the United States or a judge dealing with regulatory matters in the lower courts. The title is recognised. There is a certain anachronistic quality to ‘magistrate’ in the same way there was an anachronistic quality to the term ‘worship’. We used to worship our magistrates and merely honour our judges. We will now honour our judges in every court in this jurisdiction and we will deal with that.
In the common vernacular the average person understands the term ‘judge’. In the American experience it has not caused deep rancour across the profession. I heard what Judge Lowndes raised with me and accordingly have acquiesced to his request. I wish him and his fellow judges all the best for the future.
Having made those observations I thank honourable members for their contributions. I thank the departmental staff for their contribution to getting this to the House today.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Mr ELFERINK (Attorney-General and Justice) (by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time
CO-OPERATIVES (NATIONAL UNIFORM LEGISLATION) BILL
(Serial 114)
(Serial 114)
Continued from 26 March 2015.
Mr GUNNER: (Opposition Leader): Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the bill before us, the Co-Operatives (National Uniform Legislation) Bill 2015 (Serial 114). As the minister mentioned in his second reading speech, the purpose of the bill is to adopt new national uniform legislation for the regulation of co-operatives in the NT, supporting the Australian Uniform Co-Operative Laws Agreement developed under the umbrella of COAG. The minister also noted the Australian Uniform Co-Operative Laws Agreement requires state and territories to secure passage and proclamation of relevant legislation by 18 May 2015. It is timely that we consider this bill today.
There has been a long history of consultation with the co-operative sector on the purpose and detail of this reform. As early as 1986, the Australian Agriculture Council’s Working Party on Agricultural Co-operatives recommended that consideration be given to establishing uniform co-operatives legislation across Australia after identifying that the then legislative framework created barriers to the development of national agricultural co-operatives.
In 1990 the Agricultural Council referred the matter to the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General, which established a working party to review various methods to implement a national scheme for co-operatives law. Most recently work to create a national legislative framework has been led by New South Wales, which has realised broad national support for the reforms, including support from organisations like the Law Council of Australia and Co-operatives Australia, which is the national body supporting co-operatives across Australia.
This bill seeks to join the Northern Territory to the national legislative reform. It is important to note up front that this bill relates to non-banking co-operatives, also known as general co-operatives. Banking co-operatives and finance co-operatives, such as credit unions and building societies, are separately regulated under legislation administered by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.
General co-operatives, the focus of this bill, have historically been important in Australia since the mid-19th century, particularly in regional areas where they have underpinned commerce in key sectors like the dairy and grain industries, then later the rice, sugar and cotton industries. They have also been historically important in smaller towns across Australia by providing services in healthcare, childcare and sport and recreation. During our Port of Darwin committee work we met with the grain co-operative in Western Australia and saw the investment and approach they took to regional Australia, and the work they did in and around their main job and outside it.
General co-operatives are often, but not always, not for profit. A key feature of these co-operatives is that they are member based, pride themselves on their autonomy and are based on co-operative democracy, focusing on members’ needs not just profit. Importantly, and as the minister said, they provide an organisational structure for individuals, communities and small business to acquire goods and services, or distribute goods, in economies that are increasingly dominated by large corporate organisations.
I am advised that the Northern Territory currently has four such co-operatives, two of which are based in other jurisdictions but registered in the NT. The third is involved with the mango industry, and the fourth, in Central Australia, was established to support land management services.
While there are only a small number of co-operatives in the NT likely to be affected immediately by this legislation, and some say growth of co-operatives is waning, there is still potential for the establishment of new co-operatives to support regional development and the provision of services in the NT. Co-operatives can also be important where local people want to ensure continued access to goods and services where other entities, with a primary focus on profit, withdraw their business operations from smaller communities. While a small number of such co-operatives are already operating in the Territory there is potential for them to grow and be a part of regional development in the Northern Territory, especially in our remote and regional areas.
There are also opportunities for co-operatives to enhance access to goods and services to NT residents, especially those living in regional and remote areas of the NT. An important feature of this reform is it will be much easier for existing co-operatives currently based outside the NT to consider establishing and expanding operations in the Territory.
