2006-08-22
Madam Speaker Aagaard took the Chair at 10 am.
Madam SPEAKER: I advise honourable members of the presence in the gallery of Bees Creek Primary School Year 6/7 students accompanied by Gayle Purdue. On behalf of all honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I have received from His Honour the Administrator Message No 12 notifying assent to the bills passed in the June sittings of the Assembly.
The CLERK: Madam Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 100A, I inform honourable members that the responses to Petition Nos 23, 24, 26, 27 and 31 have been received and circulated to honourable members.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I table Speaker’s Determination No 12 of 2006 for broadcasting of parliamentary proceedings via the Northern Territory government Internet and Intranet pursuant to Resolution of the Assembly dated 26 February 1985 and section 23 of the Legislative Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act.
As I advised in previous correspondence to members, I am confident the implementation of proposed arrangements will extend access to Assembly proceedings in line with the practice in other Australian and overseas parliaments. The determination also contains provisions for the direct broadcast and rebroadcast of questions pursuant to Sessional Order dated 16 October 2005.
The arrangements for the broadcast of questions for the August sittings are as follows. The Darwin area will receive direct broadcast of proceedings via Top FM radio. This broadcast will also be relayed to Gove FM and Roots Radio in Alice Springs. 8CCC will rebroadcast questions in accordance with the practice established for the last few periods for sittings.
Following the August sittings, officers of the Department of the Legislative Assembly will be undertaking discussions with various Territory broadcasters, with a view to extending the current broadcasting arrangements. These discussions will be facilitated by the Department of Corporate and Information Services’ Communication Unit.
TABLED PAPER
Warrant – Deputy Chairman of Committees
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, pursuant to the provision of Standing Order 12, I lay on the Table my Warrant nominating members to be Deputy Chairmen of Committees.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I advise you that on 14 July 2006 I received a letter from the member for Sanderson tendering his resignation as Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, it is now necessary for the Assembly to appoint a member to be its Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker. Prior to calling for nominations, I advise honourable members of the relevant provisions of Standing Order 8 relating to the appointment of the Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker. When a motion for a member to be appointed Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker of the Assembly is moved and is seconded I will ask if there is any further motion. If no further motion is moved, the time for motions will have expired and no member may address the Assembly. The member’s name will be declared appointed Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker.
If a further motion or motions are moved and seconded, I will then say that the time for motions has expired. Debate relevant to the election may ensue. No member shall speak for more than five minutes. At the conclusion of debate, the bells shall be rung as for a division, and the Assembly will then proceed to a ballot.
I call for nominations.
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I propose to the Assembly for its Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker the member for Daly, Mr Robert Knight, and move that the member for Daly be appointed Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker of this Assembly.
Members: Hear, hear!
Madam SPEAKER: Is there someone to second that nomination?
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, yes, I second the nomination.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Daly, do you accept that nomination?
Mr KNIGHT (Daly): I accept the nomination, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Are there any further nominations?
Mrs BRAHAM (Braitling): Madam Speaker, I move that the member for Nelson be appointed as Deputy Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Is there someone to second that nomination? Member for Nelson?
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I second that nomination.
Madam SPEAKER: And you accept your nomination, obviously?
Mr WOOD: I do, yes.
Madam SPEAKER: Any further nominations? I call for members to speak on the nominations, and remind members they have up to five minutes and that the debate must be relevant.
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I would like to give some background to support our position that the member for Daly is the most appropriate person here to be Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker.
The member for Daly has a broad range of skills and experiences, and his knowledge of the Territory is extensive. He has been in this House for one year and has performed well in that time. He has been a resident of Katherine for the past six years, but he has lived all over the Northern Territory, including in Kakadu, Cooinda, Jabiru and Gimbat, Arnhem Land, Tennant Creek, Timber Creek and in Darwin. Although he is a relatively young person, he has also had time overseas living and working in England, Canada and the United States.
His work experience and knowledge of the public, private and community sectors is impressive. In the public sector, the member for Daly has worked for the Commonwealth and Territory governments in areas such as land management, local government and Aboriginal affairs. In the private sector, he has had extensive experience in the hospitality and mining industries and has worked in the tourism sector as a safari guide in East Arnhem Land. Just for something out of left field, he has also worked in the motion picture industry in Los Angeles. He is yet to share his tales of that.
In the community sector, the member for Daly has managed the Community Resource Centre in Timber Creek, and is involved in numerous community activities such as coaching football teams, not to mention his electorate work. He has one of the Territory’s largest electorates in the electorate of Daly. He also has considerable managerial experience and has dealt with a wide range of people and issues from all walks of life.
As I said, he has been in this parliament since June 2005 and, in that time, he has been a productive member of two parliamentary committees - the substance abuse committee and the Environment and Sustainable Development Committee. He is also the Government Deputy Whip, and has been one of our Acting Deputy Speakers.
I believe his contribution to the broad debate within the Assembly over the past year has been excellent. The work that he does in his speeches, the understanding he has of a wide range of issues has really contributed to the debate in this House. I believe that his maturity and experience and his 18 years living and working across the Territory make him an ideal candidate for the Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker position.
Madam SPEAKER: Any further speakers?
Mrs BRAHAM (Braitling): Madam Speaker, the fact that we have nominated the member for Nelson is not a reflection on the member for Daly. I am quite sure the member for Daly will be a fine Deputy Chairman, which will probably happen as a result of the vote in this House. However, I remind members opposite that they thought the government’s principle of having an independent Chairman of Committees and Speaker was such a good idea in 2001.
The member for Nelson has had a lot of experience in this House as Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees, and has certainly done the job very well. He has a sound knowledge of standing orders, which is really important for someone taking over this position. He has displayed his independence and fairness in the positions. That is what we really do want to see in our Deputy Speaker/Chairman.
I recall the revolution that occurred when the Chief Minister appointed two Independents as Deputy Speaker and Speaker in a previous term. Unfortunately, that revolution crumbled a little at the beginning of this term. We would like to reignite it. Let us have a revolution again. Let us have an Independent Deputy Speaker. Let us show Territorians this government is fair dinkum when they are talking about bringing impartiality and independence to this position.
Madam Speaker, I urge all government members not to be swayed by their party vote; be swayed by the fact that the member for Nelson would make an excellent Deputy Speaker, and you will bring back to this House the independence it so deserves in its Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker. Madam Speaker, I support the member for Nelson, and I hope I get the support of the members opposite.
Mr STIRLING (Treasurer): Madam Speaker, the member for Braitling puts a compelling case, and one under other circumstances I would be prepared to support. However, if you look at the difference in the balance of the parliamentary representation here between the first term of 2001 the second in 2005, and now, and with 19 government members, first and foremost it is an incumbent responsibility on the government to provide nominees to such positions. I have no qualms at all with the commendation put by the member for Braitling on behalf of the member for Nelson; I believe he would do an excellent job. However, equally, the member for Daly would also do an excellent job. The Chief Minister spoke at some length about his great and varied experience right across the Northern Territory, particularly in rural and remote communities, which gives him a real practical experience in living and working across the Territory in his role as a member for Daly.
I remember entering this Chamber almost 16 years ago and how difficult I found it to get on top of processes in this place, and understand the nature of debate and the different processes and forms that occur in here. I have watched the member for Daly closely over the past 12 months that he has been in here, watching him gain in confidence and find his feet in this Assembly. I firmly believe he is ready to take a developmental step, a next step up, as Chairman of Committees. He has, of course, equally, solid experience in parliamentary committee work over this past year, and that will also stand him in good stead in his role of Chairman of Committees.
I say to the member for Braitling: nearly got me, but I will be voting for the government nominee, and I urge all members to support the member for Daly.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I suppose I would like to talk on behalf of myself, especially with the Chief Minister and the Treasurer there; I actually thought they were talking about me! Obviously, they were talking about the member for Daly - fine, fine chap. However, he must have spent a short time in a lot of places, because I thought he was only 26 years old but, obviously, he is older than that.
I remind the Treasurer that his government did make statements, and there was a principle, and nothing in that principle mentioned what sort of majority it had in parliament. The Chief Minister said in The Advertiser, when referring to having an Independent Speaker and Deputy Speaker: ‘Labor has the majority of seats’ - not one, not 24:
As I believe I quoted at the beginning of this Assembly, from William Somerset Maugham, who said:
Madam Speaker, it is an opportune time to remind the government that that is exactly what has happened here. It made a grand statement, it raised the importance of having an independent Speaker and Deputy Speaker. However, when the opportunity arose to get rid of them, it did. I listened to the Treasurer and, I must admit, that that was a weak excuse for getting rid of them.
I believe it was a revolutionary stand by the Labor Party, and I supported it wholly, not because I particularly wanted the job - it could have been someone else - but because I have always believed that, for the betterment of the parliamentary processes, the Chairman and the Deputy Chair should be independent. We were leading the way in Australia by doing it; we were probably leading the way in the world by doing it, but …
Ms Martin: South Australia.
Mr WOOD: Oh well, South Australia, but then they got rid of him, too.
Mrs Braham: He is gone.
Mr WOOD: Yes, he is goner. I would not always pick on South Australia as the best place as an example of good democracy. However, we did lead the way; we had both positions filled by Independents. I feel that was something we should have been proud of. Unfortunately, as the Treasurer once told me, this place here is about politics. I understand the kind of politics he is talking about. When it comes to politics, things change and, unfortunately, this is what has happened. I, therefore, ask the Labor Party, which has the majority in this House, to stick by the principle the Chief Minister has said is its principle, not dump that principle, and support an Independent in the Deputy Speaker’s position.
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I support the government’s nomination of the member for Daly. I pick up on the comments from the member for Nelson about the position that we took in the first term of government regarding the Independents occupying those positions, and the position that we, as a government, find ourselves in as a result of the election just over 12 months ago. The people of the Northern Territory made a decision regarding the configuration of the parliament, Madam Speaker …
Mr Wood: They did previously.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HENDERSON: Member for Nelson, let me have my say. I did not interject when you were speaking.
The people of the Northern Territory made their decision when they elected the configuration of this parliament. We, as a government with a large majority, have been humbled by the confidence that the people of the Northern Territory showed in our government. In regard to this House being a house of debate, where all of the issues that the government has carriage of - that we bring to the parliament and the Independents and the opposition may raise - we find ourselves in a position with a large majority.
Regarding the Independent members of this House who have a very important role, as they consistently say, of keeping the government accountable, given the size of the government majority, it is totally incumbent on those Independent members to participate as often and as vigorously as they can in the debates before this House. You cannot do that from the Chair.
Therefore, in regard to why the change from the position that we took after the first term of government and, now, in the second term of government, this is a government that acknowledges that, with a reduced opposition and the Independents having a critical role, they should play a very critical role in debate in this House and scrutiny of this government. That is the reason for the change: to allow those Independent members to participate fully in the debate, as opposed to be sitting in the Chair of the parliament. That is the reason for the change. It is not about arrogance of government; it is about acknowledging that this is a house of debate, the government does need to be held to account, and the Independents have a very important role. That is why I am supporting the member for Daly for this important position.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, before you start speaking, would you please remove the sticker from your water container.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Sorry, Madam Speaker.
Madam Speaker, I support the nomination of the former Deputy Speaker of this Assembly. Isn’t it interesting that it has come to this? Members will recall - I think the first sitting day of this Assembly was on or about 29 June 2005 - I said in relation to your appointment, Madam Speaker:
The NT News said:
Meaning me:
No doubt he was not, Madam Speaker. The population of the Northern Territory has not been impressed with not only his conduct, but the conduct of the Chief Minister. It has been appalling by any objective measure. It was staggering - and we thought so at the time - that the government would nominate the member for Sanderson as a Deputy Speaker. It was a bad call and it has been demonstrated to be, without any shadow of a doubt, a bad call.
This government is now looking to the member for Daly. It has come to where the Chief Minister and her colleagues - I know they are fighting at the moment and that is, obviously, making them all a bit crotchety. However, the Chief Minister and her colleagues ought not have nominated the member for Sanderson. He had appalling form in the first term of the Labor government and he has continued to demonstrate his lewd, vulgar, offensive behaviour time and time again. The Parliamentary Record is clear on those points ...
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I refer the Leader of the Opposition to Standing Order 62 which states that no member shall attribute, directly or by innuendo to another member unbecoming conduct or motives. That is highly disorderly and I ask the Leader of the Opposition to withdraw.
Ms CARNEY: Speaking to the point of order …
Madam SPEAKER: I ask you to rephrase, Leader of the Opposition.
Ms CARNEY: Madam Speaker, the member for Sanderson has been lewd, disgraceful and revolting in his conduct. To assert that those words do not befit the member for Sanderson …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker!
Ms CARNEY: … is a joke.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition!
Ms CARNEY: As are you, member for Wanguri!
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, resume your seat!
Mr HENDERSON: Again, Madam Speaker, I refer the Leader of the Opposition to Standing Order 62 which states that she cannot allude those character traits to another member unless she does so by way of substantive motion. This is a motion in regard to the appointment of the member for Daly to the Deputy Speaker role. The comments and the behaviour that she is attributing to the member for Sanderson are offensive and highly disorderly. She cannot do them under Standing Order 62 unless she does it by way of substantive motion. I ask that she withdraw.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I ask you to withdraw your last comment. You may rephrase …
Ms CARNEY: Those are withdrawn …
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, you may rephrase, but just be reminded that you have a short period of time and it needs to be relevant to the debate.
Ms CARNEY: Yes, which the member for Wanguri is hell-bent on expending with silly points of order. It is astonishing, Madam Speaker, that members of ...
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! You asked the Leader of the Opposition to withdraw those comments and she has not withdrawn.
Ms CARNEY: I withdrew. I withdrew it.
Madam SPEAKER: I believe she has withdrawn. You have withdrawn?
Ms CARNEY: Yes, Madam Speaker, withdrawn.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, Leader of the Opposition.
Ms CARNEY: I know you are crotchety and it is going to be a hard two weeks for you, but just hang on.
It is astonishing, is it not, Madam Speaker, that members of this Legislative Assembly, guided by the member for Wanguri, future Chief Ministerial aspirant, as parliamentarians, cannot talk, apparently, or describe the appalling behaviour of the member for Sanderson which was given air time, not just in the Northern Territory but nationally. Is it not the case that we as parliamentarians cannot use words like ‘revolting, lewd, disgusting behaviour’ when referring to politicians who have clearly demonstrated that behaviour in the outside world? In any event, Madam Speaker, as a sign of respect to you …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 62 says ‘a member cannot attribute unbecoming conduct or motives by either directly or by innuendo’. Again, I assert that the Leader of the Opposition by innuendo is attributing those traits to the member for Sanderson. She should withdraw unless she wants to bring on a substantive motion against the government and we can debate that issue then. She cannot by way of innuendo attribute those motives to the member for Sanderson.
Ms CARNEY: Speaking to that point of order, Madam Speaker. The member for Wanguri needs to have a chat with the member for Stuart, I suggest, because he can get the name of a good supplier of a hearing aid. I was merely asking a question, as you well know. Is it not the case that it is astonishing …
Mr WARREN: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I find that comment offensive.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, order!
Ms CARNEY: … in the parliament of the Northern Territory that we cannot refer to the conduct of politicians as ‘lewd, disgusting and revolting’ - words used often by the Australian Labor Party in the course of debate. In any event, I note that in his pathetic letter of apology the member of Sanderson said …
Mrs Braham: Is this relevant?
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, in relation to the point of order I am going to allow what was said because I believe you were actually speaking in a general fashion and not specifically about the member for Sanderson. However, I ask you to be relevant to the debate and you only have 20 seconds.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. Yes, I know and the member for Wanguri gets a gold star for wasting the parliament’s time. In any event, it has come to this, and it should never have come to this. You all know what a despicable man the member for Sanderson is …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I believe that the Leader of the Opposition is being highly disorderly and I urge you to get her to withdraw that statement.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I ask you to withdraw your last comment.
Ms CARNEY: Withdrawn, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, Leader of the Opposition. Are there any further speakers? There being no further speakers, there are two nominations. In accordance with Standing Orders a ballot will be taken. Before proceeding to the ballot, the bells will be rung for three minutes.
Mr Wood: We have a secret ballot?
Madam SPEAKER: We have a secret ballot. The Assembly will now proceed to ballot. Ballot papers will be distributed to honourable members who are requested to write upon the paper the name of the candidate for whom they wish to vote. The Clerk will distribute ballot papers to all honourable members. The candidates are the member for Daly, Mr Rob Knight, and the member for Nelson, Mr Gerry Wood.
May I call on someone from the government to act as a scrutineer? For the government, Government Whip, and from the Opposition we will have the Opposition Whip.
The Clerk will distribute the ballot papers.
Order! Honourable members, the result of the ballot is: Mr Knight 19 votes, Mr Wood five votes. I declare the honourable member for Daly, Mr Knight, appointed as Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker in accordance with standing orders and extend to him my congratulations.
Members: Hear, hear!
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Daly, would you like to make a comment on your election?
Mr KNIGHT (Daly): Madam Speaker, I express my sincere thanks to all members of the House for bestowing this honour upon me. I understand the significance of the position and I will always strive to exercise independence - a view that has been expressed by the Independents - to all members. It is a parliamentary role that has to exercise independence, as is the Speaker’s role. I thank all members of the House.
Members: Hear, hear!
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, I move that so much of standing orders be suspended as would prevent this House expressing its absolute dismay and disgust at the comments and actions of the member for Sanderson when making lewd and sexual remarks to a 61-year-old woman.
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, the government will accept debate on this motion. It is a bit unusual. It is not a censure of a minister, but it is a motion. I have not read the motion from the Leader of the Opposition. Given the feelings of the Leader of the Opposition in the previous debate, we will have this debate now and we will get it over and done with so the business of the parliament can move on later in the day.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, in relation to this motion, parliamentary language must still be maintained in the Chamber. I advise you to bear that in mind so that, if you wish to use matters that may have been raised in the media they need to be in the motion itself in relation to language.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, does that include quoting from the Northern Territory News the comments attributed to the member for Sanderson and admitted by him? If that were the case then, surely, that would present difficulties to this parliament as a democratic House.
Madam SPEAKER: I am suggesting to you that you must incorporate it in the actual motion, in which case, of course, it can be debated. However, if you are just using it as part of the debate, I ask you to incorporate it.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. I think it is covered by inclusion of the words, ‘lewd’, and ‘dismay’, and ‘disgust’.
Madam SPEAKER: As long as it is in the motion, there is no objection.
MOTION
Conduct of Member for Sanderson
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, I move that this House expresses its absolute dismay and disgust of the comments and actions of the member for Sanderson when making lewd and sexual remarks to a 61-year-old woman.
Much has been said and written about this incident. At the time, we asked the question: where was the code of conduct promised by the Australian Labor Party? A couple of days later, the story about the member of Sanderson surfaced. There was great activity on the fifth floor of Parliament House as the government was clearly going into damage control. What was astounding was not just the comments of the member for Sanderson, but the inaction and incompetence of his Chief Minister. However, of course, we are used to that and one need only refer to the …
Mr BURKE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I believe the Leader of the Opposition has removed the sticker that you asked her to take off the water jug to the side of her desk. I ask that it be removed.
Ms CARNEY: Sorry about that. Madam Speaker, one need only refer to the memo from ‘memo Matty’ that was leaked, apparently so said the Centralian Advocate, by the member for Macdonnell. What a mess, what a rabble they are on the other side of the Chamber!
Chief Minister, I remember where I was when I saw the news report. She was interstate at COAG. Of course, we remember that she could not bring herself to go to the National Indigenous Summit; she had painted herself into a corner with that one, hence the ‘memo Matty Bonson’ exercise. In any case, she was in Canberra. She was interviewed about this lewd …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of Order, Madam Speaker! The Leader of the Opposition knows that the protocol in this House is to address members by their electorate, not by their name. I ask that she refers to the member for Millner by his correct title.
Madam SPEAKER: I advise you …
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker, I will from here on. The memo was issued and, of course, the Australian Labor Party continued to have their difficulties in ensuring party unity with a range of issues. Recently – yesterday - we have seen the rift emerge as a result of the land rights issue. However, I digress, Madam Speaker.’
The Chief Minister, from Canberra, described the member for Sanderson as an ‘interesting character’. How embarrassing you were! How embarrassing you were! The people of the Northern Territory were looking for leadership and condemnation by the Chief Minister. All the Chief Minister said was ‘Len is an interesting character’. Not good enough, Chief Minister.
I do not know what is interesting about a man who makes offensive, lewd, vulgar and disgusting comments when working as a representative of the Territory community, getting drunk in a corporate box. I note that the member for Sanderson subsequently admitted to having a drinking problem. That, of course, is an issue that he and his family need to deal with. I can say that we on this side of the House felt very sorry for the member for Sanderson’s family. It is not the done thing in this Chamber, nor should it be, to get stuck into member’s families. I pass on my sincere and heartfelt sorrow for the member for Sanderson’s family because I know he has children and, no doubt, they received a hard time and it is likely that they will continue to receive a hard time. All of us in this Chamber, no doubt, feel very sad on that front. If you think I am not being sincere, I assure you that I am …
Dr BURNS: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The Opposition Leader well knows under Standing Order 49 she must address her remarks to the Chair.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. They are on fire this morning, aren’t they, Madam Speaker?
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, please direct your comments through the Chair.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. They are a very touchy lot this morning. I can understand the sensitivity because the disharmony and disunity that we are seeing inside the ranks of the Northern Territory Branch of the Australian Labor Party is filtering out. The cracks are beginning to emerge, and it is demonstrated time and time again.
The member for Sanderson wrote – no, I will go back a bit; I will not get on to his apology letter yet. I will go back to the Chief Minister. The Chief Minister’s reference to the member for Sanderson as an ‘interesting character’ was outrageous in itself. I do not know whether being an interesting character is an excuse for being offensive. My view is that it is not. Actually, my view is that the member for Sanderson is not an interesting character. However, I digress. Whether he is or is not is neither here nor there. However, nothing can excuse his conduct. Similarly, nothing can excuse the inaction of the Chief Minister.
I ask, through you, Madam Speaker, whether the Chief Minister wants seedy men to be members of her party. I would have thought that the Chief Minister, in addition to aspiring to demonstrate leadership qualities, would want to be the leader of a party that has good men and good women in it. I do not think that the Chief Minister can front her party. I do not know when your next conference is; ours happens to be on the weekend. I look forward to that. However, at the next Labor Party conference that you have in the Territory, no doubt, there will be a vigorous debate about the member for Sanderson’s conduct. No doubt, people will be talking then as they are now about the member for Sanderson’s preselection. We know that people from the fifth floor, because that is the pumping heart of this Labor government, are already asking questions, member for Sanderson. Your reluctance, through you, Madam Speaker, to do the decent thing and resign will catch up with in the same way that your inappropriate selection as Deputy Speaker caught up with you as it did in July.
It has been said that the member for Sanderson’s tongue got him into trouble. Indeed, it did. He scored – and, of course, it was arguably always going to get him into trouble. His written skill, of course, is on the Parliamentary Record as being a plagiarist. We all remember during the last term when the power went off in the northern suburbs, the member for Sanderson simply said: ‘Open your windows’. Not a response that his constituents or, indeed, voters of the northern suburbs would have expected. They certainly did not deserve it.
He has a long record of inappropriate behaviour. On 14 July, we had this article, front page, ‘MP accused of sex slur’; ‘Call for Deputy Speaker to resign’; ‘Chief Minister demands explanation about corporate box behaviour’; and third bullet point on the front page is ‘Len Kiely doesn’t remember but still says sorry’. That is staggering, Madam Speaker. The member for Sanderson should have resigned, and we call on him through this motion to do so today if he has an ounce of credibility. Is it not astounding that, with these very detailed allegations given to the Northern Territory News, the member for Sanderson said: ‘I don’t remember’?
I can assure you that if the member for Stuart had received a call from the NT News which said: ‘Someone has called us and they have said all of this about you’, drunk or sober, the member for Stuart would have said categorically: ‘That is not language I use; I do not talk to anyone in that fashion because I am a decent man’. Not the member for Sanderson, Madam Speaker! He did not remember. The inference is yes, he probably did say that stuff. If that is not the measure of the member for Sanderson, I do not know what is.
We then move to him being so drunk that he cannot remember what he said. In life, as in politics, people drink from time to time. However, the member for Sanderson was representing the Northern Territory government at a cricket match. It has been said of the football game recently between Port Adelaide and the Doggies that the best thing about it was that the member for Sanderson was not there. Of course, he took the sudden holiday which I understand was meant to be a study trip but, at the last minute, the member for Sanderson paid for it himself. At least, I assume people up on the fifth floor leaned on him to do so.
This is a man who got so drunk, who does not even remember what he said, but then says words to the effect of: ‘Yes, that is language that I would have ordinarily used. Yes, that is how I would ordinarily talk to women’. That is the measure of the man and that is why he is not fit to serve as a member of the Legislative of Assembly. That is why he should resign. That is why this House, each and every one of us, should express its absolute dismay and disgust about the member for Sanderson’s comments.
Madam Speaker, I move to the member for Sanderson’s admitted alcohol problem. My view, and I have said it publicly, is that drunk or sober, good men do not talk to women like that. Decent human beings do not talk to other human beings like that. Whilst the fifth floor spin machine has been at pains to say, ‘Oh yes, alcohol is no excuse’, it was late and it was half-hearted.
Madam Speaker, you know that every parliamentary sittings – indeed, thanks to your generosity and courtesy - members of the Assembly are cordially invited into your office to share a meal. I can advise you that, because of the disgraceful conduct of the member for Sanderson, I do not propose to stay in that room when the member for Sanderson enters. Alcohol, a drink, is had by some members. I cannot stomach being in the same room as the member for Sanderson. He, no doubt, will be drinking unless he has miraculously cured his alcohol problem. I leave it to you, Madam Speaker, to ascertain whether a separate dining area might be required. It has been said, mostly in this regard by women, that the member for Sanderson makes their skin crawl. He makes my skin crawl; yet another in the long list of reasons why he should not have his seat in this Assembly.
I ask you in due course - and I am happy to talk with you about it informally, Madam Speaker - what might be done so that I am saved the potential embarrassment of dining with the member for Sanderson. There is a flip side, of course. Perhaps, because the member for Sanderson has been punished so little in the entire incident, a separate dining area might be allocated for him. I have never thought very much of his table manners but, certainly, as a result of this episode, I do not think very much of any of his manners. Indeed, I do not think he has any.
It is important, Madam Speaker, to put on the record some of what the member for Sanderson said. It is, by its nature, offensive. It is widely published, and I am quoting directly from the Northern Territory News, 14 July …
Madam SPEAKER: Before you do, Leader of the Opposition, I remind you that, just because something is published, the reading of it does not make it more or less parliamentary. While you can table documents containing such material, if the thing you are about to read is, in fact, in unparliamentary language, I ask you to consider not reading it.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. With respect, I do not believe that this particular comment that I am about to read - and there are more which probably are unparliamentary, but I will come back to that - from page 1 of the Northern Territory News 14 July 2006, is as follows:
Madam Speaker …
Mr KNIGHT: Madam Speaker, I feel that is highly offensive …
Ms Carney: Yes, it is highly offensive, isn’t it? Isn’t it?
Madam SPEAKER: Order, order! Leader of the Opposition, order!
Mr KNIGHT: I find it highly offensive and unparliamentary language, Madam Speaker.
Ms Carney: Come in, spinner.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I consider that to be highly offensive. I ask you to withdraw that. You are able to table the document and you are also able to rephrase it so that members can get a feel of what it is you are saying without actually saying the words.
Dr Lim: It is ridiculous - changing rules of debate.
Ms CARNEY: Madam Speaker, I ask that you direct me to that part of standing orders, or equally obtain, with respect, advice from the Clerk in relation to your ruling? The comments are certainly offensive; however they have been published far and wide. I am very concerned that we have a parliamentary democracy in this country and, in our lovely Northern Territory, it would be a sad day, indeed, where we could not put on the Parliamentary Record matters of this gravity, and use direct quotations. There are no swear words there, Madam Speaker. Each and every one of those words, whilst not used in the structure that the member for Sanderson used, are in common parlance in the Northern Territory. I ask you, Madam Speaker, if you would be so kind to direct me to the relevant standing order or, equally, obtain advice from the Clerk because, with great respect, we are all at risk of getting to some pretty dangerous ground.
Madam SPEAKER: I appreciate the argument you are trying to mount here, Leader of the Opposition. I will take advice from the Clerk. I have actually had extensive conversations with him around this matter, but I will take some advice from the Clerk. My main issue is why I suggested in the original motion that it should actually contain the words that you might use if they were going to be unparliamentary, in which case they can be debated. The issue is that matters that are not in the original motion which may or may not be in unparliamentary language, can be debated, otherwise not. Also, simply because something is published and widely broadcast, it does not make it appropriate to be rebroadcast in the parliament. However, I will seek further advice from the Clerk.
Leader of the Opposition, the Clerk reminds me of Standing Order 62, and he recommends that you withdraw, rephrase, and table the document.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you very much.
Ms CARNEY: At your request, Madam Speaker, I withdraw the comments and replace them, if I may, with: ‘The member for Sanderson made a series of revolting and disgusting comments to a woman and another that were sexual in nature’. Can I table the documents at the end, Madam Speaker, because there are likely to be others?
Madam SPEAKER: Of course.
Ms CARNEY: What an irony it is that, what the member for Sanderson said - albeit when he was very drunk – and admitted, and what all of his colleagues admitted by implication is that what the member for Sanderson said, is unparliamentary. That is your ruling, Madam Speaker, and I accept that ruling.
Madam Speaker, by your very ruling at least, you have indicated your support, and the parliament’s support, of this motion, because it is – isn’t it, Madam Speaker? – unparliamentary for the member for Sanderson to have said in the way that he did. It is – isn’t it, Madam Speaker? - unparliamentary behaviour for the member for Sanderson to get so drunk at a function where he was representing the government and, in turn, the people, young and old, of the Northern Territory …
Madam SPEAKER: Excuse me, Opposition Leader. Honourable members, I advise of the presence on the gallery of the Bees Creek Primary School Year 6/7 students – this is the second group – also accompanied by Gayle Purdue. On behalf of honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. Is it not a fact that, when we are having this debate in the presence of very welcome young Territorians, we are talking not only about parliament and democracy, but we are also talking about what is unparliamentary. There is no doubt, by dint of your ruling and, therefore, the ruling of the Assembly, that I look forward to the unanimous support - perhaps except for the member for Sanderson. His behaviour as a member is variously described - we can add some of us knew it already – as ‘unparliamentary’. That is why the member for Sanderson should not be here. That is exactly why he should not be here.
We will, during the course of these sittings, be having a bit to say about the code of conduct. The Leader of Government Business said yesterday that the government has a code of conduct. Oh, no, you do not; he is still here! He is still here; that is, the member for Sanderson. Your Clayton’s code – I will talk about Clayton later. Let me refresh our memories for the benefit of new members and the newly-elected Deputy Speaker - and I congratulate him. Let me remind him and new members, in particular, and ourselves of what was said by the member for Arafura on 20 June 2002, when she talked about a code of conduct. She said:
The member for Arafura went on to say:
Oh no, it does not! That was your worthy ambition and desire in 2002. In fact, you clung on to it in the lead-up to the 2001 election - yet another promise you have not delivered! Can you please point to - and the member for Arafura made reference to the, and I quote: ‘Legislative Assembly Members’ Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards Act’? It is not there. Therefore, when we are talking about our friend Clayton, we are talking about the code of conduct that Labor proposed in this House in 2002. It is clear that, because the member for Sanderson still sits in this House, even if there was an enforceable code of conduct as put forward by the government, they would either not enforce it or, by its nature, it would not be enforceable because this government, by its absolute arrogance – and it was interesting to hear the member for Wanguri use the word ‘humble’ before; not a word I would have associated with the member for Wanguri. However, I digress. This is an increasingly arrogant government.
It is also interesting that, when we had pages and pages of headlines on and after 14 July 2006 - in addition to the Chief Minister’s mind-numbingly pointless comments about what an interesting character the member for Sanderson was - not one Labor politician piped up and said: ‘We have a code of conduct’. I put this to members opposite: either you forgot that you had our friend Clayton floating around somewhere or, in the alternative, you were so indescribably embarrassed about it, not one of you dared to mention it.
In the couple of days before this incident hit the front page, the opposition reminded you about the promise you made about a code of conduct. Nothing was said. This hits the front pages, it continues up until fairly recently I think, which speaks volumes in itself, and not one Labor person said: ‘Oh, we have a code of conduct to deal with that’. You know why? Because our friend Clayton is meaningless and, also, you do not have the intestinal fortitude to follow through with what you have promised Territorians. We need only look at whistleblowers, a whole host of other promises that this government has not delivered. My, how things change! You people are becoming what you say, publicly and privately, you despise about the CLP. You have become what you always regarded with such contempt. Shame on you! Again, I digress, Madam Speaker.
I note that in the Northern Territory News on 16 July 2006 - I will go back; let us go to 15 July 2006. The Northern Territory News reported on the front page on that day that it undertook a random telephone survey of 100 Sanderson voters and they came out overwhelmingly in favour of his sacking. In other words, the majority of people in his electorate - that is, the electorate of Sanderson for whom I feel very sorry - want him removed. Even though the right thing to do was for him to resign and, in the alternative had he failed to do so, the Chief Minister should have ensured that he was removed from the party. You would have assumed that, based on those results, there was a bit of movement. Arguably, there has been some movement because we know people are talking about preselection, and the member for Sanderson had to run away for a month to get away from things instead of facing the music. However, his constituents want him out. I have been in Sanderson, I have spent a bit of time there and there is no doubt that they want him removed.
Let us move now to the NT News published on Sunday, 16 July …
Mr Henderson: Four people want him removed.
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
Ms CARNEY: You can keep going. I am having a very enjoyable time, thank you. The Sunday Territorian of 16 July was interesting. This speaks volumes about your lack of courage as a group and, particularly, your lack of courage as individuals. I quote from that publication:
I am using their Christian and surnames because I am quoting:
Mr VATSKALIS: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The Leader of the Opposition is quoting newspaper as a fact. What she is quoting is what she thinks is fact. The truth of the matter is that I was never contacted by anybody at any time. My phone number is in the book. If this is true I challenge her to actually prove what she says …
Ms CARNEY: Speaking to the point of order, Madam Speaker …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Chief Minister, resume your seat. There is no point of order. Minister, if you feel you have been misrepresented you can approach me later about making a personal explanation.
Mr VATSKALIS: Thank you, Madam Speaker, I will.
Ms CARNEY: You could have written to the NT News.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms CARNEY: I will go on, Madam Speaker:
The newly-elected Deputy Speaker:
You losers, you cowards! You were running for cover but you knew you had nowhere to go. You had nowhere to go because one of your guys acted in a despicable and disgraceful manner. When you appointed him Deputy Chair on or about 29 June last year, I knew it was a bad call. You must have known it was a bad call and boy, oh boy, was it a shocking call!
We come to the member for Sanderson in his capacity as Deputy Speaker, and the gall of this Chief Minister to say that the member for Sanderson has been adequately dealt with is both staggering and disingenuous. Everyone knows that to be the case, even her colleagues with whom she is arguing, it seems, almost on a daily basis.
The Chief Minister has said that he paid the price. Oh no, he did not. This is a grub of a man who is able to …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I find that comment highly offensive and ask that the Leader of the Opposition withdraw that remark.
Ms CARNEY: Yes, I do, Madam Speaker. In fact, I am not sure that I would describe him as a man because most of the men I know are decent men and he is not one of them. We will call him, perhaps ‘the tongue’ might be the way to go, Madam Speaker. The tongue from Sanderson …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! In the spirit of debate - this is a robust debate - this name calling is highly unparliamentary, highly offensive. Let us stick to the substantive nature of the motion and not indulge in bringing this parliament into disrepute by offensive name calling. I urge the member to withdraw.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I ask you to withdraw.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker, I withdraw ‘the tongue from Sanderson’. The member for Sanderson - and that is at best what he is, and he should not be - should do the decent thing: he should resign. His colleagues are, no doubt, ashamed of him; surely that is the case. The Chief Minister described him as an interesting character. I do not know what is interesting about being lewd, vulgar and offensive, but that is, of course, a matter for the Chief Minister.
The member for Sanderson has paid no price. The member for Sanderson holds his seat in the Legislative Assembly and he ought not to retain his seat. There has been reference to what is parliamentary and what is unparliamentary. Even by Labor’s ever-stretching standards, it is most unparliamentary …
Mr HENDERON: A point of order, Madam Speaker!
Ms CARNEY: … for a representative …
Mr HENDERSON: The Leader of the Opposition now has those offensive stickers placed on a parliamentary folder that she is flashing around the Chamber. She has been asked to withdraw and remove them. I ask you to have her remove those stickers from her folder.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I have asked you on three occasions now to remove the stickers. Would you have them removed from the Chamber when your speech is completed?
Ms CARNEY: Yes, thank you, Madam Speaker. You actually asked me to remove one sticker, with respect and …
Madam SPEAKER: And there was a second one or the one sticker twice, was it?
Ms CARNEY: I removed the offending sticker. For present purposes I will turn it over. So crotchety are the …
Dr LIM: A point of order, Madam Speaker! May I request an extension of time for my colleague, the Leader of the Opposition, to complete her remarks?
Motion negatived.
Ms Carney: You gaggers!
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition has had half-an-hour of the time of this parliament to make her case. She has had plenty of time. This is not a gagging of the debate, but there are other people who would like to speak to this motion in the parliament today.
It is very interesting that, in this parliament, the Leader of the Opposition said that the member for Sanderson, who did something very wrong and very stupid - that I have put on the public record, and the member for Sanderson agrees with me. He does not feel great about it at all, but he agrees with me, and he knows that he did something very wrong and very stupid.
However, the Leader of the Opposition said that the member for Sanderson has paid no price for what he has done. As she recognises the importance of this parliament, the importance of the position of Deputy Speaker, the position of Chairman of Committees, she says that the member for Sanderson has paid no price. I argue strongly with her because the member for Sanderson, in a parliamentary context as a member of this parliament, has paid a very high price. He has lost a very important job in this parliament; that of Deputy Speaker. I challenge anyone in this parliament to say that it is not an important job. Yes, it is. The Chairman of Committees is also a very important job for the running of this parliament. It really is an absurd and almost contemptuous thing for the Leader of the Opposition to say that the member for Sanderson has paid no price because he has indeed.
I suppose the nub of the issue is that if a member of parliament makes a mistake, how high is the price they pay? I believe that for what the member of Sanderson did, to lose his position - a significant position in this parliament - is a very significant price to pay. He has had what he did made very public. The front page of the NT News and television bulletins have quoted what he said. Regarding the Leader of the Opposition saying she is sorry for the member of Sanderson’s family and she means them no harm, and then she continues to put the knife in to both the member for Sanderson and his family that, again, is a disingenuous comment.
The member for Sanderson has paid a very high price. As I have said on many occasions, what he did was very wrong and very stupid. However, to say that my only comment was that he is an interesting character – I was asked a number of questions and one of them was about the member for Sanderson generally, and I talked about his strengths. I said in this case what we had was a very disappointing weakness. There is no doubt about it, as a member of parliament, the member for Sanderson was returned very substantially at the last election. It is a real demonstration of his electorate supporting him against a very strong CLP candidate and a very strong campaign from the CLP. He has worked hard as a local member and, when it comes to whether he continues as a local member, the parliamentary process is that the people of Sanderson will decide the future of the member for Sanderson, and that is totally appropriate. It is part of our Westminster system and the democratic process and, knowing the member for Sanderson, I know he is working hard in that electorate. Yes, he has had a break. The weekend after this very regrettable incident happened, he was out working in his electorate, facing up to what people had to say.
Madam Speaker …
Ms Carney: It was a barbecue organised by him. How embarrassing was that? He told a whopper.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: We do make mistakes …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Sorry, Chief Minister. The Leader of the Opposition has accused the member for Sanderson of telling a lie and I ask her to withdraw.
Madam SPEAKER: I ask you to withdraw.
Ms CARNEY: Madam Speaker, I have used the term ‘whopper’.
Mr HENDERSON: No.
Ms Scrymgour: You said ‘lie’.
Madam SPEAKER: I am asking you to withdraw, Leader of the Opposition.
Ms CARNEY: I am sorry it is so offensive. I withdraw the term ‘whopper’. How very touchy you all are this morning.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: You did actually call the member a liar. I would ask you to withdraw.
Ms CARNEY: It was no doubt right, but I will withdraw it, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you.
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, people do make mistakes; we all know that. For those of us who have been in this parliament for a number of years, members make mistakes. This is a job where any mistake gets a lot of publicity and, in this instance, the member for Sanderson did something that was very silly, very stupid, very wrong, and he has paid a price. I believe that that is an adequate price to pay. However, the judgment will be from the people of Sanderson at the next election. I know that the member for Sanderson has a great capacity to work hard to overcome what he did in July at the cricket. There is no backing away from that. I am not condoning it; no member on this side of the parliament is condoning it. The mistake was made and the member for Sanderson is paying the price. It is up to the member for Sanderson how hard he works and how he establishes and continues to establish himself as a very hard-working member for Sanderson.
There are a couple of issues that the Leader of the Opposition raised, calling our code of conduct a Clayton’s code of conduct. It is interesting that this code of conduct, the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards, is something that came from the Standing Orders Committee. To have the Leader of the Opposition condemn the work of her members on that standing committee is quite extraordinary.
Ms Carney: You have the numbers on that committee, just in case you forgot. You are being very silly.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, this work was done through the standing committee of this parliament. It was bought into this parliament …
Ms Carney: You are the Chief Minister. It was all yours. Do not be cute.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: This parliament debated that Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards, and there was no dissenting report. Those of us who have been in this place for a while would know that there are, from time to time, dissenting reports from committees where the members on one side or the other do not agree with what the report is.
Ms Carney: You are so arrogant you would not even bother reading it if, indeed, you are capable of reading.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: However, in this instance, there was unanimous agreement about the report. It was brought in here and it was certainly agreed to on the floor of this parliament. Now, the legislation is on its way.
Ms Carney: You said you did not have the legislation. Where is it?
Ms MARTIN: The Leader of the Opposition has said this is a poor code of conduct and, yet, her own side of the parliament supported this code of conduct. It is in line and in keeping with codes of conduct around Australia.
Ms Carney: Yours is so indescribably useless you need a better one.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: I doubt that, when the Leader of the Opposition says it is useless, she said that at the time. I doubt it. Did her members say at the time? I doubt it. We will go back through the Hansard and check. There was certainly agreement in this House that this was an effective code of conduct, and dealt with areas about conflicts of interest, declarations of interest, accountabilities, responsibilities, and it followed the whole outline and the code of conduct and ethical standards that we see in other parliaments around this country. It is an extraordinary hypocrisy, I suppose the word is, for the Leader of the Opposition to condemn this code of conduct when her own party members contributed towards it, agreed with what the code was, did not have a dissenting report and agreed to it when it was debated in this parliament …
Ms Carney: If that is all you have, it is embarrassing.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: It is all very well for the Leader of the Opposition to call it Clayton. She is condemning her own members by using words like that.
It is interesting; the Leader of the Opposition has also referred to the fact that she has been talking to the member for Sanderson’s electorate. And she has. ‘Jodeen Carney’s community forum in your area’. This is an invitation. It goes on a bit, but the relevant point is that she talked about the safety issues in the electorate, the problems of some antisocial behaviour, incidence of crime – this is the invitation. Then she said: ‘I would also like to know your views on this …’, meaning these antisocial and police matters, ‘… and other matters in your area. I also welcome your ideas on other things such as how you feel about the behaviour of your local member, Len Kiely, when he made …
Ms Carney: And boy, didn’t they tell us!
Ms MARTIN: … inappropriate and lewd sexual remarks to a 61-year-old woman at the cricket in a government sponsored box’. She told them when the time was. This was happening on 17 August 2006. It was for an hour at the golf club at Marrara. So …
Ms Carney: Do you know what we bothered to do? We bothered to ask people. You are so arrogant, you do not even go out anymore. You just come out of your ivory tower.
Ms MARTIN: This is the Leader of the Opposition’s interpretation. This is …
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order! Leader of the Opposition, order!
Ms MARTIN: This has been all over the electorate of Sanderson. If the words of the Opposition Leader are to be taken at face value, there is a lot of concern in Sanderson about the behaviour of the member. That is what the Opposition Leader indicated in here. Can I just say that this meeting - the invitation, I remind you, went all over the electorate of Sanderson, popped in those letterboxes …
Ms Carney: No, we missed a couple of spots actually, but we are going to fix that.
Ms MARTIN: Popped in those letterboxes. Do you know how many people attended, Madam Speaker?
Ms Carney: Not many. We do not have the arrogance …
Ms MARTIN: I can do it on two hands. Seven, Madam Speaker.
Ms Carney: … of you. We will consult with everyone and anyone wherever they are and whoever they may be. Unlike you, Chief Minister …
Ms Scrymgour: Sit down!
Ms MARTIN: Oh, we are getting a bit rattled!
Ms CARNEY: We are not too proud. Not like you, you arrogant so and so!
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, I am only saying seven, indicating the number, because the words of the Leader of the Opposition indicated that there was a groundswell of concern about what had happened; of objection to their local member. When you look at who came to this meeting where she indicated and was very specific about wanting to talk about it - seven people and three were ones we sent along.
Ms CARNEY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Firstly, the Chief Minister is wrong; there were more than seven but not many. Secondly, she should tell the truth. Unlike the government, we will consult uphill …
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order.
Ms CARNEY: … and down dale in our efforts to win the next Territory election. More importantly, why don’t you talk about how many people came and saw us when we were sitting outside his office and your electorate officer came out, rang the big four, presumably, and said: ‘Oh, Jodeen Carney is here’. You are weak, you are useless!
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition! There is no point of order, and I ask you not to make frivolous points of order.
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, it is an important point I am making, because the Opposition Leader is making the issue …
Ms Carney: What about NT News and the 100 voters; 100 people?
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition! Leader of the Opposition!
Ms MARTIN: … that the people of Sanderson are appalled – she used the word ‘appalled’ - at their local member. While I do not resile from the fact that what the member for Sanderson did was wrong and very stupid, the Opposition Leader is saying that the people of Sanderson are very disturbed by this. It is important to say that, when she did call a public meeting to, in part deal about this, seven people turned up …
Ms Carney: What about his letter sent to everyone? They were not concerned? Why did you send them a letter? Come on, get serious for a change!
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Leader of the Opposition!
Ms MARTIN: …and three of those people we asked to go along. In fact, there were four.
Ms Carney: That is a lie! That is a lie, Madam Speaker! The Chief Minister, I know she …
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Leader of the Opposition …
Ms Carney: … has trouble telling the truth, but she should apologise …
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I have asked you several times to cease interjecting. I ask you also to not make frivolous points of order …
Ms Carney: They are being pretty provocative, Madam Speaker, but I take your ruling, thank you.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you. I have a bit of a sore throat so I cannot call order too many times. I may have to use the gavel. Chief Minister, please continue.
Ms MARTIN: Thank you, Madam Speaker. As a footnote to the occasion, obviously, the Leader of the Opposition was expecting many people to attend. Evidently, there was mountains of food. I thought it was very generous that everyone was offered food in a ‘doggie bag’ to take home. I thought in this difficult circumstance, the Leader of the Opposition made the most of it, and those who came were given food to take home with them.
Mrs Miller: You are deflecting away from the whole issue.
Ms MARTIN: It is a serious issue. This side of the parliament takes those kinds of comments that were made very seriously. There is a price to pay and the member for Sanderson has paid that price. The member for Sanderson has apologised to the security guard involved and he has had his conduct put in the public arena, analysed and condemned and I believe that is a high price to pay.