It is important that where people in the NT want to use the co-operative business model they can be assured there is an appropriate level of regulation in place to protect members’ interests.
This legislation continues to support the features and principles underpinning co-operatives, including a strong democratic role for members, co-operative autonomy and independence. All these features are important given that the nature of these co-operatives is focused on member services rather than just profit. Importantly, the legislation aims to reduce red tape and the impact of the national regulatory framework on these often small member-based enterprises. Equally important, the bill simplifies the capacity of general co-operatives already established to work across jurisdictional boundaries.
Smaller co-operatives will benefit from the introduction of simplified financial reporting to members and removal of the obligation to lodge publically available accounts.
On the other hand, the national legislation simplifies and standardises financial reporting and auditing requirements for small co-operatives focusing on a new risk assessment approach. Legal responsibilities and duties for directors and officers of a co-operative have been updated and are now consistent with similar requirements applying to directors and officers under the Corporations Act.
These reforms provide more certainty and protection for members’ interests and individual members’ investments in co-operatives. Similarly, introduction of the enforceable undertakings, potentially supported by a court order where required, assist with compliance to the new national framework and act to enhance investor confidence in co-operatives.
The reforms also create more opportunity for co-operatives to raise funds for the use of capital units. These confer an interest in the capital of a co-operative but not the share capital, differentiating new investment through capital units from members’ establishment shares. This opens a door for co-operatives to access new flexible funding from external sources.
The bill has had a long history of consultation with affected parties and the new national framework for regulation of co-operatives is being progressively implemented across Australia. It is timely that we consider and support this bill to secure passage of the legislation to meet the national target date of 18 May 2015.
It is also timely that the government introduces this reform, hopefully opening new opportunities for establishment and operation of general co-operatives in the NT. This could be as part of agricultural development, and also to create new opportunities for these co-operatives to provide goods and services to Territorians where a co-operative business model provides more promise of access to goods and services.
I commend the bill to the House. I hope to hear future reports of how this reform has facilitated the development of more general co-operatives to benefit Territorians.
Mr STYLES (Business): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank members for their contribution to this debate. I thank my colleague, the Treasurer, Mr Tollner, for introducing this bill on my behalf whilst I was absent due to illness. The second reading speech was delivered by the member for Fong Lim, and I would like to sum up what was said in that second reading and the contribution from members opposite.
This is simply national law which is being adopted by all other jurisdictions. The Co-operatives (National Uniform Legislation) Bill 2015 will create a national framework for the registration of co-operatives. The framework will allow a co-operative to be registered in one jurisdiction to operate across borders without the need for multiple registrations. This framework will also simplify the financial reporting and auditing requirements for small co-operatives by using a risk assessment-based system that will reduce costs and red tape for those co-operatives.
This is another example of a significant red tape reduction outcome for business. Small- to medium-sized businesses struggle with red tape. Co-operatives are generally a collection of members and we encourage people to form co-operatives, but we do not want to create huge amounts of bureaucracy with associated cost.
The second reading speech points out that to be registered across borders there is an initial cost of about $1700, where under the Corporations Act companies can operate all over the place for about $400. That extra cost is incurred by business.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Mr STYLES (Business)(by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time.
TABLED PAPER
Review on the Process of Political Donations in the Northern Territory (The McGuiness Report)
Review on the Process of Political Donations in the Northern Territory (The McGuiness Report)
Mr GILES (Chief Minister): Mr Deputy Speaker, in November 2014 my department engaged the late Frank McGuiness, formerly the Northern Territory Auditor-General, to undertake an independent investigation into the process of political donations. Sadly, Mr McGuiness passed away suddenly just days after completing his report in February 2015. Out of respect for his family, I decided not to progress that report in the February sittings and am doing so today.
Additionally, in late 2014 the Department of the Chief Minister also reviewed the Northern Territory Electoral Commission’s 2012 NT General Election Report but did not progress any of the recommendations pending completion of the recommendations of this report.
Today I table a copy of the report into political donations in the Northern Territory. Known as the McGuiness Report, it makes recommendations which go to a number of matters which I will speak to in more detail. The report notes that while there is a strong case to be made for harmonisation of electoral legislation across all jurisdictions, such a goal should be viewed as distant. Mr McGuiness advised there are no impediments to the NT reviewing its legislation with the objective of having the act reflect contemporary thinking.
I have asked my Department of the Chief Minister to work with the NT Electoral Commission to undertake a complete review of the NT Electoral Act. This will take into account the recommendations of the McGuiness Report as well as the NT Electoral Commission’s 2012 general election report, which also made a number of recommendations for legislative reform.
The legislation is complex and the review will include a comprehensive consultation process to ensure we capture the views of the community at large. I table this report today as a precursor to the consultation process to be undertaken.
Given the complexity of the act and the number of recommendations which would require legislative change, I expect any consultation period will be open for several months. I will keep the House updated about the formal consultation period and when it will commence; however, I have only recently asked the department to work with the Electoral Commissioner to draw up a plan of how that might work.
I will now go into more detail regarding the recommendations contained in the McGuiness Report. At the outset, government has not formed a formal view on any of the recommendations apart from supporting an overall review of the act. Many people have different views about the Electoral Act. Many people support publicly-funded election campaigns or want to see changes to optional preferential – first past the post – and some want to remove all electoral advertising. These ideas will be canvassed throughout the consultation process.
The recommendations are listed throughout the report so I will summarise them for the benefit of the Hansard.
In relation to the registration of political parties and third-party campaigners, registration by a political party should be a precondition to its ability to participate in an election. A political party may not be registered unless it has adopted a scheme which sets out the arrangements for regulating the party’s financial affairs, and that scheme will be approved by the Electoral Commission. Registration of a political party should be a precondition for the receipt of public funding by a party if a public funding scheme is contemplated in the future.
Provide a definition of a third-party campaigner in the act to supplement the existing definition of ‘associated entity’. Registration of a third-party campaigner should be a prerequisite for that individual or organisation to undertake activities of a political nature.
In relation to gifts and donations, the report talks about strengthening the existing definition by including a reference to the value of expenditure incurred on a party’s behalf by a third party.
Require each campaigner to maintain a campaign account that should be credited with all cash donations and from which all campaign expenditure is paid. It should be unlawful for a third-party campaigner to make payments for any electoral communication expenditure or to use political donations for any such purpose unless the payments for that expenditure are made by the official agent of the third-party campaigner from a campaign account maintained by the third-party campaigner. All donations are to be paid by the official agent into the campaign account of the third-party campaigner. The campaign account of a third-party campaigner is a separate account maintained by an approved deposit-taking institution.
In relation to reporting of donations received, a third-party campaigner should not be permitted to incur political communication expenditure unless it has received donations for the purpose and reported those donations to the Electoral Commission in the same way as any party or candidate.
The reporting of donations by a political party or candidate should move from paper-based to a method that involves the party or the candidate completing an online template that would permit immediate uploading onto the Commissioner’s website.
An officeholder of a party, an associated entity or a third-party campaigner or the agent of a campaigner should be required to lodge quarterly returns with the Electoral Commissioner setting out the details of donations received. During an election period the frequency of the reporting should be increased to weekly.
In relation to annual reporting, political parties, associated entities and third parties should be required to lodge audited annual financial statements with the Electoral Commission. Those statements should be prepared on the basis of Australian accounting standards. The term ‘auditor’ should be defined in the act and the prescribed qualifications of an auditor could be similar to those set out in Part 5 of the NT Associations Act so that costs of the audit by smaller entities are not excessive.
In relation to the role and structure of the Electoral Commission, extend the Electoral Commissioner’s role to include that of regulator of individuals and entities who are participants in the electoral process.
The Electoral Commission to be expanded to three members consisting of ex-officio, the Electoral Commissioner and two part-time commissioners, one of whom, the Chairman, should be a current or retired judge.