The ultimate judgment for the member for Sanderson is his electorate, and the way that he works it over the next three years will be absolutely critical. He knows that; he knows that entirely. This is an issue in our public life where there are incidents from time to time. I have been around public life in the Territory watching parliamentarians for a long time and, yes, they do happen and, yes, they are unfortunate. Yes, parliamentarians pay a high price for whether it is a speeding fine or the things that, if you are not a parliamentarian do not get on the front page of the paper, but do if you are. It can be something like a speeding fine. It can be any blip that happens at a public function. Yes, they are not to be tolerated but, yes, it is often tough being a member of parliament.
Madam Speaker, this motion, while it deals with a serious issue, will not be supported by this side of the House.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, trying to come to terms with this debate is fairly difficult because there is a risk that speaking on such a matter one can become ‘holier than though’ or very sanctimonious. I certainly do not agree with the comments the member for Sanderson made. Not only are they offensive to women, they are unbecoming of men. That is an important matter that should be raised.
However, all of us make mistakes in life. When I say that, in no way do I mean to appease what the member for Sanderson said. I also noticed in parliament, in my time as Deputy Speaker, that there have been statements or insults thrown across this floor by the then opposition minister for Health and, at times, Attorney-General which, I believe, were also offensive. I do not mean to repeat those. At times, we have to be very careful when judging other people that we also look at our own faults. I am no more perfect than anyone else in this House.
The issue of parliamentary codes of conduct can only go so far. Much of the parliamentary code of conduct relates to one’s financial arrangements or the way one deals with committees, etcetera. The personal code of behaviour is very hard to put down in written form. I have read the CLP version of the code of conduct. It would worry me greatly to see that there would be a review board that could have the majority party on it that could actually kick someone out of this House. I imagine that could be used for very sinister political motives.
I believe, as the Chief Minister has said, that the ultimate test of whether a person should stand here is at the election. I suppose I have the advantage of being independent and, therefore, I am not responsible to a party. That does not mean that a party cannot kick that person out; perhaps that should have been the case in this particular episode. In the end, the member for Sanderson has to stand before the public, whether he is an Independent member or a member of the Labor Party.
I, therefore, find it very difficult to support this motion, not because I disagree with it, but because, in my time as Deputy Speaker and my short time in parliament, I have heard many things said. Even before I was in parliament, there were many parliamentarians who did things, very famous things which were in the news when the CLP was in government, and those people were not kicked out of parliament.
I have heard what the Opposition Leader had to say and I do understand that what was said was extremely offensive. I imagine the women members of the Labor Party, as well as the women members of the CLP, found those comments especially offensive. While we condemn people, if we condemn people for the rest of our lives, have we forgotten an important part of our social fabric, which is forgiveness?
I do not think Len would call me ‘best mate’ because I know Len occasionally has a few shots at me here and there. However, should we not give people a chance to see whether they can change their ways? If a member has an alcohol problem, should we not at least give that person a chance to see whether he can overcome those problems? If that member has treated women badly - as I think the member has - and shown a lack of respect for them, should we not see whether he can win back that respect by what he does?
He has suffered public embarrassment, and it is much more embarrassing for a member of parliament than it is for an ordinary person. Who remembers when Marshall Perron’s son was involved in an accident in a car? Who gets the blame? Marshall Perron. I am sure the Speaker might remember a certain occasion where she was headlined, too. Much of the time through no fault of our own, we are brought into an embarrassing situation. I am always aware of that and, I suppose, one day I might do something that I live to regret. However, I hope also that people at least would give me a chance to make good for what I had done wrong.
Yes, we are playing politics today. I understand there is good mileage in what the opposition is doing with the motion that has been moved about the member for Sanderson. That is politics. As I said before, the Treasurer said this House was a house of politics but, gee whiz, we are only human beings in here regardless of our political jackets we wear at times. Sometimes, we have to show society that not only do we condemn, but we also have the ability to forgive. That might take a long time and, perhaps, the people of Sanderson will not forgive. They might not forget, and that will be up to the member for Sanderson to sort out.
I say: let us be careful. Whilst we condemn the member for Sanderson, let us make sure we are not one-sided in our condemnation, that we have not done things that we should be ashamed of. As I said, I have sat in that Chair, and I have heard language for which I would at least have given a 50 m penalty in Aussie Rules for - at least - and a yellow card in soccer, and maybe even a red card. But not much if no more was said about it.
Madam Speaker, as much as I support the sentiment of what the motion is saying, the motion on its own, without taking into account the broader picture of behaviour, is something I will not support. I will not be voting on this matter.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, I support this motion. However, before I speak about it, a couple of proverbs have gone through my head: ‘There but for the grace of God go I’, and ‘People in glass houses should not throw stones’. Having those two points in my head, I propose to be cautious in my comments.
I believe the member for Sanderson did wrong. Not only was it offensive to all Territorians - I believe all men and all women were very offended - but it was also the way that the Chief Minister dealt with the problem which, I believe, reflected heavily on this government and on this parliament. That also needs to be addressed. This is also a debate about the Chief Minister’s standards, or what sort of standards she expects of her members. I believe that needs to be addressed also.
The member for Sanderson was at a public function, a work day, a government-funded corporate day where, I am told, another parliamentary colleague of his and three other people were in a corporate box and had consumed some 100 Crownies amongst them. I might be wrong in that, but that is what I was told. That is excessive. As a consequence of his intoxication, he made very lewd remarks which were found by the recipient to be very offensive and she made a complaint.
Had she not complained, there, by the grace of God, nothing would have happened. However, he was caught. Then he said he could not remember it. Why? He does not say; he denied that he was drunk, but he could not remember. Anybody would say that 100 Crownies drunk by five people would make you quite intoxicated. Alcohol does not change one’s personality. Alcohol, medically speaking, is an inhibitant, so it inhibits or takes away your inhibitions. In other words, you then become what you truly are. In fact, it reveals your personality.
That is the tragedy of the whole episode: perhaps, deep down, that is what the member for Sanderson is. No doubt, the same would be said of Mel Gibson after his comments about Jews. He did not know where it came from, it must have been in there somewhere. If the member for Sanderson has a drinking problem, he ought to get it sorted out. Whether he did or not when he went to America - perhaps he went to the Betty Ford Clinic for all I know - he needs to sort this out. If he does not, it will continue to plague him and also the rest of us. You wonder why people in the Northern Territory believe that politicians are the lowest of the low. It is our behaviour that brings that upon us. It is just not appropriate for us to behave in such a manner.
However, I come back to how the Chief Minister dealt with it. I believe she let all parliamentarians down when she failed to recognise the magnitude of the problem and demand the resignation of the member for Sanderson from the Labor Party. Yes, as the Chief Minister said earlier, he will have to face his electorate. Of course he does, but he can do that as a person outside the Labor Party. Surely, the Labor Party does not condone his behaviour? Surely, the Labor Party does not say: ‘We will sit here and support him quietly because he is one of us’? If he is one of you, then you are going to be tarnished by his behaviour. I do not hear anybody else supporting the member for Sanderson. Perhaps it is time that we all agreed that what he did was very wrong and he should not be part of your party. However, because the Chief Minister said: ‘No, I am not going to sack him’, you all sit back and take it on the chin.
Whether the member for Sanderson retired or resigned as the Deputy Speaker and Chairman of the PAC, this behaviour goes beyond his official position within parliament. This behaviour reflects on the behaviour of every individual member of parliament in this Chamber. That is what it is about. The Chief Minister failed to deal with that in a way that tells Territorians that her standards are better than she has demonstrated. I received an e-mail when this whole issue blew up. I will read some paragraphs out of this e-mail because it summarises my thoughts on the matter:
I further quote:
That is really the gist of what has happened in this sad event. We all agree the member will have to face his electorate and the consequences of his actions. However, the leader of his party needs to be more decisive than to just say: ‘Oh well, he is an unusual man’. The Chief Minister was disappointed in the member; she said he had done something that was both stupid and wrong. To paraphrase the Chief Minister, she said that him resigning from those positions is enough punishment.
Is it? Why are we elected as parliamentarians? We are elected as parliamentarians, both as representatives of our electorate as much as it is to be a leader within our community. The behaviour of the member is hardly behaviour one would expect of a leader. For the Chief Minister to then condone the behaviour by a lack of action further reinforces the fact that leadership is just not there. Therefore, it is important for this parliament to support this motion to say that the member has failed in his duties as a parliamentarian, has disgraced the standing of parliamentarians, and he ought not be here. Of course, we cannot sack the member from parliament; it is up to his electorate. However, we can go as far as the one step just removed, which is for him to be sacked by his party so that he is there on his own to face his electorate without his party’s support.
For the Chief Minister to attack the Leader of the Opposition, not defending the member for Sanderson, really makes no sense. This is not about the Leader of the Opposition, it is about the situation that the member for Sanderson has created for himself. That is what it is about. She should have addressed the debate rather than to talk about the Leader of the Opposition. I suppose if it came down to the crunch the member for Sanderson could resign, but that is up to him. I cannot force him to resign. Nobody can do that to him until the end of the term.
The polling that was conducted by the Northern Territory News - in fact, I believe it was also done on radio in Alice Springs, if I recall - overwhelmingly thought that the member for Sanderson should not be in parliament. I say to the member for Sanderson, that maybe this is when you need to take into consideration that your time is up, and it is time to move on to other things that may be of more value to you.
The Chief Minister alluded to the Leader of the Opposition’s community forums. Obviously, people out there cared about the problem. Obviously, they made the effort to go out to the community forums to air their views about this. Many of our members doorknocked the electorate of Sanderson as well. Believe you me, universally they condemned the member for Sanderson for his actions. Many were public servants who live in the northern suburbs and were too scared to sign a petition or be seen publicly saying those words that they condemn his behaviour, because they know the potential consequences that they will suffer if they were seen to be out in public supporting the opposition’s activities in this manner. However, it is their personal view that the member for Sanderson has done wrong and the consequences of his actions have not been commensurate with what he did.
That is really the crucial issue: that the consequences of his actions have not been commensurate with what he did. He has committed a crime; he has done the time - that is what he says. The Chief Minister of the day allowed him to get away with it. It is no wonder there is so much loss of respect for the Chief Minister over this matter. If the Chief Minister were thinking hard about this, she should think right through the whole matter and say: ‘What is happening? My whole party is collapsing around me’.
I have the memo from the member for Millner - God knows who composed it, who contrived it, who initiated it and who sent it to the five six, or seven members who received them. God knows what is happening. Why did somebody leak it? There has to be somebody within the party and the media …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! This motion is very specific in its context to the member for Sanderson. We have spent about two-and-a-quarter hours of parliamentary time on this motion; we have agreed to debate it. I ask the member to stick to the contents of this motion because there is other business that the House needs to pursue. I urge you to bring him to the contents of the motion.
Dr LIM: Speaking to the point of order, Madam Speaker, the Chief Minister ranged far and wide in her so-called defence against this motion and attacked the Leader of the Opposition. I am talking about the Chief Minister’s defence, something the Chief Minister did only less than three-quarters of an hour ago. I am surely allowed to comment about how she conducted her defence against this motion.
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order, but I ask you to be as relevant as possible, bearing in mind that there are only a few minutes left.
Dr LIM: I take that advice, Madam Speaker. I will keep my comments very relevant. What I am saying is that the Chief Minister should be asking herself why we had the member for Millner memo; why, allegedly, the member for Macdonnell leaked that memo to the media; why the member for Sanderson behaved the way he did.
Mr STIRLING: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The member just cannot make unsubstantiated allegations on the floor of parliament as fact. Where does he get this notion that the member for Macdonnell leaked any memo?
Members interjecting.
Mr STIRLING: At least preface it with some semblance of it being an allegation. To just declare it as fact is unbelievable, and he should withdraw.
Dr LIM: No, Madam Speaker, speaking to the point of order again …
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Greatorex, I ask you to withdraw that. You can rephrase.
Dr LIM: Well, the Centralian Advocate …
Madam SPEAKER: Can you please withdraw and then you can rephrase?
Dr LIM: I withdraw, Madam Speaker, and rephrase, probably even more pointedly, that the Centralian Advocate reported that the member for Macdonnell leaked the memo.
Mr Stirling: Oh, now we know it is true. Of course! Sorry! I did not realise the Centralian Advocate reported it. Oh, that makes it true.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Members interjecting.
Mr Stirling: Ring your mate at 8HA; he will run it!
Madam SPEAKER: Order, Deputy Chief Minister!
Dr LIM: To recap on the point I was trying to make, Madam Speaker, there was the leaked memo from the member for Millner. The Centralian Advocate reported that the member for Macdonnell leaked the memo to the media ...
Mr Henderson: What does this have to do with the member for Sanderson?
Dr LIM: The behaviour of the member for Sanderson in this current debate surely must tell the Chief Minister that there is continuing disregard for her authority. That is what it is. Therefore, the Chief Minister needs to re-establish that authority by demanding the resignation of the member for Sanderson. You have to do that to try to re-establish your authority within your party. Then, perhaps, you need to go one step further and support this motion that this House sanctions the member for Sanderson. Then you will be showing some leadership for your party, showing that you are truly not only distressed but so absolutely disgusted by what he did. It is something that no parliamentarian should ever stoop to.
If alcohol does that to you then, maybe, you should be refraining from drinking at all. It is not that I am a wowser. If people choose to drink, that is fine, but they must understand the consequences there are. I repeat: alcohol does not alter your personality; all it does is take away the inhibitions that keep you behaving in an appropriate manner. When those inhibitions are removed because of alcohol, then your true personality comes to the fore and, sometimes, that is very ugly. In this case, it has been very ugly. Therefore, this House needs to express that opinion and tell the member for Sanderson it is time to move on.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I draw you attention to the presence in the gallery of Japanese exchange students from Taminmin High School accompanied by Liz Short. On behalf of all honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, the government will not be supporting this motion. I will be brief in my comments.
I start my comments by saying that all of us here who have been elected to this parliament have a very big responsibility to the people who have put their trust in us to represent them. On the other side of the coin, all of us are human and we all make mistakes. The Territory is a small community, we have small electorates in the numbers of people in our seats. The moment any of the 25 members of this House step outside our front door, we are in the public eye. Any misdemeanour or mistake that we make is very quickly publicly known.
One of the strengths of this community and the small size of our electorates is that our constituents do get to know us personally. We, as local members, if we are doing our job properly, get to know our constituents on a personal basis. A lot of friendships result from the opportunity to meet people as constituents that you otherwise would not have met. Our constituents do get to know us as individuals, our families, our likes, our interests and our personalities. There are not too many places around Australia where constituents get to know their local members to the degree that they do here.
In the event that the member for Sanderson has made a pretty big mistake - and he is a friend of mine and I know the family - we all make mistakes in life and he has apologised. I believe the strength of the man is that, not only has he apologised to the broader community but, very quickly, he apologised in person to the lady concerned. I thought that not only was that the right thing to do, but it was done very quickly, before the media got right into the issue. The member for Sanderson did the right thing and the lady concerned accepted that apology.
As the Chief Minister said, the ultimate sanction in all of this is the court of public opinion that we all face every three or four years come election time. I know the member for Sanderson will be going back to his electorate and working very hard to continue to hold the trust of the people who supported him so overwhelmingly in the last election, the next time round. The strength of our system is that, if his constituents decide that he has not paid a significant enough price, then his constituents will certainly let him know about that when they vote at the next Territory election.
I found the comments from the Leader of the Opposition today in support of her motion to be pretty sanctimonious, certainly very shrill and sometimes hysterical. She talked about her heartfelt sorrow towards the member for Sanderson’s wife and family, and said, hand on heart, ‘I am being really sincere about this’. Well, at the end of the day we, as members of parliament, are all politicians, and the sanctimonious way she said that and the hypocrisy is evidenced in the fact that she is playing politics with this.
I will point local members to this flyer which was distributed letterbox by letterbox throughout the electorate of Sanderson some 24 hours after the front page of the newspaper revealed the story. There is no attribution on this flyer to the Country Liberal Party - no attribution whatsoever - yet we know that it was distributed by Country Liberal Party members. One of those members, who is high profile, was caught red-handed about 10 pm distributing these flyers. If the Leader of the Opposition wants to talk about cowardice, then I say that she should have the courage of her own convictions. If the Country Liberal Party is going to be putting this sort of rubbish in peoples’ letterboxes, then at least they should have the guts to attribute themselves to it and not do it in an anonymous and cowardly fashion. Therefore, the sincere and heartfelt sorrow that the Leader of the Opposition is portraying to the member for Sanderson’s family and his children is nothing but sanctimonious nonsense, because she does not have the courage of her own convictions to attribute her party to some pretty scurrilous allegations that went out.
The CLP have form on this. Prior to the last election, on the Thursday night, there were similar extraordinarily offensive flyers that went into the northern suburbs about the bill that was passed on the age of consent …
Ms CARNEY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The Leader of Government Business, when my colleague, the member for Greatorex, was making his contribution …
Mr Stirling: Yes, but this is interesting.
Ms CARNEY: I will start again. Madam Speaker, when my colleague, the member for Greatorex, was making his contribution, the Leader of Government Business called a point of order on the basis that my colleague should keep his remarks relevant. Likewise, I ask that you direct the member for Wanguri to keep his remarks relevant. It cuts both ways.
Madam SPEAKER: Indeed, Leader of the Opposition. In fact, I allowed the member for Greatorex to continue with his remarks as, indeed, I will with the Leader of Government Business.
Mr HENDERSON: Thank you, Madam Speaker. The Leader of the Opposition is very touchy about this. I do not have that particular flyer. However, I will produce it at another time and another day. It was similarly extraordinarily offensive. I certainly took some preliminary legal advice about the contents of that flyer which were not attributed to the CLP. We subsequently know that they were funded and distributed by the Country Liberal Party prior to the last election. They do have form.
For the Leader of the Opposition - who actually stood on this side of the parliament to support the amendments to that particular legislation - and her party to put out such highly offensive and potentially slanderous material around the northern suburbs - and she still attaches herself to that party - I find quite amazing, hence, my comments about being sanctimonious.
The member for Sanderson has certainly paid a high price. The member for Sanderson has stood down from a very prestigious position of Deputy Speaker and will be out amongst his electorate seeking their trust and confidence to return him again at the time of the next election. However, in all of this, a member of this House has made a mistake. He has apologised for that mistake and behaviour, not only to the public, to his electorate, but to the individual concerned. For the Country Liberal Party to continue to seek to gain electoral advantage out of this certainly puts paid to the Leader of the Opposition’s comments that she has sincere and heartfelt sorrow towards the member for Sanderson’s wife and his family. She does not. She will continue to run this; that is politics. The government will be not supporting this motion.
Mr KIELY (Sanderson): Madam Speaker ...
Ms Carney: Oh, we do hear from him? You brave boy!
Mr KIELY: Nothing to be afraid of here.
Madam Speaker, being the member for Sanderson is the greatest honour of my professional life. Working and achieving things for the constituents of the electorate of Sanderson gives me a great deal of satisfaction. In working for my community, we have achieved much.
I know my behaviour at the international cricket game in July was unacceptable. I have apologised to the individual in question and to the constituents of Sanderson for what happened. As a consequence, I have lost the position of Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees of the Legislative Assembly, and I accept that. This is a setback for me but, in light of the unacceptability of my behaviour, it is appropriate that I incur these serious sanctions.
I understand that the opposition wants to make political mileage out of these events; that is politics, I accept it. These events have been difficult for my family, and I thank them for their fantastic support. I am sure that they do not need your helping little hand, Leader of the Opposition.
I also thank the residents of Sanderson for their words of encouragement, and I will not let you down. My job is to work hard for the electorate of Sanderson and I intend to do just that.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, what an extraordinarily disappointing contribution from everyone on the government side. I will deal with each of them.
The Chief Minister’s contribution - well, there is not a lot that can be said about it, other than the fact that it was light on; and that is being overly gracious. The Chief Minister has firmly attached herself to the member for Sanderson. She has made a number of tactical or political errors in recent times, hence the growing disunity amongst her colleagues. It was a mistake, Chief Minister, to attach yourself in the way that you did to the member for Sanderson.
It was also a mistake on your part, if I may say, to give us a lesson on consulting with the Northern Territory population. We are an opposition of four. We were slogged, pounded, at the last election. The only way for this Country Liberal Party is up; the only way for the Australian Labor Party Northern Territory Branch is down. I am not too proud to be consulting with Territorians. In fact, I would be a very unwise Opposition Leader in all of the circumstances if I failed to do so. That is why I am not too proud to stand with my mobile office consulting with the people of Sanderson.
The Chief Minister is silly in the extreme if she thinks that we do not know that they send little Labor people out to our community consultations. No doubt, the Chief Minister would have received information that I was very polite. Indeed, I am always polite to members of the Australian Labor Party, save and except the members for Wanguri and Sanderson, for reasons which are blindingly obvious. If the Chief Minister’s best shot is to take the mickey out of the CLP because we are consulting, then keep going. You have become what you say you despised in the Country Liberal Party. You have become extremely arrogant and you govern by stealth. That is why your colleagues do not have the confidence they once had in you. So, bring it on. If you want to take the mickey because we are consulting, keep doing it because it is to our advantage and to your detriment.
Before I leave our consultation with the people of Sanderson, in relation to the mobile office, I think we went there maybe five or six times around the electorate, some of them pre-advertised, some of them not. Certainly it was the case that there was overwhelming support for the removal of the member for Sanderson. Similarly, in the event that members of government need further reminding, there was a - albeit a sample - poll undertaken by the Northern Territory News. We know that the government is hurting on this issue, which is why they went to such lengths to spin the Neighbourhood Watch barbecue as a testimonial to the member for Sanderson. The amount of rage and indignation that arose from that exercise, which was one of political spin, will remain with government.
The member for Sanderson was very disappointing with his contribution, although it is not the case that I would have expected more from him because I - and I know his colleagues and increasingly his constituents - are getting used to expecting so little of him. The Leader of Government Business has said, apparently with hand on heart: ‘We all make mistakes, and the member for Sanderson made a mistake’.
Madam Speaker and members of this Assembly, this is not about a mistake, this is about character. It is not about being an interesting character; it is about lack of character. It is a lack of character. I do not think that using the disgraceful language used by the member for Sanderson in relation to this woman and another woman in the corporate box, was a mistake.
I will preface what I am about to say very strongly by saying that not for a moment - and members will leap - do I associate the member for Sanderson with violent men. I want to make that very clear. By way of an analogy - and I do not put it any higher than that - violent men - let us pick the worst at the end of the spectrum a rapist. Rapists go to court and, on occasion, they will say, as indeed other violent men on occasion say through their lawyers, it was a mistake and they regret what they did.
I have always found that an interesting submission that I have heard in courts over the years, because I cannot for the life of me understand how you can mistakenly rape someone, or I cannot understand how you can mistakenly beat another human being. Nor can I understand how you can mistakenly use the language used by the member for Sanderson - drunk, sober or otherwise - about this woman. It speaks volumes about the member for Sanderson’s lack of character and how he regards woman. I find that, perhaps more than any other aspect of this tawdry business, the most offensive.
I should say, however, that it is not just a women’s issue, and it would be a mistake for all of us to assume that that is the case. This is an issue that has - and government deny it all they like - pretty much consumed the population of Darwin; everyone has been talking about it. There are a few expressions that have now come into the Territory vernacular. One is: ‘Oh, you’re not going do a Len Kiely, are you?’ I hope that the member for Sanderson, when he entered this parliament, thought that his legacy might amount to more than that.
The member for Sanderson sent a letter of apology to his constituents. It was dated 15 July, just before he took off on his holiday. He wrote, and I quote the first paragraph:
A member of the public? No, Madam Speaker. It was not merely offensive to ‘a member of the public’; it was deeply offensive to every Territorian save and except for those crude people who sent - and I think there were only about two or three of them - text messages into the Northern Territory News. Yes, the member for Sanderson will be judged by his electorate. However, there is such a high standard required of parliamentarians. I agree with the Leader of Government Business that it is difficult for all of us almost on a daily basis. However, there is something fundamental about the member for Sanderson’s conduct, his behaviour, his views, his attitudes before, during and since this incident, that make him a person not fit to hold a seat in this parliament.
Madam Speaker, I would like support for the motion. I am not sure, notwithstanding the divisions that are going on in the government at the moment, whether anyone will be brave enough to cross the floor, but I move that the motion now be put and I will call a division.
Madam SPEAKER: The question is that the motion be put.
Motion agreed to.
Madam SPEAKER: The question now is that the motion as presented by the Leader of the Opposition be agreed to.
The Assembly divided:
Ayes 3 Noes 18
Ms Carney Ms Anderson
Dr Lim Mr Bonson
Mrs Miller Mr Burke
Dr Burns
Mr Henderson
Mr Kiely
Mr Knight
Ms Lawrie
Ms Martin
Mr McAdam
Ms McCarthy
Mr Natt
Ms Sacilotto
Ms Scrymgour
Mr Stirling
Dr Toyne
Mr Vatskalis
Mr Warren
Motion negativated.
MOTION
Standing Orders Committee –
Change of Membership
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I move that the member for Brennan, Mr Burke, be discharged from the service of the Standing Orders Committee and the member for Daly, Mr Knight, be appointed in his stead.
Motion agreed to.
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business: Madam Speaker, I move that the member for Sanderson, Mr Kiely, be discharged from the service of the Public Accounts Committee and the member for Brennan, Mr Burke, be appointed in his stead.
Motion agreed to.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I advise you of the presence in the gallery of participants of the public tour program. On behalf of all honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I have given permission to the member for Goyder to make a personal explanation. As is the custom, I ask that members listen to the explanation in silence.
Mr WARREN (Goyder): Madam Speaker, during this morning’s debate over the appointment of the new Deputy Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition stated that ‘The member for Wanguri needs to have a chat with the member for Stuart …’, then went on to say: ‘… I suggest, because he can get the name of a good supplier of a hearing aid’.
Pursuant to Standing Order 62, I find that comment and the obvious inference offensive. I find that unbecoming from a fellow parliamentarian ...
Ms Carney: You find that offensive?
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr WARREN: Yes.
Ms Carney: You find that offensive?
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition!
Mr WARREN: The Leader of the Opposition clearly knows it is inappropriate for a member of this parliament to make a disparaging reference to a fellow member’s physical disability. It is just as offensive to make a snide or disparaging racial remark as it is offensive to make a snide or disparaging sectarian remark, and equally offensive to make a snide or disparaging sexual remark.
As the Leader of the Opposition clearly knows, the member for Stuart wears a hearing aid, as do I. We need these hearing aids to go about our business in an effective manner. There is also a very large section of members of our Northern Territory community who have a disability and are trying to go about their daily lives. I am sure they do not appreciate having one of their elected representatives mock someone with a disability - an elected member who bizarrely sees that mockery as humorous. This standard of behaviour is unacceptable for a member of this parliament.
Members: Hear, hear!
Mr STIRLING (Racing, Gaming and Licensing): Madam Speaker, today I pay tribute to all those who worked so hard to deliver the Darwin Cup Carnival 2006, which has established itself nationally as a significant racing and social event. The racing carnival is also developing interest at an international level.
The Darwin Turf Club’s Carlton Darwin Cup Carnival commenced on 8 July 2006, culminating with the running of the Carlton Darwin Cup on Monday, 7 August 2006. Total carnival prize money was $1.2m. This year, the Schweppes Palmerston Sprint prize money increased by $15 000 to $85 000.
In what has become a growing feature of the racing carnival, we were well attended by visiting jockeys, trainers and racing officials. Visiting jockeys included Peter Mertens, Nash Rawiller, Robert Thompson, Nathan Stanley, Brian Johns, Shane Scriven and Neill Payne. I have to mention Neill Payne because he rode Alice Springs galloper Picayune to a sensational victory in the Special Conditions Handicap early in the carnival, the horse standing the leader 18 lengths in the 1600 m event - a big win.
Ex-local jockey now based in Adelaide, Scott Leckey, also rode during the carnival. Visiting trainers included Bruce McLaughlan from Queensland who trains Barrage of Fortune, an outstanding filly, and John Hickmont and Paula Trenwith from South Australia. Paula is an outstanding young trainer and trained Darwin Cup winner, Nozi, ridden by Adelaide jockey, Shayne Cahill. I do not know that I have seen a trainer more thrilled with a win, next to myself, than Paula Trenwith. We hope she comes back; she said she will.
The carnival’s national profile was again highlighted by visiting race callers Darren MacCauley, Western Australia; Terry Bailey, Victoria; and Colin McNiff from Tasmania. Visiting celebrities included well known horse trainer David Hayes; Rugby League legend Alfie Langer; legendary jockey, Scobie Breasley - now in his 94th year, I think, and looking as hale and hearty as ever, and his daughter, Loretta, accompanying him; an another legendary jockey, Brent Thompson; and Australian golfing legend, Jack Newton.
Channel 7 media personality, Mark Beretta, was in Darwin and provided some national coverage on the Sunrise program. Approval was given for 27 interstate bookmakers to stand over the cup weekend. A record crowd of around 19 000 on cup day included people catered for in 38 corporate marquees set up at the race course. TVN provided national coverage of the day’s racing, and SKY Channel provided coverage in New Zealand for the first time.
Unitab turnover for the cup race was up 7% on last year and 10% for the day.
Another highlight of the carnival was the Darwin Cup Gala Ball held on the lawns of SKYCITY. Around 2400 patrons attended the ball. For the cup carnival, it was a culmination of a full year’s worth of planning, scheming, enticing and badgering by people such as Charles Burkitt, Stuart Cox and Des Friedrich and their respective teams. I want to thank them all, including the many sponsors, particularly Carlton, SKYCITY, Colemans, Schweppes and Qantas for all of their effort in making it the huge success that it was. It is simply beyond the reach of government and taxpayers’ dollars to fund racing to the extent that you would want to, so we are enormously appreciative of those major sponsors. The financial contribution to the Territory economy is hard to measure, but worth many millions of dollars in the visitation to the Top End.
I also congratulate the Darwin Greyhound Association for the successful and complementary carnival, the Darwin Greyhound Cup, conducted on Friday, 4 August 2006, as a prelude to the Darwin Cup itself. It also attracted many interstate trainers and owners, with the Queensland greyhound, Quidame, taking out the race. My congratulations to the chairman, Don Townley and his committee at the Darwin Greyhound Association on another great carnival.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, I thank the minister for his statement and join, with him, in extending my congratulations to all of those involved. It was, indeed, a fabulous Darwin Cup - typical of the Darwin Cup and those people involved; they just get better and better and bigger and bigger every year. It was a real pleasure. I believe most members of this Assembly would have been there. It was a very enjoyable day, not only for the punters - for the most part, the ones I spoke to were pretty happy - but for so many tourists from interstate who came and whom, of course, are punters. There were a lot of people in Darwin at the right place at the right time, and decided to come in to see the wonderful virtues of Darwin, in particular, the Fannie Bay Racecourse. It was a real pleasure. As I said, I join with the minister in extending the opposition’s congratulations to all involved.
Of course, it being the sort of public function where alcohol is consumed, wasn’t it great that the member for Sanderson was not there? I do not know where he proposes to be at the next Darwin Cup, but I hope that he is not there, because there will be a lot of women hiding from the member for Sanderson. The Darwin Cup, not just because the member for Sanderson was not there, was a great success. I welcome the minister’s statement and add my congratulations to all involved.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I also congratulate the Darwin Turf Club on its wonderful program over the last few weeks. Sadly, I have do not have much to say about it, except I had three lasts, one second last, one was a long way back, I think the three horses that did get in paid a $1.60, $1.30 and $1.20 for a place, which meant I lost most of my money on that day. However, I did have some good news. There is a horse called Irontrak which, during the carnival had two firsts and a third on Darwin Cup day. It is owned by the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker. Ten people in the rural area own that horse. I saw them on one Saturday when that horse won; the excitement was just tangible. They had a great day. The horse won by a nostril, or maybe a hare’s nostril, because I took a photo of it winning, and you could not see the other horse. You could not see the horse that won, it was that close. Those people had a wonderful day.
I know some people love or hate racing, but I can tell you that those people who take part in racing by owning a horse, get a terrific kick out of it. Even if it comes third, even if it only had one win out of 10, those owners get a great kick out it. They do not spend a lot of money because, when you divide it up into 10 people, it does not cost them much. They do get the privilege of enjoying what racing is all about; the thrill of at least trying to win.
I know that, for me, it was a good story. I enjoyed being there when they won - probably sad I was not one of the 10 people. I did enjoy it and I congratulate all of those people in the rural area who own Irontrak. It is having a spell at the moment. I say to the minister: just keep your eye out, it will be back.
Dr TOYNE (Health): Madam Speaker, I inform the Assembly on this government’s progress towards delivering a safe and sustainable high-quality radiation oncology service in the Territory. I am delighted to be able to inform Territorians that we expect the service to be up and running by March 2009. I have already spoken in this place about the hard work that has gone into making this promise a reality.
We commissioned and received expert advice and, on that basis, we have approached the federal government twice - in November 2004 and again in February this year - for support. As you know, the Commonwealth support was always a condition for progress on delivering this promise to Territorians. The 2006 federal budget announced the Commonwealth’s intention to assist, although did not specify exactly how much money would be allocated. Shortly afterwards, I was pleased that the federal minister for Health wrote to me and advised that their commitment is for an initial minimum amount of $13m towards the cost of the unit.
We immediately started negotiations about meeting the full cost of building and running the service. These negotiations are now at an advanced stage. This has allowed the Northern Territory government to put together a projected time line that should see a radiation oncology unit up and running by early 2009.
The next task is to settle negotiations with the federal government over the funding package for the radiation oncology unit, a job we expect to see completed by the end of this year. Once this is resolved, it can then be used as a basis for a public tender seeking a private provider for radiotherapy services. Testing the market in this way is a condition that the federal government is requiring as a condition of its contribution towards the cost of setting up and running the service. Our estimate is that, depending on the progress with the tender, the process should be completed and construction of the radiation oncology unit could begin by mid-2007.
The total cost of building and running the radiation oncology service is estimated at $48m over five years. The Territory government will contribute directly and substantially to this cost, and also provide land on the grounds of Royal Darwin Hospital for the unit. On this land the unit will be built, including two linear accelerator machines so that there will always be a back-up for maintenance or breakdown. Other high-cost equipment required includes a computerised tomography simulator and a three-dimensional planning computer.
However, the needs of the cancer patients go beyond the radiation facility itself. As any cancer survivor will say, tackling this illness is not just about high-tech medicine. Consequently, the Northern Territory government will make sure that the package includes accommodation options in Darwin, and support in the community for these patients. What the accommodation will eventually consist of will need to be worked out, but we know that around 25 units or equivalent will be required to meet the needs of those needing to come to Darwin for treatment blocks. My agency will be working closely with Territory Housing to explore options and accommodation mixes and, where possible, seek partnership arrangements with a range of parties who may have funding available for these services.
We will also need to enhanced clinical support for patients by providing additional allied health service, community nurses, and social support for those receiving radiation therapy in Darwin. These are not cheap options and, altogether with the building, accommodation and operational costs, as I have said, the service will come close to $48m over five years.
This is an enormous project with many challenges, but negotiations with the federal government have been progressing well. We now have projected dates to work towards and can be confident that, after so much behind-the-scenes work, Territorians will have a radiation oncology service operating in Darwin by 2009.
Madam Speaker, I can say that the member for Sanderson will definitely get an invitation to come to the opening of this unit; he will be a valued member of the crowd there.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate the minister for at last announcing the oncology unit, except that it has taken him two years sitting on his backside doing very little until the federal member for Solomon was able to get the federal government to commit the $13m. When the money came through, this minister had the audacity to say: ‘No, no, no, it is going to cost $48m’. Now we hear that it is not going to cost more than $50m to get the unit under way.
For two years, this minister sat on the Frommer Report, which clearly told him that patients with cancer were undergoing significant financial and personal hardship travelling interstate for treatment. Did he care? Of course not. If he did he would have done something about it. Now, cynically, he says: ‘We have negotiated very well with the federal government. Yes, we are going to build our radiation oncology unit commencing some time soon, and it will be finished and operational by 2009’ - five years after he received the Frommer Report, and on the very eve of the next Territory general election: ‘Well, well, look at us, we are doing terrifically; we have not broken any election promise at all’. Yes, you did break the one in 2001. Had it not been for the member for Solomon, we would probably still be waiting for you to do something about it.
Patients have complained to me over an over. Every week I would get at least one e-mail saying that the PATS scheme had caused them great hardship financially and socially, where spouses had to travel as accompanying persons interstate and did not receive support from this government. The amount of money that has been provided is well below subsistence level, and you could not expect anybody to survive in a foreign place on that level of remuneration.
I was listening carefully to what the minister had to say, and one thing that he left out was what he would guarantee people in Central Australia. Will he guarantee cancer sufferers in Central Australia that they still have the option to chose to go to Adelaide for treatment, rather than be compelled, as was said by government minders at the Alice Springs show recently, that all Central Australia patients would have to come to Darwin for treatment or they get no treatment whatsoever? I would like to hear the government, this minister, give a guarantee that Alice Springs people will be able to travel to Adelaide for treatment if they so chose.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I know that one lady in Howard Springs whose husband died about two years ago would be very pleased to hear this news. The minister knows my criticisms of the time it has taken to come up with a definite date. I can go over all the ground, but we should look forward and say we are going to get an oncology unit in March 2009. We should be grateful to both the federal government for the money it has committed through the member for Solomon, and the minister through his commitment to add to that.
I hope that the federal government will assist us in the running of it, not because it is just the Northern Territory oncology unit, but because I have always argued that this is a regional facility for the Kimberleys, part of Western Australia, perhaps for East Timor and, maybe, for parts of Queensland. Just as we have a Defence Force and other administrative areas here that do not necessarily make money, we will also have an oncology unit that, although it will not make money as they are very expensive units to run, the federal government should see it as a regional facility as well as a Territory facility. Hopefully, they will continue to help in the maintenance of the unit.
I am pleased to hear that there will be two linear accelerator machines. That was one of the things the minister was concerned about; that if one broke down we would not have another one to back it up. I am pleased that we are going to be treated like anywhere else and we will have two. That is important, being so far away from the main population areas.
Not on behalf of myself, but on behalf of all those people who have had to go interstate for a long time and who have asked the government to put in an oncology unit, I say thank you to both the federal and Territory government. For all those people in the future - hopefully it is not me but the way things are these days there is probably a fair chance I will need it - would also like to thank the government for at last - a long time coming - providing us with an oncology unit in the north of Australia.
Dr TOYNE (Health): Madam Speaker, I thank the gracious support offered by the member for Nelson, and will ignore the churlish remarks of the member for Greatorex.
To deal with a couple of issues there, the first is that of Central Australians. We will be very carefully assessing the needs and wishes of Central Australian cancer patients. They may well want to continue to go interstate, although PATS is set up for our support for patient travel to bring people to treatments that are available in the Territory as the first choice. There will be plenty of scope for talking to individual cancer patients. If they have a strong reason to still want to go interstate to be with family or friends, obviously, we will work through that with them.
The regional status of the treatment unit – yes, it will be a regional unit and that is the whole underpinning of the federal scheme. It is also the underpinning of the potential business case that was worked out amongst other places by the Frommer Report. We would certainly welcome patients from the Kimberleys. We would certainly welcome …
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired. Resume your seat.
Dr TOYNE: Sorry. Yes, Madam Speaker.
Mr McADAM (Housing): Madam Speaker, I speak about the transportable accommodation delivered to Alice Springs from Woomera by the Australian government. The Town Camp Task Force has completed its report outlining actions to improve infrastructure services and living conditions in Alice Springs town camps.
The Northern Territory is considering these proposals, with an implementation committee being formed to coordinate the Northern Territory government’s response. The committee will be headed by a senior Northern Territory government officer and will include representatives of Alice Springs Town Council, Tangentyere Town Council, Lhere Artepe, the police and, of course, the Australian government. Among its duties will be to engage in close relationships with the broader Alice Springs community and, accordingly, I urge the community to make their views known to the committee through its chair and its members.
The report noted that, at any given time, the number of indigenous visitors to Alice Springs is in the order of 1000 to 1300 people. While there is no break-up of the demographics of this visitor population, the town camp report recommends that different types of facilities – family, special needs, etcetera - be established to provide short-term managed visitor accommodation.
Part of the Northern Territory government’s response has been to fund a $2m development of Stuart Lodge to provide short-term managed accommodation for visitors. We are also seeking expressions of interest to construct a permanent purpose-built facility costing a further $2m for indigenous families visiting Alice Springs. Our approach has been one of bricks and mortar, not wishing to jeopardise the aesthetics and the lifestyle of Alice Springs with inappropriate development.
The Australian government is taking a different approach. At a meeting of the task force in Alice Springs on 5 May 2006, minister Brough made an offer to give transportable units from Woomera to alleviate the accommodation crisis in Alice Springs. The initial proposal indicated a suggestion that these units be located in the town camps. This proposal was vigorously opposed by Tangentyere Council and, of course, the Northern Territory government, who advised that any development of visitor accommodation should not be in town camps as this would add to the existing community dysfunction and the overcrowding.
The Australian government, you will be aware, has now relocated transportable units from Woomera to Alice Springs. The units are currently stored at a temporary holding facility while the demountables are refurbished and upgraded for visitor accommodation. The Australian government will retain ownership and ongoing responsibility for these facilities. The Australian government will acquire or purchase or long-term lease the necessary land for their development.
At the moment, the Northern Territory government is not aware of any decision regarding suitable sites for the development of visitor accommodation having been made by the Australian government on this matter. The Australian government has also indicated that the management of these facilities will be contracted out and operated on a commercial basis.
A final report on potential sites was submitted to the Northern Territory government on 18 August 2006. However, let us be quite clear that the Australian government will have the final say on the preferred sites. I am informed that the Leader of the Opposition has been on radio in Alice Springs scaremongering - only this morning - about the potential sites for minister Brough’s Australian government proposal to place these transportables in Alice Springs.
Let me remind you of the history of this proposal. In early May, minister Brough offered the transportables for use in Alice Springs town camps. However, as I said previously, we vigorously opposed that idea of any move to either suggest that they may be used for short-term visit or accommodation models in Alice Springs. We are working with him on the latest proposal, but only if proper consultation occurs for the community through the Development Consent Authority and the transportables end up on an appropriate site that does not affect the aesthetics or lifestyle of the broader Alice Springs community.
What does this show us about the Leader of the Opposition? She is out of the loop, very simply - not even involved, not even being consulted, not even being spoken to by her ministerial colleagues from the Australian government. And worse, she is prepared to frighten the people of Alice Springs community for her own cheap political ends …
Ms Carney: Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.
Mr McADAM: Yeah, yeah, we will hear yeah, yeah in a minute.
Ms Carney: Just because you buggered it up to such an extent that you are embarrassed.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr McADAM: Well, it is true.
Ms Lawrie: Parliamentary language!
Mr McADAM: What I am trying to say, Leader of the Opposition, is when the dogs started to bark against Mal Brough’s proposal, you joined the chorus.
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired.
Ms Carney: No, it was after you botched up the sites, actually.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Leader of the Opposition!
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, this is a debacle-and-a-half by the Martin Labor government.
The minister said that, in May of this year, minister Brough and the Chief Minister stood shoulder to shoulder and said: ‘Yes, we are going to commit federally $20m and Territory-wise $10m to ensure that the itinerants in town would be adequately accommodated’. Since then, there has been no action - absolutely no action, apart from the town camps task force report which was alluded to by the minister a short while ago. I understand the federal government has been waiting for the Northern Territory government to come up with a selection of sites that could potentially be used …
Mr McAdam: Which they will choose.
Dr LIM: … to provide temporary accommodation for itinerants visiting town.
Mr McAdam: It is their program.
Mr Stirling: It is a bit like the nuclear site, mate; they choose it, not us.
Dr LIM: But nothing has happened, and …
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Dr LIM: The classic was, on Wednesday 16 August 2006, when Matt Conlan of 8HA introduced his program and he said:
That is why it went from worse, to worse, to worse.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Greatorex, your time has expired.
Mrs BRAHAM (Braitling): Madam Speaker, I hope we are able to discuss the Alice Springs town camps review task force report later, separately. We are talking about the demountables. We have to stop the blame game that seems to be going on at the moment.
We do not want another town camp established in Alice Springs. We do not want these demountables in one location that will then become a magnet for all these people from outside, particularly if it is not managed well. Let us face it, there is a danger that it may end up like some of our town camps – not managed well. Let us get away from this blame game and start working together. Let us start insisting on consultation. We know that if you are going to put demountables to provide temporary accommodation you need to make sure that the people from the bush understand that that is what it is there for, and they do not then say: ‘We are not going to pay for this, we are going to where we normally go and lump on the town camps and the public housing’.
I believe it is most important that you start negotiating with Mal Brough and start talking to the town council; that the community of Alice Springs really gets a chance to comment. There is a danger and a fear amongst people in the community that what will end up is not what the whole purpose of these demountables should be. They should be there to overcome some of the shortage of housing on town camps or on communities. Let us not set them up in a new area to create another camp that will probably be handed to Tangentyere to maintain, and will end up as the current town camps are.
Minister, please, whatever you do, let us get back on the consultation grid. Let us make sure the people of Alice Springs know exactly what is going on, and we all have a chance of input.
Mr McADAM (Housing): Madam Speaker, in response very quickly, the position is very clear: both governments have an objective of being able to alleviate the overcrowding in town camps. What we have is a situation where the local CLP in Alice Springs sought to politicise this whole exercise. They did not want to approach us in a mature way. Nigel Scullion said: ‘Here, NT government, you fix it up’. It is very clear we support whatever the Commonwealth government wants to do and, if they want to put demountables there, then, of course, we will provide what support we can. However, I have already stated here what the conditions should be.
Ours is quite different housing - purpose-built bricks and mortar gone out to expressions of interest. Nonetheless, the political will on the part of the Northern Territory is there to be able to alleviate the existing conditions that occur in town camps. I say to the Leader of the Opposition: if you want to play politics about this, happy to engage in it ...
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired.
Reports noted.
Continued from 14 June 2006.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, I want to add a few comments to the second reading speech that was made by the minister. Obviously, this amendment bill is to divorce MACA from the TIO, making them both separate entities for easier management and also to prevent any mixing of functions of the TIO and MACA and the financial considerations that go along with that. MACA has, obviously, done particularly well for Territorians, and has ensured that our insurance for motor vehicle-related issues are well looked after on a self-funding and non-profit basis.
However, in separating the two institutions or entities, one cannot help but be concerned whether there are other motives behind that separation. We know that the government attempted to sell off the TIO not so long ago. Obviously, once MACA is completely separate from TIO, it makes it a much cleaner enterprise to be sold off. There is that issue that needs to have this government’s guarantee that that is not in the longer-term plan. No matter what the government says, these suspicions continue to linger because of its previous action of attempting to sell the TIO.
TIO is a reasonably profitable business. When compared to most insurance companies around the nation and the world, it is a very tiny operation indeed, but a very specialised operation that serves the need of Territorians very well, taking into consideration Territorians’ special needs and circumstances with our climate peculiarities.
If the government has a proposal to sell off TIO, then it needs to come clean right at the outset. Obviously, people will be watching closely at the configuration of both boards; the one that run TIO and the separate board that will be looking after MACA. That configuration will tell us, without a doubt, whether there is an intention - covert as it may be - of the government to sell off the TIO at a future date.
MACA, as I said, has been effective in the Territory. We need to keep it effective and, by making it a separate entity, obviously, the operations will be a lot cleaner and be more easily identifiable in order to be a lot easier to do because it is more specific to the agency on its own.
Without adding much more to that, I would like to hear the minister reassure Territorians that this is not the first step on a long path down the road to sell off the TIO. I would like the minister to assure us that the respective boards for the TIO and MACA will have their charter specific; that they are going to keep both businesses operating in the best profitable manner possible and to look after the interests of Territorians.
Mr STIRLING (Treasurer): Madam Speaker, I thank the spokesman responsible on the opposition benches for their support of this. On the one hand, he asked me to give an assurance that TIO is not for sale, that this is not part of hidden agenda, or part of a preparation for sale. On the other hand, he said he would not believe it if I said it anyway. I am not sure how I am supposed to respond to that.