While not making specific recommendations, the McGuiness Report also identified other matters government might wish to consider in relation to public election funding. While the report did not make any specific recommendations, Mr McGuiness raised several policy questions in the event public funding was considered: the basis upon which public funding will be provided to political parties and candidates; the extent to which controls over private donations and electoral spending should be implemented; and the role of the NT Electoral Commission in monitoring the activities of registered political parties, candidates, third parties and groups to ensure the NT Electoral Act is not contravened.
In relation to the extent to which controls over private donations and electoral spending should be adopted, if concerns exist about the role of potentially large donors who may be able to influence political formulation, it may follow that restrictions on the amounts that can be donated may address that concern.
As advised, out of respect for the late Frank McGuiness I have not tabled the report until now. I intend to move a condolence motion later this year. It did not seem appropriate to be dealing with the budget and this matter at the same time.
The report is tabled today for all Territorians to read and form their own views. As I said, government has not formed a solid view on the report recommendations. I have asked the Department of the Chief Minister to nut out a consultation strategy. Once the consultation strategy has been provided I will announce the way forward.
I look forward to Territorians having their say on the McGuinness Report recommendations and the recommendations arising out of the Northern Territory Electoral Commission’s 2012 NT General Election Report.
Ms FYLES (Nightcliff): Mr Deputy Speaker, it is interesting timing to have this report dropped without any notice at 9 pm on budget night. It looks like you do not really want anyone to notice it but it will be interesting to read the recommendations. Obviously …
Mr GILES: A point of order, Mr Deputy Speaker! I gave notice last sittings and tabled it today.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Nightcliff, please continue.
Ms FYLES: The Labor opposition holds Frank McGuiness and his work in very high esteem. We look forward to going through the recommendations in detail to ensure Territorians can have some faith and integrity restored in their parliamentary and election processes. At this point there are a lot of unanswered questions, particularly around the Country Liberal Party, the Chief Minister and Foundation 51.
We now have the full details and will take time to look at the recommendations, but the timing – nearly 9 pm on budget night – is interesting. We will make further comment at a later date.
TABLED PAPERS
Travel Reports for members for Port Darwin, Namatjira, Casuarina and Johnston
Travel Reports for members for Port Darwin, Namatjira, Casuarina and Johnston
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Honourable members, I table four travel reports from the members for Port Darwin, Namatjira, Casuarina and Johnston pursuant to paragraph 4.12 of the Remuneration Tribunal determination.
ADJOURNMENT
Mr GILES (Chief Minister): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the Assembly do now adjourn.
I note the most recent slur from the member for Nightcliff. Despite the point she was trying to make on political donations, she failed to adjourn the matter for further debate. It has now passed. Very good, member for Nightcliff, you failed to adjourn it.
This evening I want to express my condolences to the family and friends of Mr Alec Kruger, an author, activist and member of the Stolen Generations, who passed away in Alice Springs Hospital at the age of 90 on Sunday 15 February.
Mr Kruger was a Mudburra man, born at Donkey Camp on the banks of the Katherine River on Christmas Day 1924. As a child of mixed race, Alec Kruger was subject to the Aboriginals Ordinance 1911. At the age of three-and-a-half, Alec was taken from his mother, along with his sister Gladys, and placed in institutional care at the Kahlin Compound in Darwin where he lived for the next four years. From there he was taken to Pine Creek and later to the bungalows in Alice Springs. At the age of 10 Alec Kruger was sent to Loves Creek Station to work for the Bloomfield family where he was sent to live alone in the bush and maintain a soak for thirsty cattle without the benefit of supplies or bush skills.
It was there he was befriended and cared for by a group of Arrernte men who initiated him and taught him their traditions. Mr Kruger left Loves Creek Station at the age of 17 to join the army and was placed in an Aboriginal unit made up of young men of mixed descent.
Compared to life at Loves Creek he found life in the army to be exciting and comfortable because he had company, proper clothing and equipment, ample food, real wages and six bottles of beer a week. He was happy to be well paid and have the freedom to go wherever his uniform permitted. These entitlements were not normally extended to Aboriginal people at the time.