This is, in fact, the third or fourth raft of amendments that we have been bringing forward on the Territory Insurance Office in order to achieve this absolute transparency of its operation and separation of its different arms of businesses, which it absolutely has to do. You cannot have, on the one hand, a profit-driven entity in the commercial, competitive market - that is, the insurance and finance side of it - that is required to make a profit simply to stay alive in the marketplace because, if it does not make a profit, it goes broke - it is out the door. On the other hand, the MACA, which is completely set up, run, and driven by government in that sense, but run by the Territory Insurance Office, is not profit based. It is not profit based; it is there in order to get enough revenue in to cover its costs. You simply cannot have a profit-driven entity on one hand and a cost-driven entity on the other which is not profit based, with the ability to cross-subsidise in any way or mix up its revenue, its finances and its cost. That would be wrong to shareholders and those who ensure, and are required to ensure under MACA, if they are having higher costs driven against the scheme because TIO business entities are making a loss, they decide to drag a bit out of MACA. That is what this is about: ensuring that there is totally and utterly a complete separation between those two arms; that there is totally and utterly complete transparency in the reporting of those separate arms of the business.
The member for Greatorex suggests that there is a hidden motive in here; that somehow we are preparing this organisation for sale - having been told clearly by the community not all that long ago that they did not want the TIO sold. We listened to the community and we said: ‘No it will not be sold’. Why would we go back and change our mind now? If he understood this process at all, if he had followed the process of breaking up MACA into a separate constituent elements so that we do have that proper, clear, transparent accounting, recording, and operation procedures of those separate arms, he would not be making such a ridiculous assertion.
I commend the work of John Tsouroutis, the current Chief Executive of the Territory Insurance Office, and his senior management. They have grasped the need to do this work very clearly. They have worked closely with Treasury on all of these aspects of breaking up the components and making sure they operate separately. They have supported and worked in conjunction with Treasury on the preparation of the legislation. The Territory Insurance Office is a lot stronger organisation, a more robust body, better able to withstand competition as a result of the sorts of changes and reforms that we have brought about. As a result, I do not want to downplay the work that John Tsouroutis has done as manager because he has been a standout chief executive. Sure, he has had good times, he has had strong equity markets on which an insurance company can ride the market and make profits. That has worked in his favour. However, nonetheless, it is a much better organisation as a result of the close cooperation between John Tsouroutis, the senior management there and Treasury than it ever was before we came to office.
Madam Speaker, I commend the bill to honourable members.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Mr STIRLING (Treasurer)(by leave): Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time.
Continued from 23 June 2006.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, my apologies for the delay. I looked at this bill some time ago and am having trouble reading my own writing. It is fair to say that this bill might be referred to as the ‘oops’ bill . It was the ‘oops’ bill because of a drafting error in the bill introduced by the Territory’s first law officer, the Attorney-General. We have seen subsequent amendments, and it goes to show all of us that particular care needs to be paid to drafting. I will fondly refer to it as the ‘oops’ bill.
To refresh members’ memories, it arose because the onus of proof for the defence of diminished responsibility was, as a result of earlier changes the government made to the Code, moved to the Crown. That was an error. This particular part of this legislation changes that so that the onus rests with the defence. I am aware that it followed an Alice Springs prosecution case where the error was found out by everyone.
Of course, it is appropriate that what everyone intends regarding the onus of proof in relation to the defence of diminished responsibility go back to where it should be. I do not really think there is much more meaningful comment I can make, so I will sit down.
Dr TOYNE (Justice and Attorney-General): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the opposition for their constructive comments about the bill. It is, indeed, an ‘oops’ bill and these things do happen. The House can take some reassurance that this shows that we are constantly scrutinising our legislation to make sure that it is entirely workable as law, and we are prepared to come back at any time to sort out any difficulty that is uncovered. This is the case to hand, at least to one of the two amendments that are embodied in this particular legislation.
I will read in full a relatively short second reading reply speech that I had prepared. It gives some further details of what we are doing with the general reform of criminal responsibility, and that is important to share with the House.
The bill in front of us concerns minor technical amendments to ensure that both the Criminal Code Act and the Criminal Code Amendment (Criminal Responsibility Reform) Act function as the government intended. The government’s revision of the Criminal Code Act to align it as closely as possible with the model code is a fundamental overdue reform in NT criminal law. It is a reform that the government is determined to get right. Occasionally, that will mean transitional amendments are required as we progress. I do not understand – I will not say that because you did not …
Ms Carney: I did not say what you thought I was going to say.
Dr TOYNE: … respond as we predicted you might. We will expunge that bit.
The next stage in this extensive process is reform of the laws related to homicide, including defences. Earlier this year, the government issued a Discussion Paper on Homicide and Defences and received constructive assistance from stakeholders. Now, we are pressing ahead with this stage of the reform and I am confident parliament will see the results of that consultation development very soon.
As I noted in the second reading speech, amendments are also occasionally necessary to ensure the Criminal Code is properly interpreted by the courts. The defence of diminished responsibility is subject to the ongoing homicide reforms, and the amendment in this bill is not intended to pre-empt any ultimate decision on its retention or amendment.
In the interim, we need to make sure it functions properly. The recent case of R v Jimmy Watson interpreted the code in a way that effectively meant the Crown bore the onus of disproving diminished responsibility beyond a reasonable doubt. While it did not affect the outcome of that case, in every jurisdiction that has this defence it is clearly intended that the accused holds the burden of proof to show abnormality of mind. The bill, therefore, clarifies that there is a presumption that an accused’s mind is normal and, as a consequence, reinstates the burden of proof of abnormality on the accused.
Government also considers it necessary that the offence of voluntary manslaughter is able to function independently ahead of the upcoming homicide reforms. This amendment will give the government the ability to commence the first tranche of the code reform as soon as possible. The first tranche, as parliament will recall, also deals with criminal responsibility and replaces the overly-broad dangerous act provisions with more targeted offences. I am committed to commencing this first tranche as soon as police and other stakeholders are trained, which is an extensive exercise. This training is currently under way and the government anticipates that it will be completed by October.
This bill shows that a close eye is being kept on both existing and reforming Justice portfolio acts. When the amendments are necessary to ensure they function properly, the government is not afraid to make them. I again welcome the opposition’s constructive position on this bill and we will move forward, Mr Deputy Speaker.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader)(by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I speak only because there was something, Attorney-General, I should have mention but omitted to at the second reading stage.
I wonder if you would be good enough to advise in your reply, what the present state of play is with the model criminal code. You would be aware, I believe - and if not, with respect, you should be - that there is some level of concern amongst the profession, particularly those practising in the area of criminal law, that there is, nationally – and, therefore, that includes us - what could best be described as a tinkering around the edges with the model Criminal Code. We have all seen it before - the Family Law Act is a very good example - where governments over the years have tinkered and wholesale constructive changes probably have not been made in the way that legislators would like. I am sure you share with me concerns about ongoing tinkering of very significant legislation.
My point is, Attorney-General, and I would be grateful if you would answer it: are you of the view that there will be an end in sight for the model Criminal Code? What is your position and view in relation to what seems to be - and it has gone on for years, and that even includes the CLP - continued tinkering? Is it your view that you want to get your colleagues together to just get on with the job and provide detailed, wholesale reform from a national level, including all of the states and territories on the model Criminal Code?
Dr TOYNE (Justice and Attorney-General): Mr Deputy Speaker, I propose that I will seek leave to move the third reading, move it, and then I will give a reply as part of the third reading debate. Is that the best way to do it?
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Yes.
Dr TOYNE (Justice and Attorney-General) (by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
In reply to the issues that were raised by the Leader of the Opposition, the second tranche reforms which deal with homicide offences are going through the government process at the moment. There is a possibility they will appear for introduction in this sittings, but that is a matter for Cabinet to decide.
It is our intention in the Northern Territory, having now introduced the Chapter 2 model provisions from the Commonwealth Criminal Code regarding the provisions for criminal responsibility and fault elements in the whole structure that is codified within that model code, to extend that now underneath our entire Criminal Code. That will take a number of bills.
We have given priority to the areas that Professor Fairall identified as being deficient in our existing code; particularly the offences of dangerous act and the section 31 provisions regarding criminal responsibility. We have picked those up in the first bill that has already been debated through parliament and will be commenced in October, we believe. The second bill now extends those same provisions under the murder and other killing offences. We will then move on into other areas of violent offences and other sexual assault categories. It will be an ongoing process. We estimate that it will take up to five years to go right through the code, including all of our code offences. It is quite complex because we have to ensure that we are not having inadvertent effects on unreformed areas of the code by introducing areas under this.
Regarding the national process, the Attorneys-General are still actively considering the harmonisation of the national Criminal Codes in areas that are open to that. You will be aware that there are three code jurisdictions now that have adopted the model code, or are in the process of doing so: the Commonwealth itself, the ACT and us. The others remain on common law arrangements. I cannot say that there would be, in the very near future, the chance that the whole country would go to codified criminal responsibility provisions. However, we believe that this will clarify and correct a lot of the deficiencies that we have seen in sentencing outcomes - the types of charging and plea bargaining events that we have been seeing in our courts.
I am particularly anxious to get that first tranche out there so it can deal with things like the recent cases we have had involving dangerous act causing death. It sent away quite a lot of families from our courts feeling that justice was not seen to be done. That is no fault of the courts, the judges, or the prosecutors; it is simply that that is the structure of the law everyone is operating to. Until the law is changed to a more rational position regarding, for example, the influence of alcohol on offending, we would expect to see ongoing defects in the outcomes of the justice processes in our jurisdiction.
I cannot wait to see these new provisions commenced. We have to make sure that the police, the police prosecutors, and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions personnel, are fully across these new provisions. They are quite complex and we need to make sure they all understand it.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time.
Mr HENDERSON (Business and Economic Development): Mr Deputy Speaker, migration has played a crucial role in the development of Australia and the Territory, and remains as valuable to our social and economic development today as it has been throughout our history.
In today’s world, where many developed economies are struggling with slowing birth rates and ageing populations, competition for skilled workers is fierce. Australia and the Northern Territory are not immune to that competition as our people are lured away to new international employment opportunities.
The Northern Territory Budget 2006-07 includes an investment of $84m to continue with government’s commitment to the training of 10 000 new apprentices and trainees over four years. Whilst this means more Territorians will be equipped with the skills to take up jobs in our growing and emerging industries in the medium to long term, businesses still need skilled workers in the short term, particularly as a number of projects are in full swing. Indeed, businesses tell me that this is one of the main issues for them, and I have to say it is the biggest issue for them. The demand has eased marginally since construction at Wickham Point has wound down, but skilled labour still remains at a premium and will continue to be as more projects come online in the future and our economy broadens and deepens.
Over the past few years, the Territory government has boosted its efforts of attracting business and skilled migrants to come and live in the Territory, recognising that, traditionally, most of these people have chosen to settle in southern states. In 2004-05, 120 100 migrants were granted Australian visas. Almost 65% of these people came under business or skilled migration schemes. Fifty three percent of all skilled migrants in 2004-05 came to Australia as independent migrants and can choose where they will settle. Research shows that the majority of independent migrants choose to settle in major metropolitan centres in Australia, rather than regional locations like the Northern Territory. The figures clearly indicate that we cannot sit back and hope that skilled migrants will choose to make their home in the Territory. We need to be actively promoting the Territory to these people.
The government has implemented the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy launched by the Chief Minister in 2004 in recognition of the importance of business and skilled migration to meet the Territory’s skills demands, and the contribution international migration can make to the Territory’s population growth and economic development. The aim of this strategy is to capture at least 1% of the national skilled migration intake for the Territory. It sounds like a small number, but it is an ambitious target when you consider the national and global competition for skilled migrants.
I will detail some of the activities and outcomes of the strategy to date and the benefits that it has brought to local business, the local economy and our community, as well as the challenges we are working on to attract skilled migrants here. Over the past few years, government has focused on working with Northern Territory employers and industry associations to increase their understanding of the migration schemes that are available to address skilled shortages.
My Department of Business, Economic and Regional Development has been holding information sessions to raise awareness about skilled migration in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce Northern Territory and the Commonwealth Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. These sessions have been held in Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine and Darwin, covering topics such as skilled migration schemes and regional migration, and including presentations by local employers who have experience in using these schemes. In addition, DBERD officers meet with employers throughout the regions. The regional visits provide employers who are unable to participate in the seminars with valuable information on the skilled and regional migration schemes.
Most recently, DBERD has profiled business and skilled migration through its show displays in Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine and Darwin. Departmental officers have conducted a range of briefing sessions to the boards and members of a number of industry associations including the Australian Hotels Association, the Northern Territory Horticultural Association, the Territory Construction Association, the ICT industry, and the Northern Territory Business Council. Departmental officers have also worked with representatives of the pastoral industry, the Central Australian Tourism Industry Association and the Motor Trades Association NT.
For the first time in 2005, skilled migration was incorporated into October Business Month. The ‘Skilled Migration - It Can Work For You’ seminar series were held in major Northern Territory centres and the department is planning another migration seminar series as part of this year’s October Business Month.
In addition to the targeted awareness-raising activities, my department provides a business and skilled information and support service for employers and prospective migrants. Three departmental officers provide a user-friendly support service by phone, e-mail and through the government’s dedicated migration website.
Since the launch of the strategy, officers have taken some 8500 migration related inquiries from employers, other community sectors, and intending migrants. Under the strategy, we are also profiling the Northern Territory with intending migrants in a number of key source countries, but it is not possible for us to promote the Territory everywhere.
In determining where our efforts should be directed, it is important to understand from where Australia has drawn its skilled migrants in recent years. Last financial year, Australia’s top source countries for skilled migrants were the United Kingdom with 25%; India with 13%; China with 11%; South Africa, Malaysia and Indonesia with 5% each; Singapore 4%; and Korea and the Philippines with 3% each.
The predominant image of the Northern Territory in the UK and Europe is that of a tourist destination: the outback and unspoilt spectacular geological icons. It is not always an image that encourages migrants to consider the Territory as a place to live or to bring up a family, or one that offers work and business opportunities. In some key potential migration markets such as India and China, the Northern Territory is simply not well known at all.
My department has developed promotional material that responds to the market’s needs, incorporating lifestyle and major development brochures; fact sheets about our climate and multicultural population; housing, health and education services; as well as information on the major Northern Territory centres. Prominent in our information packs is a positioning image showing where we are in Australia and our proximity to Asia.
The department’s international migration promotion activity commenced in March 2005 with participation in a series of events in the United Kingdom. The first of these was an Australian state and territory migration information day, which attracted more than 1000 people during the day. Whilst the majority of people were UK citizens, there were also visitors from Europe, the Middle East and the Asian subcontinent.
The Northern Territory also displayed at Emigrate 2005, a principal migration expo in the UK. Around 20 000 people attended the expo and the Northern Territory display attracted high quality inquiries including health professionals and tradespeople. Inquiries came from across the board: chefs, mechanical engineers, carpenters, brick layers, cable joiners, civil engineers, nurses, social workers, hospitality workers, physiotherapists, economists, accountants and IT specialists. For example, one young lady who is a qualified architectural technician in the UK approached our display seeking employment opportunities in the Territory. She is now being sponsored by an employer to work in Darwin.
Prior to a migration delegation to Ireland and the UK in October last year, the Australian Hotels Association and the Territory Construction Association circulated information to their members. Input into the Northern Territory display was sought from the Chamber of Commerce Northern Territory and a number of employers in construction, hospitality, motor vehicle, oil and gas, and service industries. These were principally employers who had indicated an interest in linking with skilled overseas employees to fill positions they could not fill locally.
In August 2005, I wrote to all Territory industry associations advising them of the government’s activities and future opportunities, and urging them to work with us to maximise outcomes for the Territory from these promotions. The inaugural Working Down Under Expo in Dublin in October 2005 saw representatives of the AHA working with departmental officers to promote the Territory to potential migrants, and highlighting work opportunities in their industry in the Territory. The 8000 attendees far exceeded the expectations of the organisers and exhibitors, and indicates the strong interest of the Irish in Down Under.
Over the past five years, more than 50 000 Irish people travelled to Australia as working holidaymakers, making Ireland an increasingly important source country for this market. Backpackers are not only a valuable source of export tourism revenue for the Territory, but also a source for skilled labour and migration.
The Working Down Under Expo was a great success, with our Territory representatives speaking to more than 1000 people. All our promotional material was exhausted, and many people who visited us expressed interest in working, migrating or holidaying in the Territory.
The AHA set a high standard for industry association and departmental cooperation in the migration arena. It produced a specialised brochure promoting the Territory and employment opportunities with its members. Ms Sally Fielke, the Executive Director of the AHA, who attended the expo and assisted in staffing the display, also used special promotional literature provided by her members. As has been the practice with previous expos, some Territory employers provided descriptions for positions they had not been able to fill. Among those were positions in the trades, hospitality and health areas. Interested prospective migrants were directed to specific employers and our representatives took a range of CVs from potential migrants.
The Territory participated in two further events. In London in October 2005, around 4000 visitors from the UK and Europe attended the two day Opportunities Australia Expo, many of whom had skills that are in high demand in the Territory, such as tradespeople and health professionals. A Northern Territory employer who shared the Territory stand in Ireland and the UK, reported that he had made a number of promising contacts during the expo that are likely to lead to recruitment and redress the skill shortages being experienced by his business.
The Territory’s push into key migration markets has continued in 2006, with our participation in a further five migration promotional events in Ireland, England and Scotland in March 2006. Included in those were a Down Under Expo in Ireland, an Australian information seminar, Emigrate 2006, and the Opportunities Australia event in the UK. During the round of promotions in the region in March 2006, the Territory participated in a new emigrate event in Glasgow in Scotland, which is a relative newcomer to the migration market, but the event attracted a large number of visitors. Although Glasgow is some distance from Aberdeen, the home of the North Sea oil and gas industry, a number of people from that area inquired about employment opportunities in the Territory during the expo, a positive sign for future migration from that area.
The logistics of participation in overseas expos are always a challenge. I would like to express my thanks to officers of DIMA in London and officers of the South Australian and Western Australian governments who, I am advised, have supported our promotional efforts in the UK and Ireland. I also acknowledge the assistance given to my departmental officers by the London-based staff of other Australian offices. During the March 2006 migration promotional events, DIMA officers at the Australian High Commission also assisted our officers at the Territory display.
The Territory also took part in a DIMA-run event in Chennai, India on October 2005, our first skilled migration foray in to that country. Our efforts focused not only on skilled workers, but also on international students. In conjunction with the Charles Darwin University, my department collaborated with respected education and migration agents and overseas students in five Indian cities. Most of the agents contacted responded positively to the CDU’s potential, and some have sought registration to act as CDU agents, a first step in sourcing Indian students to our university. The Chennai Australia Needs Skills Expo attracted around 16 000 expressions of interest, with around 3000 delegates attending over the three days.
In May this year, the Territory again joined the Commonwealth’s promotional efforts in the Australia Needs Skills Expos held in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Manila. Manila was by far the most successful of these events, attracting over 16 500 registrations. Delegates to the event included a large number of engineers, business professions and tradespeople. Representatives of the Territory private sector conducted a number of interviews with expo delegates. Given the overwhelming response in the Philippines, I imagine that DIMA will plan another such event in the near future.
In November 2005, the Northern Territory attended business skills migration open days in Taipei, Guangzhou, and Shanghai, targeting successful business people wanting to establish businesses or invest in Australia, and migration agents who are actively working in the target countries. China was the source of 32% of all business visas issued in 2004-05, making it Australia’s principal source for business migrants. Past experience has shown that Chinese business people are extremely interested in education opportunities for their children and, for this reason, the Territory’s display trialled the inclusion of CDU’s international study programs.
To complete its promotional activities in China in 2005, DBERD participated in a seminar to mark the opening of the CDU China Centre in Shanghai. This international education skilled migration partnership with CDU was continued in 2006, with seminars held at Ningbo University not far from Shanghai in May 2006. A similar seminar was also held while departmental officers were in Manilla.
In March this year, I invited representatives of the Territory industry associations and interested business people to attend a departmental briefing on the proposed migration promotion activities. This information seminar was used to further inform industry about government efforts in the migration sphere and seek input and feedback from the private sector on future activities.
My department also continues to seek out opportunities for cooperative efforts with our ethnic communities. Community links not only provide answers as to how we can increase migration to the Territory, they are also vital to settlement issues for migrants. Attracting migrants to the Territory is the first step, but we need to work just as hard to keep them here. My department is working with the Filipino Association of the Northern Territory, as well as the Hakka Association, the Chinese Timorese Association, the China Australia Friendship Association, and Indonesian community representatives.
In February 2005, my colleague, the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, released the Northern Territory’s first multicultural policy. As part of this policy, my department is involved in a project examining work orientation and settlement issues for public servants recruited from overseas. In addition, my department is also represented on a Commonwealth-funded settlement working group for the dependants of skilled migrants and temporary residents. To seek to address family settlement issues, DIMA has funded the Multicultural Council of the Northern Territory to undertake a settlements related project. Officers of my departments are providing input into the target activities of this group.
In addition to a range of regional and state-specific migration mechanisms already in place, the Northern Territory incorporated the Skills Independent Regional (SIR) visa into its regional migration scheme offering. This visa allows skilled people who do not qualify as independent migrants to access additional points though Territory sponsorship and a lower eligibility threshold provided they make their home in a regional area. SIR visa holders initially enter Australia as provisional visa holders, and must live in a regional area for at least two years and work in a skilled occupation for at least one of those years to be eligible for permanent residence. People sponsored under SIR are not committed to work for a sponsoring employer but, rather, make a commitment to live and work in regional Australia. With the whole of the Northern Territory considered regional for the purposes of migration, SIR visa holders sponsored by the Territory government have the option of living and working anywhere in the Territory.
The Territory’s SIR sponsorship policy is focused on employment and retention of people who have skills that are on the Northern Territory skills shortage list, are skilled family members of Northern Territory residents, and people who can demonstrate a connection with the Territory. The Territory policy also incorporates sponsorship for all international students successfully completing two-year eligible courses at Charles Darwin University. In 2005-06, the Northern Territory government issued 71 SIR sponsorships covering 155 people including partners and dependant children. This is a significant increase over the 2004-05 SIR sponsorships which totalled just 14 principal applicants.
One example is Mr Gaurav Saxena, who is an Indian citizen who completed his MBA at Charles Darwin University with a marketing specialisation. Mr Saxena also has relatives in Darwin and was sponsored by the Territory under the SIR scheme. I am advised that he has settled into living and working in the Territory and is looking forward to applying to become a permanent resident of Australia.
In recent times, the government has approved the Northern Territory’s participation in a further two state-specific schemes. The State/Territory Nominated Independent category provides a government-sponsored pathway to permanent residence for SIR visa holders. The other recent scheme we have signed up to is the Investor Retirement Scheme which allows self-funding retirees over the age of 55 to apply for concurrent four-year provisional visas, where they can demonstrate sufficient assets and income to assure their ongoing support. Given the criteria for this visa, we do not expect to receive a high number of sponsorship applications. However, because people seeking sponsorship for this visa are highly likely to be family members of established Territorians, I believe that it is important to be able to offer sponsorship to such people.
Interestingly, the Territory has already sponsored one application under this visa. This is to a retiring school teacher from Ireland whose son, Ian, was sponsored to work for a Darwin employer some years ago. Since then, he has become sponsored for permanent residence, married, become an Australian citizen and now has two Australian children. Most recently, Ian has taken a new direction in his life in the Territory and has entered into the business world for himself. Understandably, he is eagerly awaiting the approval of his parents’ visa so that they can join him in the Northern Territory.
Work is continuing to develop proposals to increase the flexibility and introduce new migration schemes to better meet the needs of the Territory. My department undertakes considerable facilitation work with the Territory business community and employers aimed at improving and speeding up migration procedures and processes, resolving problems that are encountered, and improving skilled migration outcomes.
During 2005, I wrote to the Commonwealth Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs on a range of migration-related issues that were adversely affecting Northern Territory employers. This included difficulties being encountered by Northern Territory employers in the electronic lodgement processes introduced by DIMA, and the significant delays being experienced in overseas trade skills recognition.
Another issue raised in my correspondence to the Commonwealth minister proposed changes to Working Holidaymaker visa conditions which restricted backpackers to three months work for any one employer. Following representations from several industry sectors, I canvassed with the minister extending the work restriction period to six months where the visa holder is working for a regional employer. I am pleased to acknowledge that the Commonwealth has announced the Working Holidaymaker work restriction will be lifted to six months from 1 July 2006. I thank the Commonwealth minister for listening to my representation. This change has the potential to considerably benefit Territory employers and help them to address the seasonal skills shortages they experience during their peak seasons of activity.
Time does not permit me to fully address all the work being done by my department in the business and skilled migration area. However, what I have outlined earlier gives members an understanding of the diverse work being undertaken and its value to the Territory employers and business people.
During 2006, my department will be refining the awareness raising and promotional work it undertakes. Awareness raising activities will continue throughout the Territory. However, departmental officers will explore new ways of gaining a greater audience reach and penetration. International promotional activities will continue with a focus on key migration source countries and seeking to maximise outcomes through participation in the targeted DIMA expos. My department will also continue to work closely with industry bodies, ethnic communities and Charles Darwin University to achieve improved migration outcomes. During recent consultations, industry identified the potential of countries such as South Africa and Singapore as potential source countries for skilled workers. Planning for 2006 will see the Territory participate in DIMA’s Australia Needs Skills Expos in the UK and Ireland later this year. There are also plans in place for collaborative work with CDU into India during the financial year.
As members of this House will be aware, migration is a Commonwealth legislative responsibility and, in recent years, the Commonwealth government has made considerable changes to Australia’s migration policies. Today, the national program has an increased focus on skilled migration, and a range of mechanisms have been put in place to encourage migration to the regional areas in Australia. Skilled migration policies are aimed at addressing Australia’s demand for skilled workers, whilst the regional schemes are focusing on addressing critical skill shortages in regional Australia through better dispersal of migrants away from metropolitan centres. We welcome the Commonwealth government’s focus in these areas. Many of the regional schemes they have put in place have greatly assisted our efforts to attract business and skilled migrants to the Territory.
However, we do not sign up to these schemes blindly. Each one is analysed against our own priorities and needs, particularly our efforts to skill and train local people. For example, the Commonwealth recently introduced the Trades Skills Training Visa Scheme to facilitate the entry of overseas workers to fill trade apprenticeships in industries in regional areas of Australia that identified skill shortages.
The Territory government’s Business and Skilled Migration Strategy reflects government’s broad support for employing skilled migrants, but jobs for local people must come first. It is for this reason that the Northern Territory government has taken a decision not to participate in the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. The Territory’s peak trade union body, Unions NT, welcomed this decision with Northern Territory President, Joe Gallagher, supporting the government’s priority in providing jobs for local people, especially young and indigenous Territorians. I can also advise honourable members that a significant number of Territory business people agreed with this decision as well.
Whilst the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy is about boosting our skills base and increasing the number of skilled migrants who chose to live and work in the Territory, skills migration will always be a complementary tool to address skill shortages. Upskilling our own young Territorians is critical in moving the Territory ahead and building our economy, and we believe Territory businesses should be employing Territory apprentices, not bringing in apprentices from overseas. I am also aware of concerns that some businesses are bringing in skilled workers on a temporary basis to fill jobs rather than making a commitment to train people locally.
Once again, our first priority is to see young Territorians given employment and training opportunities, rather than having skilled migrants flown in for short periods of time. I have written to the federal minister to seek her support to ensure that her department has an appropriate focus on the training history of the employers who are seeking to recruit from overseas. I understand that a Commonwealth/state skilled migration working party is reviewing the current system and will make recommendations for improvements.
To conclude, I will leave members with some statistics that I believe clearly demonstrate the success that my department is achieving through the implementation of the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy.
In 2005-06, my department certified 79 regional sponsored migration scheme nominations for employers. These nominations covered 177 people including the applicants’ spouses and dependent children. In 2005-06, there were 246 certifications for regional temporary residence nominations, and these have climbed from 98 in 2004-05, an almost threefold increase in a short period. The Territory government’s sponsorships under the SIR visa have increased from 14 in 2004-05 to 71 to the end of June 2006, a fivefold increase, and there have been seven business skills sponsorships issued during 2005-06. Finally, we have the first Territory sponsorship in place for the newly introduced Investor Retirement visa. These approvals for the Territory are also on the rise.
Recent statistics provided by Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs show that the number of skilled workers coming to Territory on Temporary Residence visas has increased considerably. Territory employers sponsored 180 skilled workers in 2003-04, 352 in 2004-05 and, for the year ended 30 June 2006, the figure has reached 666. I hope that is not an ominous figure. This financial year, in addition to skilled workers, the applications have included a similar number of family members. Past experience shows that the majority of workers who come via a temporary visa move to permanent visas. That is the true success of this scheme.
Similarly, the Permanent Resident Skilled visas have also increased. In 2004-05, 309 visas were issued to applicants and their dependants under skilled migration categories while, to the end of 2006, there have been 429 visas issued to people who have identified the Territory as their intended place of residence.
The desired goal of the Northern Territory Business and Skilled Migration Strategy is to achieve at least 1% of the national skilled migration intake for the Territory. I recognise that this goal is ambitious, particularly in light of increasing national and global competition. While incremental progress is being made, considerable work still lies ahead. I acknowledge the hard work done by departmental staff and, in particular, Mary Cunningham and her team who work tirelessly in providing a quality service to their clients.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the Assembly take note of this statement.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Mr Deputy Speaker, I wonder if you would be good enough to tell the people up the back that I would be grateful if they would either lower their voices or have their chat elsewhere. I was very deliberate to not interrupt the minister but, while I am on my feet, I would appreciate not having that babble behind me.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: One minute, Leader of the Opposition. The Leader of the Opposition has objected to the noise from the rear of the gallery. Could the noise be toned down a little?
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I thank the minister for his statement, which is high on gloss but low on substance. The minister talked more about processes rather than outcomes. Sure, he gave us a couple of cases or instances where people are happy, but one really needs to step back from this to see what it is the Northern Territory Branch of the Australian Labor Party has and has not done.
This government has failed to attract and retain skilled labour. I will say that again: this government has failed to attract and retain skilled labour. The Territory has a declining participation rate in the labour force and we have, I am told, the largest rate of labourers in the workforce in the country. Why is that? In their five years in government, the Labor Party should have done more in the areas of skilled development. Yes, some inroads have been made, but it is hypocritical of government to accept and market full paying students into our university and, at the same time, discourage foreign apprenticeships, as the minister outlined in his statement. In fact, it is the position of the Australian Labor Party to reject any notion that anyone from overseas should get an apprenticeship or should be brought to this country for the purposes of an apprenticeship. I will come back to that.
There is much that can be done. The government should acknowledge the importance of new apprenticeships and trainees from overseas. What about rewarding young Territorians for staying in the Territory, studying in the Territory and choosing to live and work in the Territory permanently or for a very long time? In addition to apprentices and trainees, the Territory also needs professionals like teachers and health professionals, to name just a couple.
The Territory government has been the recipient of the highest rate of federal government funding since 1 July 2003 to 14 July 2006. In fact, nearly $11m has been paid in incentives to the Northern Territory employers of new apprentices. The Australian government’s incentive payments have included rural and regional skills shortage claims of over $400 000 for this financial year. There is a lot of money floating around, money that, as a Territorian, I welcome. However, it is a bit rich to have the government going on and on about policies regarding investment and singing the praises of this government, when any successes - or certainly most of them - have been made as a result of this government riding on the coat-tails of the federal government. This government has form in this regard. It loves the feds when the feds do what this government wants, and it hates them when the feds are irritating them.
Most of this statement, when I first read it - of course, this was a rehash of the one that you delivered during your last sittings that, despite your numbers, you were too lazy to get to last sittings. Here it is again. I read it, and I read it again, and thought they have had a bit more time now. Obviously, between the periods when they are all fighting, a couple of them might go back to their offices’. Who knows? Perhaps they do these things as opposed to just relying entirely on their staff. Maybe some of them went back to their offices and thought: ‘Oh, we will add a few more things into it’. The statement is unchanged, however, in talking about the initiatives of the federal government. Much of what is in the first statement and this statement talks about assistance, financial and otherwise, from the federal government. It is a bit of a glowing reference, I believe, for the federal government, except when it gets to the point of the foreign apprenticeship scheme. As I indicated earlier, I will come back to that.
As members will recall, in the budget reply speech I made in May, the CLP, unlike Labor, is committed to educating Territorians and has developed what we have called the HECS Incentive Payment Scheme, otherwise known as HIPS, for health professionals. HIPS for health workers will not only deliver more skilled health care professionals, but will also keep them in the Territory longer. The CLP policy will pay the HECS bills for nurses and doctors. For every year a nurse or doctor works in the Territory health system after graduation, they will have one full year of their HECS debt paid. HIPS saves the Territory government money and puts money back into the pockets of these health professionals. This is an incentive to get local people to study at Charles Darwin University and to encourage them to stay on in the Territory. It also offers something that no other state or territory offers, and will attract those from other universities to come to the Territory first. Surely, that is what all of us want.
The CLP HIPS scheme is readily applicable to incorporate other professionals, such as teachers, for instance. We know that there is a national shortage of teachers and that jurisdictions are competing vigorously with one another. In other words, whoever pitches the best puts their jurisdiction in the box seat, or in the best position of attracting skilled labourers and professionals around the country.
If this Northern Territory government is serious about attracting a skilled labour force, then it has to go further than its competitors. You would, in a business sense – and this is the minister for Business’ domain - become competitive and make sure that the product you have is better than the business next door. The same system applies when it comes to competing against competitors, even though they are other state and territory governments.
This Territory government really does need to punch above its weight and attract people from all around this country. To do otherwise is an indictment on the inaction of the government. It is not doing service to Territorians who are here, nor does it show any vision for the future.
I want to talk about the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. The Territory government has failed to sign up to the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. If this government was fair dinkum about skilling the Northern Territory, it would support the scheme and not just blindly follow its federal party’s lead, and that of its ultimate master, the trade union body, and oppose this scheme. This government’s attachment to the union movement is not surprising; we see it in governments all around the country. However, surely we in the Northern Territory have always prided ourselves on a being a bit different. Surely, this Northern Territory government, conservative as it is, I would have thought would go the extra mile, and be a bit different from the nationwide counterparts. However, no, alas, this government has failed to sign up to the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme, and this is not in the best interests of the future of the Northern Territory.
This government should be more responsible in ensuring that industry continues in the Territory, and continues for generations to come, and that no particular industry lags or lapses. I would not like to go to the owners of businesses in the Northern Territory and say: ‘I am sorry, we cannot get any workers; the Labor Party does not want us to bring in any skilled workers from outside this country, so your businesses will have to close’. Minister, through you, Mr Deputy Speaker, you are far more interested in chasing the job of the person who sits on your right, the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory. You are far more interested in that and kowtowing to unions than delivering services and good outcomes to Territorians.
The Northern Territory simply cannot afford to take such a blinkered approach to attracting skilled migrant labour in a highly competitive international labour market. Of course, no doubt there was a ring around when the federal member for Watson, Tony Burke, the shadow minister for Immigration, issued his media release on 27 July 2006, when he proudly boasted of the Territory government’s Cabinet decision to reject the Commonwealth’s Foreign Apprenticeship Scheme. He went on - the rest is waffle. This is part of the Labor template and part of the lack of vision and insight which will, at some point, have its electoral toll but, more importantly, have a toll in the future of the Northern Territory and the other jurisdictions when such blind, philosophical adherence to policy actually overshadows doing the decent thing.
There has been much debate on this, not surprisingly. I am always interested to hear what Andrew Robb, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, has to say. Andrew Robb is an interesting character. In any case, he said relatively recently that it was:
What an interesting thing to have said.
Labor governments generally, and this government in particular, prides itself on being all embracing, all welcoming, when it comes to people who are not from this country and, yet, it has the audacity to say: ‘No, if you want to come to this country and the Northern Territory, and if you want an apprenticeship, we are not going to let you in’. That is as offensive as it is stupid when one considers the difficulties we have in the Northern Territory.
The minister for Business should know - and if he does not he needs to get out more - that businesses across Darwin - and it is the same pretty much throughout the rest of the Territory - are very concerned about building capacity when it comes to our labour force. Clearly, the Northern Territory does not have the skill base of many jurisdictions in some areas. We have a developing set of industries and, yet, we do not have the skill base. Those in business involved with these large ventures say we need to get people from overseas and, yet, this government says: ‘No, we are not supportive of that’. That is, as I have said, absurd and blinded by political fundamentalism.
Many of these people from overseas, as we have seen in other places, are young, qualified, highly skilled, and they bring economic benefits to Australia. They would raise the productivity of Australian workers and alleviate skill shortages. Surely, the minister is not suggesting that there is no skill shortage? They would raise employment and average earnings and make a major contribution to the Territory budget. Given our demand for skilled workers, we should be putting out the welcome mat for these people and trying to do all that we can to encourage our shores for apprenticeship purposes.
The Trade Skills Training visa enables regional employers to take on fee-paying overseas apprentices who meet the skill requirements, where employers cannot fill vacancies by Australians, and in occupations identified in skill shortage. No Australian will miss out on an apprenticeship because of the Trade Skill Training visa. Apprentices accessing the Trade Skills Training visa will not take TAFE places away from Australian apprentices. In fact, more TAFE places are likely to open up as a result of this initiative.
Before an overseas apprentice can fill a vacancy an approved regional certifying body, an RCB, must certify that no Australian apprentice can be found to fill the vacancy drawing on documentary evidence that must be provided by the potential employer. The safeguards are there. You cannot say, minister, that it is not a rigorous process. It is there and, of course, you and your Labor friends have been peddling: ‘Oh, well, if you let these people in they are going to take our jobs’. It just beggars belief!
Here we have the minister for Business, who refuses to do innovative things like, for instance - and there are many examples, one is the HIP scheme proposed by the CLP. If you want to be fair dinkum about getting trained people into the Northern Territory in the health system, why do you not do something about that? No, the minister just does not want to do that. Has he not heard local businesses talk about building capacity? We do not have the capacity here and the Territory is competing with other jurisdictions. What else are they to do? Yet, we have a Business minister of the Northern Territory – anxious though he is to become Chief Minister - for present purposes, at least, saying: ‘No, no, no, we are not going to help your skill shortage labour difficulties because we are going to stand in your way’. This is not a party that is friendly to business.
In any event, the skill training visa system was developed in response to representation from regional industries, many of whom had difficulty filling apprenticeship vacancies. Before an overseas apprentice can fill a vacancy, an approved regional certifying body must certify that no Australian apprentice can be found to fill the vacancy and draw on documentary evidence that must be provided by the potential sponsor.
Mr Henderson: Of which there are none in the Territory.
Ms CARNEY: Mr Deputy Speaker, could you calm down the member for Wanguri?
Mr Henderson: Sorry, sorry.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you. The member for Wanguri has managed to pull himself together.
No position can be filled by a foreign apprentice unless there is certification and documentary evidence that a local apprentice cannot be found. I will say it again because he is not the brightest of lads: no position can be filled by a foreign apprentice unless there is certification and documentary evidence that a local apprentice cannot be found. That means they will not be taking positions from local apprentices. The involvement of full fee-paying apprentices from overseas will help maintain numbers in apprenticeship courses and will help maintain a critical mass. Full fee-paying students will provide an important source of funding and boost the viability of the courses. This helps young Territorians. It keeps training opportunities open and available in their region.
There are safeguards protecting any Australian who wants to take on an apprenticeship. In an economy where businesses are screaming for more skilled workers in order to grow or, at the very least, to sustain their business this Labor government just brushes aside, because of political dogma, a scheme that the trade union movement does not agree with. However, most importantly, this government has closed off a potential avenue for the economic development of the Northern Territory.
We had the Chief Minister in here this afternoon saying: ‘Oh no, no. We cannot have questions about the member for Sanderson, because Question Time is all about growing and developing the Northern Territory’. I actually do not believe anything the Chief Minister says these days. If her colleagues today took her at her word, and if the bloke who wants her job actually took her seriously, and if he thinks that the business we do as a parliament and the reason we are all here and members on the other side can make a difference because they are in Cabinet, they should be growing the Northern Territory and developing the Northern Territory.
I know the numbers demonstrate it in a fairly graphic way – 19:4. No one understands that more than me, I can assure you. However, there was always a fundamental difference, and history will continue to record there is a fundamental difference. There were many, but one of them was the vision showed by the Country Liberal Party. Members on the other side have taken the mickey over the years, but look around the skyline of Darwin now. Look at this wonderful multicultural society we have in the Top End and tell me that none of that occurred because of the CLP. It did, and it required vision. It required guts and actually stepping up to the plate for your fellow Territorians. Growing and developing the Northern Territory is pivotal to our own sustainability and to where the Northern Territory stands in the national and international marketplace.
Mr Deputy Speaker, while I welcome the statement because, while members were too lazy to get to it during the last sittings – obviously, they are not talking to each other so, perhaps, there will be a bit more work happening - the statement is now upon us. It is good to see at least the statement has seen the light of day. However, as I said at the outset, the statement is high on gloss and low on substance, just like the Chief Minister and the minister for Business.
Ms LAWRIE (Family and Community Services): Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the statement on the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy delivered by the Minister for Business and Economic Development.
The Territory has a long and a very proud history of attracting people from around the globe to enjoy our unique lifestyle. The 2001 ABS Census showed that, in my own electorate of Karama, about 30% of residents were born overseas. This includes people who have come from China, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, Greece, the Philippines, Vietnam and more than 30 other countries to make the Territory their home. Migrants have come to the Territory in search of opportunities they could not realise in their country of birth. The history of migration to the Territory is written in the place names and business names we see every day in the Top End and Central Australia.
We have our early Chinese merchants, the Greeks and Italians who helped build and construct, and migrants from Timor and Vietnam playing a role in agriculture, aquaculture and primary industry. A visit to any of our local markets or annual cultural festivals - the Barrio, the Glenti, Chinese New Year, India at Mindil and many others - demonstrate that migrants to the Territory have embraced the uniqueness of the Territory and retain their strong ties to their culture and tradition of their country of origin. Our local schools provide a rich cultural environment where children from generations of migrants share both their history and their culture.
The minister has outlined key factors that influence migrants’ decisions on where they decide to settle, and they include prior knowledge of the destination, location of family members and, importantly, employment opportunities. The minister’s statement has outlined what his department is doing to make sure that prospective migrants know about the opportunities and the lifestyle available in the Territory. With the diversity of migrants already living in the Territory, there must be skilled workers in almost every country of the world with some family link to the Territory. A key element in marketing the Territory as a destination for skilled migrants should be our multicultural community which we enjoy with contributions of previous generations of migrants. The third criteria is employment opportunity. In my portfolio area alone, there are opportunities for occupational therapists, physiotherapists, podiatrists, childcare workers, social workers and speech pathologists. Community services is a labour intensive sector of our economy and, since 2001, we have virtually doubled the Community Services budget. This has led to a significant demand for skilled workers in our community sector.
Our priority is that young people growing up in the Territory have the opportunities to get the skills that they need to take on jobs in the future. Where there are skill shortages, the work of DBERD in attracting skilled migrants helps retain the access to services and the quality of life that we enjoy in the Territory.
I commend the statement from the Minister for Business and Economic Development. I commend his department for putting the emphasis and the effort into skilled migration in the Territory. I travel around the Territory and I get a common message from the employers; that is, that they see the Skilled Business Migration Scheme as a very important facet to attracting skilled workers to their businesses. It is part of the powerhouse that will drive our economy. I congratulate the minister for working with DBERD in ensuring that the work of Skilled Business Migration within the department is given the due recognition that it requires. I believe it goes a long way to ensure that our government is in tune with the needs of the community, is supportive of multiculturalism in our community, and makes the most of what are sometimes difficult immigration processes to assist businesses in developing and growing which, in turn, provides additional employment opportunities for many Australians.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend the minister for his statement and I know, speaking on behalf of a very multicultural community in the electorate of Karama, it is an initiative that has been welcomed.
Mr VATSKALIS (Primary Industry and Fisheries): Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the statement by my colleague, the member for Wanguri, in regard to skilled migration. Australia, and particularly the Northern Territory, has had a long history of migration that has strongly benefited our society and economy. New migrants enrich and strengthen Australia with their cultures, their energy and their commitment. By any national standard, a multicultural nation that is modern Australia today is a success. Let us face it, the Northern Territory has a parallel history in its development with the rest of Australia. The rest of Australia was actually filled by people who came from somewhere else, from the 1700s to the 1950s, and 1960s and 1970s - wave after wave of migration came to Australia, leaving behind them war-torn countries, civil war and poverty. They came to create a new life and, in turn, they dedicated their life to this new nation, their new country, Australia.
The Northern Territory has a very similar history. If you look back at the history of the Territory since the beginning of the white settlement in this place, wave after wave of different nationalities arrived in the Territory. They arrived at the invitation of the government, because they wanted to populate this enormous empty space - from the Patagonians who came here from South America to farm, to the Chinese who came here via Singapore to work in the mining sector, to the British who came here to work for the Vestey’s abattoir, and the Russians who worked in the ports. They are the first migrants who came to the Territory in the beginning of the 20th century. They made the Territory home and started the development of the Territory.
The railway from Darwin to Katherine, and from Katherine to Larrimah, was built by foreign workers, mainly Greeks and Italians. After the war, in the 1950s, another wave of new migrants came to the Territory, this time from the Greek Island of Kalymnos, as pearl divers in the beginning. After they settled in Darwin, they became the backbone of the building industry. All these people worked here year after year to build a new life in the Territory. It is amazing that these people were not born here, they came here as adults. It was these people who decided that Darwin was home after Cyclone Tracy and they had nowhere to go. They had made their life’s investment in the Territory and, as soon as possible, they came back to build the Territory again. Sometimes, I joke with my compatriots. I tell them they must be the only builders in the world who have had to build the same city twice; the one before 1974 and then the one after 1974.
The Territory is currently going undergoing an extremely busy time. Our growth rate is second to Western Australia; they have about 9.8% a year and we have about 9.4%. Our industries are booming, in particular two industries that rely heavily upon skilled workers. One is the construction industry, the other is the mining industry. I was very surprised to hear on a recent trip to Groote Eylandt that, for the Groote Eylandt resort, the company put out tenders and received only one tender – only one tender for a multimillion resort. Why? It is not because it was too far away - people will travel to all sorts of places to find a job - but because there is so much work around people cannot cope with the amount of construction work.
As a matter of fact, I understand one of the partners of T & M Concreting is travelling to Kalymnos trying to recruit ex-Australian Kalymnians who have now retired in Kalymnos, to come to work here as trained workers so they can meet the demand in and outside Darwin with regard to the construction industry. This is significant because, despite the downturn of the housing industry down south, we still cannot get enough skilled workers.
Whose fault is it? Probably ours, as Australia did not invest a lot in apprentices. We moved quickly to reverse this trend. We have provided enough money and funds to train 10 000 young Territorians in the next four years. We are not going to succeed with that because, again, there are not enough people to be trained. Even if we train them today, it will be four to five years before the first of these apprentices comes out as a tradesperson. Therefore, for the next four to five years, even if things stay as they are today, we are going to have a big problem with a lack of skilled workers.
Another industry that has a great demand for skilled workers is the mining industry. A recent survey of more than 1300 mining industry professionals revealed that skill shortages was the key issue having a detrimental impact on industry profitability and future growth prospects. That is from the web page of the Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Australia. As a matter of fact, I was astounded to find out that for a third year heavy duty diesel mechanic apprentice in Western Australia will earn $100 000 a year. I was also astounded to find out that reefs mines in Western Australia will not proceed because the company finds it impossible to recruit people to work on the mines or in industry servicing the mines, so they had to mothball it until things get better. Are things going to get better? Well, they are not. For the next 10 to 15 years, the mining industry will continue to boom because of the demand in China and, now of course, the demand in India.
Regarding skilled migration in the mineral industry, the mining industry has the lowest participation of overseas-born skilled migrants than the rest of Australia - only 19% compared with 25% for all workers in Australia. Despite their efforts, this participation rate does not increase. Why has it not increased? Because they cannot get skilled workers. Mining all over the world is booming. What is happening is that every time a skilled worker moves from one country to another, they are not replaced by another person; it is just moving around like musical chairs.
Most of the skilled migrants in the mining industry also come from English-speaking countries because of the need to be fluent in English when working in the mining industry for safety reasons and, also, because of the long tradition of mining in English-speaking countries such as the United Kingdom, New Zealand, South Africa, North America and some other African countries. For example, 10% to 20% of mining engineers and other engineering professionals come from South-East Asia, while geology and mining professionals are coming from South Africa, North America and New Zealand. There is competition for skilled migration from other countries due to the combination of a global shortage of skills and the rapid expansion of the mineral industry. It is not only these skilled migrants who are affected by the rapid expansion of the mineral industry; companies producing mining equipment cannot supply enough mining equipment to the mining companies. Even if they can supply them - for example, Caterpillar - they have difficulty sourcing tyres for the machines to provide equipment such as dozers and excavators to the mining industry.
We will continue to face this shortage of skilled workers. Is it something new? No, it is not. In the 1970s, the Territory imported a number of Filipino teachers because of a shortage of teachers. In 2005, we decided to import Filipino nurses, once again because of the shortage of nurses in Australia and worldwide. Now we find out that we have to import doctors and university lecturers. The most recent one is the tiling industry. From my own experience, I can tell you that many people out there who demand workers cannot find them. When they can find workers, the hourly rate they have to pay is exorbitant. I hear tilers are getting paid from $38 to $65 a square metre. I know of one of my constituents who was a university lecturer stopped working as a university lecturer and went back to his old trade as a tiler because he made more money as a tiler than a university lecturer. Good luck to him; he takes advantage of these booming times. I would have done the same if I was in his position. This is a result of the skills shortage.
The Leader of the Opposition said that the reason we have such a multicultural society and many workers here in Darwin is because of the CLP. Wrong, wrong. Until 1976, the Territory was controlled by the Commonwealth and it was the Commonwealth which relocated people and migrants here. In the 1980s, when the Defence Forces decided to come to Darwin, it was not the CLP that caused the building boom of the era; it was a decision of the federal Labor government and Kim Beazley, as the Defence Minister, to relocate the Army to Darwin and the Northern Territory. As a result, there was demand for infrastructure, service, and houses.
The CLP failed in one area; it failed to establish a TAFE, a trade school to train young Territorians. The Territory went from boom to bust. If you have a look at the development graph, you will see there are times it was off the graph and times it goes off the graph in a negative way. They never ever put the money and the effort, and they never had the will, to train young Territorians as trade specialists. We are paying the price for it. I am very pleased that my colleague, the minister for Education, bit the bullet and allocated a significant amount of money to train these Territorians here.
Another thing we have here which could have been exploited more - and I am glad to see some of the executives here – is communication and promotion. How many people out there know where the Territory is? I have been down south many times and have been talking to people and mentioned Darwin, and everybody thinks it is too far away and too hot. People ask if we have hospitals, cinemas or electricity. There must be communication and promotion of our jurisdiction. People do not realise that Darwin is only an hour-and-a-half flight from Bali, three hours from Singapore, and four hours from Sydney.
At the moment, we have a booming economy and what we want are the skills we require being promoted to overseas trade shows, newspapers, magazines, and specific newspapers that cater for professionals. I was informed by a constituent who was working in an advertising office - they were actually working for a Western Australian company requiring diesel locomotive drivers. They advertised in South Africa and New Zealand and they managed to recruit a number of people from those two jurisdictions because they promoted not only the salary and the work, but they promoted the lifestyle. We have to promote the lifestyle, the services that can be provided in the city, the benefits in living in a place like Darwin and the Northern Territory.
We have to develop linkages with organisations but also with the local community. The Darwin multicultural community members have a lot of links with their mother country. Many of them are first generation migrants. They still come and go like going to the next neighbourhood, the next suburb. Many Filipinos go back to the Philippines once a year. The Greeks travel to Greece every one or two years. The same would happen with Indonesians. Many of these people know people who would love to work in Australia. There are opportunities for skilled migrants to come to Australia under visa 457 to work here, and we should exploit these opportunities. Our multicultural society is a social capital and should be utilised more effectively.
The other positive aspect of our multicultural society and multicultural community is that people tend to go somewhere where they know they will find people from their own country, their own tribe, their own ethnic group rather than go somewhere else where there is nobody. Let us not forget that often ghettos are formed because people tend to congregate where a group of their own ethnic group is located. If you look at some areas in Sydney, the only reason there is a significant presence of Greeks, Italians or Chinese is because there is no migrant settlement area and, as the others arrive, they tend to congregate. Providing some comfort, stability, services, knowledge of the language and knowledge of the cultures also helps.
We also have to promote our tolerance – the racial harmony and tolerance - and the services we provide for the multicultural communities, not only the presence of the multicultural organisations and ethnic groups here in the Territory, but also the fact that we are supporting other areas like religious places of worship and the like. A significant number of people who have come to the Territory came because they realised that they can live peacefully and harmoniously and nobody cares if they are Hindus, Muslims, Buddhist or Christians. We see that with a lot of our Indian members of our community; they are very well educated professionals, and the same with the Pakistani community, with many people working in schools and at the university.
It is important that we participate in regional migration programs and influence national migrational policy development. Most migrants will go down south; that is not a secret. The reality is that we have to be able to persuade the federal government that there are specific needs in the Territory and they have to redesign their skilled migration program not only to feed the Victorian, New South Wales or Western Australia governments’ wishes, but also to meet our needs and what we require here in the Territory.
The Northern Territory jurisdiction has grown because people came from somewhere else - semi-skilled migrants, unskilled migrants and skilled migrants. That happened in the 19th and 20th century, and will continue to happen in the future. We went from less than 200 000 people to in excess of 200 000 people. We have a significant construction industry that is currently going ahead in leaps and bounds. The most important is the continuously booming mining industry. However, we do not have the skills, the people, or people who will come here to work in a mining industry.
Recently, I took a trip with my colleague, the members for Daly, to Pine Creek, Batchelor and Katherine. Three companies, CBS Gold, Compass Resources and Territory Iron, in the next year will have operating mines that require 300 people. They will have a big presence in all three towns I mentioned. The reality is that they will not be able to fill all their positions from within the Territory. They do not want to have people fly-in and fly-out; they would rather bring people to settle down. If every person who comes to the Territory settled down and worked in the industry, eventually that person will buy the house, make an investment in the Territory, and will become a Territorian - himself and his family. Every person who will come to work in the Territory, every skilled migrant who will come and get a high paid job in the Territory will bring another two or three people, and they will become another two or three Territorians.
I congratulate my colleague, the member for Wanguri and Minister for Business and Economic Development, on his Skilled Migration Strategy, despite the comments of the Leader of Opposition. We have not heard any constructive comments at all. Criticising all the time is not going to do anything. After all, we can play politics, but we should not play politics with the future of the Territory. I believe both of us want to see the Territory develop and evolve, and some constructive comments will go a long way rather than criticising every single thing that the government presents. They may not like everything and we may have a different point of view, but the reality is that we have a point of view that the final outcome we want is to grow the Territory. We cannot do that without skilled migration.
Ms SACILOTTO (Port Darwin): Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the skilled migration statement which has been presented to the House by Minister for Business and Economic Development.
Skilled migration has built Australia into the magnificent, prosperous nation that it is today. Australia, in 1788, was a convict colony. It was a place of banishment until the gold strikes in 1851. Those first convicts to set foot on Australian soil were the first lot of skilled migrants, one could say. Those men and women were sent to serve sentences in the new land of Australia, mainly from England. A number of the human cargo were skilled in areas such as medicine, law, farming, blacksmithing, dressmaking and banking. Once their custodial sentences were served, many stayed on to continue building a prosperous nation.
Independence was granted in 1901, and migration has been a key to Australia’s development. From 1945 to 2000, almost six million immigrants have settled in Australia, bringing with them skills that has led Australia to have one of the highest living standards in the modern world.
Skilled migration is attributed to the success of the Snowy Mountain Project. In 1949, Prime Minister Ben Chifley launched this project, and more than 100 000 people, 70% of the workforce from over 30 countries, worked on this project. It took 25 years to complete and was within the budget of $820m. Without the use of skilled migration, this could not have been achieved. I would say that this is a superior example where Australia would not have progressed without skilled migration. Many of the men and their families stayed on to live in Australia after the project was completed, making a valuable contribution to Australia’s modern multicultural society.
All over Australia, skilled migration has been used to progress the economy and enrich our culture. In the 1950s, Italian men were allowed entry to work in the cane fields in north Queensland and, in the Northern Territory’s early years, Chinese, Afghans, Greeks and Italians - to name but a few - were encouraged to come and work in this harsh environment. More recently, our society has been enriched with people from so many countries, including Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam; all bringing with them a multitude of skills.
It is my view that Territorians will benefit from further skilled migration. The blending of this knowledge can only make our workforce more equipped with the skills to take up employment in our strong developing economy. The benefit to industry - whether it is tourism, mining, health, farming or education - can only bring greater opportunities the more exposure the Territory has to skilled migration.
In my own electorate of Port Darwin, the use of skilled migration is appreciated. I hear from a very good source that a local hairdressing salon has brought two young male hairdressers from the Philippines to work in the salon. This expertise will translate to a sharing of new techniques and skills with other staff in the salon.
The impact of skilled migration in the tourism industry would have touched most Territorians if they have had a meal, a drink, or stayed overnight in a hotel. Throughout Australia, tourism benefits greatly from skilled migration to fill seasonal jobs that, if left vacant, could severely impact on the industry. It is my understanding that the entertainment hub of Mitchell Street is very keen to have young travellers from other parts of the world work in positions that may not be attractive to locals.
You only have to try to engage an electrician, carpenter or another tradesperson to know there is still a huge shortage in the construction industry. Skilled migration will benefit this industry immensely. Health is also benefiting from skilled migration, with doctors, nurses and allied health professionals boosting employment numbers across Australia and the Territory. These highly skilled people will fill positions that have been vacated by Territorians who are choosing to advance their skills by accepting international employment opportunities. I believe this could be described as skilled migration in reverse.
A new initiative of the government has been, for the first time in 2005, to incorporate skilled migration into the October Business Month agenda. The government has also had a display at Emigrate 2005. This is the principal migration expo in the United Kingdom. The Northern Territory display attracted a high number of quality inquiries, from professionals to tradespeople, all keen to know more about the opportunities available in the Northern Territory. Migration delegations to the United Kingdom and Ireland have also been undertaken. Information was circulated to members of the Territory Construction Agency and the Australian Hoteliers Association, and employers in these and other related industries were very keen to link with skilled overseas people to fill positions they could not fill from our local population.
The Department of Business, Economic and Regional Development manages and coordinates skilled migration schemes in the Northern Territory. The government is committed to attracting skilled business migrants who will make a positive contribution to the development of the Northern Territory. Since winning government in 2001, the Territory government has advanced its effort to attract business and skilled migrants to live and work in the Northern Territory. It is well recognised that most of the newcomers choose to settle in the capital cities. However, I believe that with the new opportunities opening up in gas, mining, Defence and property development, many skilled new Australians will choose to settle in regional locations like the Northern Territory.
In the NT, Budget 2006-07 invested $84m in training 10 000 new apprentices and trainees over the next four years. This means a strong commitment to VET and other programs in this area. The outcome of this investment will mean Territorians will be skilled to enter their chosen fields and contribute to building a stronger Territory economy. I am sure that some of this training may be given and assisted by skilled persons from other countries.
In summing up, the Territory needs to meet strong challenges and remain competitive in the global market. We need to plan for the future, and skilled migration is a part of this future. Currently, construction work in the Darwin region is estimated at $2.5bn, with another $811m in proposed works, with private construction accounting for around 90% of the current value and 80% of the proposed value. Skilled employees will be required to progress these contracts.
The Northern Territory economy is predicted to continue to strengthen over the coming years, and will increase in exploration and resources development. The tourism market also shows strong growth and, if our wonderful Northern Territory is to continue on this path, a better understanding of the labour market is needed. Workforce planning is essential, and issues that are impacting on the Northern Territory will require careful planning and consideration if we are to overcome the current shortages in our labour market. Skilled migration can play an enormous role in satisfying all of the abovementioned issues.
Overseas skilled migration continues to be a source of labour supply for the Northern Territory, particularly in skills shortage areas. Some 27% of settlers entered the Northern Territory under the skill scheme during 2003 and 2004. However, in considering all of this information, we must not forget that the first priority of this government is jobs for Territorians. The first focus is providing jobs for local people, with particular focus on training, especially young and indigenous Territorians.
Finally, Mr Deputy Speaker, I acknowledge the efforts and achievements of the business and skilled migration team in the Department of Business, Economic and Regional Development. This team has been instrumental in attracting skilled people to the Territory, enriching our community and helping grow our economy. Thank you to Mary Cunningham, Irene Russell, Edwina Reid and Donna Owen.
Mr BURKE (Brennan): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the minister for his statement today. Skilled migration is an important avenue of attracting those from other areas of the world to the Territory to enhance our workforce and the skills that are represented in that workforce. There is no doubting that there is a place for the skilled migration programs in the Territory economy, and in directing the policies of government to enhance the economy. Skilled migration programs such as those run by the federal government can fill places that otherwise we cannot fill. It helps industry expand into new areas or expand existing areas, and also increases capacity and the ability to create a bigger local economy.
It is a good step for the government to listen to both employers, employer organisations, employees and employee organisations, because the workplace has both classes of people represented in it - employers and employees. Whilst employees would like their employers to be as successful as possible, they also have some concerns about skilled migration and their own place in the workforce; a concern, I quickly add, is shared by all responsible employers. Employers who are successful know that looking after their people, especially in an economy such as ours, is vital to the continued success of their business.
I find it surprising that the Leader of the Opposition could accuse the government of being beholden to the union movement when the minister has advised of the activities that he, as minister, and this government as a whole, has undertaken to engage with employer groups and listen to their concerns and the advice of employer groups.
I note the minister said in his statement that he wrote to all Territory industry associations advising them of government activities and future opportunities, and inviting them to work with the government to maximise outcomes for the Territory from the promotions that were being undertaken. At their heart, skilled migration policies, as the minister said, are aimed at addressing Australia’s demand for skilled workers. The regional schemes are focused on addressing critical skill shortages in regional Australia through better dispersal of migrant labour away from major metropolitan areas. There is an inclusive strategy to fulfil the needs of employers, and you cannot do that without engaging with employers and their representative bodies about what they feel their needs are.
The whole of the country is in the grip of skill shortages in a variety of trades in vocational areas, not to mention professional areas such as engineering, for example. The Northern Territory is not unique in that sense; it shares that shortage with the rest of the country. It is interesting, is it not, that when the Howard government first came to power and started slashing funding from training bodies, and slashing the incentives to employers to take on trainees, the ACTU warned that these measures would lead to skill shortages in the future - prophetic. The federal government ignored that advice and maintained its program and we, as the country, are bearing the fruits of that short-sightedness.
I have focused heavily so far on the role of government in listening to employers. I should say this government has an equal role in listening to employee groups and employee representatives such as the union movement. I have said before in this Assembly, and I will say it again, that if you want to find out what is going wrong in an industry go and talk to the union movement because their members are telling their organisers of some of the things that are going on. Some of those things will be affecting employers because there are many employers - a vast majority of employers - who try to do the right thing by their employees, but have to compete with others who may not wish to do so and can gain an advantage over competitors by not providing the full entitlements to which their employees are entitled.
I commend the government in listening to the union movement, as it should. Skilled migration has a role where we cannot fill positions from skilled domestic labour. If an employer is trying to obtain labour from elsewhere overseas and using the government’s migration schemes simply because it does not want to fulfil obligations that the domestic labour force wishes or has a right to expect should be fulfilled, then those employers need to be excluded from the programs.
I note the minister has written to the federal government asking for a review of the schemes to ensure that there is a good training record of an employer as part of assessing whether an employer’s application to participate in the skilled migration program should be entertained. I commend him for doing so, the same as I fully support this government’s position that it will not be part of the scheme which is the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. We owe it to our young people to ensure that they have traineeships, training available, that avenues for their development are not closed off because it is easier to bring someone from overseas in than train someone domestically. No parent or young person will thank any government for closing off avenues to training. It may be a quick fix to bring people from overseas rather than train our own people but, in the long term, it makes the Territory dependent on migration rather than having a skilled domestic labour force.
This government committed $84m to continue with the training of apprentices and trainees to meet the target of 10 000 new trainees and apprentices over four years. That is an excellent commitment, and I commend the government again for pursuing that. It is part of an employment strategy - a fairly comprehensive strategy - and one which marks this government in stark contrast to previous Territory governments. That is something for which this government can stand proud.
There may be criticism from the opposition for not taking part in the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. This government should accept that criticism and hold its head up high. If the opposition has a different policy and does not wish to support young Territorians, then that is up to them ...
Dr Lim: What a load of hogwash!
Mr BURKE: When I take any opinion from the member for Greatorex in relation to employment matters and industrial relations, it will be a cold day in hell, indeed.
Dr Lim: Wet behind the ears and you think you know so much.
Mr BURKE: Not on industrial relations! This federal government has ripped the carpet from under the feet of Australians - and Territorians more than others.
Any equality of bargaining power? No. Any safety of employment? No. The opposition members sit there and say regardless of our domestic resources, we should be bringing people in from overseas and undercutting the very employers who are the backbone of private industry in the Territory, those employers who do the right thing, who invest their resources in young Territorians and are not just here for a quick buck and escape. That is the business and the community that this government supports, and I have no shame in standing here and saying it.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend the statement to the House, I thank the minister for it. I repeat: 10 000 new apprentices and traineeships in four years under this government.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Mr Deputy Speaker, congratulations on your promotion.
Referring to the comments of the member for Brennan, he said that his government is going to train 10 000 new apprentices and trainees over the next four years, and so did the minister. Yet, his colleague, the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, said that it is not possible to train 10 000 trainees and apprentices over the next four years because there are not enough people to be trained in the Territory. Who is right? Which minister is right? There is the minister who says it is not possible. You know what? I agree; it is not possible because the numbers are just not there. The Labor Party says: ‘Oh, we are not going to allow the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme, we are not going to support that’. Other states have already supported it, but this Territory will not because they are pandering to their Labor mates. Not taking part in the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme is like saying to the people that they are going to recruit when they go through their overseas delegations: ‘Oh, please come to the Territory, we want you, we want you, but as soon as you want to come and complete or get some training, oh no, you are not wanted, not needed’. This is xenophobia that the ALP is demonstrating once again.
Listen to what the media had to say when the federal Leader of the Opposition criticised this aspect of skilled migration. He talked about: ‘I am all for skilled migration’. So did this government. However, the federal Opposition Leader said: ‘All for skilled migration as long as they are not Chinese or Indian’. How disgraceful is that? Returning to the roots. I will read a little article from The Australian, 24 May 2006. The title is ‘Spectre of White Australia still haunts the ALP’. I quote a couple of lines:
This is the disgraceful attitude of the Labor Party, and it appears that Territory Labor supports the federal Labor Opposition Leader as well.
The idea about bringing people to the Territory to work is because, first of all, we have low unemployment - thank you, Mr John Howard – and we do not have enough people or population to train. Therefore, we bring them in to provide us with skills that we are desperately in need of. It is amazing when the minister said: ‘We have to do all we can to bring enough skills into the Territory to ensure that our business employers continue to have a pool to employ from’. However, we do not have that pool so we should be opening our doors wide open to allow anybody who so chooses to live in the Territory - whether they are trained fully yet or yet to be trained - to take up jobs in the Territory. Our kids have all the opportunities in the world to be trained. Let us make sure they continue to get that also.
Migration has always been a benefit to all host communities. One would want to think that the people who come from whatever country to a host country are usually the ones who are prepared to make a change, to take an adventure - risk takers who will benefit the host country. That is what it is about, and we should be welcoming them all here.
It is strange, though, when I see that we are short of doctors and nurses. The member for Port Darwin said: ‘Yes, we welcome them and we want more of them’. Yet, when we are so very short of nurses, I hear on the grapevine that the Health department has said no more nurse recruitment for the next three months. I just cannot understand why that would happen. No more recruitment of nurses for the next three months? I have to, therefore, ask the question: why? Have we run out of money in the Health budget again? We have issues in the hospital, and there is an edict from the department of Health that says no more recruitment.
I know there are people out there trying to recruit agency nurses to come to the Territory if they can, but nobody seems to want to help them at all. I know of one agency that is based in the Territory that goes overseas to recruit professional staff, where they pay for themselves to go, pay for the recruitment processes, and the advertising. Eventually, they are successful in the recruitment; they bring the recruited staff to Australia, go through all the process with Immigration themselves and then, in fact, house them in the Territory until such time as they are placed in employment.
What help do they get from the government? Nothing! You just wonder why people like that bother to continue to work so very hard to ensure that we have a continuing stream of professional staff coming to the Territory. Once they get here? The Minister for Multicultural Affairs said, hand on heart: ‘This is fantastic; these are people from overseas who are coming to live in the Territory’. What does the Office of Multicultural Affairs do to support these staff when they are here? Do they provide them with at least a cross-cultural induction to ensure that when they work in the Territory they understand the culture of Territorians, the level and the quality of service that Territorians expect? I do not see the Office of Multicultural Affairs contributing significantly to that at all.
I know several doctors in Alice Springs who have been victimised by the department of Health, by the hospital management. These people come to me because they have nowhere else to turn. They are terrified to complain through the system because they then feel that they will be further subjected to discrimination. These are documented cases that I have. When you raise the subject, the government does not seem to want to know. Well, maybe it is time for this government, through the Office of Multicultural Affairs or even through the Office of Anti-Discrimination, to go and seek these professionals out, take them aside, and let them make the complaint in camera so that their plight is understood by this government. Then they can do something about it, because right now they are working under huge discrimination and it is simply unfair.
The issue of skills migration is, no doubt, something that is very important for the Territory. With just about 200 000 people living in the Territory with an economy that is set to boom, that is more through international economic drivers and the resource boom that Australia is benefiting from rather than from any direct action by this government.
We need to have those skilled people here. It is important that this government recognises that and also recognises that they cannot continue to pander to the interests of their union mates. I understand in another state one of the unions expressed great outrage at news of the recruitment of apprentices from overseas under the new Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. Yet, that same union is reported to be in negotiations with an international recruitment agency to bring in hundreds of temporary skilled workers at half the pay rate of Australian workers. Under that proposal, the other half of the foreign workers’ salaries will go into a union-controlled trust fund. That is disgraceful. If that is not hypocrisy to the nth degree, I do not know what is. Here is a union saying: ‘No, you cannot have this. This is taking jobs away from Australians. This is preventing our youth from being trained. That is all right; we will recruit foreign workers. We will bring them into Australia, pay them half the going rate, but we will keep the other half of their salary and stick it into a union-controlled trust fund’. This is what we in Australia say is a corrupt practice if it was practised in South-East Asia or other countries ...
Mr Henderson: What are you talking about? Which union?
Dr LIM: Do your own research, minister. You were asked a question.
Mr Henderson: Who? Which union?
Dr LIM: Do your own research. Your Labor mates should tell you which union that is. Maybe you should do that.
Mr Henderson: Which union?
Dr LIM: You should do your own research and get your union mates to tell you who is doing what.
Mr Henderson: You make allegations and you do not attribute them to anyone.
Dr LIM: Minister, research it yourself because I have done the research. I know what it is.
Mr Henderson: Tell me who it is. What is the problem with identifying which union you are making this allegation about?
Dr LIM: If you would like me to name that in response to this interjection from members opposite, then I suggest you read The Australian, Friday, 20 January of this year. You will read it quite clearly as to where that is. It is a real problem, isn’t it, where unions would go to that extent and, then on the other hand, criticise skills migration.
I am reading it in another way, pleased that this government is attempting to recruit as many skilled migrants as possible, because we know for a fact that we do not have the numbers here. No matter how quickly we can train them, based on figures provided by the government’s Employment and Training department, even if they had 10 000 trainees and apprentices for the next four years, the attrition rate would be at least 50% and the qualifying rate is well below 50%. Therefore, we are not going to get the numbers we want.
I come back to the issue I raised earlier about the xenophobia within the Labor Party. Obviously, this is not going to be voiced by the local state Labor governments or by the federal opposition. I quote again from this article in The Australian, 24 May 2006, entitled ‘Spectre of White Australia still haunts the ALP’, and ‘they’ refers to the federal Leader of the Opposition and Labor’s federal immigration spokesman:
I jump a paragraph. I will read again:
When you go to the minister’s statement and get the statistics of where the skilled migrants come from, in fact, the United Kingdom contributed 25% of the total. China was only about 11%, and Malaysia and Indonesia were 5% each. These guys are so xenophobic that they jump at shadows and accuse everyone else just to protect their union mates ...
Mr Warren: That is amazing. You are bloody amazing.
Dr LIM: That is the truth of it all. Your statistics, quoted by your minister in his statement, state clearly that the United Kingdom contributes 25%. That is the majority, the huge bulk of it. Why, then, does the Labor Party continue to bark this message: ‘It is dangerous, terrible, do not bring too many of them in because they are going to take jobs away from Australians’ ...
Mr Henderson: We went to China, we have been to India, we have been to Manila a few times.
Dr LIM: I pick up on the minister’s interjection. He said it in his statement and he is repeating it in his interjection, that he has been to those countries to recruit. I congratulate him for doing that. I say to the minister, once he gets those recruits in the Territory, make sure that they are supported. Make sure they are supported by the Office of Multicultural Affairs. Make sure that there are adequate resources being provided to ensure that these people learn English so that they are able to participate fully, not only in the workplace but in the society of the Northern Territory. They need to do that so that they can be full participants in our community.
Unfortunately, at this point in time, that is not happening. Unfortunately, at this time, when they are within our public service, they are not being adequately supported. In fact, they are being discriminated against; exploited by the system. I told you about the doctors at the Alice Springs Hospital who have been given the most undesirable rosters, the most difficult terms of inadequate training within the hospital rotation. Why are they treated like that? When you ask the doctors in private: ‘Why are you allowing yourself to be forced into this sort of rostering?’, the response is: ‘If we do not do what we are told, our visa support will be taken away. Thus, we then have to be kicked out of the country’. The minister pulls a face and says: ‘That is not true’. That is true, minister, and it would pay you to find out from these professionals. Do it in private or ask an officer from the Anti-Discrimination Commission so that the doctors and nurses feel that they are not going to be victimised further once they identify themselves. It is a problem. It is a major problem, and until you can sort that out, your skilled migrants will not end up staying in the Territory. That is why there was such a huge exodus of doctors leaving the Territory in the first couple of years of your government. They took off because they were not getting the support or the respect that they deserved.
Skilled migration has been called for by employer groups and business groups. I am glad that the federal government has responded to it by increasing the number of visas that are available. It is good to see that Mary Cunningham and her crew, also supported by the government - and I am glad to see that happen - working very hard to try to get as many people into the Territory as possible. If the government can assure me, and reassure me that the support for these skilled migrants will be there when they arrive in the Territory, then I will be happy. However, until that happens skilled migrants will continue to be concerned about coming to the Territory.
Mr NATT (Drysdale): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I am pleased to support the minister’s report on the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy outcomes and the ongoing support and services provided to Northern Territory industry and employers by this government. Building the Territory’s population and boosting our skills base is a top priority for the Northern Territory government. The Northern Territory Business and Skilled Migration Strategy will ultimately strengthen, broaden and diversify Northern Territory business and employment skills base, as well as, potentially, accelerate our population growth.
As the minister stated in his report, migration has played an integral part in the development of Australia and, of course, the Northern Territory. Many migrants have succeeded in businesses over the years and, in many ways, have helped shape Australia into the diverse and multicultural society it is today. Fellow members mentioned the pearl divers, the mineral industry workers, construction tradesmen and several others, all migrants from countries far and wide who have come to Australia for a specific purpose and made Australia their home and have contributed greatly to the history of our great country and our multicultural population.
Long gone are the times of the Snowy Mountains, where all non-British migrants were only deemed suitable for low skilled jobs, irrespective of their qualifications. It has been reported that up to 50% of migrants Australia-wide with tertiary qualifications hardly, or never, got to use them. These cases are missed opportunities to boost the Australia economy and its capacity for innovation. By deliberately targeting the pool of migrant skills, it can lead to increased organisational competitiveness, not to mention the benefits they bring to local business, our local economy and, of course, our community.
When I started by first year of a fitting and turning apprenticeship with General Motors Holden in Adelaide, I was one of 120 fitter and turner apprentices taken in that year. In that same year, GMH hired approximately 15 electrician apprentices, 12 pattern maker apprentices, three sheet metal apprentices and two blacksmith apprentices. In total, approximately 150 apprentices were employed that year to undertake trade training. When I left GMH 10 years later, the total apprenticeship intake was about 12. Computerised machines, competitiveness in the motor vehicle construction industry and advanced mechanism knowledge has taken its toll.
The other interesting point I would like to draw your attention to is that, out of the approximate 150 apprentices who were taken on the same year as me, only about 10 of those people are still working in the trade they originally trained in. Many, like myself, have chosen different career paths and see no attraction in returning to the work bench. I guess also, in the years following my apprenticeship, many companies fell on hard times and the mechanisation I mentioned forced tradesmen to pursue other fields and other interests. This meant that many good tradesmen were lost to their fields of original employment.
Many businesses around Australia and, more importantly, in the Territory, are finding it difficult to attract and retain skilled, qualified and experienced workers and this is creating a big problem. In most cases, this is due to the fall-out of the tradesmen of my era and the lack of support from industry, and the lack of industry in many places around the country to bring numbers back to the trades. A hiatus was established in many trades and the gap has been difficult to fill. The Northern Territory’s current strong economic growth, buoyed by new development in the mining, construction, Defence, tourism, hospitality and the gas project has compounded the problem for the shortfall of skilled workers.
In the past, migrants have come to Australia with skills that have not been recognised in this country. The accounting body CPA Australia reported in 2002 that, ‘The lack of skilled and motivated staff is a major barrier for employment’. However, skills were being terribly wasted back then in the eagerness to get into Australia. Migrants were keen to get a job - any job that became available, regardless of their skills. However, employment well below potential can hardly be recognised as a sensible use of skills. Numerous examples of migrants wishing to make it in Australia some years ago and taking just any job are frequent. A former minister for Finance in the Upper Nile state of Sudan was reportedly packing mobile phone cases at one stage. An Italian accountant with 25 years of experience became a taxi driver after several years of unsuccessful job applications. The reasons for these situations are numerous: poor language skills, inadequate administration procedures in qualification recognition are very prevalent, as were socio-psychological factors and organisation practices.
It is interesting to note, however, that many migrants have not allowed these setbacks to stop them from achieving their goals. The Business Review Weekly regularly lists the rich 200 and the fast 100, and many examples of migrants who have made the big time appear on these lists - great examples of not sitting back accepting the barriers but pushing forward with confidence. It has been found that migrants lucky enough to find themselves in the ‘in demand’ category had an opportunity to quickly improve their English language skills in a professional environment. Those who did not were forced to accept employment of any kind, only to see their language skills deteriorate. I witnessed examples of this during my employment at GMH. Many of the European tradesmen I worked with were very capable tradespeople with admirable work ethics. Several of them held down responsible positions such as supervisors, foreman and leading hands and, due to their continued interaction with fellow workers and tradesman, their communication skills were exceptional. On the other hand, the migrant workers who opted to work on the production lines, although they were dedicated workmen, had very limited opportunity to practice their language skills and found it very difficult to communicate in English because they were working within a confined environment with their fellow countrymen.
Another area of restriction for migrant trained professionals was the incompatibility of their capabilities with the Australian professional environment. I understand lawyers from Europe are a good example. The gaps in qualifications further complicate their employment opportunities in Australia. It is extremely pleasing that many of these barriers are now being removed and addressed. Applicants are now being properly screened and evaluated in various areas of requirements in their chosen field. The federal government has made considerable changes to the migration policies with an increased focus on skilled migration, and a range of mechanisms have been put in place to encourage migration to regional Australia.
These schemes are focused on addressing critical skills shortages in regional Australia through better dispersal of migrant skills into centres outside of the capital cities. Awareness and information sessions are being organised by the Department in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce and DIMA, and have been held in all of the regional centres in the Northern Territory. These sessions have enabled employers to exchange information on their business circumstances and have highlighted the areas where major skills shortages are currently being experienced. Since the launch of the strategy, I understand about 8500 migrated-related inquiries have been made by employers, the community sector and interested migrants. What a great result it has been.
In an addition to these regional visits for information gathering and dispersing activities, the department has visited several migration expos overseas to promote and raise the profile of the Northern Territory to potential migrants in a number of migration source countries. I also understand that information packs were distributed at the expo displays, information seminars were arranged and, as a result, several CVs were collected from potential migrants interested in making the Northern Territory a place of work and home.
I believe that this new strategy will assist to eliminate many of the barriers currently facing potential skill migrants in emigrating to Australia and the Northern Territory. Coupled with the revised Temporary Overseas Skilled Migration visas, employers can sponsor overseas people in occupations that are in shortage for periods of between three to four months. In assessing the employers’ eligibility in becoming a sponsor, the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs requires information about its history, financial viability, training records, future plans and the benefits that accrue to Australia via their recruitment. This is a great move allowing the skilled worker comfort in knowing his employer has a viable business, and the comfort knowing that his staying here will allow him or her to settle.
The Northern Territory Skilled Independent Regional visa has also been introduced into its regional migration scheme and allows skilled people who find it difficult to qualify as independent migrants to access additional points through the sponsorship in the Northern Territory. It is pleasing to see people holding these SIR visas must live in regional Australia for at least two years and work for at least 12 months of those two years to be eligible for permanent residence. The commitment of the employee to live and work in regional Australia is a huge boost to the whole of the Northern Territory, due to the fact that the entire area of the Northern Territory is classed as regional. It allows opportunities to work in places such as Alice Springs, Nhulunbuy, Borroloola, etcetera.
I am also extremely pleased to see that an emphasis has been placed to assist our local young people attain apprenticeships without overseas competition or opposition. It is important for the Territory to retain a skill base for the future and it is extremely essential that our local businesses retain their skills to hold fast their expanding industry and economy. Trainees and apprentices are our future and an employment strategy this government can be proud of.
All in all, I am proud to see that this government has taken some bold steps to ensure the Territory moves forward. I congratulate Mary Cunningham and the department for their foresight and their hard work in this area. Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I commend the statement to the House.
Mr HENDERSON (Business and Economic Development): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I thank all members for their contribution to the debate tonight, some more than others. I will try to rebut some of the false information that was being portrayed by the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Greatorex.
First of all, we all acknowledge in this House that Australia and the Northern Territory, our nation and our Territory, have to a large part been built on migration policies over the years. A number of us in this House were born overseas; a number of us have come here from interstate. Australia has always had a commitment, at varying degrees - and we certainly go back over the last 25 or 30 years - to building our overseas migration rates to this great country of ours.
The Leader of the Opposition talked about the statement being full of process not outcomes. Maybe the Leader of the Opposition only got three-quarters of the way through the statement and did not conclude reading the statement, because there were significant outcomes outlined in some numbers at the end of the statement. Without rehashing all of them in their entirety, the difference between the numbers of skilled migrants who came to the Northern Territory and the various numbers of different visa categories were up from 852 in 2004-05 to 1590 in 2005-06. We look to build again on that number in 2006-07. In short, we doubled the number of skilled migrants - in fact, it was nearly double, 738 - coming to the Territory in one year. That is a very significant achievement.
For the Leader of the Opposition to say that there have been no outcomes as a result of all this hard work that people in my department have been doing in conjunction with the peak industry bodies across the Northern Territory who have committed significant time, effort and resources to this, is insulting and offensive. It goes to show that the Leader of the Opposition was either too lazy to read the statement or, if she did read the statement, she is just trying to be offensive regarding the significant outcomes that have been achieved - an additional 738 Territorians working in Territory businesses across the Northern Territory.
I can certainly say from the businesses that I visit around the Northern Territory - in every centre and the regional centres included - which have taken part in this scheme are very complimentary of the work of the departmental team, very supportive of the policy, and see significant outcomes for their business. The only complaints that I receive from business in regard to our efforts to maximise migration through this scheme is the amount of time it actually takes to process applications through Commonwealth agencies, particularly in the trade recognition section of Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, and under-resourcing here in the Territory. I am certainly not playing politics. All of us, as ministers, would like more resources in all areas of our departments. I suppose the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs is the same. However, the only complaint that I receive is the time it takes for processing these various categories in relation to the Commonwealth approval processes.
The Leader of the Opposition said that this statement is all about process and not about outcomes and is all hot air. I will get those comments out to business people and industry associations who have committed a lot of time, effort and resources to this. They will be quite surprised, once again, by the Leader of the Opposition’s lack of understanding as to what is actually happening out there in the business community.
The Leader of the Opposition spent a lot of time on the decision of the Territory government not to participate in the visa category to bring apprentices from overseas to the Northern Territory, and made all sorts of comments about us following our federal Labor leader’s position on this. I say again to the Leader of the Opposition - she obviously does not study the detail and timing with various decisions - that we actually made this decision prior to our federal colleagues having made their decision. We looked at our commitment here in the Territory to skilling and training our own people - an $84m commitment to train 10 000 Territorians over four years. Minister for Employment, Education and Training, I think we are already over 3000? We are ahead of our targets?
Mr Stirling: Yes, yes.
Mr HENDERSON: The minister was telling me the other day that we have doubled the number of apprentices starting the first year of their apprenticeship this year. We have many hundreds of businesses across the Northern Territory taking advantage of various schemes relating to subsidies that the Territory government provides to employers to take on an apprentice. Apprentices are taking on a grant scheme of $1000 for blue collar apprentices in hard-to-fill trades. Our commitment is to train our young people.
Why the Leader of the Opposition would think that, with the huge numbers of particularly indigenous young Territorians - a part of our demographic that is going to increase over the next 10 to 20 years – we, as a government, from a policy position would not focus on doing everything we can and leaving no stone unturned in maximising apprenticeships and traineeships for our young people who are going to become an increasing component of our workforce, is beyond me. I have not met one employer in the Northern Territory who actually wants to bring an apprentice in from overseas. There are all sorts of issues regarding duty of care and occupational health and safety. I have not met one employer who has said to me: ‘I cannot get an apprentice into my company and I want to bring in an apprentice from overseas’. Why we would focus our policy effort and the resources that we have in our department on training people from overseas when we have such a huge need and a demographic need to train our own young Territorians is beyond me.
If that is the position of the Leader of the Opposition, that we should be promoting apprenticeships overseas in the Territory and wasting government resources to do that to an employment market where there is no demand, it is again totally beyond me. I can tell the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Greatorex that I did canvass this decision with quite a significant number of Territory employers who are long-term Territorians who have had businesses here for very many years, both in Alice Springs and Darwin, and they have all supported this government’s decision 100%. Some of them have even issued media releases on it.
Leader of the Opposition, if you are going to come in here and be so critical and try to score some cheap political points, go out and test your arguments with the private sector and the people who are employing apprentices, who are bringing in skilled migrants from overseas either on a permanent or temporary basis, and you will find that most of them - virtually all of them - support the government decision.
She said that we are riding on the back of the federal government, and the federal government is responsible for migration policy and actually issues the visas. What this government does, and seeks to do wherever we can, is not to play cheap politics with the federal Coalition, but to work with them to advance the interests of the Northern Territory. We, as ministers, all do that. If we have to have a disagreement, we have a disagreement, but all of us try very hard to have a good working relationship with federal ministers to try to maximise the benefits to the Northern Territory.
I say again, history is always a good teacher. When the CLP were in government, there was one person in the old Department of Business and Industry who actually focused on skilled migration - one person with hardly any budget at all. The previous CLP governments had not participated for many years in the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs’ migration shows promoting the Northern Territory overseas for migrants. It is to their eternal shame that previous CLP administrations - certainly the last one or two of them at least - did not resource that area of the department nor participated in overseas promotions to promote the Northern Territory as a destination for migrants. For the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Greatorex - who has been in this parliament and sat as part of government for many years and would know the truth of what I am saying – to be critical of our government’s efforts belies history and the neglect of the CLP governments in trying to promote the Northern Territory as a destination for business and overseas migrants.
I thank all my colleagues on this side of the House for their supportive comments. All of those members and ministers know of people in their electorates - we all have people in our electorates - who have recently arrived from overseas. We all know employers who are bringing in migrants from overseas, and they all know that this effort by the government is appreciated. Of course, we could always do more; you can always do more with more.
The member for Greatorex was quite extraordinary in his comments regarding us having taken a policy decision not to bring in apprentices from overseas, but to focus the efforts of this government at a policy and resource level, and a funding level to training our own people. That demographic of our people is getting younger and younger. Why he thinks that that policy position is xenophobic is completely beyond me. The leap of consciousness from the member for Greatorex is quite extraordinary.
The motivation for the government going down this path is that, at the end of the day, we have Aboriginal people who are 30% of our population - the youngest part of our demographic – with huge unmet education and training outcomes amongst that population. It also creates a very real opportunity for us, as the indigenous population grows to 50% of our population in 20 years time, to focus as much of our training and employment effort for those Territorians as we possibly can. That is the opportunity. That is where we, as a government, and all Territorians would expect us to focus our effort, not running around overseas trying to promote the Northern Territory as a place for overseas apprentices to come and do their training. It is patently ridiculous. For the member for Greatorex to say it is xenophobic is just arrant nonsense.
I remind the member for Greatorex that, if he wants to throw that type of language about, he was a member of parliament in the lead-up to the 2001 election where the CLP preferenced One Nation ahead of the Labor Party in the seat of Nelson. He was a member of that party that took the decision at that time. I did not notice the member for Greatorex making any public statement that he did not support that preference deal. He did not make statements at the time; he has not since. I remind the member for Greatorex of the policy position that he supported over the Labor Party candidate from Pauline Hanson’s maiden speech in the federal parliament. Pauline Hanson was the founder of the One Nation Party that the CLP preferenced over the Labor Party. This is what Pauline Hanson said:
That is the policy position the member for Greatorex and the CLP supported in the preference deal in the seat of Nelson, over and above preferencing the Labor Party. In that election, we put One Nation last on every ballot paper across the Northern Territory, as we always would put any party that espoused that type of policy position. Member for Greatorex, if you are going to come in here and throw around words like ‘xenophobic’, have a good, long look in the mirror because that is the type of expedient, grubby, political opportunism that you supported in 2001.
The member for Greatorex was also saying that there were not enough young people to train. The member for Greatorex either has blinkers on and does not see the thousands of young Territorians who are not, and who should be, part of our workforce - not all indigenous Territorians, but the vast majority of them. Those are the people we should be committed to training, not bringing in people from overseas for those jobs. Therefore, when the member for Greatorex says there are not enough young people to train, take your blinkers off. You are saying that indigenous people should not be part of the workforce; it is all too hard, and we should not be focusing on that particular area.
The member for Greatorex made some extraordinary comments, and I will follow up on these allegations that doctors at the Alice Springs Hospital were being victimised, having rosters imposed on them that were onerous and debilitating - those were not the words that he used. He did use the word ‘victimise’, but I did not hear all of what he said. I will go back through the Hansard. These doctors were so scared of their employers and their terms of tenure that they were not prepared to complain to anyone. I give the member for Greatorex my word that I will investigate those allegations. If there was any semblance of truth – and I am sure the Minister for Health would back me up on this- that overseas doctors were being exploited at Alice Springs Hospital, then supervisors are going to be in for a very stern ‘please explain’. The member for Greatorex does have an obligation, if he believes that people are being discriminated against, to make a complaint to the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner. Those complaints will be investigated. If there is any semblance of truth to his allegations, that is outrageous; it should not be happening. Again, I will not take the member’s comments at face value. We will test those comments and see if there is any truth or veracity to them at all.
He also talked about the numbers that I quoted from regarding the make-up of migrants to the Northern Territory and where they came from. Because the majority of skilled migrants to the Northern Territory last year were from the United Kingdom - which will include, I assume, Northern Ireland as well - at 25% that, somehow, we were being xenophobic and this was proof that we were not encouraging more migrants from other countries to come to the Northern Territory. What arrant nonsense! He again shows his level of ignorance. The UK and Ireland has been, for many years, the main source of migration to Australia for a lot of historical links. He, obviously, did not read the statement that went into detail of the number of times that the department, myself included - I have not been to India but have certainly been to China – has been promoting the Northern Territory. The department has been to China on a number of occasions, to India, and to the Philippines on many occasions. Of course, he did not mention that because it did not suit his argument. We are promoting the Northern Territory to migrants around the world. We do not care what colour you are, what your religion is, what ethnic background you come from; if you are looking to come to Australia and you meet those qualifications you are more than welcome in the Northern Territory. We want you here and we will embrace you.
It was really a pretty hypocritical rant from the member for Greatorex. If he wants to go down the path of calling this government xenophobic, I find that offensive, and I point to his part in history in preferencing One Nation on what they supported.
I thank the member for Drysdale for his quite enlightening comments about the number of apprentices his employer was taking in years ago, and how many they were bringing in 10 years later - 150 a year down to 12 is really quite significant. If you replicate that across Australia you can see why Australia dropped the ball and we have such a skill shortage now.
I thank all members for their part in the debates here this evening, and congratulate some very hard-working officers in my department who do so much in this area. Mary Cunningham’s team also includes Irene Russell, Edwina Reid, and Donna Owen - all public servants who, if we were to get that amount of outcome out of all of our public servants, we would really be kicking some goals. They have doubled the number of migrants coming to the Northern Territory, in conjunction with the business community. That is a huge effort from a team of four people. My thanks and congratulations, and the thanks and congratulations of all members of this House go to those people.
Motion agreed to; statement noted.
Madam SPEAKER: The member for Greatorex has approached me about making a personal explanation. I have given him my leave to do so.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, I want to comment on what the Leader of Government Business alluded to. He misrepresented me regarding my support for Pauline Hanson and her One Nation Party. In fact, I am on record, interviewed by the member for Arnhem in her former life as the 7:30 Report anchor about Pauline Hanson. I expressed in no uncertain terms my position about Pauline Hanson; that, in fact, as long as I am in this House, Pauline Hanson will not be part of the CLP policy. I say that without any qualification whatsoever. I suggest that – well, not suggest - I accuse the Leader of Government Business for misrepresenting my position on Pauline Hanson and One Nation. Never have I ever supported that person nor ever would I.
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I table the Auditor-General’s August 2006 Report to the Legislative Assembly.
MOTION
Print Paper - Auditor-General’s August 2006 Report to the Legislative Assembly
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I move that the report be printed.
Motion agreed to.
MOTION
Note Paper - Auditor-General’s August 2006 Report to the Legislative Assembly
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I move that the Assembly take note of the report, and that I have leave to continue my remarks at a later hour.
Motion agreed to.
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I move that the Assembly do now adjourn.
On 15 August, I had the pleasure of hosting a reception at Parliament House to mark the 100th anniversary of the arrival of Father Francis Xavier Gsell in Darwin. I was joined at the function by His Excellency Archbishop Ambrose De Paoli who is the Apostolic Nuncio in Australia; His Excellency Archbishop Joseph Dor, Archbishop of Strasburg in France where Bishop Gsell came from; Father Mark McDonald, Superior General of the Missionaries of Sacred Heart; Father Raymond Dossman representing the French Province of the Missionaries of Sacred Heart; Father Tim Brennan, Provincial Superior of the Australian Province of the Missionaries of Sacred Heart; and, of course, our very own Bishop Ted Collins, Bishop of Darwin.
Father Gsell’s arrival here in the Top End a century ago effectively marked the beginning of the ministry and service of the Catholic Church in the Territory.