Mr Kruger lived life to the full. He worked as a stockman, drover, railway ganger, wharfie, seaman, bus driver and a gardener. He worked for the Department of Main Roads, the Department of Mines and at the Institute of Aboriginal Development, where he trained Aboriginal stockman. He went on to work for the Centre for Appropriate Technology where he developed equipment and training for remote communities.
Mr Kruger was a strong and determined advocate for Aboriginal land rights. He was a key contributor to the 1997 Bringing them home report that followed the two-year royal commission into the removal of Aboriginal children from their families. Mr Kruger came under the national spotlight in 1997 when he took the Commonwealth to the High Court to test the legality of ordinances that allowed authorities to remove Aboriginal children from their families throughout the 20th century. He lost that case, but the only Territory judge on the bench, Justice John Toohey, who also passed recently, supported his challenge. The fact he was willing to take on the Commonwealth is a mark of man.
Throughout his life the memory of being left alone as a child near the soaks remained a source of deep trauma to Mr Kruger, whose personal story featured prominently in the report into the Stolen Generations.
In 2007 Mr Kruger, together with Gerard Waterford, won the Human Rights Arts Non-Fiction Award for his autobiography, Alone on the Soaks: the Life and Times of Alec Kruger. The judges felt the events in Mr Kruger’s life, as depicted in the autobiography, helped understand not only what happened to Aboriginal children and their families, but also the impact of removal on their communities. Alone on the Soaks recounts Mr Kruger’s life story from the time he was taken from his family to the position he held later in life as a wise and respected man with a large and successful family.
Mr Kruger was one of the Territory’s finest citizens. He played a significant role in the history of the Northern Territory as a determined and hard-working Territorian and a staunch advocate for the rights and wellbeing of Aboriginal Australians. He said in 2008, ‘I have had an amazing life and a rough life’.
On behalf of the Northern Territory government I offer my sincere condolences to Mr Kruger’s family, his friends and to all who knew and worked with him. May he rest in peace.
Mr McCARTHY (Barkly): Mr Deputy Speaker, World War I, Powell Creek, the Somme and life outback, centenary of Anzac 1915-2015.
As we stand at the centenary of Anzac conscious of the Northern Territory’s part in World War I, it is timely to look at the situation and contribution by Territorians in 1914. In 1914, before the defeat of Germany in the Pacific and the capture of German New Guinea by Australian expeditionary forces, thought was given as to how close Darwin was to any possible front line. History now tells of what was not said at that time, that defence planners wanted as many men as possible in the Northern Territory to remain close to the overland telegraph and naval radio stations. There were simple and important reasons for needing local labour. As the war progressed, meat produced by stations turned into bully beef for our troops representing a strategic commodity and good reason for keeping scarce manpower on cattle stations.
Territorians have always been determined to contribute to the national interest, along with their fellow Australians, but because of small numbers and isolation their departure left serious gaps in a society always stretched on the frontier.
In February 1915 the Army Chief of Staff issued a statement that it was never intended to have recruiting depots in the distant parts of the Commonwealth and those wishing to enlist should head south. However, in March 1915, 16 recruits left Darwin for Townsville to be sworn in. The first official contingent from the Northern Territory sailed from Darwin on the Changsha on 25 April 1915, a significant date indeed.
It is difficult for us to grasp the realities of Territorians as the world marched to a war it thought would be over by Christmas 100 years ago. As there are few letters and diaries in the Australian War Memorial from World War I with Northern Territory service personnel on the front, I appeal to Territory families and station archives discovering such material to contact the Australian War Memorial.
With the German threat in the Pacific over and the only constraint on recruiting remaining the need to staff communications facilities and the meat industry, the demand for recruits following the Somme battles saw the establishment of a Northern Territory recruiting committee consisting of the mayor and town councillors in February 1916. By March that year 200 men had left Darwin with another 100 preparing to go, and many of their photographs can be found in the Northern Territory Library.
When the time came to create a roll of honour on 11 January 1918, records showed that 283 men had enlisted from Darwin. We know they served in all theatres of war and all arms and services of the Defence forces, where the number of decorations far exceeds what might be expected from an isolated frontier population. When a memorial was being planned in 1920 it was decided that because the Territory population was a floating one, anyone who had been identified with Territory life for 12 months prior to enlistment would be eligible to have their name inscribed. Those names can be read today in Darwin’s Bicentennial Park.