Most Territorians today will think of Father Gsell as a pioneer; in fact, one of our great pioneers. He came here with the rather impressive title of Apostolic Administrator of the Catholic Church in the Northern Territory and went on to become the first Bishop of the re-named Diocese of Darwin. He oversaw the growth of the Catholic Church across the Territory, initially here in Darwin, then at Bathurst Island, Alice Springs, Arltunga, Wadeye, Tennant Creek, Pirlangimpi and Katherine.
His legacy is immense, and there is no doubt that the Catholic Church has played a major role in building and shaping the society we have in the Territory today. Its support of families and communities across the Territory is well known, and its work with Aboriginal people has been and continues to be a vital part of its mission. The achievements of the church are many and their influence has extended far beyond the Catholic community in an area of education and in its charitable programs, just to name two.
I take this opportunity to acknowledge the contribution of Bishop Gsell’s successors, Bishop John O’Loughlin and Bishop Ted Collins and the more than 200 Missionaries of the Sacred Heart priests and brothers who have served the Catholic communities and people of the Territory. Happy anniversary, and may the work of the Catholic Church continue to make a real difference to the lives of Territorians.
Last month, I had the pleasure of opening the TOGART Exhibition of Contemporary Art held in the Main Hall of Parliament House. Those fortunate enough to visit the exhibition were able to see a slice of the very best of contemporary art in the Northern Territory. The Territory is at the crossroads of artistic expression of many cultures, including Aboriginal and settler artists, as well as artists from our near neighbours in South-East Asia. Nowhere else in Australia is the linking of diverse and divergent cultural traditions so dramatic as we see here. The breadth and diversity of the TOGART exhibition was witness to that.
The TOGA Group, as principal developers of our Darwin waterfront project, has shown that it is prepared to back the work of our contemporary arts and artists, not just through the exhibition, but for many years to come with the establishment of the TOGART Contemporary Art Award, which begins next year. The commitment of TOGA to art in the Territory is a reminder that the waterfront project is not just about bricks and mortar, or jobs and development; it is very much about the lifestyle we choose to lead here and the cultural life of our community. In fact, an intrinsic part of the waterfront project has been our commitment to public art as an integral part of the design of the new waterfront precinct.
The waterfront, along with the convention centre, will become a focus for cultural activities in this city, as well as providing new places for displaying the work of visual artists. The waterfront is destined in many other ways to inspire us into the future. I acknowledge the principals of the TOGA Group for their commitment to the waterfront, and to the future of the cultural life of the Territory. I congratulate them and all the artists for a wonderful exhibition.
Earlier this month, I was fortunate enough to see the Australian Ballet perform Giselle with our very own Darwin Symphony Orchestra at the Gardens Amphitheatre. Around 7000 people of all ages and from all walks of life, and from as far away as the east Kimberley, attended the performance. It was the first visit by the full dance company to Darwin in a quarter of a century, and the very first time in the history of the Australian Ballet that it was accompanied by a community-based orchestra. It was a magical night with a uniquely Territory feel, sitting under the stars and surrounded by the tropical splendour of the George Brown Botanic Gardens. As the Northern Territory News reported, and every one of us there knew too well, we were even treated to a shooting star as well as an owl hunting for flying foxes. The owl was successful. Halfway through the first act, an owl with a squawking fruit bat in its claws, came right across the centre of the stage and ended up in a tree at one side and proceeded to do what an owl does to a fruit bat, much to the fruit bat’s annoyance. It was a unique part of an outdoor Darwin experience.
The performance of Giselle was supported by a government grant of $45 000 to the ballet, and was also backed by Telstra and the Darwin City Council. Judging by the performance and the feedback from those lucky enough to be there - and, of course, the performance was free - it was certainly money well spent. The CEO of the ballet, Richard Evans, expressed a strong interest in the ballet returning and, by all accounts, members of the ballet loved Darwin, with a number of them staying on for a few days with their families.
Congratulations and thanks must go to all the performers and the support staff of the Darwin Symphony Orchestra and, in particular, to their conductor, Martin Jarvis. They did us all proud. I also thank the many volunteers who worked on the night, and to the drivers from Arafura Shuttle Buses who assisted Territory seniors to and from the ballet. Like those thousands of Territorians there, we all look forward to their next visit.
The Tropical Garden Spectacular at the Botanic Gardens is a favourite event for many people. It is certainly one of mine, in one of my very favourite locations. I went along this year, and I reckon that it was the best spectacular I have attended – and I have been to a few of them over the years. It was well organised, beautifully set out and, as usual, the atmosphere in the Botanic Gardens really set off the Tropical Garden Spectacular.
The displays were good and, in particular, Power and Water’s new Water Wise brochure grabbed my attention. As you know, Mr Deputy Speaker, I have a keen interest in water efficiency and I will be following up with Power and Water and the garden industry to get their views on how we should move our water wise emphasis further.
Speaking of compelling displays, I make a special mention for the palm mulcher. This is a new invention, only about a couple of years old, and is one thing that we in Darwin struggle with. We get mulchers that cannot cope with palms. They do all kind of crunchy things to them, but they do not make them into a good mulch you can use in your garden. A new one has been developed, and I watched it working with great interest. It chops palms into little bits, just over 5 cm wide, and does it very efficiently. It is just the kind of thing you need in a tropical garden. It is not cheap but, if you look at what you spend on the cost of a trailer to take all those wretched fronds to the dump, then my household worked out that it was only worth about two trailers. We are currently in a position of having to buy a new one. So, you never know, we might just get that new mulcher.
Getting back to the Garden Spectacular in particular, the event seems to get better and better each year, and it is now a fixture on our Dry Season calendar for both locals and visitors to the Top End. I know that we get repeat visitors who venture north especially for the spectacular, which says a lot about its quality. In fact, the previous night at the Bulldogs/Port match, I met a woman who had come up for that match but was here for a few days as well. She came from Victoria. She had just spent the day at the spectacular and could not stop talking about it. She said it was wonderful and it was something that she had not expected, and had enjoyed her day there. I have a feeling the 2006 Tropical Garden Spectacular will not be her last.
The event remains popular because its organisers never rest on their laurels. They are a genuinely creative bunch who look at making the event different each year. I congratulate and thank the nursery and garden industry of the NT and their hard-working boss, Simon Smith, the dedicated members of the Garden Spectacular’s organising committee, and the many volunteers who made this event possible, not forgetting Rotary which mans the gate. I am looking forward to next year’s event.
Ms CARNEY (Araluen): Mr Deputy Speaker, tonight I talk about an important issue to most people in Alice Springs. The matter has been discussed in parliament today, and it is appropriate that I put on the Parliamentary Record the issue of the demountables in Alice Springs.
The fact is that management of the whole demountable accommodation issue in Alice Springs has been a debacle entirely attributable to the Northern Territory government. The need for emergency housing which is suitably appropriate for indigenous people is undeniable, and the concept behind the demountables is a good one.
However, an appropriate area, or areas, needs to be identified and they need to be appropriately managed. It is not appropriate to locate the demountables within the town boundaries, having regard to the 10 sites identified by the Northern Territory government’s consultant. Anyone who has the slightest regard for the people of Alice Springs - I have an enormous regard for the people of Alice Springs, which is why I take them seriously - even those on the government side would say at best that they have a slight regard for the people of Alice Springs, would understand their concern after the list of 10 sites was outlined in a story in the Centralian Advocate a week or so ago. The concern has many dimensions.
One of the concerns is that people do not want the demountables to turn into another poorly managed town camp. To keep its side of the agreement, the Northern Territory government must identify locations and take responsibility for the relocation and the re-establishment of the demountables. However, this Labor government is contemptuous of the people of Alice Springs in its management of this issue and others, and its failure to consult with the community.
The Territory’s Housing Minister gave one of the worst interviews I have ever heard on radio on 16 August. To say he was incoherent was something of an understatement. In any event, the lack of confidence that arose after his interview surprised even me, because the Minister for Housing did nothing to tell the people of Alice Springs about this concept - did nothing to take responsibility for his role in it. He did his best to cover and protect his Chief Minister, although he did not even do that very well. I was very concerned when the Minister for Housing kept talking about what he described as ‘due process’. It would appear that the Territory’s Housing Minister is of the view that anyone wishing to object to the location of these demountables needs to write a submission to the Development Consent Authority. That is not consultation by anyone’s language. Why should the people of Alice Springs be forced, having been overlooked in anything vaguely resembling consultation, to sit at home in front of their computers writing submissions?
The minister also mucked up, through his inconsistencies, the roles and responsibilities he has in relation to this project. I have been very clear on this project, even though the Housing Minister and his Chief Minister have not been. The concept is, as I have said, a very good one but great care needs to be taken as to their location.
This morning, I met with the federal Indigenous Affairs minister, Mal Brough. I outlined to him the concerns of residents of Alice Springs; that is, those who contacted me and contacted others, who in turn contacted me. I told him in very clear and unambiguous terms why it was that the sites identified by the apparently ‘leaked’ – there is that word again, another ‘leaked’ document from government - list were inappropriate. The federal minister gave me his assurance and, in turn the people of Alice Springs an assurance, that the demountables will not be located in a residential area.
What was interesting in my discussion with Mr Brough this morning was that the Territory government has been disingenuous and difficult in keeping its end of the bargain. Mr Brough told me that he had not received a list of the sites until it was made public. Not even the federal minister, who is paying for all of this to the tune of $30m, has been kept in the loop. If that is not an indictment on the Minister for Housing, I do not know what is. The minister agreed with me that there should be sound and extensive community consultation. However, he said he would not sign off on the location of the demountables - a joint responsibility of the Territory and the Commonwealth governments - unless the people of Alice Springs were satisfied with it, and certainly not if these demountables would be located in a residential area.
To make matters worse, the residents of Alice Springs have been kept largely in the dark. Not even the town’s Mayor, a paid-up Labor Party member that she is, knew anything about the 10 proposed sites. That, again, speaks to the disarray of this government and the contemptuous way in which they regard the people of Alice Springs. No one knows where the 10 sites came from. All we know is that consultants were employed by the Territory government. No one was asked what their views were about the 10 sites. In his appalling media interview on 8HA on 16 August, the minister referred to key stakeholders as the town council and Tangentyere Council. He barely referred - and when he did it was towards the end - to the people of Alice Springs. It is the measure of this government, and we are used to it even though it is frustrating - even the people of Alice Springs are used to it - this government hitching its wagon up to its friends and supporters and targeting what it sees are key interest groups.
However, there is a broader obligation and that obligation is to provide good government to the people of Alice Springs who this government has neglected so badly for so long. I note that the Chief Minister is on the public record maybe eight, nine, 10 months ago saying that she would spend one week a quarter in Alice Springs because that would, in her mind, demonstrate according to her thinking, that she did care about the people of Alice Springs. I invite the Chief Minister to provide me - and if she does not want to provide to me, to provide Alice Springs media or, in the alternative, anyone in Alice Springs - with her diary entries because I am not sure - in fact, I have some confidence - that she has not spent one week a quarter in Alice Springs.
As I said at the outset, there is a need for action on indigenous issues. It is very sad to see that this government under the leadership of the Chief Minister - although for how long who knows - that she has had to be dragged kicking and screaming every inch of the way when it comes to indigenous issues. This is best demonstrated by the memo issued by the member for Millner, and reportedly leaked by the member for Macdonnell. If her own colleagues are frustrated and angry with the Chief Minister, little wonder the people of Alice Springs are similarly irritated, frustrated and, in some quarters, many are very angry with her.
There is a concern within the community of Alice Springs that, without a detailed plan that the townspeople should know about, two new town camps will be established rather than the strategic placement of emergency demountable accommodation and the development of existing town camps to meet the needs of the people in Alice Springs. That is the concern and this government has done nothing to dispel it. They have been secretive when it comes to what exactly has been the deal with the federal government. Thankfully, we know the terms of the arrangement. It has been very interesting to see the Chief Minister go to ground and the Housing minister come out and be less than clear, at worst incoherent, in his explanation of what the situation is.
There is no doubt, in my view, that the federal government has so far fulfilled its side of the agreement, of the deal, done with the Territory government some months ago. Now the Territory government needs to fulfil its part of the bargain. They cannot just walk away from this. They cannot just say: ‘Here are your demountables. See you later’. If they are committed - I do not think the Chief Minister is, but I am of the view that some of her colleagues probably are - to achieving better outcomes for indigenous people in Alice Springs, then this government certainly needs to pay very careful attention to not only the placement of the demountables but also to the long-term interests of indigenous and non-indigenous people in Central Australia.
We have said in the past - and it has been somewhat encouraging to hear the Chief Minister’s colleagues saying so in relatively recent times - that the Chief Minister, although she is the Indigenous Affairs Minister, is not committed to improving the outcomes for indigenous Territorians. The list of examples just goes on and on.
For my part, and as a local member in Alice Springs, I thought it appropriate to place on the record the high level of concern that has arisen as a result of this issue, and to urge, to the extent that I am able, the Territory government, having had its eye off the ball thus far, to at least produce a concerted effort to ensure that better outcomes are attained for the people of Alice Springs.
I note that in a media release issued on 7 December 2005 headed ‘Government commits to vision for Alice’, the Chief Minister talked about Alice in 10. You will recall that there is a committee called Alice in Five – much more proactive than Alice in 10. However, I digress. In any event, towards the bottom of the press released dated 7 December 2005, the Chief Minister said:
Then there are a number of bullet points:
safety in the community;
law and order;
substance misuse and improved school attendance;
water re-use;
residential land release;
a new master plan for the Alice Springs Desert Park;
world heritage listing for the West MacDonnell Ranges, and
Alice Springs as a solar centre.
These were the priorities of this Chief Minister eight months ago. Nowhere in this media release did she refer to better outcomes for indigenous Territorians. Nowhere in this media release did she say: ‘We have a problem with the town camps. Let us do something about it’. She did not even touch on some of the key issues that are confronting Alice Springs. Of course, it was the Lateline interviews in May of this year that have caused some level of activity from this government, although it is nowhere near enough, but that has forced the Chief Minister to do something. Only eight months ago, she did not think there was much to do. Thank God for the Lateline interviews.
It is terribly disappointing that the Chief Minister still refuses to demonstrate any commitment to indigenous and non-indigenous people in Alice Springs. I hope, however, this exercise and the ordinary conduct of her minister has demonstrated to her - if not her then her advisors - that more care needs to be taken to ensure the people of Alice Springs get a fair deal from this Chief Minister. In essence, my message to the Assembly, Mr Deputy Speaker, is that this Chief Minister needs to do much better. She needs to do much better immediately and she needs to get on top of her issues.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Stuart.
Mrs Braham: Mr Deputy Speaker, that is not the convention. The convention is three ways. No, I am not on the opposition. You know that.
Dr TOYNE: I have a meeting to go to.
Mrs Braham: You are out of order, Mr Deputy Speaker.
Mr Mills: Oh, order!
Mrs Braham: Well, it is. Come on, you know convention.
Dr TOYNE (Stuart): Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and I do apologise to the member for Braitling.
Much has happened in my electorate since the last sittings. The opening of the new clinic at Yuendumu on 5 July was a highlight, as my friend and long-term Health department employee Dr Didi Devanesen and I were asked to open it. Didi has a long association with Yuendumu, as he was the first visiting doctor there and he introduced health workers and health worker training into our system. He worked out of a large tin shed in the old days. Connie Nungarrayi Rice and Robbie Walit also helped with the opening. They currently work for Health.
Some of the local ladies danced a tribute to Jilly Nakamarra Spencer who is now deceased and who worked as a health worker for many years and, even in retirement, continued to assist the Health department by contributing both traditional and mainstream knowledge. I also had the pleasure of joining with members of the Spencer family to open a commemorative garden for the female health workers at Yuendumu. It was good to catch up with Wendy Baarda, Sister Clare and Sister Magali, James and Violet Marshall, Ned and Judith Hargraves, Neville Poulson and Thomas Rice who sang and accompanied the dancers on boomerangs, Manager, Christine Doby, and the health worker, Nola Wilson, and many others. I had a lovely day and always enjoy visiting my old home.
Yuendumu Health Centre was commissioned in November 2005 and completed at a cost of $3.2m. The Australian government contributed $1m of that amount. The health centre is evidence of the cooperation that exists in improving remote health infrastructure between the Northern Territory Department of Health and Community Services and the Australian government Department of Health and Ageing. Yuendumu Health Centre is tangible proof that the Northern Territory government’s five year Building Healthier Communities framework is delivering tangible results that will strengthen and improve local health services and extend medical outreach services to our remote areas. The design of the new facility involved key community members and staff at Yuendumu, with the result being a highly functional, culturally appropriate health care centre. The new building includes purpose-built areas for women and men, dental care, education and training for staff, as well as emergency care and pharmacy.
The opening day also featured an excellent display of bush medicines. They were placed at the women’s entrance of the health centre. Workers were available to explain the uses of various bush medicines, and they described how they work both ways in order to provide comprehensive and acceptable health care to people in the region.
Still on the subject of Yuendumu, I attended the sports weekend which celebrated Yuendumu community’s 60th anniversary, and I think it was the 47th staging of the Yuendumu sports weekend. It is a very old and traditional event in Central Australia. I was presented at the sports weekend with a book by local author, Liam Campbell, simply titled Darby. Liam attended the Mt Evelyn Christian School as a student and visited Yuendumu during their yearly excursion and got to know old Darby who made a big impression on him. I have felt for a very long time that someone should write Darby’s extraordinary life story, and I am very pleased that Liam tackled it. I have since read the book and have thoroughly enjoyed the journey and all its memories, as well as the numerous pictures of Darby’s life.
I congratulate Lisa Hall, a teacher from Utopia school, elsewhere in the electorate, who was a recipient of the DEET scholarship recently. Lisa will be focusing her studies on integrating traditional knowledge as a way of retaining secondary education students. Her studies will build on knowledge and her indigenous colleagues’ forum in 2005 at the World Indigenous Peoples conference in New Zealand. The scholarship will see her travel to Canada and Alaska, and I wish her the best of luck.
It would be remiss of me not to speak of these developments in the Warlpiri area, particularly without mentioning the current situation as regards family feuds in that area. While it is fantastic to be opening clinic buildings and celebrating the establishment of a secondary course at Yuendumu under the new remote secondary programs that the government is pursuing, the reality, at the moment, is that these attempts to initiate new services out in the communities of Willowra, Nyirripi and Yuendumu are being severely impacted on by family feuding. The Warlpiri were able to mediate a feud between a number of the families late last year, a mediation that has actually had, according to the police, very strong impacts on the level of violence and disruption associated with those families. There were parallel feuds, both at Willowra and between some families at Nyirripi and Yuendumu, which again flared up prior to and during the Yuendumu sports weekend.
These feuds are getting to a very worrying level of both pre-planning and the degree of weaponry that the antagonists are now taking to these clashes. We are seeing quite frightening sharp-edged weapons such as machetes, swords, homemade weapons, as well as more traditional spears and found objects such as star pickets and the like. There is no future to this situation other than an absolutely continued descent into anarchy and trauma visited on families, fear between families, and dysfunction within the communities that are blighted by these activities. It has also flowed into Alice Springs and, prior to the sports weekend, police raided one of the town camps in Alice Springs and disarmed some 50 family members of quite serious level offensive weapons.
We have a lot of work to do. In fact, I would like to repeat what I have already said publicly regarding these situations. We urge the families to enter into a formal mediation as quickly as possible; that the more respected and senior members of those families need to initiate or indicate a willingness to join us - the Justice Department, the police, the courts, their own countrymen and countrywomen - in seeking to break this cycle of violence, this spiral of violence, that can only go one way. It will get more and more extreme over time, be more and more disruptive to the communities; it will vandalise more and more of the common and domestic infrastructure of the communities, and simply will defeat any attempt to advance the situation of the families in that area of my electorate.
We will go anywhere at any time. However, we believe that we need to draw this process into a similar model that we used last year with the initial feud. It does require someone to come in and support the prominent family members because they cannot do it alone. They have been trying; they are pretty demoralised at attempting to take on these younger adults by themselves. They need help. We are more than happy to provide help. We know how difficult these situations are to resolve and how dangerous they can be, because one step wrong and things can actually get worst rather than better.
Barbara Weis from the Office of Crime Prevention and Sergeant White from the police in Alice Springs are prominent in the current work that is going on. I have to report that one of the most hopeful signs at the moment is that many of the senior members of the non-aligned families - the ones not involved in these feuds - are offering themselves as a reference group to act as a bridge to the people from these families we need to get involved in the mediation. Hopefully, that is a sign that communities have realised that there is no future the way things are going, and this has to be dealt with, and dealt with urgently and forthrightly.
I say, finally, the law is there and the law will be enforced. If people are breaking the law and assaulting other people, and using offensive weapons, they will end up in gaol. There is going to be no quarter given on that front whatsoever. If that is part of the solution then, so be it. Gaol, policing, and enforcement alone are not going to stop this. If they were going to stop it, they would have done it years ago. However, some of these conflicts have been going for up to seven years and we have to find a new way of pulling them up.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I hope that members of this House will wish the Department of Justice, the police, all the luck and the best in the world, and also the very brave Warlpiri people who have come forward to say: ‘Let us see if we can help with you a solution here’.
Mrs BRAHAM (Braitling): Mr Deputy Speaker, I am pleased to hear the minister talk about these particular problems in the House so openly and honestly. I understand how difficult it is for these families. Let us hope that we do get some resolution out of these negotiations.
I also need to make a comment about the demountables that we heard so much about today. I am confused about what these demountables have actually become. I thought they were going to be for short-term accommodation but, now, there seems to be a hint that they may be for permanent accommodation. We are hearing stories from both sides.
We heard the Leader of the Opposition accusing the Territory government of not participating in the debate. The Territory government was saying the federal government is being unilateral in their decision-making. In the middle of it, the Alice Springs Town Council seems to be left in the dark. The most important point that the Leader of the Opposition made is that the people of Alice Springs should be consulted. They should not be left out of the loop. For them, there is the potential for a town camp situation to be resurrected, another complex that could cause all the antisocial problems that we experience so much in Alice Springs. If the intent was to help with the shortage of housing in town camps and on communities, then that is probably where they should go. However, I am really unclear as to what these demountables are for. I have to admit I also have concerns about demountables in their current state and how suitable they are as accommodation for Aboriginal people with large families. I am not quite sure whether they are the most appropriate means of accommodation anyway.
If the federal government wants to put the demountables in or near Alice Springs, then the Territory government, the Alice Springs Council and the community must be involved in the decision-making. I have sent off a press release to the federal minister voicing my concern and saying exactly that: let us make sure we get consultation with people who it is going to affect most of all.
Tonight, I also want to show the parliament the Australian Lions Drug Awareness Foundation drug kit, ‘How to make your community aware of alcohol and other drugs and the harm they can cause’. This particular kit has been put out in conjunction with the Drug Education Network Incorporated and the Australian Lions Drug Awareness Foundation. Keith McEwan, the Northern Territory Director and one of the founding members of Lions in Alice Springs, brought this particular kit into my office to show me. It really is a very exciting joint initiative. The two organisations have established this resource to assist parents and schools to address the issue of drugs.
They have put this kit out for use by community workers, teachers, health professionals, community groups, families - whoever. It is a very informative pack. It has a lot of pamphlets that talk about drugs and their effects. Inside this particular one it goes through the different common drugs that are used such as cannabis, amphetamines, alcohol, tobacco, ecstasy and so on. It also has a number of pamphlets aimed at parents: worry-free teenage parties; a parents and adolescents getting along guide; as well as the 10 steps to keep your child smoke-free; party hard, but party safe; and teenagers and safe partying. They are excellent little pamphlets. They also have some very good posters to go with it. These kits cost $20 and you can order them through your local Lions member.
I urge all members of the House to buy one of these kits for each of their secondary schools, so that they can see what is there. I believe they will find that secondary schools will be quite impressed with the work and the depth of understanding that has gone into this particular pack. It really is very good. With it also, CAYLUS in Alice Springs have put out this poster; hey bro, which way you gonna go? It shows the bad way and the good way. On the back it talks about petrol sniffing:
It is a simple poster but it has a very strong message: ‘Go the wrong way, this is how you will end up. Go the right way, and you have a happy family’. I commend CAYLUS for putting out that poster at the same time as this particular kit from the Lions. I thank Keith McEwan for bringing this to me. It is a valuable resource and I hope that people in this House also get a copy of it and see how good it is.
Our Centralian of the Year, Mary Meldrum, was involved in a motor vehicle accident several weeks ago. Unfortunately, the other driver was unlicensed and the car that hit Mary was unregistered and, of course, uninsured. Mary had her little 22-year-old Honda smashed up and it is possibly irreparable. A group of people from the Alice Springs Memorial Club where Mary Meldrum does a lot of fundraising for people have put together a committee and worked to see if they could resolve Mary’s problem.
Mary is renowned for, week after week, fundraising for different groups. She belongs to the Memo Bowling Club and she often fundraises and gets people involved. This gesture by people to help Mary through this predicament was really quite overwhelming for Mary, and quite staggering in her eyes. They raised over $13 000 and then they found that - I am trying to think who it was - Centralian Motors …
Dr Lim: Centralian Motors, that is right.
Mrs BRAHAM: … gave them a vehicle at low cost. It was a little Hyundai Getz and it has personalised number plates: Mary M. They had an auction on Saturday night which, unfortunately, I was not able to attend, but they said it was great. They raised enough money to cover the rego, the fuel, insurance, tyres, etcetera, for quite some time. Mary is going to be well outfitted. Mary is one of those people who works hard for everyone in Alice Springs and this embarrassed her a little. However, it is such a worthy thing for these people of the Memo Club to have done for Mary Meldrum. I know she will be delighted when she gets back into town. The car was there with a great big bow. Of course, it is red because her little old Honda was red, too, so Mary Meldrum will be driving around town in a great new car.
I congratulate and thank the club members, George James, the Alice Springs Memorial Club President, and Andrea Sullivan and Kay Eade. I know there are other people involved in that committee but I do not have their names with me at this time. It is great to see the community of Alice Springs get together behind someone who does so much for other people, now doing things for her. It reflects the wonderful town we have and the wonderful people who live in it.
I also want to mention tonight a conference that occurred in Alice Springs. It was the Australian Federation of Civil Celebrants Conference. It is the first time I have come across this federation. Roger Thompson was the president, and we had an organising committee in Alice Springs: Penny McConville, Meredith Campbell, Bruce McRae, and Barry Densley from Katherine. There were around 90 participants from all around Australia who attended this conference. The theme was rather lovely: ‘Time to Celebrate from the Heart of Australia’. Civil ceremonies offer a viable alternative to religious ceremonies for many citizens. I suppose it is quite interesting that the number of civil ceremonies, in fact, seems to be increasing. They are now approximately 54% of all marriage ceremonies and that is quite a lot. If you look back in history, you will find that church ceremonies would have been the largest.
The Australian Federation of Civil Celebrants Inc is the largest national professional association of civil celebrants in Australia. Its membership is over 800 in all states and territories. I am not quite sure how many we have in Alice Springs, but I do know of the three who are on the organising committee, and that they work continually. Civil celebrants do not just officiate at ceremonies such as marriage; they preside over funerals, naming, renewal of vows, and so on. It has 95 student celebrant members also and has a national office. One of the representatives from that office attended the convention.
Civil celebrants also have to do some professional training regularly and keep up to date with legislation as it goes through. Therefore, the conference, run over two days, had a number of professional development opportunities as well as other interesting sessions for them to participate in. There were a number of sessions which included cultural aspects of ceremony, and it was nice to know that Bessy Price and her husband actually spoke at the conference.
I congratulate Penny McConville, who did an enormous amount of work, Bruce McRae, Meredith Campbell and Barry Densley. They used my office for their teleconferences. They worked incredibly hard to make this a success. I know the people who participated in this particular conference went away thinking what a wonderful place Alice Springs was. It is small conferences like this that really keep the town going. Over the past few months, if you look at the conferences we have had at Alice Springs, they are not always large, but ones of around 100 really offer quite a lot to the town. I say to the organisers, again, well done. It is nice to know that the civil celebrants had such a great time in Alice Springs. I know they will continue their great work that they do for people in making sure that they have a harmonious and pleasant ceremony.
They asked: why do people always want to be married on a hill? Of course, the Northern Territory has many hills to attract people. I know some of the civil celebrants often say: ‘Here we go, up we go another hill’ to make sure it is a beautiful setting. That is what attracts people to Alice Springs. There are an amazing number of tourists who want to be married at Ayers Rock or Kings Canyon, or some of our beautiful gaps around the place. I can understand that they would have to be a very well prepared group of people to make sure the wedding goes smoothly, making sure the bride and everyone is very happy with the end results. Congratulations to those people also.
Mr KIELY (Sanderson): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, today I inform the House of a wonderful community gathering that took place on Anula Oval on Sunday, 16 July 2006. First of all, I would like to provide a little history as to how this community-based event came about.
During the 2005 Dry Season, the Darwin City Council completed the construction of an area playground with some of the most modern and aesthetically appealing play equipment you could imagine. Not only this, the playground had erected over the top of it a very effective and colourful shade structure and, below the equipment, soft fall and a substantial base of sand was laid. Ample bench and table seating was placed on the perimeter of the playground for parents and carers to sit while their children played, and there is a nearby public toilet facility as well as water fountains. There is ample car parking as well as a full-sized oval adjacent to the playground.
As you can visualise by the description just given, this is, indeed, a beautiful, well-sited and welcomed amenity for the families of Waters Ward. Recognition and thanks need to be given to the Waters Ward councillors, especially Ms Jo Sangster for the public consultation she arranged during the conceptual stages of the establishment of this playground. To celebrate the opening of this playground, the Waters Ward aldermen – namely, Jo Sangster, Dorothy Fox and Allan Mitchell, arranged with the Lord Mayor, Mr Peter Adamson, for a sausage sizzle and the Darwin City Fun Bus to be on hand to provide a carnival-like atmosphere. Coincidentally, at the same time, the local youth Australian Rules Football team, the Sanderson Swans, were playing a home game on the adjacent oval, and so their families, joining in with other young families who attended the opening, indeed, made it a great afternoon for community fun.
I was also there with my family, and I noted what a great thing this was. I thought to myself: ‘It would be great if we could get this community spirit happening on a more regular basis’. To this end, I made a commitment, in May 2005, to the electorate of Sanderson that I would continue to work with our aldermen and other community groups to deliver a family picnic day in the park annually.
Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I seek leave to table a copy of a flyer I sent out to my constituents at the time advising of this intention.
Leave granted.
Mr KIELY: In late May, early June 2006, I met with Allan Mitchell and John Leer from the Anula Neighbourhood Watch and we discussed having a joint function between the local aldermen, I as local MLA, and Neighbourhood Watch. The three of us met in my office and we canvassed a few ideas such as jumping castles, fun buses, etcetera. In the end, we came up with the idea of the Darwin City Brass Band playing in the park, a display from Anula Neighbourhood Watch and, perhaps, a display from Darwin City Council. I did not see a need for me to put up any display as my primary concern to have a family picnic day was met, and I was very happy indeed. Allan Mitchell took on the job of lining up the brass band, and he also did up the template for the flyer advertising the concert. I would also like table that flyer, Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, which was drafted by Alderman Mitchell - a fine piece of work.
Mr ACTING DEPUTY SPEAKER: Are you tabling that document?
Mr KIELY: I seek leave, Mr Acting Deputy Speaker.
Leave granted.
Mr KIELY: John Leer organised the Neighbourhood Watch display and organised the sausage sizzle. My job was print up and arrange distribution of the flyers to Wulagi, Northlakes, Malak and Marrara. John Leer organised, through the Anula Neighbourhood Watch, to have his members distribute the flyers through Anula. What a good job we all did. On the day we had in excess of 200 people attend. Never before had so many families gathered at one time in a park to enjoy a great Sunday arvo of brass band music.
On this note, if you would pardon the pun, it is timely to provide some information on the Darwin City Brass Band contribution. A full band took part on the day and I am advised they thoroughly enjoyed doing it. The band was placed in a semi-circle configuration as to allow maximum viewing by the audience, who happily sat on the grass on their blankets and, for some, at the tables and chairs they brought along. The band could not function as well as it does without the stewardship of a very professional committee. The members of this committee deserve a special mention. They are president, Iris Beale; vice president, Frank Roberts; secretary, Elaine Farnham; treasurer, Tim Jacobs; musical director, Ron (Robo) Roberts; and deputy band master, Frank Roberts.
The musicians and their instruments of choice on the day were: solo cornet - Tim Jacobs, Frank Haydock, and Grant Roberts; repiano cornet - Bill Buckley; second cornet – Emily Duckett and Maree Hasewski; third cornet - Ruth Sheridan; flugelhorn - Kim Burdon; solo tenor horn - Elaine Farnham; first tenor horn - Julie-Anne Lubke; second tenor horn - Jeremy Liew; baritone - Ron Roberts; euphonium - Henry May and Paul Fisk; first trombone - Tony Beale; second trombone - Jack Duckett and Anthony Liew; bass trombone – Iris Beale; Eb bass - Frank Roberts and Terry Hine; Bb bass - Colyn Bierton; and percussion – Leigh Radford and Mick Burton.
Soloists on the day were Emily Duckett – her first time in public - cornet solo One Day; Kim Burdon, flugelhorn solo Aranjeuz Mon Amour; Frank Haydock, Tim Jacobs, Grant Roberts, cornet trio Trumpets Wild; Mick Burdon, comedy item on the triangle, The Eternal Triangle.
I arrived a little after the start, so I missed Allan Mitchell opening the event. I did, however, manage to catch most of the performance as did the other aldermen who were present and gave their support on the day; namely, Dorothy Fox and Joanne Sangster. Neighbourhood Watch had a very impressive display and was staffed by local Anula members, as well as Sergeant Jeff Mosel. The sausage sizzle was organised and cooked by members of - I am sorry I cannot be 100% sure, but I think it was Apex.
I also had the task of seeking support from our local businesses at Anula and I am very pleased to say that the Anula Takeaway and Hingston Chinese Takeaway donated gift vouchers which were drawn on the day. A big thank you to these great supporters of our local Anula community. They provide great food outlets and I recommend to all and sundry to get down there and have a pretty good takeaway meal.
I had the opportunity to wind up the concert and say a big thank you to everyone for providing such a fine picnic atmosphere. I promised that we would go on to make this an annual event. I even had people come up to me afterwards and said we should have it more often.
On a more sombre note, I must express my disappointment that some people are spreading the story that I, somehow, am claiming credit for the day. Let me say here and now that no time have I claimed sole credit for this day, nor was it my intention to ever do so. This was a joint effort between Anula Neighbourhood Watch, Alderman Mitchell and me. I hope this settles that matter and clears up any misunderstandings or mischief that has been floating about but never brought directly to my attention.
I would like to draw attention to the Adopt-a-Park program that is in place in Palmerston. On the council website, the heading dealing with Adopt-a-Park says:
I would like to see Anula Park adopted by the people of Anula just as the people of Palmerston do with their parks. I do not think our local council has such a program at the moment. However, I will be writing to them shortly to see how we can get together to get such a program going. I believe this Adopt-a-Park program is good for the community, and I am sure that we will all be able to work together to get something like this happening for our constituents.
In conclusion, I thank all and sundry who made the day such a success. I look forward to next year, to working with our local aldermen and other community groups once again to, hopefully, emulate this success. Most importantly, I thank all those families who came along and I look forward to seeing them and their friends next year.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I join the member for Braitling in congratulating the Alice Springs community - in particular the Alice Springs Memorial Club - for the fundraiser that they conducted for Mary Meldrum. I was aware of Mary Meldrum’s misfortune with her car accident, and the response from the Alice Springs community through the fundraising has just been absolutely remarkable. I believe something like $12 000 cash was raised prior to the auction last Saturday night. I am also sorry that I was unable to attend, as I had to attend a wedding of my wife’s work colleague that same evening. However, I heard the member for Braitling described it as a very successful event. I am sure Mary would be most chuffed with the response that she received. It is not often during our lifetime that we see a community respond with such generosity, expressing its appreciation for the work that one has done. Mary Meldrum truly deserves every bit of support that she received from our community trying to demonstrate to her the regard and respect that the community has for Mary. Their response is just one indication of how highly regarded she is.
I want to spend my time tonight speaking about the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association meeting I attended in New Zealand last week. On behalf of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly, I was the delegate from the Territory to New Zealand. That was the first time I had visited that country. It is significant that New Zealand, up to the first moment that the Maoris settled in that country, was uninhabited. Some 1000 years ago, the Maoris migrated through the South Pacific to the North Island. Later, the second settlement was by Australians who went from Sydney to New Zealand around 1840 and, since then, that country has slowly developed. It now has a population of approximately just over four million. They anticipate there will be about 4.5 million by about 2015.
I attended the conference with the Clerk of the Assembly, Ian McNeill, and we were the only two delegates from the Territory. Delegates from other states also attended, as well as delegates from the member nations of the South Pacific.
Many of the topics discussed were of great interest. I have a full set of the papers debated at the CPA Conference. I recommend members to at least browse the documents, if not read them. I thought the paper by Sir Geoffrey Palmer on The Stable Government and the Role of Parliament was very interesting. He described the MMP system - the multi-member proportional representation government of New Zealand. I tried to find an analogy or a parallel, and it was very difficult to understand their system.
To condense what I learned about the MMP system: each New Zealander casts two votes in very much the same way as we do ourselves in a federal election. We cast one vote for the House of Representatives and one vote for the Senate. In Australia, while we can either vote for a Senator individually or vote for the parties, along the party lines. In New Zealand, a New Zealander casts two votes, one for a House of Representative member, and a second vote for what they call List members which, is essentially, a party ticket of lists of members. Where, in Australia a government is determined by the majority of the House of Representatives, in New Zealand, the government is elected based on the majority in the List vote. Therefore, if a party receives the majority of votes from the List votes, that party then is the government.
However, for at least the last two elections under MMP, if not the last three, New Zealand has always had a minority government. The party with the most number of seats, while not attaining the majority of seats, would need to then negotiate with other parties to try to form a coalition that would have the majority of votes. Sometimes, it becomes very hairy. In fact, the party with fewer seats could still be in government if it is able to negotiate a coalition with other parties to achieve the majority of seats in parliament. Then, when they sit, they sit in one House; it is a unicameral parliament.
If you look at the Australian situation, the Senate and the House of Representatives would sit as joint sittings of parliament all the time. There is no separation between the Upper House and the Lower House. In New Zealand, the List members and the House of Representatives members all sit together in a single Chamber, and that is it; there is no other House.
Because it is a minority government, any policy the government wishes to initiate needs the cooperation of the other member parties in its coalition, which means it takes a lot of negotiation before the New Zealand government can achieve the passage of legislation. I suppose the minority government forces the party in government to negotiate the terms of its policy. It is very much as though, as in Australia, you have the House of Representatives where one party is the majority and does not have the majority in the Senate. Therefore, the government is then forced to negotiate through their policies.
Since the MMP system has been in, I believe New Zealand has always had a minority government and, hence, all the negotiations that they have to undertake. I understand also that, currently, all select or standing committees in the New Zealand parliament are dominated by non-government members, so the majority is always held in others’ hands. It appears that the system works well for New Zealanders. They feel that they are able to achieve a fairer form of representation. List members also allow minority parties to secure better representation within the parliament than would be the case for single member electorates.
There was a paper on post-legislative review. It discussed the issue of legislation that has been passed by parliament, and when legislation is looked at again following passage. Obviously, they have ways of doing it such as using a sunset clause or compulsory review at a set time. If you have a compulsory review of legislation at a set time, it would take a lot of effort and resources to make sure that the legislation could be passed. It could be looked at and then brought back to parliament for reintroduction. However, sunset clauses are not that good either because, if you were to write a sunset clause into an item of legislation, at the point in time when the sunset clause comes into effect, that legislation falls over. Unless the public service is constantly aware that this is the case, that could possibly leave a big gap in legislation because the sunset clause had removed that legislation from the books.
CPA conferences, particularly in the Pacific region, always raise the issue of global warming and the impending catastrophe from rising sea levels. Island nations such as Tuvalu and Kiribati are now suffering the effects of saltwater inundation of their land, as well as incursion of salt water into their potable water table. That continues to pose huge problems for these island nations, and we continued to debate this issue. Those countries that are under threat continue to complain about the lack of action from first world nations such as New Zealand and Australia who say: ‘Yes, we hear you, we hear you’ However, it appears that nobody seems to be prepared to take any action. I believe it is time for first world nations to actually put their money where their mouths are, to say: ‘Yes, we are going to do something’ and be quite concrete about what they are going to do. These island nations that are under threat need to express what they truly want. Do they want to stay on the island nations and, therefore, ask first world nations to ensure that their islands do not get inundated, such as by reclaiming land from the ocean, or express that they do want to go and live elsewhere? First world nations can then put their minds to addressing how they can assist in re-establishing these people in other places.
There were some 21 papers altogether and we talked at great length about many papers. One of the papers that would have been interesting for, say, our workforce, was the paper presented by the ACT branch, The Role of the Whip in a Small Parliament. The delegate went on to explain what she did as the Whip, and others then contributed from an opposition point of view, and also from the Labor government’s point of view in Australia. I said at the end of that everybody was very civilised about the whole debate. They had pairings, apart from the normal duties of the Whip being the sheep dog, making sure that everybody was doing the right thing and all that.
Pairings appear to be quite common in other state parliaments and, for the life of me, I could not understand it, because pairings only advantage the government. It does not advantage the opposition one iota, especially when there is only a slim margin between government and opposition. The government, obviously, requests pairings so that a minister or whoever can go off and do his or her own thing in the promotion of government. Why would the opposition support that? Surely, it is up to government to arrange its own affairs in a way that it can do its own thing without having the opposition to make way for it?
There were other discussions about the role of the CPA monitoring human rights and there was a bit of a debate, which some people thought might be a bit ethnocentric. It was a good conference. It was not hard work; it was five days of conferencing. We had four speakers at each session, morning and afternoon, so it kept us busy right through the whole period.
Unfortunately, the conference was marred by the passing of the Maori Queen. The Maori Queen passed away on the Tuesday or Wednesday of that conference and there was much grieving, especially among the Maori people in New Zealand. We all sent our condolences to the Maori people and the people of New Zealand.
Mr ACTING DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Greatorex, before you do sit down, there were a couple of documents you suggested parliamentarians might want to read. Do you want to table them?
Dr LIM: Yes, I am happy to leave a whole set of papers. I seek leave to table all these papers.
Leave granted.
Mrs MILLER (Katherine): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, the Katherine Art Prize was held on Thursday night, 10 August, and is traditionally the first event of the Katherine Flying Fox Festival. This year’s event was the 30th anniversary of the Katherine Prize and that is quite an achievement for what was started by Brian and Jeanette Lambert all those years ago. As you can imagine, Katherine Town Council has an extensive collection after all these years. The Lambert family takes great pride in this annual event and their commitment to it is ongoing. The management of the collection is ongoing as well.
A special guest at this event was Her Excellency, Mrs Miamunah Vera Syafik, Consul of the Republic of Indonesia for the Northern Territory. The Master of Ceremonies was Peter Farnden. Prior to the opening of the art prize, guests were entertained by the Cantarbillay Children’s Choir under the leadership of Jan Murphy, and were treated to Indonesian traditional dancers from Darwin. To mark the 30th anniversary of the prize, a cake was cut by Mayor Anne Shepherd, and Craig and Deb Lambert.
The entries in this year’s event were from across the Territory and of a high standard. Judge Allison Gray, the Assistant Curator of the Northern Territory Museum and Art Gallery, certainly had a busy time selecting the winner from the 34 entries. The $2500 Brian and Jeanette Lambert Art Acquisition Award went to an outstanding entry by local artist, Jan Milner Cole. Jan’s painting, which is quite large, is called Intimate Space and was inspired by the Baruwei Walk in Nitmiluk National Park. Jan has moved away from the traditional meaning of landscape as a vista or panorama, and has chosen to paint a form of portrait of nature caught at different times. There is no doubt that Jan’s painting was a favourite amongst some very interesting and diverse entries.
The $2000 Katherine Craft Acquisition Award was won by very popular local potter, Danny Murphy with a pot called, Red Sand and Spinifex. Again, this was a popular choice and it was pleasing to see that both winners were from Katherine. To me, that highlights the quality of the artists and the craftspeople we are fortunate enough to have living and working in the Katherine region.
The youth are not forgotten in the Katherine Prize and, although the entries this year were down on previous years, the standard was still very good. The Youth Award for 17 to 18 years old went to Lauren Dwyer for The Dragon Toaster and, in the 13- to 14-year-old category the winner was Mareesa Bates. Well done to all the artists who contributed to the success of this year’s Katherine Art Prize.
The Katherine Flying Fox Art and Cultural Festival held a function at the Katherine Civic Centre Grounds on Saturday 12 August called, The Main Event. The Master of Ceremonies for the late afternoon evening event was Shelley Davis from the Katherine Region Tourist Association. This event brought many sectors of the community together, with the usual Tick Market being held at the Civic Centre, and included a large display of vintage vehicles organised by Wayne Russell, horse rides, and a showcase of performances by Katherine people of all ages. These included the very popular Cantarbillay Children’s Choir, the very versatile and talented Jen Scott Trio and the band, Neo, from Darwin. It was great to see so much support for this function.
The Main Event featured a presentation of a community dance performance called, Emerge which was, in essence, the Katherine community performing for the Katherine community. There was an enormous amount of time and energy put into this production by so many Katherine people, including some very talented primary and high school students who were coordinated by Rachael McLellan, and they are to be congratulated for such a fabulous performance. Katherine Regional Arts coordinated the production with Toni Tapp Coutts as the project manager, Lewis Lampton as lead choreographer, with assistant choreographers, Lyndal Carbery, Danielle Aquino and Marichu Rawson.
I have taken the story of Emerge from the program of the day and will include that in this adjournment. I add my thanks to the Jawoyn Association for permission to use the dreamtime story of Nitmiluk for the Emerge performance. The performance emerged through the choreographers’ and dancers’ interpretation of the traditional Jawoyn story of how Katherine Gorge and surrounds came to be. Emerge is a contemporary dance that begins in the dreamtime with Bula and his wives on a journey across the Top End creating the landscape as they go. Nabilil, the Rainbow Serpent, travels through this same country carrying fire sticks and a dilly bag full of water. Through Wurli Wurlinjang country, mosquito dreaming, Nabilil slaps the mosquitos away. He has a dangerous encounter with hawks, pigeons, and crows as he travels through the blue tongue dreaming place. The birds want his water and fire, but they cannot defeat him. He is too clever for them. Nabilil rests in the Katherine Gorge and the only sound he hears is, ‘Nit, nit, nit, nit’, from the cicadas and, so, the place is Nitmiluk, the cicada dreaming. Nabilil then encounters a swarm of ferocious cave bats who also want his water and fire. They came upon him and the Nabilil is unable to fight and loses the battle. The water flows from his dilly bag and the fire sticks fall onto the ground. The birds happily swoop down to the water and drink and dance around the rivers and streams that now flow from Nabilil’s dilly bag. They discover Nabilil’s fire sticks and begin to cook their food with the fire, and everyone celebrates and rejoices for they now have food and water.
As you can see from that story, this was a very energetic performance. The cast of this very energetic production included Lewis Lampton as Bula; Cynan Dowling as Nabilil; and Cecelia Johns and Terrah Bestmann as the wives. Core dancers were Colleen McQuay, Myrt Stanley, Stacey Hopkins, Rebecca Mewburn, La Toya Albert, Tony Marshall, Rachael McLennan, Jade Mewburn, Ben Elliott, Wanita Costales, Anisa Cadel, Karmen Butler, Lauren Barritt, Nadia Menmuir, Kelsey Wilson, and Nicole Rowan.
The Filipino dancers were Marichu Rawson, Bless Jeffery, Leslie Egan, Rosine Hewitt, Marilyn Rowbottom, Estelita Odquin, Joannah Bumanlag, Russell Smith and Mark McBride.
The cicadas, bats and mosquitos were the young ones from primary and high school: Brooke Black, Deanna Allison, Kendall Slater-Booth, Kasey Lee Nimmo, Courtney Dwyer, Deanna Slater, Charlayne Green and Ali Campbell. The dance performance was absolutely outstanding.
The costume designers for this production were Toni Tapp Coutts, Danielle Aquino, Marichu Rawson, Lyndal Carbery and Brigid Thomas; make-up and hair by Megan Holt and Brigid Thomas; lighting and sound by Andrew Dudley Enterprises of Total Entertainment Services; backstage managers were Mary-Lou McGregor-Shaw, Jo Nicol and Sarah Gooda; with documentation by Carly Franklin, Charles McGregor-Shaw, Andrew Mathieson and Nicole Rowan.
Congratulations and thanks must go to all the parents who encouraged and supported their children to attend rehearsals to be part of the Emerge community dance performance. They would have been proudly watching. It was a credit to the whole of the Katherine community to see so much effort put into that performance. A special thank you to Katherine Town Council for organising that as well.
Also, as part of the Flying Fox Festival, St Paul’s Anglican Church in Katherine several years ago opened its doors to a community event of music and art to be held during the Flying Fox Festival. The church is a beautiful building with stained glass windows and a great location to display art and to sit outside on the lawn area and listen to musical performances. Last year and again this year, the Anglican church ladies prepared assorted curries with all the condiments and delicious homemade sweets for people to purchase, and to enjoy while listening to the performances in between viewing the art and craft and talking and chatting together. The exhibition this year, held on Sunday evening, 19 August, was sponsored by Greenhill Galleries Adelaide and had 73 entries and was very well received.
Former Katherine resident, Kathleen Short, undertook the very difficult task of judging the art and the craft. The winner of the award for 2006 was local artist, Jan Milner Cole, with a piece titled, Passion 1. Jan is excelling in her artwork, having won the Katherine Prize the previous week and also has recently painted a portrait of Mayor Anne Shepherd which is hanging in the Katherine Town Council Chambers. It really is a marvellous piece of work and she has done a wonderful job.
Musical entertainment at the Arts and Craft Festival was provided by talented locals and they included Jan Murphy and the Cantarbillay Choir again - very busy people lately - and Jen Scott with choir members. There is so much talent in and around Katherine, this event provided a great opportunity for everyone to enjoy just what we have in our town.
The evening was very successful due to the tireless effort of the Anglican ladies who provided such delicious home cooked food, Anglican Pastor Jeremy Greaves, Carly Franklyn from Territory Craft, Kathleen Short, Katherine Town Council, Katherine Research Station for the loan of their display boards, all volunteers who assisted in the moving of the church furniture to allow for the displays, Mrs Milne for her wonderful display of dolls, and all the artists who entered the competition and for the works that were sold.
I add that I made two purchases there myself, one of which I am wearing tonight that was from Kerryn Taylor who does some beautiful needlework. I purchased another beautiful scarf from Carolyn Whitting who is another very talented artist in Katherine.
As Jeremy said at the end of the evening, it was so successful that next year’s event is a challenge to meet the outcomes of the 2006 St Paul’s Music and Art Festival.
The following morning, St Paul’s held their church service in the old original church next door to celebrate 50 years from 1956 to 2006. It is a corrugated iron tin shed church, but it certainly has a lot of memories. It was very cosy, with everyone squeezed into the historical church, and made all the more special by the presence of Earl and Wendy James who were married in that church 50 years ago. I believe theirs was the first wedding held in the church, so that made the service even more special. It is very special to be able to celebrate 50 years of marriage, and I am sure Earl and Wendy have many happy memories of their wedding day and were happy to relive that occasion in Katherine. We were glad that they chose to do that.
The newer, larger St Paul’s Anglican Church was built following the 1998 flood. Many memories were shared over morning tea following the service. We have had a very hectic time in Katherine for this Flying Fox Festival.
On Friday, 18 August, I had the pleasure of opening an art exhibition in the June Tapp Room in Katherine by two local artists and long-time residents of Katherine, Gillian Ellett Banks and Jan Milner Cole. The June Tapp Room was filled to the maximum, attesting to the professionalism and popularity of these two ladies who are very different in their artistic style and presentation. In all, there were so many pieces of art on exhibition they completely covered the walls of this room, which certainly displayed the hard work that Gillian and Jan have put in over a long time. These works were, as usual, very professionally and magnificently framed by Peter Farnden. The artwork on display was very well received and a very pleasant evening was had by all. The exhibition was conducted over the weekend to enable people to come in at their own time and leisure.
The past two weeks have been fantastic for art and culture lovers in Katherine, with the activities held over the 2006 Katherine Flying Fox Festival. I have thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated the work that has been displayed by all the arts and crafts people of Katherine and surrounding regions. We have so many talented people across so many mediums, and their ability to be able to display their artistic talent is certainly supported in Katherine.
Mr ACTING DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Blain, welcome back.
Mr MILLS (Blain): Thank you, Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, not that I was missing. I was here all the time, in a sense.
I provide a preliminary report on a very recent trip to our near neighbour, Indonesia, and particularly Nusa Tenggara Timur. It is worth visiting our near neighbour – which is closer to Darwin than Tennant Creek. Bear in mind that our neighbour is always our neighbour. There will be no change in that, therefore, we are obliged to find ways of deepening our understanding, learning how to cooperate so that we can explore avenues of mutual benefit. That is not possible without the respect which comes from good relationships.
That was well and truly received by our hosts, from the Municipal Office, or Walikota, Mayor, Sam Lerrick, and all of his officers who made sure that the contingent visiting - in this case, Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club - was very well received. The Northern Territory Eight Ball Team were also in West Timor and they commenced their competition last night. I am pleased to report, in Round 1, they came out on top – 12:8, I believe, was the final score - with two more rounds to go.
Seeing these two activities firsthand, demonstrated the importance of these kinds of engagements. The effect being in another country had on the young members of the Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club - some of them have never been abroad before - helped them understand what we actually have in Australia by contrast. The interesting thing with the three different trips just in the last year - with the Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club, the NT Eight Ball and the Women’s Soccer that visited in April – is that every single group has made a generous and voluntary contribution to welfare work in West Timor; in each of those cases with children. The NT Eight Ball has an ongoing relationship with a very poor school in Soe, inland from Kupang. It was so moving to see the boys from Palmerston La-Faek welcomed by orphans. These boys were moved to tears and have decided, as a club, that they will contribute on a regular basis to support these many orphans and orphanages in West Timor. The girls did the same with another orphanage.
All of these sorts of things may be small in the grand scheme of things but they are very important. They are the critical links in building deeper respect and connection between one region and another. I will talk more about this in time to come, because there is much to explore and report, of a substantial nature, particularly when we consider the close proximity of these nations, East Timor, West Timor, and Indonesia to the Northern Territory of Australia. I will report in time to come on the development of the concept of greater and closer links between those three nations. That will be the subject of my comments at later contributions.
At this point, I wish to make specific reference to the young men of the Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club who very recently returned from a tournament in Kupang. The Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club has a long connection to East Timor, being originally La-Faek, and amalgamated with Palmerston. The La-Faek was the team that largely comprised the East Timorese community, joined the Palmerston community in 1999 to form a new club. The coach, Jose Da Silva; his wife, Maria Furtado Silva; Neil McDade from the Football Federation, Northern Zone; and the players, Neil Fraser, Nathan and Michael Cavanough, Vadim Bendin, Michael Holliday, Nathan Trevena, James Hamilton, Connor McDade, Samuel Oketa and Alvin Dingle, have been wonderful ambassadors for the Northern Territory and our country. They have been moved by the quality of the hospitality, and I am proud to report that each of those young men and the officials accompanying them did a marvellous job in carrying themselves as fine ambassadors.
I will get down to the nitty gritty. People ask how the competition went. You can probably guess what I mean when I say that the game was the winner, which is code for saying we did not win. The first match was played against the team representing the City of Kupang, the provincial capital. The boys did an amazing job to be able to withstand a very professional and high-level team. They had never encountered such strong competition before. One of the members of the Kota Kupang team was a national player, equivalent of the Socceroos, if you want to use the Australian comparison. They were held to 6:0, but the boys handled themselves beautifully and came away knowing that they had met extraordinary competition, and managed to hold this team to a reasonable level of competition. They went away with genuine respect for the Indonesian players. I have to say that the young players from Palmerston also earned the respect of the crowd.
The next game was against a team from Nusa Cendara, the state-run university in West Timor. An excellent competition, 1:0. I am starting to understand why people are so excited about soccer. With just one goal being scored, it was a very exciting match. In the words of Ron Barassi, who has never lost a game, it is just that the siren sounded a little too early. In this case, if the siren had sounded a little later, I am sure the team for Palmerston would have managed to score another goal at least. It was a very good competition and the boys acquitted themselves well.
The final game was a mixed competition where they joined with the university and wore the university strip and played the Kota Kupang team. In a noble gesture, that team is now being prepared to play in the Timorese Cup. It was a good opportunity for them to be prepared.
A very interesting aspect of the whole exercise was the inclusion of the East Timorese refugees who are residing in West Timor as members of the team. It was humbling for the boys to learn the background of the young lads who joined our team. We deliberately invited them because of the previous connection to East Timor, and because of the underlying desire within West Timor, East Timor, and Australia, for closer links between the three countries. Our gesture to include East Timorese refugees in the team was very well supported by the West Timorese.
The first step for the boys from Palmerston was to buy boots for the boys. Everybody plays soccer in every village square and on street corners with balls that have long passed their use-by date in any Australian playground, and have been happily kicked around by young lads. There are so many thousands of young people wanting to participate in sport at the highest level. These East Timorese refugee lads were very skilful players. In spite of the language difficulties, a very strong link developed between these Timorese lads and the boys from Palmerston.
At a later time, I will give a further report on the eight ball. All of these comments on sport are a means to address the real issue; that is, how we work to find better ways of exploring those avenues of mutual benefit.
The interesting development in the region is the formation of a trilateral seminar series. That seminar series involved the Deputy Ambassador from the Australian Embassy; Professor Fox from the Australian National University; Dr Carole Kayrooz from Charles Darwin University; Nelson Santos, the Secretary General for Foreign Affairs in Timor-Leste; Professor Franz Umdata, the Rector or the equivalent of the Vice Chancellor of the Nusa Cendara University; and also the special assistant for Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Indonesia.
They have focused their efforts on a single issue: how to build better relations within our immediate region, with the support of Indonesia, to explore closer links to East Timor with the involvement of Australia. These trilateral discussions hold very interesting possibilities for the Northern Territory. It is time for us to consider how we can find ways of exploring issues to our mutual benefit. I will explore aspects of this in a later contribution.
At that seminar, which was held only three weeks ago the Governor of East Nusa Tenggara, Mr Peter Tallow, was there and the Mayor of Kupang, Mr Sam Lerrick. As I previously mentioned, there were speakers from the different universities as well as other guests and visitors. Once I have made a copy of these papers I will present them to the parliament for anyone who is interested. I urge members, particularly of the government, to take an interest in this and I offer bipartisan contribution to any of these matters. These are not political matters regarding the ALP or the CLP; they are issues of long-term interest to all Territorians. If anyone has skill, experience or a passion for these matters, they should be involved. I advocate a bipartisan approach.
It was disappointing, I might add, that there was no representation from the Northern Territory government at this seminar. I understand the circumstances for the very late withdrawal of the Chief Minister, and that is understood. However, to not send a replacement from 19 members, I thought, was an opportunity sadly missed. For that reason, I will present these papers to the parliament, and now, and in subsequent contributions, I urge members opposite, particularly those with an interest in building greater understanding of our near neighbour and the possibilities of trilateral relationships between Indonesia, West Timor, Timor-Leste and the Northern Territory - Australia in that case – to see there is an opportunity for the development of greater strategy.
From the Indonesian point of view, West Timor is regarded as the southern gateway into Asia. We regard ourselves, just a little way away, as the northern gateway into Asia. It is, therefore, these two places which should make greater connection. It is a big world out there. For the Territory to engage strategically we need to do the things that have been done of recent times - with no criticism from myself or members of the opposition of the recent visits. However, there is a need to really focus on what we can actually achieve in a coordinated and comprehensive way. That starts with Nusa Tenggara Timur. That relationship will build linkages further into the archipelago. I look forward to making further contributions and more detailed comment on aspects of the trilateral relationship built through that seminar.
Motion agreed to; the Assembly adjourned.
VISITORS
Madam SPEAKER: I advise honourable members of the presence in the gallery of Bees Creek Primary School Year 6/7 students accompanied by Gayle Purdue. On behalf of all honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
MESSAGE FROM ADMINISTRATOR
Message No 12
Message No 12
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I have received from His Honour the Administrator Message No 12 notifying assent to the bills passed in the June sittings of the Assembly.
RESPONSES TO PETITIONS
The CLERK: Madam Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 100A, I inform honourable members that the responses to Petition Nos 23, 24, 26, 27 and 31 have been received and circulated to honourable members.
- Petition No 23
Establishment of a retirement village for self-funded retirees in the Darwin area
Date presented: 13 June 2006
Presented by: Ms Martin
Referred to: Minister for Planning and Lands
Date response due: 12 October 2006
Date response received: 25 July 2006
Date response presented: 22 August 2006
Response
Masonic Homes Inc has recently been offered title over an additional 2.4 ha of Crown land at Tiwi for the purpose of constructing aged care accommodation, assisted living units and an independent retirement village for senior Territorians. The development is to be staged over a period of five years and the project is estimated to cost $18m.
The proposed development consists of various levels of aged care:
Despite evidence of growth in numbers of older people in the Territory, growth is very small by comparison to other sectors of the age profile.
The Office of Senior Territorians, in conjunction with other government agencies, continues to undertake research in housing options for senior Territorians. The Department of Business, Economic and Regional Development is also researching population demographics and likely demand for retirement villages in the Northern Territory. The Department of Planning and Infrastructure is investigating the appropriateness of releasing the old Waratahs site in Fannie Bay for an aged care/retirement village should it be determined there is a demand for such a facility.
Petition No 24
Middle Point School
Date presented: 14 June 2006
Presented by: Mr Warren
Referred to: Minister for Employment, Education and Training
Date response due: 17 October 2006
Date response received: 25 July 2006
Date response presented: 22 August 2006
Response
Firstly, I would like to confirm that staffing of Middle Point School is in accordance with DEET school staffing formula and guidelines. As such, the school is staffed in line with NT Public Sector regulations. This means that officers can take leave or short-term positions and the consequential vacancies are backfilled when this occurs.
For the past six years, the middle/upper primary class at Middle Point School has had the same teacher. In Term 2, 2006, he moved into a temporary position backfilling another officer who was on sick leave. In regard to the other class, it is agreed that over the past four years there have been four teachers in place. While staff continuity is a major goal, this is not always possible.
One of the difficulties when staffing Middle Point is that recruits often prefer either remote or urban locations. Middle Point School is neither. Two of the teachers recruited from southern states were not suited to the situation at Middle Point. Unfortunately, this can happen in the Northern Territory and the department does not place mandatory periods of employment on staff.
Further, although there has been some turnover in teaching staff at Middle Point School, there has been a lot of stability in support staff with the highly capable school assistants being at the school at least three years.
Although there has been a degree of instability in the junior class, the Multi-age Assessment results have consistently been exceptional at the school. This demonstrates that with a teaching principal in place for over six years and continuity of support staff, any staff movement has not adversely affected the quality and success of the teaching/learning program.
Should the school community still have issues regarding staffing at the school, I encourage them to contact Ms Leonie Jones, the Principal of the Top End Group School, on telephone 89993210. She has been in that position for at least five years, knows the school and students very well, and can answer any questions raised.
Petition No 26
Kennel/cattery Lot 3296 De Caen Close Virginia
Date presented: 14 June 2006
Presented by: Mr Warren
Referred to: Minister for Planning and Lands
Date response due: 17 October 2006
Date response received: 25 July 2006
Date response presented: 22 August 2006
Response
The Development Consent Authority (DCA) approved a kennel development on Section 3296, Hundred of Bagot, on 8 June 2006. During the public consultation phase many of the surrounding residents objected to the proposal.
During its initial consideration of the proposal on 17 March 2006, the DCA deferred consideration of the application, specifically to obtain additional information necessary to enable proper consideration of the application. The additional information was forwarded to the submitters. The DCA reconsidered the application at the hearing of 19 May 2006, which was open to the public with submitters invited to attend.
I understand that many surrounding residents conveyed their concerns to the DCA by formal submission to the application, or by speaking at the DCA hearings.
In approving the development, the DCA recognised the potential impact on the residential amenity and placed conditions on Development Permit DP06/0264 to achieve the following:
limiting outdoor access for dogs to a maximum of four hours a day (except when held on a lead by the operator);
requiring extensive noise abatement works;
limiting the number of dogs outdoors at any one time to 10; and
removal of waste to avoid creation of a nuisance.
I consider that these measures will offer some reassurance that the development will have minimal impact on the residential amenity of the area. I also note that any failure of the operator to comply with a condition of approval can result in enforcement action by the DCA.
The DCA has, in my view, acted properly in its consideration of this matter and, whilst the outcome is not to the satisfaction of the petitioners, I see no basis for its decision to be overturned.
Petition No 27
Kennel/cattery Lot 3296 De Caen Close Virginia
Date presented: 14 June 2006
Presented by: Mr Warren
Referred to: Minister for Planning and Lands
Date response due: 17 October 2006
Date response received: 19 July 2006
Date response presented: 22 August 2006
Response
Mr Greg Balding has applied to amend the Litchfield Area Plan 2004 to rezone Section 3296 and Lots A-H, J-Z, AB, AC and AD LTO26/001, Hundred of Bagot, from RL1 (Rural Living) to RR (Rural Residential).
While I consider the application demonstrates some merit, I have advised Ms Maureen Peard, Mr Alan Symes, Mr John MacCartie and Mr Robin Robinson that I would exhibit the proposed amendment when I receive general agreement from the landholders affected by the proposal.
Once agreement is received, the proposed amendment will undergo a statutory process of public exhibition and consultation in accordance with the requirements of the Planning Act.
Petition No 31
Golf Course Estate Name
Date presented: 14 June 2006
Presented by: Dr Lim
Referred to: Minister for Planning and Lands
Date response due: 17 October 2006
Date response received: 12 July 2006
Date response presented: 22 August 2006
Response
The Place Names Committee has been working with the Department of Planning and Infrastructure to define suburbs and localities with official names across the whole of the Northern Territory.
In order to do this, the committee initially defined suburbs and locality names as the basis for public consultation. The public consultation process lasted for around six weeks, ending on 14 July 2006.
The whole purpose of preparing the initial set of names was to gauge public interest and comment. None of these names or boundaries were ever set in concrete.
Following receipt of this petition, an already planned public meeting was held in Alice Springs at which the Chairperson of the Place Names Committee advised that, following adverse comment, Olive Pink would not be used as a suburb name.
The meeting was asked to submit an alternative name for the area. It was noted that whatever name is finally chosen, the suburb is a larger area than the estate and the name Golf Course Estate is considered unsuitable for a suburb. There are many golf courses in the Territory and it could be confusing. I understand the residents have now come up with an alternative name.
The chairperson has also announced publicly on several occasions that this estate name could continue to exist within the suburb. There are similar cases elsewhere in the Territory and throughout Australia. For example, the estate names Woodleigh Gardens, Northlakes and Fairway Waters, originally used for marketing purposes by the developers, survive in the suburbs of Leanyer, Marrara and Durack respectively.
Following the first round of consultation, the Place Names Committee will assess all submissions and, where necessary, undertake further consultation. I expect that the committee will make final recommendations to me by the end of August 2006, and that soon the Northern Territory will have complete coverage of suburbs and localities with names supported by the community.
TABLED PAPER
Speaker’s Determination No 12 of 2006
Speaker’s Determination No 12 of 2006
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I table Speaker’s Determination No 12 of 2006 for broadcasting of parliamentary proceedings via the Northern Territory government Internet and Intranet pursuant to Resolution of the Assembly dated 26 February 1985 and section 23 of the Legislative Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act.
As I advised in previous correspondence to members, I am confident the implementation of proposed arrangements will extend access to Assembly proceedings in line with the practice in other Australian and overseas parliaments. The determination also contains provisions for the direct broadcast and rebroadcast of questions pursuant to Sessional Order dated 16 October 2005.
The arrangements for the broadcast of questions for the August sittings are as follows. The Darwin area will receive direct broadcast of proceedings via Top FM radio. This broadcast will also be relayed to Gove FM and Roots Radio in Alice Springs. 8CCC will rebroadcast questions in accordance with the practice established for the last few periods for sittings.
Following the August sittings, officers of the Department of the Legislative Assembly will be undertaking discussions with various Territory broadcasters, with a view to extending the current broadcasting arrangements. These discussions will be facilitated by the Department of Corporate and Information Services’ Communication Unit.
TABLED PAPER
Warrant – Deputy Chairman of Committees
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, pursuant to the provision of Standing Order 12, I lay on the Table my Warrant nominating members to be Deputy Chairmen of Committees.
STATEMENT BY SPEAKER
Resignation of Chairman of Committees
and Deputy Speaker
Resignation of Chairman of Committees
and Deputy Speaker
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I advise you that on 14 July 2006 I received a letter from the member for Sanderson tendering his resignation as Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker.
ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN OF COMMITTEES AND DEPUTY SPEAKER
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, it is now necessary for the Assembly to appoint a member to be its Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker. Prior to calling for nominations, I advise honourable members of the relevant provisions of Standing Order 8 relating to the appointment of the Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker. When a motion for a member to be appointed Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker of the Assembly is moved and is seconded I will ask if there is any further motion. If no further motion is moved, the time for motions will have expired and no member may address the Assembly. The member’s name will be declared appointed Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker.
If a further motion or motions are moved and seconded, I will then say that the time for motions has expired. Debate relevant to the election may ensue. No member shall speak for more than five minutes. At the conclusion of debate, the bells shall be rung as for a division, and the Assembly will then proceed to a ballot.
I call for nominations.
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I propose to the Assembly for its Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker the member for Daly, Mr Robert Knight, and move that the member for Daly be appointed Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker of this Assembly.
Members: Hear, hear!
Madam SPEAKER: Is there someone to second that nomination?
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, yes, I second the nomination.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Daly, do you accept that nomination?
Mr KNIGHT (Daly): I accept the nomination, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Are there any further nominations?
Mrs BRAHAM (Braitling): Madam Speaker, I move that the member for Nelson be appointed as Deputy Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Is there someone to second that nomination? Member for Nelson?
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I second that nomination.
Madam SPEAKER: And you accept your nomination, obviously?
Mr WOOD: I do, yes.
Madam SPEAKER: Any further nominations? I call for members to speak on the nominations, and remind members they have up to five minutes and that the debate must be relevant.
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I would like to give some background to support our position that the member for Daly is the most appropriate person here to be Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker.
The member for Daly has a broad range of skills and experiences, and his knowledge of the Territory is extensive. He has been in this House for one year and has performed well in that time. He has been a resident of Katherine for the past six years, but he has lived all over the Northern Territory, including in Kakadu, Cooinda, Jabiru and Gimbat, Arnhem Land, Tennant Creek, Timber Creek and in Darwin. Although he is a relatively young person, he has also had time overseas living and working in England, Canada and the United States.
His work experience and knowledge of the public, private and community sectors is impressive. In the public sector, the member for Daly has worked for the Commonwealth and Territory governments in areas such as land management, local government and Aboriginal affairs. In the private sector, he has had extensive experience in the hospitality and mining industries and has worked in the tourism sector as a safari guide in East Arnhem Land. Just for something out of left field, he has also worked in the motion picture industry in Los Angeles. He is yet to share his tales of that.
In the community sector, the member for Daly has managed the Community Resource Centre in Timber Creek, and is involved in numerous community activities such as coaching football teams, not to mention his electorate work. He has one of the Territory’s largest electorates in the electorate of Daly. He also has considerable managerial experience and has dealt with a wide range of people and issues from all walks of life.
As I said, he has been in this parliament since June 2005 and, in that time, he has been a productive member of two parliamentary committees - the substance abuse committee and the Environment and Sustainable Development Committee. He is also the Government Deputy Whip, and has been one of our Acting Deputy Speakers.
I believe his contribution to the broad debate within the Assembly over the past year has been excellent. The work that he does in his speeches, the understanding he has of a wide range of issues has really contributed to the debate in this House. I believe that his maturity and experience and his 18 years living and working across the Territory make him an ideal candidate for the Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker position.
Madam SPEAKER: Any further speakers?
Mrs BRAHAM (Braitling): Madam Speaker, the fact that we have nominated the member for Nelson is not a reflection on the member for Daly. I am quite sure the member for Daly will be a fine Deputy Chairman, which will probably happen as a result of the vote in this House. However, I remind members opposite that they thought the government’s principle of having an independent Chairman of Committees and Speaker was such a good idea in 2001.
The member for Nelson has had a lot of experience in this House as Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees, and has certainly done the job very well. He has a sound knowledge of standing orders, which is really important for someone taking over this position. He has displayed his independence and fairness in the positions. That is what we really do want to see in our Deputy Speaker/Chairman.
I recall the revolution that occurred when the Chief Minister appointed two Independents as Deputy Speaker and Speaker in a previous term. Unfortunately, that revolution crumbled a little at the beginning of this term. We would like to reignite it. Let us have a revolution again. Let us have an Independent Deputy Speaker. Let us show Territorians this government is fair dinkum when they are talking about bringing impartiality and independence to this position.
Madam Speaker, I urge all government members not to be swayed by their party vote; be swayed by the fact that the member for Nelson would make an excellent Deputy Speaker, and you will bring back to this House the independence it so deserves in its Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker. Madam Speaker, I support the member for Nelson, and I hope I get the support of the members opposite.
Mr STIRLING (Treasurer): Madam Speaker, the member for Braitling puts a compelling case, and one under other circumstances I would be prepared to support. However, if you look at the difference in the balance of the parliamentary representation here between the first term of 2001 the second in 2005, and now, and with 19 government members, first and foremost it is an incumbent responsibility on the government to provide nominees to such positions. I have no qualms at all with the commendation put by the member for Braitling on behalf of the member for Nelson; I believe he would do an excellent job. However, equally, the member for Daly would also do an excellent job. The Chief Minister spoke at some length about his great and varied experience right across the Northern Territory, particularly in rural and remote communities, which gives him a real practical experience in living and working across the Territory in his role as a member for Daly.
I remember entering this Chamber almost 16 years ago and how difficult I found it to get on top of processes in this place, and understand the nature of debate and the different processes and forms that occur in here. I have watched the member for Daly closely over the past 12 months that he has been in here, watching him gain in confidence and find his feet in this Assembly. I firmly believe he is ready to take a developmental step, a next step up, as Chairman of Committees. He has, of course, equally, solid experience in parliamentary committee work over this past year, and that will also stand him in good stead in his role of Chairman of Committees.
I say to the member for Braitling: nearly got me, but I will be voting for the government nominee, and I urge all members to support the member for Daly.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I suppose I would like to talk on behalf of myself, especially with the Chief Minister and the Treasurer there; I actually thought they were talking about me! Obviously, they were talking about the member for Daly - fine, fine chap. However, he must have spent a short time in a lot of places, because I thought he was only 26 years old but, obviously, he is older than that.
I remind the Treasurer that his government did make statements, and there was a principle, and nothing in that principle mentioned what sort of majority it had in parliament. The Chief Minister said in The Advertiser, when referring to having an Independent Speaker and Deputy Speaker: ‘Labor has the majority of seats’ - not one, not 24:
- Labor has the majority of seats in the Assembly, so there is no necessity to do this. However, as outlined during the election campaign, Labor is committed to improving standards of parliamentary debate and ending the era of government domination of this vital organ of democracy.
As I believe I quoted at the beginning of this Assembly, from William Somerset Maugham, who said:
- You can’t learn too soon that the most useful thing about a principle is that it can always be sacrificed to expediency.
Madam Speaker, it is an opportune time to remind the government that that is exactly what has happened here. It made a grand statement, it raised the importance of having an independent Speaker and Deputy Speaker. However, when the opportunity arose to get rid of them, it did. I listened to the Treasurer and, I must admit, that that was a weak excuse for getting rid of them.
I believe it was a revolutionary stand by the Labor Party, and I supported it wholly, not because I particularly wanted the job - it could have been someone else - but because I have always believed that, for the betterment of the parliamentary processes, the Chairman and the Deputy Chair should be independent. We were leading the way in Australia by doing it; we were probably leading the way in the world by doing it, but …
Ms Martin: South Australia.
Mr WOOD: Oh well, South Australia, but then they got rid of him, too.
Mrs Braham: He is gone.
Mr WOOD: Yes, he is goner. I would not always pick on South Australia as the best place as an example of good democracy. However, we did lead the way; we had both positions filled by Independents. I feel that was something we should have been proud of. Unfortunately, as the Treasurer once told me, this place here is about politics. I understand the kind of politics he is talking about. When it comes to politics, things change and, unfortunately, this is what has happened. I, therefore, ask the Labor Party, which has the majority in this House, to stick by the principle the Chief Minister has said is its principle, not dump that principle, and support an Independent in the Deputy Speaker’s position.
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I support the government’s nomination of the member for Daly. I pick up on the comments from the member for Nelson about the position that we took in the first term of government regarding the Independents occupying those positions, and the position that we, as a government, find ourselves in as a result of the election just over 12 months ago. The people of the Northern Territory made a decision regarding the configuration of the parliament, Madam Speaker …
Mr Wood: They did previously.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr HENDERSON: Member for Nelson, let me have my say. I did not interject when you were speaking.
The people of the Northern Territory made their decision when they elected the configuration of this parliament. We, as a government with a large majority, have been humbled by the confidence that the people of the Northern Territory showed in our government. In regard to this House being a house of debate, where all of the issues that the government has carriage of - that we bring to the parliament and the Independents and the opposition may raise - we find ourselves in a position with a large majority.
Regarding the Independent members of this House who have a very important role, as they consistently say, of keeping the government accountable, given the size of the government majority, it is totally incumbent on those Independent members to participate as often and as vigorously as they can in the debates before this House. You cannot do that from the Chair.
Therefore, in regard to why the change from the position that we took after the first term of government and, now, in the second term of government, this is a government that acknowledges that, with a reduced opposition and the Independents having a critical role, they should play a very critical role in debate in this House and scrutiny of this government. That is the reason for the change: to allow those Independent members to participate fully in the debate, as opposed to be sitting in the Chair of the parliament. That is the reason for the change. It is not about arrogance of government; it is about acknowledging that this is a house of debate, the government does need to be held to account, and the Independents have a very important role. That is why I am supporting the member for Daly for this important position.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, before you start speaking, would you please remove the sticker from your water container.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Sorry, Madam Speaker.
Madam Speaker, I support the nomination of the former Deputy Speaker of this Assembly. Isn’t it interesting that it has come to this? Members will recall - I think the first sitting day of this Assembly was on or about 29 June 2005 - I said in relation to your appointment, Madam Speaker:
- With the Chief Minister, I look forward to being part of what is being described as the new women’s triangle in this parliament.
The NT News said:
- But she …
Meaning me:
- … was less welcoming to Labor’s choice of Deputy Speaker, Len Kiely. ‘While we are pleased with your (Jane Aagaard’s) appointment, I propose to remain silent about the forthcoming nomination of the Deputy Speaker’. Ms Carney said Mr Kiely was not impressed.
No doubt he was not, Madam Speaker. The population of the Northern Territory has not been impressed with not only his conduct, but the conduct of the Chief Minister. It has been appalling by any objective measure. It was staggering - and we thought so at the time - that the government would nominate the member for Sanderson as a Deputy Speaker. It was a bad call and it has been demonstrated to be, without any shadow of a doubt, a bad call.
This government is now looking to the member for Daly. It has come to where the Chief Minister and her colleagues - I know they are fighting at the moment and that is, obviously, making them all a bit crotchety. However, the Chief Minister and her colleagues ought not have nominated the member for Sanderson. He had appalling form in the first term of the Labor government and he has continued to demonstrate his lewd, vulgar, offensive behaviour time and time again. The Parliamentary Record is clear on those points ...
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I refer the Leader of the Opposition to Standing Order 62 which states that no member shall attribute, directly or by innuendo to another member unbecoming conduct or motives. That is highly disorderly and I ask the Leader of the Opposition to withdraw.
Ms CARNEY: Speaking to the point of order …
Madam SPEAKER: I ask you to rephrase, Leader of the Opposition.
Ms CARNEY: Madam Speaker, the member for Sanderson has been lewd, disgraceful and revolting in his conduct. To assert that those words do not befit the member for Sanderson …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker!
Ms CARNEY: … is a joke.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition!
Ms CARNEY: As are you, member for Wanguri!
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, resume your seat!
Mr HENDERSON: Again, Madam Speaker, I refer the Leader of the Opposition to Standing Order 62 which states that she cannot allude those character traits to another member unless she does so by way of substantive motion. This is a motion in regard to the appointment of the member for Daly to the Deputy Speaker role. The comments and the behaviour that she is attributing to the member for Sanderson are offensive and highly disorderly. She cannot do them under Standing Order 62 unless she does it by way of substantive motion. I ask that she withdraw.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I ask you to withdraw your last comment. You may rephrase …
Ms CARNEY: Those are withdrawn …
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, you may rephrase, but just be reminded that you have a short period of time and it needs to be relevant to the debate.
Ms CARNEY: Yes, which the member for Wanguri is hell-bent on expending with silly points of order. It is astonishing, Madam Speaker, that members of ...
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! You asked the Leader of the Opposition to withdraw those comments and she has not withdrawn.
Ms CARNEY: I withdrew. I withdrew it.
Madam SPEAKER: I believe she has withdrawn. You have withdrawn?
Ms CARNEY: Yes, Madam Speaker, withdrawn.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, Leader of the Opposition.
Ms CARNEY: I know you are crotchety and it is going to be a hard two weeks for you, but just hang on.
It is astonishing, is it not, Madam Speaker, that members of this Legislative Assembly, guided by the member for Wanguri, future Chief Ministerial aspirant, as parliamentarians, cannot talk, apparently, or describe the appalling behaviour of the member for Sanderson which was given air time, not just in the Northern Territory but nationally. Is it not the case that we as parliamentarians cannot use words like ‘revolting, lewd, disgusting behaviour’ when referring to politicians who have clearly demonstrated that behaviour in the outside world? In any event, Madam Speaker, as a sign of respect to you …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Standing Order 62 says ‘a member cannot attribute unbecoming conduct or motives by either directly or by innuendo’. Again, I assert that the Leader of the Opposition by innuendo is attributing those traits to the member for Sanderson. She should withdraw unless she wants to bring on a substantive motion against the government and we can debate that issue then. She cannot by way of innuendo attribute those motives to the member for Sanderson.
Ms CARNEY: Speaking to that point of order, Madam Speaker. The member for Wanguri needs to have a chat with the member for Stuart, I suggest, because he can get the name of a good supplier of a hearing aid. I was merely asking a question, as you well know. Is it not the case that it is astonishing …
Mr WARREN: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I find that comment offensive.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, order!
Ms CARNEY: … in the parliament of the Northern Territory that we cannot refer to the conduct of politicians as ‘lewd, disgusting and revolting’ - words used often by the Australian Labor Party in the course of debate. In any event, I note that in his pathetic letter of apology the member of Sanderson said …
Mrs Braham: Is this relevant?
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, in relation to the point of order I am going to allow what was said because I believe you were actually speaking in a general fashion and not specifically about the member for Sanderson. However, I ask you to be relevant to the debate and you only have 20 seconds.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. Yes, I know and the member for Wanguri gets a gold star for wasting the parliament’s time. In any event, it has come to this, and it should never have come to this. You all know what a despicable man the member for Sanderson is …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I believe that the Leader of the Opposition is being highly disorderly and I urge you to get her to withdraw that statement.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I ask you to withdraw your last comment.
Ms CARNEY: Withdrawn, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you, Leader of the Opposition. Are there any further speakers? There being no further speakers, there are two nominations. In accordance with Standing Orders a ballot will be taken. Before proceeding to the ballot, the bells will be rung for three minutes.
Mr Wood: We have a secret ballot?
Madam SPEAKER: We have a secret ballot. The Assembly will now proceed to ballot. Ballot papers will be distributed to honourable members who are requested to write upon the paper the name of the candidate for whom they wish to vote. The Clerk will distribute ballot papers to all honourable members. The candidates are the member for Daly, Mr Rob Knight, and the member for Nelson, Mr Gerry Wood.
May I call on someone from the government to act as a scrutineer? For the government, Government Whip, and from the Opposition we will have the Opposition Whip.
The Clerk will distribute the ballot papers.
Order! Honourable members, the result of the ballot is: Mr Knight 19 votes, Mr Wood five votes. I declare the honourable member for Daly, Mr Knight, appointed as Chairman of Committees and Deputy Speaker in accordance with standing orders and extend to him my congratulations.
Members: Hear, hear!
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Daly, would you like to make a comment on your election?
Mr KNIGHT (Daly): Madam Speaker, I express my sincere thanks to all members of the House for bestowing this honour upon me. I understand the significance of the position and I will always strive to exercise independence - a view that has been expressed by the Independents - to all members. It is a parliamentary role that has to exercise independence, as is the Speaker’s role. I thank all members of the House.
Members: Hear, hear!
SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDERS
Motion – Conduct of Member for Sanderson
Motion – Conduct of Member for Sanderson
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, I move that so much of standing orders be suspended as would prevent this House expressing its absolute dismay and disgust at the comments and actions of the member for Sanderson when making lewd and sexual remarks to a 61-year-old woman.
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, the government will accept debate on this motion. It is a bit unusual. It is not a censure of a minister, but it is a motion. I have not read the motion from the Leader of the Opposition. Given the feelings of the Leader of the Opposition in the previous debate, we will have this debate now and we will get it over and done with so the business of the parliament can move on later in the day.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, in relation to this motion, parliamentary language must still be maintained in the Chamber. I advise you to bear that in mind so that, if you wish to use matters that may have been raised in the media they need to be in the motion itself in relation to language.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, does that include quoting from the Northern Territory News the comments attributed to the member for Sanderson and admitted by him? If that were the case then, surely, that would present difficulties to this parliament as a democratic House.
Madam SPEAKER: I am suggesting to you that you must incorporate it in the actual motion, in which case, of course, it can be debated. However, if you are just using it as part of the debate, I ask you to incorporate it.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. I think it is covered by inclusion of the words, ‘lewd’, and ‘dismay’, and ‘disgust’.
Madam SPEAKER: As long as it is in the motion, there is no objection.
MOTION
Conduct of Member for Sanderson
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, I move that this House expresses its absolute dismay and disgust of the comments and actions of the member for Sanderson when making lewd and sexual remarks to a 61-year-old woman.
Much has been said and written about this incident. At the time, we asked the question: where was the code of conduct promised by the Australian Labor Party? A couple of days later, the story about the member of Sanderson surfaced. There was great activity on the fifth floor of Parliament House as the government was clearly going into damage control. What was astounding was not just the comments of the member for Sanderson, but the inaction and incompetence of his Chief Minister. However, of course, we are used to that and one need only refer to the …
Mr BURKE: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I believe the Leader of the Opposition has removed the sticker that you asked her to take off the water jug to the side of her desk. I ask that it be removed.
Ms CARNEY: Sorry about that. Madam Speaker, one need only refer to the memo from ‘memo Matty’ that was leaked, apparently so said the Centralian Advocate, by the member for Macdonnell. What a mess, what a rabble they are on the other side of the Chamber!
Chief Minister, I remember where I was when I saw the news report. She was interstate at COAG. Of course, we remember that she could not bring herself to go to the National Indigenous Summit; she had painted herself into a corner with that one, hence the ‘memo Matty Bonson’ exercise. In any case, she was in Canberra. She was interviewed about this lewd …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of Order, Madam Speaker! The Leader of the Opposition knows that the protocol in this House is to address members by their electorate, not by their name. I ask that she refers to the member for Millner by his correct title.
Madam SPEAKER: I advise you …
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker, I will from here on. The memo was issued and, of course, the Australian Labor Party continued to have their difficulties in ensuring party unity with a range of issues. Recently – yesterday - we have seen the rift emerge as a result of the land rights issue. However, I digress, Madam Speaker.’
The Chief Minister, from Canberra, described the member for Sanderson as an ‘interesting character’. How embarrassing you were! How embarrassing you were! The people of the Northern Territory were looking for leadership and condemnation by the Chief Minister. All the Chief Minister said was ‘Len is an interesting character’. Not good enough, Chief Minister.
I do not know what is interesting about a man who makes offensive, lewd, vulgar and disgusting comments when working as a representative of the Territory community, getting drunk in a corporate box. I note that the member for Sanderson subsequently admitted to having a drinking problem. That, of course, is an issue that he and his family need to deal with. I can say that we on this side of the House felt very sorry for the member for Sanderson’s family. It is not the done thing in this Chamber, nor should it be, to get stuck into member’s families. I pass on my sincere and heartfelt sorrow for the member for Sanderson’s family because I know he has children and, no doubt, they received a hard time and it is likely that they will continue to receive a hard time. All of us in this Chamber, no doubt, feel very sad on that front. If you think I am not being sincere, I assure you that I am …
Dr BURNS: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The Opposition Leader well knows under Standing Order 49 she must address her remarks to the Chair.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. They are on fire this morning, aren’t they, Madam Speaker?
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, please direct your comments through the Chair.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. They are a very touchy lot this morning. I can understand the sensitivity because the disharmony and disunity that we are seeing inside the ranks of the Northern Territory Branch of the Australian Labor Party is filtering out. The cracks are beginning to emerge, and it is demonstrated time and time again.
The member for Sanderson wrote – no, I will go back a bit; I will not get on to his apology letter yet. I will go back to the Chief Minister. The Chief Minister’s reference to the member for Sanderson as an ‘interesting character’ was outrageous in itself. I do not know whether being an interesting character is an excuse for being offensive. My view is that it is not. Actually, my view is that the member for Sanderson is not an interesting character. However, I digress. Whether he is or is not is neither here nor there. However, nothing can excuse his conduct. Similarly, nothing can excuse the inaction of the Chief Minister.
I ask, through you, Madam Speaker, whether the Chief Minister wants seedy men to be members of her party. I would have thought that the Chief Minister, in addition to aspiring to demonstrate leadership qualities, would want to be the leader of a party that has good men and good women in it. I do not think that the Chief Minister can front her party. I do not know when your next conference is; ours happens to be on the weekend. I look forward to that. However, at the next Labor Party conference that you have in the Territory, no doubt, there will be a vigorous debate about the member for Sanderson’s conduct. No doubt, people will be talking then as they are now about the member for Sanderson’s preselection. We know that people from the fifth floor, because that is the pumping heart of this Labor government, are already asking questions, member for Sanderson. Your reluctance, through you, Madam Speaker, to do the decent thing and resign will catch up with in the same way that your inappropriate selection as Deputy Speaker caught up with you as it did in July.
It has been said that the member for Sanderson’s tongue got him into trouble. Indeed, it did. He scored – and, of course, it was arguably always going to get him into trouble. His written skill, of course, is on the Parliamentary Record as being a plagiarist. We all remember during the last term when the power went off in the northern suburbs, the member for Sanderson simply said: ‘Open your windows’. Not a response that his constituents or, indeed, voters of the northern suburbs would have expected. They certainly did not deserve it.
He has a long record of inappropriate behaviour. On 14 July, we had this article, front page, ‘MP accused of sex slur’; ‘Call for Deputy Speaker to resign’; ‘Chief Minister demands explanation about corporate box behaviour’; and third bullet point on the front page is ‘Len Kiely doesn’t remember but still says sorry’. That is staggering, Madam Speaker. The member for Sanderson should have resigned, and we call on him through this motion to do so today if he has an ounce of credibility. Is it not astounding that, with these very detailed allegations given to the Northern Territory News, the member for Sanderson said: ‘I don’t remember’?
I can assure you that if the member for Stuart had received a call from the NT News which said: ‘Someone has called us and they have said all of this about you’, drunk or sober, the member for Stuart would have said categorically: ‘That is not language I use; I do not talk to anyone in that fashion because I am a decent man’. Not the member for Sanderson, Madam Speaker! He did not remember. The inference is yes, he probably did say that stuff. If that is not the measure of the member for Sanderson, I do not know what is.
We then move to him being so drunk that he cannot remember what he said. In life, as in politics, people drink from time to time. However, the member for Sanderson was representing the Northern Territory government at a cricket match. It has been said of the football game recently between Port Adelaide and the Doggies that the best thing about it was that the member for Sanderson was not there. Of course, he took the sudden holiday which I understand was meant to be a study trip but, at the last minute, the member for Sanderson paid for it himself. At least, I assume people up on the fifth floor leaned on him to do so.
This is a man who got so drunk, who does not even remember what he said, but then says words to the effect of: ‘Yes, that is language that I would have ordinarily used. Yes, that is how I would ordinarily talk to women’. That is the measure of the man and that is why he is not fit to serve as a member of the Legislative of Assembly. That is why he should resign. That is why this House, each and every one of us, should express its absolute dismay and disgust about the member for Sanderson’s comments.
Madam Speaker, I move to the member for Sanderson’s admitted alcohol problem. My view, and I have said it publicly, is that drunk or sober, good men do not talk to women like that. Decent human beings do not talk to other human beings like that. Whilst the fifth floor spin machine has been at pains to say, ‘Oh yes, alcohol is no excuse’, it was late and it was half-hearted.
Madam Speaker, you know that every parliamentary sittings – indeed, thanks to your generosity and courtesy - members of the Assembly are cordially invited into your office to share a meal. I can advise you that, because of the disgraceful conduct of the member for Sanderson, I do not propose to stay in that room when the member for Sanderson enters. Alcohol, a drink, is had by some members. I cannot stomach being in the same room as the member for Sanderson. He, no doubt, will be drinking unless he has miraculously cured his alcohol problem. I leave it to you, Madam Speaker, to ascertain whether a separate dining area might be required. It has been said, mostly in this regard by women, that the member for Sanderson makes their skin crawl. He makes my skin crawl; yet another in the long list of reasons why he should not have his seat in this Assembly.
I ask you in due course - and I am happy to talk with you about it informally, Madam Speaker - what might be done so that I am saved the potential embarrassment of dining with the member for Sanderson. There is a flip side, of course. Perhaps, because the member for Sanderson has been punished so little in the entire incident, a separate dining area might be allocated for him. I have never thought very much of his table manners but, certainly, as a result of this episode, I do not think very much of any of his manners. Indeed, I do not think he has any.
It is important, Madam Speaker, to put on the record some of what the member for Sanderson said. It is, by its nature, offensive. It is widely published, and I am quoting directly from the Northern Territory News, 14 July …
Madam SPEAKER: Before you do, Leader of the Opposition, I remind you that, just because something is published, the reading of it does not make it more or less parliamentary. While you can table documents containing such material, if the thing you are about to read is, in fact, in unparliamentary language, I ask you to consider not reading it.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. With respect, I do not believe that this particular comment that I am about to read - and there are more which probably are unparliamentary, but I will come back to that - from page 1 of the Northern Territory News 14 July 2006, is as follows:
- I have a very long tongue and I could use it on you and make you a very happy woman.
Madam Speaker …
Mr KNIGHT: Madam Speaker, I feel that is highly offensive …
Ms Carney: Yes, it is highly offensive, isn’t it? Isn’t it?
Madam SPEAKER: Order, order! Leader of the Opposition, order!
Mr KNIGHT: I find it highly offensive and unparliamentary language, Madam Speaker.
Ms Carney: Come in, spinner.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I consider that to be highly offensive. I ask you to withdraw that. You are able to table the document and you are also able to rephrase it so that members can get a feel of what it is you are saying without actually saying the words.
Dr Lim: It is ridiculous - changing rules of debate.