It is fitting that the footsteps of Albert Borella VC, who crossed the Territory and walked and rode across the Barkly region en route to Darwin to enlist, should be re-enacted, but World War I affected my electorate in many ways. In 1915 the town of Tennant Creek did not exist; however, the Barkly had two very important telegraph stations and a significant cattle industry contributing to the war effort, and an Aboriginal population only beginning to adjust to colonial settlement.
The irony was that a national Defence effort hungry for personnel was officially prevented from recruiting from telegraph stations, cattle stations and Aboriginal communities, yet we know despite this bureaucracy some managed to enlist. Such Territorians were essentially bending the rules to serve ‘King and Country’ and were not easy to trace. However, a boy born at Powell Creek near modern day Elliott, Corporal Frederick Prentice MM, proudly represents the legendary Anzac spirit.
Corporal Prentice was born in 1894. His father was Alfred Leslie Prentice, Justice of the Peace at Powell Creek telegraph station. His mother was an unknown Aboriginal woman, but we know there are Aboriginal people in Elliott with the surname Prentice who may be able to fill in some historical gaps. The Powell Creek telegraph station master, Walter Kell, known as Dan, and his wife Isabel had no children and adopted Frederick and an Aboriginal girl. We know from the way young Frederick Prentice is dressed in old photographs that he was raised in an Anglo rather than Aboriginal culture.
Walter Kell was promoted and moved to Unley, Adelaide in 1905. Young Frederick was sent to Kyre College, the predecessor of Scotch College in South Australia, where he excelled in athletics and received a prize for music.
In 1914, when Frederick was 20 years of age, Walter Kell was appointed station master at Wallaroo and Frederick was working at nearby Manunda Station when he evaded rules that prevented non-European enlistment. Nominating Isabel Kell as his next of kin, he enlisted and found himself posted to the 12th Battalion. In July 1916 he was awarded the Military Medal – MM – for action at Mouquet Farm in France. For those unfamiliar with awards for gallantry, at that time the Military Medal was a prestigious award and considerable recognition for bravery. Strategically, Mouquet Farm was as far as Australians got in the first battle of the Somme.
Corporal Frederick Prentice’s MM citation reads:
- Here he showed great courage, resource and ability in bringing machine guns and ammunition through the enemy barrage in the dark and broken ground.
From history we know Corporal Frederick Prentice MM survived the Great War and received a hero’s welcome home to Wallaroo, documented in the Kadina and Wallaroo Times of 4 June 1919.
In honouring the distinguished service of Corporal Frederick Prentice MM to his country we must reflect on the ultimate tragedy of his death in 1957, where he died alone in Katherine with injuries consistent with having rolled into his campfire.
At the time described as part Maori, his contribution to country was unknown until it came out that Prentice had told a fellow worker he had served in World War I. The acting superintendent of police asked AIF base records for help in finding his next of kin. Through their diligence we know more about the life of Corporal Frederick Prentice MM. We know he was posted to an AIF pioneer battalion and was the sole survivor of his seven man machine gun section. He was at Manunda Station until Isabel’s death in 1926.
In the 1930s he was an active member of the Kalgoorlie community and featured in sport and trade union affairs. However, in the 1940s his life became less stable and his trail petered out until his death.
Indigenous Histories, in an article titled Frederick Prentice MM, Scarlett 2014, argues the Prentice tragedy was that although he was valued for his service at the time and for a period after active service, the development of post-world war Australia saw Prentice and others like him isolated from both Aboriginal and European societies. The article emphasises:
- The reports describing Frederick’s departure and return to Australia show him as respected and part of the community he lived in. Significantly they do not refer to his Aboriginality but do mention his friends and adoptive parents. This situation is unlikely to have continued as he worked his way round Western Australia mixing with people who knew nothing of him and his white family, despite the personal qualities which gave him some recognition as a sportsman and in his union. Separated from both his Aboriginal and his adopted family he would have been very much alone.