Ms CARNEY: Madam Speaker, I ask that you direct me to that part of standing orders, or equally obtain, with respect, advice from the Clerk in relation to your ruling? The comments are certainly offensive; however they have been published far and wide. I am very concerned that we have a parliamentary democracy in this country and, in our lovely Northern Territory, it would be a sad day, indeed, where we could not put on the Parliamentary Record matters of this gravity, and use direct quotations. There are no swear words there, Madam Speaker. Each and every one of those words, whilst not used in the structure that the member for Sanderson used, are in common parlance in the Northern Territory. I ask you, Madam Speaker, if you would be so kind to direct me to the relevant standing order or, equally, obtain advice from the Clerk because, with great respect, we are all at risk of getting to some pretty dangerous ground.
Madam SPEAKER: I appreciate the argument you are trying to mount here, Leader of the Opposition. I will take advice from the Clerk. I have actually had extensive conversations with him around this matter, but I will take some advice from the Clerk. My main issue is why I suggested in the original motion that it should actually contain the words that you might use if they were going to be unparliamentary, in which case they can be debated. The issue is that matters that are not in the original motion which may or may not be in unparliamentary language, can be debated, otherwise not. Also, simply because something is published and widely broadcast, it does not make it appropriate to be rebroadcast in the parliament. However, I will seek further advice from the Clerk.
Leader of the Opposition, the Clerk reminds me of Standing Order 62, and he recommends that you withdraw, rephrase, and table the document.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you very much.
Ms CARNEY: At your request, Madam Speaker, I withdraw the comments and replace them, if I may, with: ‘The member for Sanderson made a series of revolting and disgusting comments to a woman and another that were sexual in nature’. Can I table the documents at the end, Madam Speaker, because there are likely to be others?
Madam SPEAKER: Of course.
Ms CARNEY: What an irony it is that, what the member for Sanderson said - albeit when he was very drunk – and admitted, and what all of his colleagues admitted by implication is that what the member for Sanderson said, is unparliamentary. That is your ruling, Madam Speaker, and I accept that ruling.
Madam Speaker, by your very ruling at least, you have indicated your support, and the parliament’s support, of this motion, because it is – isn’t it, Madam Speaker? – unparliamentary for the member for Sanderson to have said in the way that he did. It is – isn’t it, Madam Speaker? - unparliamentary behaviour for the member for Sanderson to get so drunk at a function where he was representing the government and, in turn, the people, young and old, of the Northern Territory …
_______________
Visitors
Madam SPEAKER: Excuse me, Opposition Leader. Honourable members, I advise of the presence on the gallery of the Bees Creek Primary School Year 6/7 students – this is the second group – also accompanied by Gayle Purdue. On behalf of honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
_______________
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker. Is it not a fact that, when we are having this debate in the presence of very welcome young Territorians, we are talking not only about parliament and democracy, but we are also talking about what is unparliamentary. There is no doubt, by dint of your ruling and, therefore, the ruling of the Assembly, that I look forward to the unanimous support - perhaps except for the member for Sanderson. His behaviour as a member is variously described - we can add some of us knew it already – as ‘unparliamentary’. That is why the member for Sanderson should not be here. That is exactly why he should not be here.
We will, during the course of these sittings, be having a bit to say about the code of conduct. The Leader of Government Business said yesterday that the government has a code of conduct. Oh, no, you do not; he is still here! He is still here; that is, the member for Sanderson. Your Clayton’s code – I will talk about Clayton later. Let me refresh our memories for the benefit of new members and the newly-elected Deputy Speaker - and I congratulate him. Let me remind him and new members, in particular, and ourselves of what was said by the member for Arafura on 20 June 2002, when she talked about a code of conduct. She said:
- A code of conduct that underpins the professional standards of politicians, and one that says very clearly to members of our community that politicians are here serving them, not serving themselves; that we politicians are in this House to serve members of the community, not to serve ourselves. That is what this code of conduct very clearly spells out.
The member for Arafura went on to say:
The code of conduct has an enforceable set of standards which defines acceptable and unacceptable conduct in office, and provides for disciplinary and other action in cases of non-compliance.
Oh no, it does not! That was your worthy ambition and desire in 2002. In fact, you clung on to it in the lead-up to the 2001 election - yet another promise you have not delivered! Can you please point to - and the member for Arafura made reference to the, and I quote: ‘Legislative Assembly Members’ Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards Act’? It is not there. Therefore, when we are talking about our friend Clayton, we are talking about the code of conduct that Labor proposed in this House in 2002. It is clear that, because the member for Sanderson still sits in this House, even if there was an enforceable code of conduct as put forward by the government, they would either not enforce it or, by its nature, it would not be enforceable because this government, by its absolute arrogance – and it was interesting to hear the member for Wanguri use the word ‘humble’ before; not a word I would have associated with the member for Wanguri. However, I digress. This is an increasingly arrogant government.
It is also interesting that, when we had pages and pages of headlines on and after 14 July 2006 - in addition to the Chief Minister’s mind-numbingly pointless comments about what an interesting character the member for Sanderson was - not one Labor politician piped up and said: ‘We have a code of conduct’. I put this to members opposite: either you forgot that you had our friend Clayton floating around somewhere or, in the alternative, you were so indescribably embarrassed about it, not one of you dared to mention it.
In the couple of days before this incident hit the front page, the opposition reminded you about the promise you made about a code of conduct. Nothing was said. This hits the front pages, it continues up until fairly recently I think, which speaks volumes in itself, and not one Labor person said: ‘Oh, we have a code of conduct to deal with that’. You know why? Because our friend Clayton is meaningless and, also, you do not have the intestinal fortitude to follow through with what you have promised Territorians. We need only look at whistleblowers, a whole host of other promises that this government has not delivered. My, how things change! You people are becoming what you say, publicly and privately, you despise about the CLP. You have become what you always regarded with such contempt. Shame on you! Again, I digress, Madam Speaker.
I note that in the Northern Territory News on 16 July 2006 - I will go back; let us go to 15 July 2006. The Northern Territory News reported on the front page on that day that it undertook a random telephone survey of 100 Sanderson voters and they came out overwhelmingly in favour of his sacking. In other words, the majority of people in his electorate - that is, the electorate of Sanderson for whom I feel very sorry - want him removed. Even though the right thing to do was for him to resign and, in the alternative had he failed to do so, the Chief Minister should have ensured that he was removed from the party. You would have assumed that, based on those results, there was a bit of movement. Arguably, there has been some movement because we know people are talking about preselection, and the member for Sanderson had to run away for a month to get away from things instead of facing the music. However, his constituents want him out. I have been in Sanderson, I have spent a bit of time there and there is no doubt that they want him removed.
Let us move now to the NT News published on Sunday, 16 July …
Mr Henderson: Four people want him removed.
Mr Stirling interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order!
Ms CARNEY: You can keep going. I am having a very enjoyable time, thank you. The Sunday Territorian of 16 July was interesting. This speaks volumes about your lack of courage as a group and, particularly, your lack of courage as individuals. I quote from that publication:
- Meanwhile, the Sunday Territorian attempted to speak to a number of Labor politicians yesterday to see what they had to say about Mr Kiely’s behaviour. This was the result …
I am using their Christian and surnames because I am quoting:
- … Barbara McCarthy (Arnhem) did not return call. Marion Scrymgour (Arafura) did not return call. Matthew Bonson …
- … (Millner) did not return call. Trish Crossin, ALP Senator for the Northern Territory spoke briefly and gave a ‘no comment’. Kon Vatskalis (Casuarina) did not return call. Rob Knight (Daly) did not return call …
Mr VATSKALIS: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The Leader of the Opposition is quoting newspaper as a fact. What she is quoting is what she thinks is fact. The truth of the matter is that I was never contacted by anybody at any time. My phone number is in the book. If this is true I challenge her to actually prove what she says …
Ms CARNEY: Speaking to the point of order, Madam Speaker …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Chief Minister, resume your seat. There is no point of order. Minister, if you feel you have been misrepresented you can approach me later about making a personal explanation.
Mr VATSKALIS: Thank you, Madam Speaker, I will.
Ms CARNEY: You could have written to the NT News.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms CARNEY: I will go on, Madam Speaker:
- Rob Knight (Daly) …
The newly-elected Deputy Speaker:
- … did not return call. Ted Warren (Goyder) did not return call. Kerry Sacilotto (Port Darwin) did not return call. ALP member for Brennan, James Burke, who was in the corporate box on the day Mr Kiely allegedly made those offensive remarks, also failed to return our calls.
You losers, you cowards! You were running for cover but you knew you had nowhere to go. You had nowhere to go because one of your guys acted in a despicable and disgraceful manner. When you appointed him Deputy Chair on or about 29 June last year, I knew it was a bad call. You must have known it was a bad call and boy, oh boy, was it a shocking call!
We come to the member for Sanderson in his capacity as Deputy Speaker, and the gall of this Chief Minister to say that the member for Sanderson has been adequately dealt with is both staggering and disingenuous. Everyone knows that to be the case, even her colleagues with whom she is arguing, it seems, almost on a daily basis.
The Chief Minister has said that he paid the price. Oh no, he did not. This is a grub of a man who is able to …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! I find that comment highly offensive and ask that the Leader of the Opposition withdraw that remark.
Ms CARNEY: Yes, I do, Madam Speaker. In fact, I am not sure that I would describe him as a man because most of the men I know are decent men and he is not one of them. We will call him, perhaps ‘the tongue’ might be the way to go, Madam Speaker. The tongue from Sanderson …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! In the spirit of debate - this is a robust debate - this name calling is highly unparliamentary, highly offensive. Let us stick to the substantive nature of the motion and not indulge in bringing this parliament into disrepute by offensive name calling. I urge the member to withdraw.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I ask you to withdraw.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Madam Speaker, I withdraw ‘the tongue from Sanderson’. The member for Sanderson - and that is at best what he is, and he should not be - should do the decent thing: he should resign. His colleagues are, no doubt, ashamed of him; surely that is the case. The Chief Minister described him as an interesting character. I do not know what is interesting about being lewd, vulgar and offensive, but that is, of course, a matter for the Chief Minister.
The member for Sanderson has paid no price. The member for Sanderson holds his seat in the Legislative Assembly and he ought not to retain his seat. There has been reference to what is parliamentary and what is unparliamentary. Even by Labor’s ever-stretching standards, it is most unparliamentary …
Mr HENDERON: A point of order, Madam Speaker!
Ms CARNEY: … for a representative …
Mr HENDERSON: The Leader of the Opposition now has those offensive stickers placed on a parliamentary folder that she is flashing around the Chamber. She has been asked to withdraw and remove them. I ask you to have her remove those stickers from her folder.
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I have asked you on three occasions now to remove the stickers. Would you have them removed from the Chamber when your speech is completed?
Ms CARNEY: Yes, thank you, Madam Speaker. You actually asked me to remove one sticker, with respect and …
Madam SPEAKER: And there was a second one or the one sticker twice, was it?
Ms CARNEY: I removed the offending sticker. For present purposes I will turn it over. So crotchety are the …
Dr LIM: A point of order, Madam Speaker! May I request an extension of time for my colleague, the Leader of the Opposition, to complete her remarks?
Motion negatived.
Ms Carney: You gaggers!
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition has had half-an-hour of the time of this parliament to make her case. She has had plenty of time. This is not a gagging of the debate, but there are other people who would like to speak to this motion in the parliament today.
It is very interesting that, in this parliament, the Leader of the Opposition said that the member for Sanderson, who did something very wrong and very stupid - that I have put on the public record, and the member for Sanderson agrees with me. He does not feel great about it at all, but he agrees with me, and he knows that he did something very wrong and very stupid.
However, the Leader of the Opposition said that the member for Sanderson has paid no price for what he has done. As she recognises the importance of this parliament, the importance of the position of Deputy Speaker, the position of Chairman of Committees, she says that the member for Sanderson has paid no price. I argue strongly with her because the member for Sanderson, in a parliamentary context as a member of this parliament, has paid a very high price. He has lost a very important job in this parliament; that of Deputy Speaker. I challenge anyone in this parliament to say that it is not an important job. Yes, it is. The Chairman of Committees is also a very important job for the running of this parliament. It really is an absurd and almost contemptuous thing for the Leader of the Opposition to say that the member for Sanderson has paid no price because he has indeed.
I suppose the nub of the issue is that if a member of parliament makes a mistake, how high is the price they pay? I believe that for what the member of Sanderson did, to lose his position - a significant position in this parliament - is a very significant price to pay. He has had what he did made very public. The front page of the NT News and television bulletins have quoted what he said. Regarding the Leader of the Opposition saying she is sorry for the member of Sanderson’s family and she means them no harm, and then she continues to put the knife in to both the member for Sanderson and his family that, again, is a disingenuous comment.
The member for Sanderson has paid a very high price. As I have said on many occasions, what he did was very wrong and very stupid. However, to say that my only comment was that he is an interesting character – I was asked a number of questions and one of them was about the member for Sanderson generally, and I talked about his strengths. I said in this case what we had was a very disappointing weakness. There is no doubt about it, as a member of parliament, the member for Sanderson was returned very substantially at the last election. It is a real demonstration of his electorate supporting him against a very strong CLP candidate and a very strong campaign from the CLP. He has worked hard as a local member and, when it comes to whether he continues as a local member, the parliamentary process is that the people of Sanderson will decide the future of the member for Sanderson, and that is totally appropriate. It is part of our Westminster system and the democratic process and, knowing the member for Sanderson, I know he is working hard in that electorate. Yes, he has had a break. The weekend after this very regrettable incident happened, he was out working in his electorate, facing up to what people had to say.
Madam Speaker …
Ms Carney: It was a barbecue organised by him. How embarrassing was that? He told a whopper.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: We do make mistakes …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Sorry, Chief Minister. The Leader of the Opposition has accused the member for Sanderson of telling a lie and I ask her to withdraw.
Madam SPEAKER: I ask you to withdraw.
Ms CARNEY: Madam Speaker, I have used the term ‘whopper’.
Mr HENDERSON: No.
Ms Scrymgour: You said ‘lie’.
Madam SPEAKER: I am asking you to withdraw, Leader of the Opposition.
Ms CARNEY: I am sorry it is so offensive. I withdraw the term ‘whopper’. How very touchy you all are this morning.
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: You did actually call the member a liar. I would ask you to withdraw.
Ms CARNEY: It was no doubt right, but I will withdraw it, Madam Speaker.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you.
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, people do make mistakes; we all know that. For those of us who have been in this parliament for a number of years, members make mistakes. This is a job where any mistake gets a lot of publicity and, in this instance, the member for Sanderson did something that was very silly, very stupid, very wrong, and he has paid a price. I believe that that is an adequate price to pay. However, the judgment will be from the people of Sanderson at the next election. I know that the member for Sanderson has a great capacity to work hard to overcome what he did in July at the cricket. There is no backing away from that. I am not condoning it; no member on this side of the parliament is condoning it. The mistake was made and the member for Sanderson is paying the price. It is up to the member for Sanderson how hard he works and how he establishes and continues to establish himself as a very hard-working member for Sanderson.
There are a couple of issues that the Leader of the Opposition raised, calling our code of conduct a Clayton’s code of conduct. It is interesting that this code of conduct, the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards, is something that came from the Standing Orders Committee. To have the Leader of the Opposition condemn the work of her members on that standing committee is quite extraordinary.
Ms Carney: You have the numbers on that committee, just in case you forgot. You are being very silly.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, this work was done through the standing committee of this parliament. It was bought into this parliament …
Ms Carney: You are the Chief Minister. It was all yours. Do not be cute.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: This parliament debated that Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards, and there was no dissenting report. Those of us who have been in this place for a while would know that there are, from time to time, dissenting reports from committees where the members on one side or the other do not agree with what the report is.
Ms Carney: You are so arrogant you would not even bother reading it if, indeed, you are capable of reading.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: However, in this instance, there was unanimous agreement about the report. It was brought in here and it was certainly agreed to on the floor of this parliament. Now, the legislation is on its way.
Ms Carney: You said you did not have the legislation. Where is it?
Ms MARTIN: The Leader of the Opposition has said this is a poor code of conduct and, yet, her own side of the parliament supported this code of conduct. It is in line and in keeping with codes of conduct around Australia.
Ms Carney: Yours is so indescribably useless you need a better one.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: I doubt that, when the Leader of the Opposition says it is useless, she said that at the time. I doubt it. Did her members say at the time? I doubt it. We will go back through the Hansard and check. There was certainly agreement in this House that this was an effective code of conduct, and dealt with areas about conflicts of interest, declarations of interest, accountabilities, responsibilities, and it followed the whole outline and the code of conduct and ethical standards that we see in other parliaments around this country. It is an extraordinary hypocrisy, I suppose the word is, for the Leader of the Opposition to condemn this code of conduct when her own party members contributed towards it, agreed with what the code was, did not have a dissenting report and agreed to it when it was debated in this parliament …
Ms Carney: If that is all you have, it is embarrassing.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: It is all very well for the Leader of the Opposition to call it Clayton. She is condemning her own members by using words like that.
It is interesting; the Leader of the Opposition has also referred to the fact that she has been talking to the member for Sanderson’s electorate. And she has. ‘Jodeen Carney’s community forum in your area’. This is an invitation. It goes on a bit, but the relevant point is that she talked about the safety issues in the electorate, the problems of some antisocial behaviour, incidence of crime – this is the invitation. Then she said: ‘I would also like to know your views on this …’, meaning these antisocial and police matters, ‘… and other matters in your area. I also welcome your ideas on other things such as how you feel about the behaviour of your local member, Len Kiely, when he made …
Ms Carney: And boy, didn’t they tell us!
Ms MARTIN: … inappropriate and lewd sexual remarks to a 61-year-old woman at the cricket in a government sponsored box’. She told them when the time was. This was happening on 17 August 2006. It was for an hour at the golf club at Marrara. So …
Ms Carney: Do you know what we bothered to do? We bothered to ask people. You are so arrogant, you do not even go out anymore. You just come out of your ivory tower.
Ms MARTIN: This is the Leader of the Opposition’s interpretation. This is …
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Order! Leader of the Opposition, order!
Ms MARTIN: This has been all over the electorate of Sanderson. If the words of the Opposition Leader are to be taken at face value, there is a lot of concern in Sanderson about the behaviour of the member. That is what the Opposition Leader indicated in here. Can I just say that this meeting - the invitation, I remind you, went all over the electorate of Sanderson, popped in those letterboxes …
Ms Carney: No, we missed a couple of spots actually, but we are going to fix that.
Ms MARTIN: Popped in those letterboxes. Do you know how many people attended, Madam Speaker?
Ms Carney: Not many. We do not have the arrogance …
Ms MARTIN: I can do it on two hands. Seven, Madam Speaker.
Ms Carney: … of you. We will consult with everyone and anyone wherever they are and whoever they may be. Unlike you, Chief Minister …
Ms Scrymgour: Sit down!
Ms MARTIN: Oh, we are getting a bit rattled!
Ms CARNEY: We are not too proud. Not like you, you arrogant so and so!
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, I am only saying seven, indicating the number, because the words of the Leader of the Opposition indicated that there was a groundswell of concern about what had happened; of objection to their local member. When you look at who came to this meeting where she indicated and was very specific about wanting to talk about it - seven people and three were ones we sent along.
Ms CARNEY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! Firstly, the Chief Minister is wrong; there were more than seven but not many. Secondly, she should tell the truth. Unlike the government, we will consult uphill …
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order.
Ms CARNEY: … and down dale in our efforts to win the next Territory election. More importantly, why don’t you talk about how many people came and saw us when we were sitting outside his office and your electorate officer came out, rang the big four, presumably, and said: ‘Oh, Jodeen Carney is here’. You are weak, you are useless!
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition! There is no point of order, and I ask you not to make frivolous points of order.
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, it is an important point I am making, because the Opposition Leader is making the issue …
Ms Carney: What about NT News and the 100 voters; 100 people?
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition! Leader of the Opposition!
Ms MARTIN: … that the people of Sanderson are appalled – she used the word ‘appalled’ - at their local member. While I do not resile from the fact that what the member for Sanderson did was wrong and very stupid, the Opposition Leader is saying that the people of Sanderson are very disturbed by this. It is important to say that, when she did call a public meeting to, in part deal about this, seven people turned up …
Ms Carney: What about his letter sent to everyone? They were not concerned? Why did you send them a letter? Come on, get serious for a change!
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Leader of the Opposition!
Ms MARTIN: …and three of those people we asked to go along. In fact, there were four.
Ms Carney: That is a lie! That is a lie, Madam Speaker! The Chief Minister, I know she …
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Leader of the Opposition …
Ms Carney: … has trouble telling the truth, but she should apologise …
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, I have asked you several times to cease interjecting. I ask you also to not make frivolous points of order …
Ms Carney: They are being pretty provocative, Madam Speaker, but I take your ruling, thank you.
Madam SPEAKER: Thank you. I have a bit of a sore throat so I cannot call order too many times. I may have to use the gavel. Chief Minister, please continue.
Ms MARTIN: Thank you, Madam Speaker. As a footnote to the occasion, obviously, the Leader of the Opposition was expecting many people to attend. Evidently, there was mountains of food. I thought it was very generous that everyone was offered food in a ‘doggie bag’ to take home. I thought in this difficult circumstance, the Leader of the Opposition made the most of it, and those who came were given food to take home with them.
Mrs Miller: You are deflecting away from the whole issue.
Ms MARTIN: It is a serious issue. This side of the parliament takes those kinds of comments that were made very seriously. There is a price to pay and the member for Sanderson has paid that price. The member for Sanderson has apologised to the security guard involved and he has had his conduct put in the public arena, analysed and condemned and I believe that is a high price to pay.
The ultimate judgment for the member for Sanderson is his electorate, and the way that he works it over the next three years will be absolutely critical. He knows that; he knows that entirely. This is an issue in our public life where there are incidents from time to time. I have been around public life in the Territory watching parliamentarians for a long time and, yes, they do happen and, yes, they are unfortunate. Yes, parliamentarians pay a high price for whether it is a speeding fine or the things that, if you are not a parliamentarian do not get on the front page of the paper, but do if you are. It can be something like a speeding fine. It can be any blip that happens at a public function. Yes, they are not to be tolerated but, yes, it is often tough being a member of parliament.
Madam Speaker, this motion, while it deals with a serious issue, will not be supported by this side of the House.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, trying to come to terms with this debate is fairly difficult because there is a risk that speaking on such a matter one can become ‘holier than though’ or very sanctimonious. I certainly do not agree with the comments the member for Sanderson made. Not only are they offensive to women, they are unbecoming of men. That is an important matter that should be raised.
However, all of us make mistakes in life. When I say that, in no way do I mean to appease what the member for Sanderson said. I also noticed in parliament, in my time as Deputy Speaker, that there have been statements or insults thrown across this floor by the then opposition minister for Health and, at times, Attorney-General which, I believe, were also offensive. I do not mean to repeat those. At times, we have to be very careful when judging other people that we also look at our own faults. I am no more perfect than anyone else in this House.
The issue of parliamentary codes of conduct can only go so far. Much of the parliamentary code of conduct relates to one’s financial arrangements or the way one deals with committees, etcetera. The personal code of behaviour is very hard to put down in written form. I have read the CLP version of the code of conduct. It would worry me greatly to see that there would be a review board that could have the majority party on it that could actually kick someone out of this House. I imagine that could be used for very sinister political motives.
I believe, as the Chief Minister has said, that the ultimate test of whether a person should stand here is at the election. I suppose I have the advantage of being independent and, therefore, I am not responsible to a party. That does not mean that a party cannot kick that person out; perhaps that should have been the case in this particular episode. In the end, the member for Sanderson has to stand before the public, whether he is an Independent member or a member of the Labor Party.
I, therefore, find it very difficult to support this motion, not because I disagree with it, but because, in my time as Deputy Speaker and my short time in parliament, I have heard many things said. Even before I was in parliament, there were many parliamentarians who did things, very famous things which were in the news when the CLP was in government, and those people were not kicked out of parliament.
I have heard what the Opposition Leader had to say and I do understand that what was said was extremely offensive. I imagine the women members of the Labor Party, as well as the women members of the CLP, found those comments especially offensive. While we condemn people, if we condemn people for the rest of our lives, have we forgotten an important part of our social fabric, which is forgiveness?
I do not think Len would call me ‘best mate’ because I know Len occasionally has a few shots at me here and there. However, should we not give people a chance to see whether they can change their ways? If a member has an alcohol problem, should we not at least give that person a chance to see whether he can overcome those problems? If that member has treated women badly - as I think the member has - and shown a lack of respect for them, should we not see whether he can win back that respect by what he does?
He has suffered public embarrassment, and it is much more embarrassing for a member of parliament than it is for an ordinary person. Who remembers when Marshall Perron’s son was involved in an accident in a car? Who gets the blame? Marshall Perron. I am sure the Speaker might remember a certain occasion where she was headlined, too. Much of the time through no fault of our own, we are brought into an embarrassing situation. I am always aware of that and, I suppose, one day I might do something that I live to regret. However, I hope also that people at least would give me a chance to make good for what I had done wrong.
Yes, we are playing politics today. I understand there is good mileage in what the opposition is doing with the motion that has been moved about the member for Sanderson. That is politics. As I said before, the Treasurer said this House was a house of politics but, gee whiz, we are only human beings in here regardless of our political jackets we wear at times. Sometimes, we have to show society that not only do we condemn, but we also have the ability to forgive. That might take a long time and, perhaps, the people of Sanderson will not forgive. They might not forget, and that will be up to the member for Sanderson to sort out.
I say: let us be careful. Whilst we condemn the member for Sanderson, let us make sure we are not one-sided in our condemnation, that we have not done things that we should be ashamed of. As I said, I have sat in that Chair, and I have heard language for which I would at least have given a 50 m penalty in Aussie Rules for - at least - and a yellow card in soccer, and maybe even a red card. But not much if no more was said about it.
Madam Speaker, as much as I support the sentiment of what the motion is saying, the motion on its own, without taking into account the broader picture of behaviour, is something I will not support. I will not be voting on this matter.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, I support this motion. However, before I speak about it, a couple of proverbs have gone through my head: ‘There but for the grace of God go I’, and ‘People in glass houses should not throw stones’. Having those two points in my head, I propose to be cautious in my comments.
I believe the member for Sanderson did wrong. Not only was it offensive to all Territorians - I believe all men and all women were very offended - but it was also the way that the Chief Minister dealt with the problem which, I believe, reflected heavily on this government and on this parliament. That also needs to be addressed. This is also a debate about the Chief Minister’s standards, or what sort of standards she expects of her members. I believe that needs to be addressed also.
The member for Sanderson was at a public function, a work day, a government-funded corporate day where, I am told, another parliamentary colleague of his and three other people were in a corporate box and had consumed some 100 Crownies amongst them. I might be wrong in that, but that is what I was told. That is excessive. As a consequence of his intoxication, he made very lewd remarks which were found by the recipient to be very offensive and she made a complaint.
Had she not complained, there, by the grace of God, nothing would have happened. However, he was caught. Then he said he could not remember it. Why? He does not say; he denied that he was drunk, but he could not remember. Anybody would say that 100 Crownies drunk by five people would make you quite intoxicated. Alcohol does not change one’s personality. Alcohol, medically speaking, is an inhibitant, so it inhibits or takes away your inhibitions. In other words, you then become what you truly are. In fact, it reveals your personality.
That is the tragedy of the whole episode: perhaps, deep down, that is what the member for Sanderson is. No doubt, the same would be said of Mel Gibson after his comments about Jews. He did not know where it came from, it must have been in there somewhere. If the member for Sanderson has a drinking problem, he ought to get it sorted out. Whether he did or not when he went to America - perhaps he went to the Betty Ford Clinic for all I know - he needs to sort this out. If he does not, it will continue to plague him and also the rest of us. You wonder why people in the Northern Territory believe that politicians are the lowest of the low. It is our behaviour that brings that upon us. It is just not appropriate for us to behave in such a manner.
However, I come back to how the Chief Minister dealt with it. I believe she let all parliamentarians down when she failed to recognise the magnitude of the problem and demand the resignation of the member for Sanderson from the Labor Party. Yes, as the Chief Minister said earlier, he will have to face his electorate. Of course he does, but he can do that as a person outside the Labor Party. Surely, the Labor Party does not condone his behaviour? Surely, the Labor Party does not say: ‘We will sit here and support him quietly because he is one of us’? If he is one of you, then you are going to be tarnished by his behaviour. I do not hear anybody else supporting the member for Sanderson. Perhaps it is time that we all agreed that what he did was very wrong and he should not be part of your party. However, because the Chief Minister said: ‘No, I am not going to sack him’, you all sit back and take it on the chin.
Whether the member for Sanderson retired or resigned as the Deputy Speaker and Chairman of the PAC, this behaviour goes beyond his official position within parliament. This behaviour reflects on the behaviour of every individual member of parliament in this Chamber. That is what it is about. The Chief Minister failed to deal with that in a way that tells Territorians that her standards are better than she has demonstrated. I received an e-mail when this whole issue blew up. I will read some paragraphs out of this e-mail because it summarises my thoughts on the matter:
- I have been always led to believe that when someone is placed in a position of trust and, subsequently, a position which commands a very high area of responsibility, that that person should conduct themselves in a manner which sets a good example for the rest of the community.
I further quote:
- What I quantify as a good example, being well-behaved, firstly and foremost, and be above the enactment of crude and rude behaviour, especially in the public eye. There are boundaries which are interpreted by different people to different levels. I certainly do not mean to the outer limits but, certainly, to the limits of common respect and courtesy.
- A member of parliament that cannot control his behavioural drinking and, in doing so is not capable of controlling his manners, as has been displayed by the member who is now known nationally infamously to act in a manner so detrimental to any organisation with half an ounce of self-respect.
If his party condones this sort of action and asserts so by the act of not removing this person from their party and your parliament, then all should likewise be removed from parliament. If his party, nationwide, agrees with his decision to ignore the facts and incidences, then the same should apply to them all equally.
This party often boasts that they are there to care for and enhance their living standards. I can hardly imagine that this particular incidence [sic] does that.
- It is noted that this person has, in the past, established precedence in his drinking habits and behaviour … and has, undoubtedly, displayed a rather more serious situation this time ... Would you not exercise commonsense and decency, and remove this ailment from the responsible position that he has clearly displayed that he is incapable of administering.
That is really the gist of what has happened in this sad event. We all agree the member will have to face his electorate and the consequences of his actions. However, the leader of his party needs to be more decisive than to just say: ‘Oh well, he is an unusual man’. The Chief Minister was disappointed in the member; she said he had done something that was both stupid and wrong. To paraphrase the Chief Minister, she said that him resigning from those positions is enough punishment.
Is it? Why are we elected as parliamentarians? We are elected as parliamentarians, both as representatives of our electorate as much as it is to be a leader within our community. The behaviour of the member is hardly behaviour one would expect of a leader. For the Chief Minister to then condone the behaviour by a lack of action further reinforces the fact that leadership is just not there. Therefore, it is important for this parliament to support this motion to say that the member has failed in his duties as a parliamentarian, has disgraced the standing of parliamentarians, and he ought not be here. Of course, we cannot sack the member from parliament; it is up to his electorate. However, we can go as far as the one step just removed, which is for him to be sacked by his party so that he is there on his own to face his electorate without his party’s support.
For the Chief Minister to attack the Leader of the Opposition, not defending the member for Sanderson, really makes no sense. This is not about the Leader of the Opposition, it is about the situation that the member for Sanderson has created for himself. That is what it is about. She should have addressed the debate rather than to talk about the Leader of the Opposition. I suppose if it came down to the crunch the member for Sanderson could resign, but that is up to him. I cannot force him to resign. Nobody can do that to him until the end of the term.
The polling that was conducted by the Northern Territory News - in fact, I believe it was also done on radio in Alice Springs, if I recall - overwhelmingly thought that the member for Sanderson should not be in parliament. I say to the member for Sanderson, that maybe this is when you need to take into consideration that your time is up, and it is time to move on to other things that may be of more value to you.
The Chief Minister alluded to the Leader of the Opposition’s community forums. Obviously, people out there cared about the problem. Obviously, they made the effort to go out to the community forums to air their views about this. Many of our members doorknocked the electorate of Sanderson as well. Believe you me, universally they condemned the member for Sanderson for his actions. Many were public servants who live in the northern suburbs and were too scared to sign a petition or be seen publicly saying those words that they condemn his behaviour, because they know the potential consequences that they will suffer if they were seen to be out in public supporting the opposition’s activities in this manner. However, it is their personal view that the member for Sanderson has done wrong and the consequences of his actions have not been commensurate with what he did.
That is really the crucial issue: that the consequences of his actions have not been commensurate with what he did. He has committed a crime; he has done the time - that is what he says. The Chief Minister of the day allowed him to get away with it. It is no wonder there is so much loss of respect for the Chief Minister over this matter. If the Chief Minister were thinking hard about this, she should think right through the whole matter and say: ‘What is happening? My whole party is collapsing around me’.
I have the memo from the member for Millner - God knows who composed it, who contrived it, who initiated it and who sent it to the five six, or seven members who received them. God knows what is happening. Why did somebody leak it? There has to be somebody within the party and the media …
Mr HENDERSON: A point of order, Madam Speaker! This motion is very specific in its context to the member for Sanderson. We have spent about two-and-a-quarter hours of parliamentary time on this motion; we have agreed to debate it. I ask the member to stick to the contents of this motion because there is other business that the House needs to pursue. I urge you to bring him to the contents of the motion.
Dr LIM: Speaking to the point of order, Madam Speaker, the Chief Minister ranged far and wide in her so-called defence against this motion and attacked the Leader of the Opposition. I am talking about the Chief Minister’s defence, something the Chief Minister did only less than three-quarters of an hour ago. I am surely allowed to comment about how she conducted her defence against this motion.
Madam SPEAKER: There is no point of order, but I ask you to be as relevant as possible, bearing in mind that there are only a few minutes left.
Dr LIM: I take that advice, Madam Speaker. I will keep my comments very relevant. What I am saying is that the Chief Minister should be asking herself why we had the member for Millner memo; why, allegedly, the member for Macdonnell leaked that memo to the media; why the member for Sanderson behaved the way he did.
Mr STIRLING: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The member just cannot make unsubstantiated allegations on the floor of parliament as fact. Where does he get this notion that the member for Macdonnell leaked any memo?
Members interjecting.
Mr STIRLING: At least preface it with some semblance of it being an allegation. To just declare it as fact is unbelievable, and he should withdraw.
Dr LIM: No, Madam Speaker, speaking to the point of order again …
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Greatorex, I ask you to withdraw that. You can rephrase.
Dr LIM: Well, the Centralian Advocate …
Madam SPEAKER: Can you please withdraw and then you can rephrase?
Dr LIM: I withdraw, Madam Speaker, and rephrase, probably even more pointedly, that the Centralian Advocate reported that the member for Macdonnell leaked the memo.
Mr Stirling: Oh, now we know it is true. Of course! Sorry! I did not realise the Centralian Advocate reported it. Oh, that makes it true.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Members interjecting.
Mr Stirling: Ring your mate at 8HA; he will run it!
Madam SPEAKER: Order, Deputy Chief Minister!
Dr LIM: To recap on the point I was trying to make, Madam Speaker, there was the leaked memo from the member for Millner. The Centralian Advocate reported that the member for Macdonnell leaked the memo to the media ...
Mr Henderson: What does this have to do with the member for Sanderson?
Dr LIM: The behaviour of the member for Sanderson in this current debate surely must tell the Chief Minister that there is continuing disregard for her authority. That is what it is. Therefore, the Chief Minister needs to re-establish that authority by demanding the resignation of the member for Sanderson. You have to do that to try to re-establish your authority within your party. Then, perhaps, you need to go one step further and support this motion that this House sanctions the member for Sanderson. Then you will be showing some leadership for your party, showing that you are truly not only distressed but so absolutely disgusted by what he did. It is something that no parliamentarian should ever stoop to.
If alcohol does that to you then, maybe, you should be refraining from drinking at all. It is not that I am a wowser. If people choose to drink, that is fine, but they must understand the consequences there are. I repeat: alcohol does not alter your personality; all it does is take away the inhibitions that keep you behaving in an appropriate manner. When those inhibitions are removed because of alcohol, then your true personality comes to the fore and, sometimes, that is very ugly. In this case, it has been very ugly. Therefore, this House needs to express that opinion and tell the member for Sanderson it is time to move on.
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Visitors
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I draw you attention to the presence in the gallery of Japanese exchange students from Taminmin High School accompanied by Liz Short. On behalf of all honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
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Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, the government will not be supporting this motion. I will be brief in my comments.
I start my comments by saying that all of us here who have been elected to this parliament have a very big responsibility to the people who have put their trust in us to represent them. On the other side of the coin, all of us are human and we all make mistakes. The Territory is a small community, we have small electorates in the numbers of people in our seats. The moment any of the 25 members of this House step outside our front door, we are in the public eye. Any misdemeanour or mistake that we make is very quickly publicly known.
One of the strengths of this community and the small size of our electorates is that our constituents do get to know us personally. We, as local members, if we are doing our job properly, get to know our constituents on a personal basis. A lot of friendships result from the opportunity to meet people as constituents that you otherwise would not have met. Our constituents do get to know us as individuals, our families, our likes, our interests and our personalities. There are not too many places around Australia where constituents get to know their local members to the degree that they do here.
In the event that the member for Sanderson has made a pretty big mistake - and he is a friend of mine and I know the family - we all make mistakes in life and he has apologised. I believe the strength of the man is that, not only has he apologised to the broader community but, very quickly, he apologised in person to the lady concerned. I thought that not only was that the right thing to do, but it was done very quickly, before the media got right into the issue. The member for Sanderson did the right thing and the lady concerned accepted that apology.
As the Chief Minister said, the ultimate sanction in all of this is the court of public opinion that we all face every three or four years come election time. I know the member for Sanderson will be going back to his electorate and working very hard to continue to hold the trust of the people who supported him so overwhelmingly in the last election, the next time round. The strength of our system is that, if his constituents decide that he has not paid a significant enough price, then his constituents will certainly let him know about that when they vote at the next Territory election.
I found the comments from the Leader of the Opposition today in support of her motion to be pretty sanctimonious, certainly very shrill and sometimes hysterical. She talked about her heartfelt sorrow towards the member for Sanderson’s wife and family, and said, hand on heart, ‘I am being really sincere about this’. Well, at the end of the day we, as members of parliament, are all politicians, and the sanctimonious way she said that and the hypocrisy is evidenced in the fact that she is playing politics with this.
I will point local members to this flyer which was distributed letterbox by letterbox throughout the electorate of Sanderson some 24 hours after the front page of the newspaper revealed the story. There is no attribution on this flyer to the Country Liberal Party - no attribution whatsoever - yet we know that it was distributed by Country Liberal Party members. One of those members, who is high profile, was caught red-handed about 10 pm distributing these flyers. If the Leader of the Opposition wants to talk about cowardice, then I say that she should have the courage of her own convictions. If the Country Liberal Party is going to be putting this sort of rubbish in peoples’ letterboxes, then at least they should have the guts to attribute themselves to it and not do it in an anonymous and cowardly fashion. Therefore, the sincere and heartfelt sorrow that the Leader of the Opposition is portraying to the member for Sanderson’s family and his children is nothing but sanctimonious nonsense, because she does not have the courage of her own convictions to attribute her party to some pretty scurrilous allegations that went out.
The CLP have form on this. Prior to the last election, on the Thursday night, there were similar extraordinarily offensive flyers that went into the northern suburbs about the bill that was passed on the age of consent …
Ms CARNEY: A point of order, Madam Speaker! The Leader of Government Business, when my colleague, the member for Greatorex, was making his contribution …
Mr Stirling: Yes, but this is interesting.
Ms CARNEY: I will start again. Madam Speaker, when my colleague, the member for Greatorex, was making his contribution, the Leader of Government Business called a point of order on the basis that my colleague should keep his remarks relevant. Likewise, I ask that you direct the member for Wanguri to keep his remarks relevant. It cuts both ways.
Madam SPEAKER: Indeed, Leader of the Opposition. In fact, I allowed the member for Greatorex to continue with his remarks as, indeed, I will with the Leader of Government Business.
Mr HENDERSON: Thank you, Madam Speaker. The Leader of the Opposition is very touchy about this. I do not have that particular flyer. However, I will produce it at another time and another day. It was similarly extraordinarily offensive. I certainly took some preliminary legal advice about the contents of that flyer which were not attributed to the CLP. We subsequently know that they were funded and distributed by the Country Liberal Party prior to the last election. They do have form.
For the Leader of the Opposition - who actually stood on this side of the parliament to support the amendments to that particular legislation - and her party to put out such highly offensive and potentially slanderous material around the northern suburbs - and she still attaches herself to that party - I find quite amazing, hence, my comments about being sanctimonious.
The member for Sanderson has certainly paid a high price. The member for Sanderson has stood down from a very prestigious position of Deputy Speaker and will be out amongst his electorate seeking their trust and confidence to return him again at the time of the next election. However, in all of this, a member of this House has made a mistake. He has apologised for that mistake and behaviour, not only to the public, to his electorate, but to the individual concerned. For the Country Liberal Party to continue to seek to gain electoral advantage out of this certainly puts paid to the Leader of the Opposition’s comments that she has sincere and heartfelt sorrow towards the member for Sanderson’s wife and his family. She does not. She will continue to run this; that is politics. The government will be not supporting this motion.
Mr KIELY (Sanderson): Madam Speaker ...
Ms Carney: Oh, we do hear from him? You brave boy!
Mr KIELY: Nothing to be afraid of here.
Madam Speaker, being the member for Sanderson is the greatest honour of my professional life. Working and achieving things for the constituents of the electorate of Sanderson gives me a great deal of satisfaction. In working for my community, we have achieved much.
I know my behaviour at the international cricket game in July was unacceptable. I have apologised to the individual in question and to the constituents of Sanderson for what happened. As a consequence, I have lost the position of Deputy Speaker and Chairman of Committees of the Legislative Assembly, and I accept that. This is a setback for me but, in light of the unacceptability of my behaviour, it is appropriate that I incur these serious sanctions.
I understand that the opposition wants to make political mileage out of these events; that is politics, I accept it. These events have been difficult for my family, and I thank them for their fantastic support. I am sure that they do not need your helping little hand, Leader of the Opposition.
I also thank the residents of Sanderson for their words of encouragement, and I will not let you down. My job is to work hard for the electorate of Sanderson and I intend to do just that.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, what an extraordinarily disappointing contribution from everyone on the government side. I will deal with each of them.
The Chief Minister’s contribution - well, there is not a lot that can be said about it, other than the fact that it was light on; and that is being overly gracious. The Chief Minister has firmly attached herself to the member for Sanderson. She has made a number of tactical or political errors in recent times, hence the growing disunity amongst her colleagues. It was a mistake, Chief Minister, to attach yourself in the way that you did to the member for Sanderson.
It was also a mistake on your part, if I may say, to give us a lesson on consulting with the Northern Territory population. We are an opposition of four. We were slogged, pounded, at the last election. The only way for this Country Liberal Party is up; the only way for the Australian Labor Party Northern Territory Branch is down. I am not too proud to be consulting with Territorians. In fact, I would be a very unwise Opposition Leader in all of the circumstances if I failed to do so. That is why I am not too proud to stand with my mobile office consulting with the people of Sanderson.
The Chief Minister is silly in the extreme if she thinks that we do not know that they send little Labor people out to our community consultations. No doubt, the Chief Minister would have received information that I was very polite. Indeed, I am always polite to members of the Australian Labor Party, save and except the members for Wanguri and Sanderson, for reasons which are blindingly obvious. If the Chief Minister’s best shot is to take the mickey out of the CLP because we are consulting, then keep going. You have become what you say you despised in the Country Liberal Party. You have become extremely arrogant and you govern by stealth. That is why your colleagues do not have the confidence they once had in you. So, bring it on. If you want to take the mickey because we are consulting, keep doing it because it is to our advantage and to your detriment.
Before I leave our consultation with the people of Sanderson, in relation to the mobile office, I think we went there maybe five or six times around the electorate, some of them pre-advertised, some of them not. Certainly it was the case that there was overwhelming support for the removal of the member for Sanderson. Similarly, in the event that members of government need further reminding, there was a - albeit a sample - poll undertaken by the Northern Territory News. We know that the government is hurting on this issue, which is why they went to such lengths to spin the Neighbourhood Watch barbecue as a testimonial to the member for Sanderson. The amount of rage and indignation that arose from that exercise, which was one of political spin, will remain with government.
The member for Sanderson was very disappointing with his contribution, although it is not the case that I would have expected more from him because I - and I know his colleagues and increasingly his constituents - are getting used to expecting so little of him. The Leader of Government Business has said, apparently with hand on heart: ‘We all make mistakes, and the member for Sanderson made a mistake’.
Madam Speaker and members of this Assembly, this is not about a mistake, this is about character. It is not about being an interesting character; it is about lack of character. It is a lack of character. I do not think that using the disgraceful language used by the member for Sanderson in relation to this woman and another woman in the corporate box, was a mistake.
I will preface what I am about to say very strongly by saying that not for a moment - and members will leap - do I associate the member for Sanderson with violent men. I want to make that very clear. By way of an analogy - and I do not put it any higher than that - violent men - let us pick the worst at the end of the spectrum a rapist. Rapists go to court and, on occasion, they will say, as indeed other violent men on occasion say through their lawyers, it was a mistake and they regret what they did.
I have always found that an interesting submission that I have heard in courts over the years, because I cannot for the life of me understand how you can mistakenly rape someone, or I cannot understand how you can mistakenly beat another human being. Nor can I understand how you can mistakenly use the language used by the member for Sanderson - drunk, sober or otherwise - about this woman. It speaks volumes about the member for Sanderson’s lack of character and how he regards woman. I find that, perhaps more than any other aspect of this tawdry business, the most offensive.
I should say, however, that it is not just a women’s issue, and it would be a mistake for all of us to assume that that is the case. This is an issue that has - and government deny it all they like - pretty much consumed the population of Darwin; everyone has been talking about it. There are a few expressions that have now come into the Territory vernacular. One is: ‘Oh, you’re not going do a Len Kiely, are you?’ I hope that the member for Sanderson, when he entered this parliament, thought that his legacy might amount to more than that.
The member for Sanderson sent a letter of apology to his constituents. It was dated 15 July, just before he took off on his holiday. He wrote, and I quote the first paragraph:
- I am writing to you to apologise for my behaviour at an official function that was offensive to a member of the public.
A member of the public? No, Madam Speaker. It was not merely offensive to ‘a member of the public’; it was deeply offensive to every Territorian save and except for those crude people who sent - and I think there were only about two or three of them - text messages into the Northern Territory News. Yes, the member for Sanderson will be judged by his electorate. However, there is such a high standard required of parliamentarians. I agree with the Leader of Government Business that it is difficult for all of us almost on a daily basis. However, there is something fundamental about the member for Sanderson’s conduct, his behaviour, his views, his attitudes before, during and since this incident, that make him a person not fit to hold a seat in this parliament.
Madam Speaker, I would like support for the motion. I am not sure, notwithstanding the divisions that are going on in the government at the moment, whether anyone will be brave enough to cross the floor, but I move that the motion now be put and I will call a division.
Madam SPEAKER: The question is that the motion be put.
Motion agreed to.
Madam SPEAKER: The question now is that the motion as presented by the Leader of the Opposition be agreed to.
The Assembly divided:
Ayes 3 Noes 18
Ms Carney Ms Anderson
Dr Lim Mr Bonson
Mrs Miller Mr Burke
Dr Burns
Mr Henderson
Mr Kiely
Mr Knight
Ms Lawrie
Ms Martin
Mr McAdam
Ms McCarthy
Mr Natt
Ms Sacilotto
Ms Scrymgour
Mr Stirling
Dr Toyne
Mr Vatskalis
Mr Warren
Motion negativated.
MOTION
Standing Orders Committee –
Change of Membership
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business): Madam Speaker, I move that the member for Brennan, Mr Burke, be discharged from the service of the Standing Orders Committee and the member for Daly, Mr Knight, be appointed in his stead.
Motion agreed to.