Perhaps 100 years is enough time to give us the opportunity to develop a valuable perspective on events which, for better and worse, have made us what we are as a Northern Territory.
My appeal is that we look back a century to honour the heroic lives of the sons of Anzacs whose deeds dominate the second half of the 20th century, while paying tribute to the life experience of their fathers in the Great War, a world war that claimed roughly twice as many Australian lives as World War II, a brutal war in which one in seven of those who enlisted never came home, and a war that Territorians struggled for the right to take part in.
In conclusion, I respectfully ask you to search your local records, communicate with family and friends and consult the keepers of the oral traditions to seek important information on the lives of those courageous Northern Territory men and women who marched with Borella VC and Prentice MM. I am advised that before battles 1st AIF soldiers were often told, ‘Remember where you came from’. Lest we forget.
I seek leave to table this paper as it contains the references I used to research it and also a photo of Corporal Frederick Prentice MM.
Leave granted.
Mr ELFERINK (Port Darwin): Mr Deputy Speaker, this evening I mention Callum Mallett, the new general manager at SKYCITY in Darwin. Mr Mallett was kind enough to invite me on a tour of SKYCITY recently and I am mindful that the government requires SKYCITY to pay money into the Community Benefit Fund.
SKYCITY initially demonstrated its reluctance, and I can imagine why, but having made those observations Mr Mallett was gracious in showing me around. He made his opinions on the matter clear then proceeded to give me every courtesy one could expect.
The casino operators of SKYCITY are intending to stay in Darwin. They are spending a lot of money around the casino and I received a behind the scenes tour of some of the work occurring at the casino. They are spending many millions of dollars and some of the work already completed has changed the environment of the casino substantially, giving it less of a Las Vegas quality and more of a club-type quality in many areas which is, I think, the target they are striving for.
The casino will still have gambling as one of its functions but it will also cast a wider embrace around the community and try to attract people who may not be there to gamble.
I thank Mr Mallett for his courtesy. He is an intelligent man who knows what he is doing. As a result of the courtesies he extended to me I was satisfied that the security and other protocols such an institution must have are in place.
I congratulate the operators of SKYCITY and Callum Mallett on running a highly professional organisation. Despite the recent budget announcement, I look forward to the government having a fulsome and useful relationship with SKYCITY, and I thank them for obtaining their social licence in the way they do and for their corporate citizenship in the Northern Territory.
Ms FYLES (Nightcliff): Mr Deputy Speaker, the Nightcliff Football Club has competed in the AFLNT competition in Darwin since it entered as the Works and Housing team in 1950. The club was renamed Nightcliff Football Club in the 1963-64 season. In the early 1970s the football club established the Nightcliff Sports Club, which is now an icon of the Nightcliff/Rapid Creek suburb, and the football club is a proud senior affiliate of the sports club. The football club runs teams in the premier league, division 1, under 18s, under 16s, under 14s and under 12s grades, as well as women’s competitions.
In 2014, in response to an incident of domestic violence between a male and female, both players for Nightcliff Tigers, the club worked with Charlie King, head of the NT Indigenous Males Advisory Council and NO MORE campaigner, to develop a domestic violence action plan.
After the domestic violence incident in early 2014, the club decided to ensure it was actively involved in supporting both the victim and the perpetrator and that the problem was addressed head on. Too often the causes of domestic violence are swept under the rug with the attitude it is a personal issue and outsiders should not be involved.
Club president Mark Kelly and head coach Damien Hale worked with Charlie King and the advisory council to help develop a real and workable plan for club members. Determined not to stand the player down permanently and have the problem shifted elsewhere, the club decided to support the victim and the perpetrator. The perpetrator attended counselling sessions, pleaded guilty in court and served a three-month gaol sentence.
The domestic violence action plan is not an alternative to legal avenues, it is a process which supports all club members and provides a framework for addressing domestic and family violence at an individual club and community level. Since Nightcliff Tigers’ involvements with Charlie King’s NO MORE campaign and the development of a domestic violence action plan, the club has promoted its efforts through the bus wraparound, a message showing players linking arms on a Buslink bus. This was launched in June 2014. The club has continually driven the message that domestic and family violence is everyone’s business and is not acceptable. Nightcliff Football Club was the first in Australia to develop an action plan and has led the way, with other clubs across several sporting codes following the lead.
NRL team Parramatta Eels was the second club in Australia to follow suit. The management and coaches decided to develop the action plan to ensure no one was turning a blind eye to incidents of domestic and family violence, deciding they would tackle the issue head on and not allow the problem to be moved somewhere else. New and existing players are introduced to the domestic violence action plan on culture day at the start of the season, and the management and coaches speak more generally about the incident that inspired the club to take action and discuss the NO MORE attitude to violence against women, men and children.
Not all club members were confident this approach would be successful. It has taken the original perpetrator a long time to redevelop positive relationships with the many people involved with the club. Many of those relationships will never be the same; however, that is a reality perpetrators have to live with. He was not only held accountable by the legal system but his peers too.
The efforts of the club and the perpetrator led to a contribution on the ABC television program Q&A on the forum of domestic and family violence when he asked a question via video link. I will read that question:
- I was involved in a domestic violence incident with my then partner. It had a catastrophic impact on her, our family, our friends and our football club community, which is pretty much one big family. I was gaoled for this incident for three months and it was a massive turning point in my life.
As part of the domestic violence campaign in place at the Nightcliff Football Club, you are required to speak to everyone collectively and see how it has affected them.
I believe that this is a step in the right direction and one that many more sporting clubs can embrace across the nation in changing how we deal with what has gone on in silence for far too long.
This is evidence of the effectiveness of the approach Nightcliff Tigers are taking and an insight into the level of accountability perpetrators have to face in order to operate within the club community.
Since enacting the plan, the Nightcliff Football Club has gone from strength to strength. They have experienced increased sponsorship, more than double their GDP in four years, and head coach Damien Hale discussed the club’s transformation into a family club, where the focus was just not on the premiership team but on the developing grades, the women’s teams and ensuring the venue and postgame celebrations were appropriate for all ages. This has brought families back to the footy and parents are eager for their children to join the Nightcliff Tigers.
I am proud that my local team has drawn a line in the sand and decided enough is enough. The management and coaches work hard to provide holistic coaching to all players and raise the levels of respect and accountability. For the first time there is a female in the men’s coaching team, a record number of women are playing for the club and everyone is sending a clear message of NO MORE.
I was delighted to see the Nightcliff Football Club’s efforts being acknowledged and rewarded this year as the recipient of the Action Against Domestic Violence Award at the NT Sports Awards. I was there that evening and it was a very inspirational inaugural award. It was a great honour for everyone involved with the club and well-earned recognition for the efforts the club as a whole made in response to an existing and ever-increasing problem in our community.
I congratulate Nightcliff Football Club on the 2014-15 season. I was proud to sponsor a weekly award this season, a club spirit award for a volunteer, player or coach, somebody in our club who made an outstanding commitment to the club each and every week.
I would like to acknowledge the role Charlie King has played in helping guide our club through this period and ensuring this program was established.
I thank everyone who supported the club this past season: the sponsors who have supported the club financially, the supporters who attended home games and the parents, partners and family members of players who have all volunteered their time. It is a wonderful club.
There is nothing better than a home game at Nightcliff Oval with children kicking the footy as soon as they can get onto the field in breaks or before and after the game. There really is a family atmosphere. You can go into the clubhouse after the game, which I did numerous times to present awards or just be there. Children were present as there is not a large drinking culture rather a genuine family atmosphere celebrating footy, sport and our community.
The club management needs to be congratulated for its efforts because it has been noted by the community and, with the award, by the larger Territory community. It was important to speak on this issue tonight in the House and to congratulate the club on an outstanding season. We did not quite get there in the premiership league, but there is always next season. Our community has a football club that is family friendly and focused on our players and members as people.
Motion agreed to; the Assembly adjourned.
Last updated: 04 Aug 2016