MOTION
Public Accounts Committee –
Change of Membership
Public Accounts Committee –
Change of Membership
Mr HENDERSON (Leader of Government Business: Madam Speaker, I move that the member for Sanderson, Mr Kiely, be discharged from the service of the Public Accounts Committee and the member for Brennan, Mr Burke, be appointed in his stead.
Motion agreed to.
VISITORS
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I advise you of the presence in the gallery of participants of the public tour program. On behalf of all honourable members, I extend to you a very warm welcome.
Members: Hear, hear!
PERSONAL EXPLANATION
Member for Goyder
Member for Goyder
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I have given permission to the member for Goyder to make a personal explanation. As is the custom, I ask that members listen to the explanation in silence.
Mr WARREN (Goyder): Madam Speaker, during this morning’s debate over the appointment of the new Deputy Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition stated that ‘The member for Wanguri needs to have a chat with the member for Stuart …’, then went on to say: ‘… I suggest, because he can get the name of a good supplier of a hearing aid’.
Pursuant to Standing Order 62, I find that comment and the obvious inference offensive. I find that unbecoming from a fellow parliamentarian ...
Ms Carney: You find that offensive?
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr WARREN: Yes.
Ms Carney: You find that offensive?
Madam SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition!
Mr WARREN: The Leader of the Opposition clearly knows it is inappropriate for a member of this parliament to make a disparaging reference to a fellow member’s physical disability. It is just as offensive to make a snide or disparaging racial remark as it is offensive to make a snide or disparaging sectarian remark, and equally offensive to make a snide or disparaging sexual remark.
As the Leader of the Opposition clearly knows, the member for Stuart wears a hearing aid, as do I. We need these hearing aids to go about our business in an effective manner. There is also a very large section of members of our Northern Territory community who have a disability and are trying to go about their daily lives. I am sure they do not appreciate having one of their elected representatives mock someone with a disability - an elected member who bizarrely sees that mockery as humorous. This standard of behaviour is unacceptable for a member of this parliament.
Members: Hear, hear!
MINISTERIAL REPORTS
Darwin Cup Carnival 2006
Darwin Cup Carnival 2006
Mr STIRLING (Racing, Gaming and Licensing): Madam Speaker, today I pay tribute to all those who worked so hard to deliver the Darwin Cup Carnival 2006, which has established itself nationally as a significant racing and social event. The racing carnival is also developing interest at an international level.
The Darwin Turf Club’s Carlton Darwin Cup Carnival commenced on 8 July 2006, culminating with the running of the Carlton Darwin Cup on Monday, 7 August 2006. Total carnival prize money was $1.2m. This year, the Schweppes Palmerston Sprint prize money increased by $15 000 to $85 000.
In what has become a growing feature of the racing carnival, we were well attended by visiting jockeys, trainers and racing officials. Visiting jockeys included Peter Mertens, Nash Rawiller, Robert Thompson, Nathan Stanley, Brian Johns, Shane Scriven and Neill Payne. I have to mention Neill Payne because he rode Alice Springs galloper Picayune to a sensational victory in the Special Conditions Handicap early in the carnival, the horse standing the leader 18 lengths in the 1600 m event - a big win.
Ex-local jockey now based in Adelaide, Scott Leckey, also rode during the carnival. Visiting trainers included Bruce McLaughlan from Queensland who trains Barrage of Fortune, an outstanding filly, and John Hickmont and Paula Trenwith from South Australia. Paula is an outstanding young trainer and trained Darwin Cup winner, Nozi, ridden by Adelaide jockey, Shayne Cahill. I do not know that I have seen a trainer more thrilled with a win, next to myself, than Paula Trenwith. We hope she comes back; she said she will.
The carnival’s national profile was again highlighted by visiting race callers Darren MacCauley, Western Australia; Terry Bailey, Victoria; and Colin McNiff from Tasmania. Visiting celebrities included well known horse trainer David Hayes; Rugby League legend Alfie Langer; legendary jockey, Scobie Breasley - now in his 94th year, I think, and looking as hale and hearty as ever, and his daughter, Loretta, accompanying him; an another legendary jockey, Brent Thompson; and Australian golfing legend, Jack Newton.
Channel 7 media personality, Mark Beretta, was in Darwin and provided some national coverage on the Sunrise program. Approval was given for 27 interstate bookmakers to stand over the cup weekend. A record crowd of around 19 000 on cup day included people catered for in 38 corporate marquees set up at the race course. TVN provided national coverage of the day’s racing, and SKY Channel provided coverage in New Zealand for the first time.
Unitab turnover for the cup race was up 7% on last year and 10% for the day.
Another highlight of the carnival was the Darwin Cup Gala Ball held on the lawns of SKYCITY. Around 2400 patrons attended the ball. For the cup carnival, it was a culmination of a full year’s worth of planning, scheming, enticing and badgering by people such as Charles Burkitt, Stuart Cox and Des Friedrich and their respective teams. I want to thank them all, including the many sponsors, particularly Carlton, SKYCITY, Colemans, Schweppes and Qantas for all of their effort in making it the huge success that it was. It is simply beyond the reach of government and taxpayers’ dollars to fund racing to the extent that you would want to, so we are enormously appreciative of those major sponsors. The financial contribution to the Territory economy is hard to measure, but worth many millions of dollars in the visitation to the Top End.
I also congratulate the Darwin Greyhound Association for the successful and complementary carnival, the Darwin Greyhound Cup, conducted on Friday, 4 August 2006, as a prelude to the Darwin Cup itself. It also attracted many interstate trainers and owners, with the Queensland greyhound, Quidame, taking out the race. My congratulations to the chairman, Don Townley and his committee at the Darwin Greyhound Association on another great carnival.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, I thank the minister for his statement and join, with him, in extending my congratulations to all of those involved. It was, indeed, a fabulous Darwin Cup - typical of the Darwin Cup and those people involved; they just get better and better and bigger and bigger every year. It was a real pleasure. I believe most members of this Assembly would have been there. It was a very enjoyable day, not only for the punters - for the most part, the ones I spoke to were pretty happy - but for so many tourists from interstate who came and whom, of course, are punters. There were a lot of people in Darwin at the right place at the right time, and decided to come in to see the wonderful virtues of Darwin, in particular, the Fannie Bay Racecourse. It was a real pleasure. As I said, I join with the minister in extending the opposition’s congratulations to all involved.
Of course, it being the sort of public function where alcohol is consumed, wasn’t it great that the member for Sanderson was not there? I do not know where he proposes to be at the next Darwin Cup, but I hope that he is not there, because there will be a lot of women hiding from the member for Sanderson. The Darwin Cup, not just because the member for Sanderson was not there, was a great success. I welcome the minister’s statement and add my congratulations to all involved.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I also congratulate the Darwin Turf Club on its wonderful program over the last few weeks. Sadly, I have do not have much to say about it, except I had three lasts, one second last, one was a long way back, I think the three horses that did get in paid a $1.60, $1.30 and $1.20 for a place, which meant I lost most of my money on that day. However, I did have some good news. There is a horse called Irontrak which, during the carnival had two firsts and a third on Darwin Cup day. It is owned by the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker. Ten people in the rural area own that horse. I saw them on one Saturday when that horse won; the excitement was just tangible. They had a great day. The horse won by a nostril, or maybe a hare’s nostril, because I took a photo of it winning, and you could not see the other horse. You could not see the horse that won, it was that close. Those people had a wonderful day.
I know some people love or hate racing, but I can tell you that those people who take part in racing by owning a horse, get a terrific kick out of it. Even if it comes third, even if it only had one win out of 10, those owners get a great kick out it. They do not spend a lot of money because, when you divide it up into 10 people, it does not cost them much. They do get the privilege of enjoying what racing is all about; the thrill of at least trying to win.
I know that, for me, it was a good story. I enjoyed being there when they won - probably sad I was not one of the 10 people. I did enjoy it and I congratulate all of those people in the rural area who own Irontrak. It is having a spell at the moment. I say to the minister: just keep your eye out, it will be back.
Radiation Oncology Service
Dr TOYNE (Health): Madam Speaker, I inform the Assembly on this government’s progress towards delivering a safe and sustainable high-quality radiation oncology service in the Territory. I am delighted to be able to inform Territorians that we expect the service to be up and running by March 2009. I have already spoken in this place about the hard work that has gone into making this promise a reality.
We commissioned and received expert advice and, on that basis, we have approached the federal government twice - in November 2004 and again in February this year - for support. As you know, the Commonwealth support was always a condition for progress on delivering this promise to Territorians. The 2006 federal budget announced the Commonwealth’s intention to assist, although did not specify exactly how much money would be allocated. Shortly afterwards, I was pleased that the federal minister for Health wrote to me and advised that their commitment is for an initial minimum amount of $13m towards the cost of the unit.
We immediately started negotiations about meeting the full cost of building and running the service. These negotiations are now at an advanced stage. This has allowed the Northern Territory government to put together a projected time line that should see a radiation oncology unit up and running by early 2009.
The next task is to settle negotiations with the federal government over the funding package for the radiation oncology unit, a job we expect to see completed by the end of this year. Once this is resolved, it can then be used as a basis for a public tender seeking a private provider for radiotherapy services. Testing the market in this way is a condition that the federal government is requiring as a condition of its contribution towards the cost of setting up and running the service. Our estimate is that, depending on the progress with the tender, the process should be completed and construction of the radiation oncology unit could begin by mid-2007.
The total cost of building and running the radiation oncology service is estimated at $48m over five years. The Territory government will contribute directly and substantially to this cost, and also provide land on the grounds of Royal Darwin Hospital for the unit. On this land the unit will be built, including two linear accelerator machines so that there will always be a back-up for maintenance or breakdown. Other high-cost equipment required includes a computerised tomography simulator and a three-dimensional planning computer.
However, the needs of the cancer patients go beyond the radiation facility itself. As any cancer survivor will say, tackling this illness is not just about high-tech medicine. Consequently, the Northern Territory government will make sure that the package includes accommodation options in Darwin, and support in the community for these patients. What the accommodation will eventually consist of will need to be worked out, but we know that around 25 units or equivalent will be required to meet the needs of those needing to come to Darwin for treatment blocks. My agency will be working closely with Territory Housing to explore options and accommodation mixes and, where possible, seek partnership arrangements with a range of parties who may have funding available for these services.
We will also need to enhanced clinical support for patients by providing additional allied health service, community nurses, and social support for those receiving radiation therapy in Darwin. These are not cheap options and, altogether with the building, accommodation and operational costs, as I have said, the service will come close to $48m over five years.
This is an enormous project with many challenges, but negotiations with the federal government have been progressing well. We now have projected dates to work towards and can be confident that, after so much behind-the-scenes work, Territorians will have a radiation oncology service operating in Darwin by 2009.
Madam Speaker, I can say that the member for Sanderson will definitely get an invitation to come to the opening of this unit; he will be a valued member of the crowd there.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, I would like to congratulate the minister for at last announcing the oncology unit, except that it has taken him two years sitting on his backside doing very little until the federal member for Solomon was able to get the federal government to commit the $13m. When the money came through, this minister had the audacity to say: ‘No, no, no, it is going to cost $48m’. Now we hear that it is not going to cost more than $50m to get the unit under way.
For two years, this minister sat on the Frommer Report, which clearly told him that patients with cancer were undergoing significant financial and personal hardship travelling interstate for treatment. Did he care? Of course not. If he did he would have done something about it. Now, cynically, he says: ‘We have negotiated very well with the federal government. Yes, we are going to build our radiation oncology unit commencing some time soon, and it will be finished and operational by 2009’ - five years after he received the Frommer Report, and on the very eve of the next Territory general election: ‘Well, well, look at us, we are doing terrifically; we have not broken any election promise at all’. Yes, you did break the one in 2001. Had it not been for the member for Solomon, we would probably still be waiting for you to do something about it.
Patients have complained to me over an over. Every week I would get at least one e-mail saying that the PATS scheme had caused them great hardship financially and socially, where spouses had to travel as accompanying persons interstate and did not receive support from this government. The amount of money that has been provided is well below subsistence level, and you could not expect anybody to survive in a foreign place on that level of remuneration.
I was listening carefully to what the minister had to say, and one thing that he left out was what he would guarantee people in Central Australia. Will he guarantee cancer sufferers in Central Australia that they still have the option to chose to go to Adelaide for treatment, rather than be compelled, as was said by government minders at the Alice Springs show recently, that all Central Australia patients would have to come to Darwin for treatment or they get no treatment whatsoever? I would like to hear the government, this minister, give a guarantee that Alice Springs people will be able to travel to Adelaide for treatment if they so chose.
Mr WOOD (Nelson): Madam Speaker, I know that one lady in Howard Springs whose husband died about two years ago would be very pleased to hear this news. The minister knows my criticisms of the time it has taken to come up with a definite date. I can go over all the ground, but we should look forward and say we are going to get an oncology unit in March 2009. We should be grateful to both the federal government for the money it has committed through the member for Solomon, and the minister through his commitment to add to that.
I hope that the federal government will assist us in the running of it, not because it is just the Northern Territory oncology unit, but because I have always argued that this is a regional facility for the Kimberleys, part of Western Australia, perhaps for East Timor and, maybe, for parts of Queensland. Just as we have a Defence Force and other administrative areas here that do not necessarily make money, we will also have an oncology unit that, although it will not make money as they are very expensive units to run, the federal government should see it as a regional facility as well as a Territory facility. Hopefully, they will continue to help in the maintenance of the unit.
I am pleased to hear that there will be two linear accelerator machines. That was one of the things the minister was concerned about; that if one broke down we would not have another one to back it up. I am pleased that we are going to be treated like anywhere else and we will have two. That is important, being so far away from the main population areas.
Not on behalf of myself, but on behalf of all those people who have had to go interstate for a long time and who have asked the government to put in an oncology unit, I say thank you to both the federal and Territory government. For all those people in the future - hopefully it is not me but the way things are these days there is probably a fair chance I will need it - would also like to thank the government for at last - a long time coming - providing us with an oncology unit in the north of Australia.
Dr TOYNE (Health): Madam Speaker, I thank the gracious support offered by the member for Nelson, and will ignore the churlish remarks of the member for Greatorex.
To deal with a couple of issues there, the first is that of Central Australians. We will be very carefully assessing the needs and wishes of Central Australian cancer patients. They may well want to continue to go interstate, although PATS is set up for our support for patient travel to bring people to treatments that are available in the Territory as the first choice. There will be plenty of scope for talking to individual cancer patients. If they have a strong reason to still want to go interstate to be with family or friends, obviously, we will work through that with them.
The regional status of the treatment unit – yes, it will be a regional unit and that is the whole underpinning of the federal scheme. It is also the underpinning of the potential business case that was worked out amongst other places by the Frommer Report. We would certainly welcome patients from the Kimberleys. We would certainly welcome …
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired. Resume your seat.
Dr TOYNE: Sorry. Yes, Madam Speaker.
Transportable Accommodation –
Alice Springs
Alice Springs
Mr McADAM (Housing): Madam Speaker, I speak about the transportable accommodation delivered to Alice Springs from Woomera by the Australian government. The Town Camp Task Force has completed its report outlining actions to improve infrastructure services and living conditions in Alice Springs town camps.
The Northern Territory is considering these proposals, with an implementation committee being formed to coordinate the Northern Territory government’s response. The committee will be headed by a senior Northern Territory government officer and will include representatives of Alice Springs Town Council, Tangentyere Town Council, Lhere Artepe, the police and, of course, the Australian government. Among its duties will be to engage in close relationships with the broader Alice Springs community and, accordingly, I urge the community to make their views known to the committee through its chair and its members.
The report noted that, at any given time, the number of indigenous visitors to Alice Springs is in the order of 1000 to 1300 people. While there is no break-up of the demographics of this visitor population, the town camp report recommends that different types of facilities – family, special needs, etcetera - be established to provide short-term managed visitor accommodation.
Part of the Northern Territory government’s response has been to fund a $2m development of Stuart Lodge to provide short-term managed accommodation for visitors. We are also seeking expressions of interest to construct a permanent purpose-built facility costing a further $2m for indigenous families visiting Alice Springs. Our approach has been one of bricks and mortar, not wishing to jeopardise the aesthetics and the lifestyle of Alice Springs with inappropriate development.
The Australian government is taking a different approach. At a meeting of the task force in Alice Springs on 5 May 2006, minister Brough made an offer to give transportable units from Woomera to alleviate the accommodation crisis in Alice Springs. The initial proposal indicated a suggestion that these units be located in the town camps. This proposal was vigorously opposed by Tangentyere Council and, of course, the Northern Territory government, who advised that any development of visitor accommodation should not be in town camps as this would add to the existing community dysfunction and the overcrowding.
The Australian government, you will be aware, has now relocated transportable units from Woomera to Alice Springs. The units are currently stored at a temporary holding facility while the demountables are refurbished and upgraded for visitor accommodation. The Australian government will retain ownership and ongoing responsibility for these facilities. The Australian government will acquire or purchase or long-term lease the necessary land for their development.
At the moment, the Northern Territory government is not aware of any decision regarding suitable sites for the development of visitor accommodation having been made by the Australian government on this matter. The Australian government has also indicated that the management of these facilities will be contracted out and operated on a commercial basis.
A final report on potential sites was submitted to the Northern Territory government on 18 August 2006. However, let us be quite clear that the Australian government will have the final say on the preferred sites. I am informed that the Leader of the Opposition has been on radio in Alice Springs scaremongering - only this morning - about the potential sites for minister Brough’s Australian government proposal to place these transportables in Alice Springs.
Let me remind you of the history of this proposal. In early May, minister Brough offered the transportables for use in Alice Springs town camps. However, as I said previously, we vigorously opposed that idea of any move to either suggest that they may be used for short-term visit or accommodation models in Alice Springs. We are working with him on the latest proposal, but only if proper consultation occurs for the community through the Development Consent Authority and the transportables end up on an appropriate site that does not affect the aesthetics or lifestyle of the broader Alice Springs community.
What does this show us about the Leader of the Opposition? She is out of the loop, very simply - not even involved, not even being consulted, not even being spoken to by her ministerial colleagues from the Australian government. And worse, she is prepared to frighten the people of Alice Springs community for her own cheap political ends …
Ms Carney: Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.
Mr McADAM: Yeah, yeah, we will hear yeah, yeah in a minute.
Ms Carney: Just because you buggered it up to such an extent that you are embarrassed.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Mr McADAM: Well, it is true.
Ms Lawrie: Parliamentary language!
Mr McADAM: What I am trying to say, Leader of the Opposition, is when the dogs started to bark against Mal Brough’s proposal, you joined the chorus.
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired.
Ms Carney: No, it was after you botched up the sites, actually.
Madam SPEAKER: Order! Leader of the Opposition!
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, this is a debacle-and-a-half by the Martin Labor government.
The minister said that, in May of this year, minister Brough and the Chief Minister stood shoulder to shoulder and said: ‘Yes, we are going to commit federally $20m and Territory-wise $10m to ensure that the itinerants in town would be adequately accommodated’. Since then, there has been no action - absolutely no action, apart from the town camps task force report which was alluded to by the minister a short while ago. I understand the federal government has been waiting for the Northern Territory government to come up with a selection of sites that could potentially be used …
Mr McAdam: Which they will choose.
Dr LIM: … to provide temporary accommodation for itinerants visiting town.
Mr McAdam: It is their program.
Mr Stirling: It is a bit like the nuclear site, mate; they choose it, not us.
Dr LIM: But nothing has happened, and …
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Dr LIM: The classic was, on Wednesday 16 August 2006, when Matt Conlan of 8HA introduced his program and he said:
- The situation concerning demountable houses continues to rapidly boil away. A list has been published in the Centralian Advocate yesterday, and some of this included …
- I put a request last Thursday to have Clare Martin on Territory Today this week to try and thrash out a clearer picture of the situation. After all, Clare Martin is the Minister for Indigenous Affairs. But she was saying she did not know much about it, and better talk to the Minister for Housing.
That is why it went from worse, to worse, to worse.
Madam SPEAKER: Member for Greatorex, your time has expired.
Mrs BRAHAM (Braitling): Madam Speaker, I hope we are able to discuss the Alice Springs town camps review task force report later, separately. We are talking about the demountables. We have to stop the blame game that seems to be going on at the moment.
We do not want another town camp established in Alice Springs. We do not want these demountables in one location that will then become a magnet for all these people from outside, particularly if it is not managed well. Let us face it, there is a danger that it may end up like some of our town camps – not managed well. Let us get away from this blame game and start working together. Let us start insisting on consultation. We know that if you are going to put demountables to provide temporary accommodation you need to make sure that the people from the bush understand that that is what it is there for, and they do not then say: ‘We are not going to pay for this, we are going to where we normally go and lump on the town camps and the public housing’.
I believe it is most important that you start negotiating with Mal Brough and start talking to the town council; that the community of Alice Springs really gets a chance to comment. There is a danger and a fear amongst people in the community that what will end up is not what the whole purpose of these demountables should be. They should be there to overcome some of the shortage of housing on town camps or on communities. Let us not set them up in a new area to create another camp that will probably be handed to Tangentyere to maintain, and will end up as the current town camps are.
Minister, please, whatever you do, let us get back on the consultation grid. Let us make sure the people of Alice Springs know exactly what is going on, and we all have a chance of input.
Mr McADAM (Housing): Madam Speaker, in response very quickly, the position is very clear: both governments have an objective of being able to alleviate the overcrowding in town camps. What we have is a situation where the local CLP in Alice Springs sought to politicise this whole exercise. They did not want to approach us in a mature way. Nigel Scullion said: ‘Here, NT government, you fix it up’. It is very clear we support whatever the Commonwealth government wants to do and, if they want to put demountables there, then, of course, we will provide what support we can. However, I have already stated here what the conditions should be.
Ours is quite different housing - purpose-built bricks and mortar gone out to expressions of interest. Nonetheless, the political will on the part of the Northern Territory is there to be able to alleviate the existing conditions that occur in town camps. I say to the Leader of the Opposition: if you want to play politics about this, happy to engage in it ...
Madam SPEAKER: Minister, your time has expired.
Reports noted.
TERRITORY INSURANCE OFFICE AMENDMENT BILL
(Serial 56)
(Serial 56)
Continued from 14 June 2006.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, I want to add a few comments to the second reading speech that was made by the minister. Obviously, this amendment bill is to divorce MACA from the TIO, making them both separate entities for easier management and also to prevent any mixing of functions of the TIO and MACA and the financial considerations that go along with that. MACA has, obviously, done particularly well for Territorians, and has ensured that our insurance for motor vehicle-related issues are well looked after on a self-funding and non-profit basis.
However, in separating the two institutions or entities, one cannot help but be concerned whether there are other motives behind that separation. We know that the government attempted to sell off the TIO not so long ago. Obviously, once MACA is completely separate from TIO, it makes it a much cleaner enterprise to be sold off. There is that issue that needs to have this government’s guarantee that that is not in the longer-term plan. No matter what the government says, these suspicions continue to linger because of its previous action of attempting to sell the TIO.
TIO is a reasonably profitable business. When compared to most insurance companies around the nation and the world, it is a very tiny operation indeed, but a very specialised operation that serves the need of Territorians very well, taking into consideration Territorians’ special needs and circumstances with our climate peculiarities.
If the government has a proposal to sell off TIO, then it needs to come clean right at the outset. Obviously, people will be watching closely at the configuration of both boards; the one that run TIO and the separate board that will be looking after MACA. That configuration will tell us, without a doubt, whether there is an intention - covert as it may be - of the government to sell off the TIO at a future date.
MACA, as I said, has been effective in the Territory. We need to keep it effective and, by making it a separate entity, obviously, the operations will be a lot cleaner and be more easily identifiable in order to be a lot easier to do because it is more specific to the agency on its own.
Without adding much more to that, I would like to hear the minister reassure Territorians that this is not the first step on a long path down the road to sell off the TIO. I would like the minister to assure us that the respective boards for the TIO and MACA will have their charter specific; that they are going to keep both businesses operating in the best profitable manner possible and to look after the interests of Territorians.
Mr STIRLING (Treasurer): Madam Speaker, I thank the spokesman responsible on the opposition benches for their support of this. On the one hand, he asked me to give an assurance that TIO is not for sale, that this is not part of hidden agenda, or part of a preparation for sale. On the other hand, he said he would not believe it if I said it anyway. I am not sure how I am supposed to respond to that.
This is, in fact, the third or fourth raft of amendments that we have been bringing forward on the Territory Insurance Office in order to achieve this absolute transparency of its operation and separation of its different arms of businesses, which it absolutely has to do. You cannot have, on the one hand, a profit-driven entity in the commercial, competitive market - that is, the insurance and finance side of it - that is required to make a profit simply to stay alive in the marketplace because, if it does not make a profit, it goes broke - it is out the door. On the other hand, the MACA, which is completely set up, run, and driven by government in that sense, but run by the Territory Insurance Office, is not profit based. It is not profit based; it is there in order to get enough revenue in to cover its costs. You simply cannot have a profit-driven entity on one hand and a cost-driven entity on the other which is not profit based, with the ability to cross-subsidise in any way or mix up its revenue, its finances and its cost. That would be wrong to shareholders and those who ensure, and are required to ensure under MACA, if they are having higher costs driven against the scheme because TIO business entities are making a loss, they decide to drag a bit out of MACA. That is what this is about: ensuring that there is totally and utterly a complete separation between those two arms; that there is totally and utterly complete transparency in the reporting of those separate arms of the business.
The member for Greatorex suggests that there is a hidden motive in here; that somehow we are preparing this organisation for sale - having been told clearly by the community not all that long ago that they did not want the TIO sold. We listened to the community and we said: ‘No it will not be sold’. Why would we go back and change our mind now? If he understood this process at all, if he had followed the process of breaking up MACA into a separate constituent elements so that we do have that proper, clear, transparent accounting, recording, and operation procedures of those separate arms, he would not be making such a ridiculous assertion.
I commend the work of John Tsouroutis, the current Chief Executive of the Territory Insurance Office, and his senior management. They have grasped the need to do this work very clearly. They have worked closely with Treasury on all of these aspects of breaking up the components and making sure they operate separately. They have supported and worked in conjunction with Treasury on the preparation of the legislation. The Territory Insurance Office is a lot stronger organisation, a more robust body, better able to withstand competition as a result of the sorts of changes and reforms that we have brought about. As a result, I do not want to downplay the work that John Tsouroutis has done as manager because he has been a standout chief executive. Sure, he has had good times, he has had strong equity markets on which an insurance company can ride the market and make profits. That has worked in his favour. However, nonetheless, it is a much better organisation as a result of the close cooperation between John Tsouroutis, the senior management there and Treasury than it ever was before we came to office.
Madam Speaker, I commend the bill to honourable members.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Mr STIRLING (Treasurer)(by leave): Madam Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time.
CRIMINAL REFORM AMENDMENT BILL
(Serial 61)
(Serial 61)
Continued from 23 June 2006.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Madam Speaker, my apologies for the delay. I looked at this bill some time ago and am having trouble reading my own writing. It is fair to say that this bill might be referred to as the ‘oops’ bill . It was the ‘oops’ bill because of a drafting error in the bill introduced by the Territory’s first law officer, the Attorney-General. We have seen subsequent amendments, and it goes to show all of us that particular care needs to be paid to drafting. I will fondly refer to it as the ‘oops’ bill.
To refresh members’ memories, it arose because the onus of proof for the defence of diminished responsibility was, as a result of earlier changes the government made to the Code, moved to the Crown. That was an error. This particular part of this legislation changes that so that the onus rests with the defence. I am aware that it followed an Alice Springs prosecution case where the error was found out by everyone.
Of course, it is appropriate that what everyone intends regarding the onus of proof in relation to the defence of diminished responsibility go back to where it should be. I do not really think there is much more meaningful comment I can make, so I will sit down.
Dr TOYNE (Justice and Attorney-General): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the opposition for their constructive comments about the bill. It is, indeed, an ‘oops’ bill and these things do happen. The House can take some reassurance that this shows that we are constantly scrutinising our legislation to make sure that it is entirely workable as law, and we are prepared to come back at any time to sort out any difficulty that is uncovered. This is the case to hand, at least to one of the two amendments that are embodied in this particular legislation.
I will read in full a relatively short second reading reply speech that I had prepared. It gives some further details of what we are doing with the general reform of criminal responsibility, and that is important to share with the House.
The bill in front of us concerns minor technical amendments to ensure that both the Criminal Code Act and the Criminal Code Amendment (Criminal Responsibility Reform) Act function as the government intended. The government’s revision of the Criminal Code Act to align it as closely as possible with the model code is a fundamental overdue reform in NT criminal law. It is a reform that the government is determined to get right. Occasionally, that will mean transitional amendments are required as we progress. I do not understand – I will not say that because you did not …
Ms Carney: I did not say what you thought I was going to say.
Dr TOYNE: … respond as we predicted you might. We will expunge that bit.
The next stage in this extensive process is reform of the laws related to homicide, including defences. Earlier this year, the government issued a Discussion Paper on Homicide and Defences and received constructive assistance from stakeholders. Now, we are pressing ahead with this stage of the reform and I am confident parliament will see the results of that consultation development very soon.
As I noted in the second reading speech, amendments are also occasionally necessary to ensure the Criminal Code is properly interpreted by the courts. The defence of diminished responsibility is subject to the ongoing homicide reforms, and the amendment in this bill is not intended to pre-empt any ultimate decision on its retention or amendment.
In the interim, we need to make sure it functions properly. The recent case of R v Jimmy Watson interpreted the code in a way that effectively meant the Crown bore the onus of disproving diminished responsibility beyond a reasonable doubt. While it did not affect the outcome of that case, in every jurisdiction that has this defence it is clearly intended that the accused holds the burden of proof to show abnormality of mind. The bill, therefore, clarifies that there is a presumption that an accused’s mind is normal and, as a consequence, reinstates the burden of proof of abnormality on the accused.
Government also considers it necessary that the offence of voluntary manslaughter is able to function independently ahead of the upcoming homicide reforms. This amendment will give the government the ability to commence the first tranche of the code reform as soon as possible. The first tranche, as parliament will recall, also deals with criminal responsibility and replaces the overly-broad dangerous act provisions with more targeted offences. I am committed to commencing this first tranche as soon as police and other stakeholders are trained, which is an extensive exercise. This training is currently under way and the government anticipates that it will be completed by October.
This bill shows that a close eye is being kept on both existing and reforming Justice portfolio acts. When the amendments are necessary to ensure they function properly, the government is not afraid to make them. I again welcome the opposition’s constructive position on this bill and we will move forward, Mr Deputy Speaker.
Motion agreed to; bill read a second time.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader)(by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I speak only because there was something, Attorney-General, I should have mention but omitted to at the second reading stage.
I wonder if you would be good enough to advise in your reply, what the present state of play is with the model criminal code. You would be aware, I believe - and if not, with respect, you should be - that there is some level of concern amongst the profession, particularly those practising in the area of criminal law, that there is, nationally – and, therefore, that includes us - what could best be described as a tinkering around the edges with the model Criminal Code. We have all seen it before - the Family Law Act is a very good example - where governments over the years have tinkered and wholesale constructive changes probably have not been made in the way that legislators would like. I am sure you share with me concerns about ongoing tinkering of very significant legislation.
My point is, Attorney-General, and I would be grateful if you would answer it: are you of the view that there will be an end in sight for the model Criminal Code? What is your position and view in relation to what seems to be - and it has gone on for years, and that even includes the CLP - continued tinkering? Is it your view that you want to get your colleagues together to just get on with the job and provide detailed, wholesale reform from a national level, including all of the states and territories on the model Criminal Code?
Dr TOYNE (Justice and Attorney-General): Mr Deputy Speaker, I propose that I will seek leave to move the third reading, move it, and then I will give a reply as part of the third reading debate. Is that the best way to do it?
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Yes.
Dr TOYNE (Justice and Attorney-General) (by leave): Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the bill be now read a third time.
In reply to the issues that were raised by the Leader of the Opposition, the second tranche reforms which deal with homicide offences are going through the government process at the moment. There is a possibility they will appear for introduction in this sittings, but that is a matter for Cabinet to decide.
It is our intention in the Northern Territory, having now introduced the Chapter 2 model provisions from the Commonwealth Criminal Code regarding the provisions for criminal responsibility and fault elements in the whole structure that is codified within that model code, to extend that now underneath our entire Criminal Code. That will take a number of bills.
We have given priority to the areas that Professor Fairall identified as being deficient in our existing code; particularly the offences of dangerous act and the section 31 provisions regarding criminal responsibility. We have picked those up in the first bill that has already been debated through parliament and will be commenced in October, we believe. The second bill now extends those same provisions under the murder and other killing offences. We will then move on into other areas of violent offences and other sexual assault categories. It will be an ongoing process. We estimate that it will take up to five years to go right through the code, including all of our code offences. It is quite complex because we have to ensure that we are not having inadvertent effects on unreformed areas of the code by introducing areas under this.
Regarding the national process, the Attorneys-General are still actively considering the harmonisation of the national Criminal Codes in areas that are open to that. You will be aware that there are three code jurisdictions now that have adopted the model code, or are in the process of doing so: the Commonwealth itself, the ACT and us. The others remain on common law arrangements. I cannot say that there would be, in the very near future, the chance that the whole country would go to codified criminal responsibility provisions. However, we believe that this will clarify and correct a lot of the deficiencies that we have seen in sentencing outcomes - the types of charging and plea bargaining events that we have been seeing in our courts.
I am particularly anxious to get that first tranche out there so it can deal with things like the recent cases we have had involving dangerous act causing death. It sent away quite a lot of families from our courts feeling that justice was not seen to be done. That is no fault of the courts, the judges, or the prosecutors; it is simply that that is the structure of the law everyone is operating to. Until the law is changed to a more rational position regarding, for example, the influence of alcohol on offending, we would expect to see ongoing defects in the outcomes of the justice processes in our jurisdiction.
I cannot wait to see these new provisions commenced. We have to make sure that the police, the police prosecutors, and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions personnel, are fully across these new provisions. They are quite complex and we need to make sure they all understand it.
Motion agreed to; bill read a third time.
MINISTERIAL STATEMENT
Business and Skilled Migration Strategy
Business and Skilled Migration Strategy
Mr HENDERSON (Business and Economic Development): Mr Deputy Speaker, migration has played a crucial role in the development of Australia and the Territory, and remains as valuable to our social and economic development today as it has been throughout our history.
In today’s world, where many developed economies are struggling with slowing birth rates and ageing populations, competition for skilled workers is fierce. Australia and the Northern Territory are not immune to that competition as our people are lured away to new international employment opportunities.
The Northern Territory Budget 2006-07 includes an investment of $84m to continue with government’s commitment to the training of 10 000 new apprentices and trainees over four years. Whilst this means more Territorians will be equipped with the skills to take up jobs in our growing and emerging industries in the medium to long term, businesses still need skilled workers in the short term, particularly as a number of projects are in full swing. Indeed, businesses tell me that this is one of the main issues for them, and I have to say it is the biggest issue for them. The demand has eased marginally since construction at Wickham Point has wound down, but skilled labour still remains at a premium and will continue to be as more projects come online in the future and our economy broadens and deepens.
Over the past few years, the Territory government has boosted its efforts of attracting business and skilled migrants to come and live in the Territory, recognising that, traditionally, most of these people have chosen to settle in southern states. In 2004-05, 120 100 migrants were granted Australian visas. Almost 65% of these people came under business or skilled migration schemes. Fifty three percent of all skilled migrants in 2004-05 came to Australia as independent migrants and can choose where they will settle. Research shows that the majority of independent migrants choose to settle in major metropolitan centres in Australia, rather than regional locations like the Northern Territory. The figures clearly indicate that we cannot sit back and hope that skilled migrants will choose to make their home in the Territory. We need to be actively promoting the Territory to these people.
The government has implemented the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy launched by the Chief Minister in 2004 in recognition of the importance of business and skilled migration to meet the Territory’s skills demands, and the contribution international migration can make to the Territory’s population growth and economic development. The aim of this strategy is to capture at least 1% of the national skilled migration intake for the Territory. It sounds like a small number, but it is an ambitious target when you consider the national and global competition for skilled migrants.
I will detail some of the activities and outcomes of the strategy to date and the benefits that it has brought to local business, the local economy and our community, as well as the challenges we are working on to attract skilled migrants here. Over the past few years, government has focused on working with Northern Territory employers and industry associations to increase their understanding of the migration schemes that are available to address skilled shortages.
My Department of Business, Economic and Regional Development has been holding information sessions to raise awareness about skilled migration in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce Northern Territory and the Commonwealth Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. These sessions have been held in Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine and Darwin, covering topics such as skilled migration schemes and regional migration, and including presentations by local employers who have experience in using these schemes. In addition, DBERD officers meet with employers throughout the regions. The regional visits provide employers who are unable to participate in the seminars with valuable information on the skilled and regional migration schemes.
Most recently, DBERD has profiled business and skilled migration through its show displays in Alice Springs, Tennant Creek, Katherine and Darwin. Departmental officers have conducted a range of briefing sessions to the boards and members of a number of industry associations including the Australian Hotels Association, the Northern Territory Horticultural Association, the Territory Construction Association, the ICT industry, and the Northern Territory Business Council. Departmental officers have also worked with representatives of the pastoral industry, the Central Australian Tourism Industry Association and the Motor Trades Association NT.
For the first time in 2005, skilled migration was incorporated into October Business Month. The ‘Skilled Migration - It Can Work For You’ seminar series were held in major Northern Territory centres and the department is planning another migration seminar series as part of this year’s October Business Month.
In addition to the targeted awareness-raising activities, my department provides a business and skilled information and support service for employers and prospective migrants. Three departmental officers provide a user-friendly support service by phone, e-mail and through the government’s dedicated migration website.
Since the launch of the strategy, officers have taken some 8500 migration related inquiries from employers, other community sectors, and intending migrants. Under the strategy, we are also profiling the Northern Territory with intending migrants in a number of key source countries, but it is not possible for us to promote the Territory everywhere.
In determining where our efforts should be directed, it is important to understand from where Australia has drawn its skilled migrants in recent years. Last financial year, Australia’s top source countries for skilled migrants were the United Kingdom with 25%; India with 13%; China with 11%; South Africa, Malaysia and Indonesia with 5% each; Singapore 4%; and Korea and the Philippines with 3% each.
The predominant image of the Northern Territory in the UK and Europe is that of a tourist destination: the outback and unspoilt spectacular geological icons. It is not always an image that encourages migrants to consider the Territory as a place to live or to bring up a family, or one that offers work and business opportunities. In some key potential migration markets such as India and China, the Northern Territory is simply not well known at all.
My department has developed promotional material that responds to the market’s needs, incorporating lifestyle and major development brochures; fact sheets about our climate and multicultural population; housing, health and education services; as well as information on the major Northern Territory centres. Prominent in our information packs is a positioning image showing where we are in Australia and our proximity to Asia.
The department’s international migration promotion activity commenced in March 2005 with participation in a series of events in the United Kingdom. The first of these was an Australian state and territory migration information day, which attracted more than 1000 people during the day. Whilst the majority of people were UK citizens, there were also visitors from Europe, the Middle East and the Asian subcontinent.
The Northern Territory also displayed at Emigrate 2005, a principal migration expo in the UK. Around 20 000 people attended the expo and the Northern Territory display attracted high quality inquiries including health professionals and tradespeople. Inquiries came from across the board: chefs, mechanical engineers, carpenters, brick layers, cable joiners, civil engineers, nurses, social workers, hospitality workers, physiotherapists, economists, accountants and IT specialists. For example, one young lady who is a qualified architectural technician in the UK approached our display seeking employment opportunities in the Territory. She is now being sponsored by an employer to work in Darwin.
Prior to a migration delegation to Ireland and the UK in October last year, the Australian Hotels Association and the Territory Construction Association circulated information to their members. Input into the Northern Territory display was sought from the Chamber of Commerce Northern Territory and a number of employers in construction, hospitality, motor vehicle, oil and gas, and service industries. These were principally employers who had indicated an interest in linking with skilled overseas employees to fill positions they could not fill locally.
In August 2005, I wrote to all Territory industry associations advising them of the government’s activities and future opportunities, and urging them to work with us to maximise outcomes for the Territory from these promotions. The inaugural Working Down Under Expo in Dublin in October 2005 saw representatives of the AHA working with departmental officers to promote the Territory to potential migrants, and highlighting work opportunities in their industry in the Territory. The 8000 attendees far exceeded the expectations of the organisers and exhibitors, and indicates the strong interest of the Irish in Down Under.
Over the past five years, more than 50 000 Irish people travelled to Australia as working holidaymakers, making Ireland an increasingly important source country for this market. Backpackers are not only a valuable source of export tourism revenue for the Territory, but also a source for skilled labour and migration.
The Working Down Under Expo was a great success, with our Territory representatives speaking to more than 1000 people. All our promotional material was exhausted, and many people who visited us expressed interest in working, migrating or holidaying in the Territory.
The AHA set a high standard for industry association and departmental cooperation in the migration arena. It produced a specialised brochure promoting the Territory and employment opportunities with its members. Ms Sally Fielke, the Executive Director of the AHA, who attended the expo and assisted in staffing the display, also used special promotional literature provided by her members. As has been the practice with previous expos, some Territory employers provided descriptions for positions they had not been able to fill. Among those were positions in the trades, hospitality and health areas. Interested prospective migrants were directed to specific employers and our representatives took a range of CVs from potential migrants.
The Territory participated in two further events. In London in October 2005, around 4000 visitors from the UK and Europe attended the two day Opportunities Australia Expo, many of whom had skills that are in high demand in the Territory, such as tradespeople and health professionals. A Northern Territory employer who shared the Territory stand in Ireland and the UK, reported that he had made a number of promising contacts during the expo that are likely to lead to recruitment and redress the skill shortages being experienced by his business.
The Territory’s push into key migration markets has continued in 2006, with our participation in a further five migration promotional events in Ireland, England and Scotland in March 2006. Included in those were a Down Under Expo in Ireland, an Australian information seminar, Emigrate 2006, and the Opportunities Australia event in the UK. During the round of promotions in the region in March 2006, the Territory participated in a new emigrate event in Glasgow in Scotland, which is a relative newcomer to the migration market, but the event attracted a large number of visitors. Although Glasgow is some distance from Aberdeen, the home of the North Sea oil and gas industry, a number of people from that area inquired about employment opportunities in the Territory during the expo, a positive sign for future migration from that area.
The logistics of participation in overseas expos are always a challenge. I would like to express my thanks to officers of DIMA in London and officers of the South Australian and Western Australian governments who, I am advised, have supported our promotional efforts in the UK and Ireland. I also acknowledge the assistance given to my departmental officers by the London-based staff of other Australian offices. During the March 2006 migration promotional events, DIMA officers at the Australian High Commission also assisted our officers at the Territory display.
The Territory also took part in a DIMA-run event in Chennai, India on October 2005, our first skilled migration foray in to that country. Our efforts focused not only on skilled workers, but also on international students. In conjunction with the Charles Darwin University, my department collaborated with respected education and migration agents and overseas students in five Indian cities. Most of the agents contacted responded positively to the CDU’s potential, and some have sought registration to act as CDU agents, a first step in sourcing Indian students to our university. The Chennai Australia Needs Skills Expo attracted around 16 000 expressions of interest, with around 3000 delegates attending over the three days.
In May this year, the Territory again joined the Commonwealth’s promotional efforts in the Australia Needs Skills Expos held in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Manila. Manila was by far the most successful of these events, attracting over 16 500 registrations. Delegates to the event included a large number of engineers, business professions and tradespeople. Representatives of the Territory private sector conducted a number of interviews with expo delegates. Given the overwhelming response in the Philippines, I imagine that DIMA will plan another such event in the near future.
In November 2005, the Northern Territory attended business skills migration open days in Taipei, Guangzhou, and Shanghai, targeting successful business people wanting to establish businesses or invest in Australia, and migration agents who are actively working in the target countries. China was the source of 32% of all business visas issued in 2004-05, making it Australia’s principal source for business migrants. Past experience has shown that Chinese business people are extremely interested in education opportunities for their children and, for this reason, the Territory’s display trialled the inclusion of CDU’s international study programs.
To complete its promotional activities in China in 2005, DBERD participated in a seminar to mark the opening of the CDU China Centre in Shanghai. This international education skilled migration partnership with CDU was continued in 2006, with seminars held at Ningbo University not far from Shanghai in May 2006. A similar seminar was also held while departmental officers were in Manilla.
In March this year, I invited representatives of the Territory industry associations and interested business people to attend a departmental briefing on the proposed migration promotion activities. This information seminar was used to further inform industry about government efforts in the migration sphere and seek input and feedback from the private sector on future activities.
My department also continues to seek out opportunities for cooperative efforts with our ethnic communities. Community links not only provide answers as to how we can increase migration to the Territory, they are also vital to settlement issues for migrants. Attracting migrants to the Territory is the first step, but we need to work just as hard to keep them here. My department is working with the Filipino Association of the Northern Territory, as well as the Hakka Association, the Chinese Timorese Association, the China Australia Friendship Association, and Indonesian community representatives.
In February 2005, my colleague, the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, released the Northern Territory’s first multicultural policy. As part of this policy, my department is involved in a project examining work orientation and settlement issues for public servants recruited from overseas. In addition, my department is also represented on a Commonwealth-funded settlement working group for the dependants of skilled migrants and temporary residents. To seek to address family settlement issues, DIMA has funded the Multicultural Council of the Northern Territory to undertake a settlements related project. Officers of my departments are providing input into the target activities of this group.
In addition to a range of regional and state-specific migration mechanisms already in place, the Northern Territory incorporated the Skills Independent Regional (SIR) visa into its regional migration scheme offering. This visa allows skilled people who do not qualify as independent migrants to access additional points though Territory sponsorship and a lower eligibility threshold provided they make their home in a regional area. SIR visa holders initially enter Australia as provisional visa holders, and must live in a regional area for at least two years and work in a skilled occupation for at least one of those years to be eligible for permanent residence. People sponsored under SIR are not committed to work for a sponsoring employer but, rather, make a commitment to live and work in regional Australia. With the whole of the Northern Territory considered regional for the purposes of migration, SIR visa holders sponsored by the Territory government have the option of living and working anywhere in the Territory.
The Territory’s SIR sponsorship policy is focused on employment and retention of people who have skills that are on the Northern Territory skills shortage list, are skilled family members of Northern Territory residents, and people who can demonstrate a connection with the Territory. The Territory policy also incorporates sponsorship for all international students successfully completing two-year eligible courses at Charles Darwin University. In 2005-06, the Northern Territory government issued 71 SIR sponsorships covering 155 people including partners and dependant children. This is a significant increase over the 2004-05 SIR sponsorships which totalled just 14 principal applicants.
One example is Mr Gaurav Saxena, who is an Indian citizen who completed his MBA at Charles Darwin University with a marketing specialisation. Mr Saxena also has relatives in Darwin and was sponsored by the Territory under the SIR scheme. I am advised that he has settled into living and working in the Territory and is looking forward to applying to become a permanent resident of Australia.
In recent times, the government has approved the Northern Territory’s participation in a further two state-specific schemes. The State/Territory Nominated Independent category provides a government-sponsored pathway to permanent residence for SIR visa holders. The other recent scheme we have signed up to is the Investor Retirement Scheme which allows self-funding retirees over the age of 55 to apply for concurrent four-year provisional visas, where they can demonstrate sufficient assets and income to assure their ongoing support. Given the criteria for this visa, we do not expect to receive a high number of sponsorship applications. However, because people seeking sponsorship for this visa are highly likely to be family members of established Territorians, I believe that it is important to be able to offer sponsorship to such people.
Interestingly, the Territory has already sponsored one application under this visa. This is to a retiring school teacher from Ireland whose son, Ian, was sponsored to work for a Darwin employer some years ago. Since then, he has become sponsored for permanent residence, married, become an Australian citizen and now has two Australian children. Most recently, Ian has taken a new direction in his life in the Territory and has entered into the business world for himself. Understandably, he is eagerly awaiting the approval of his parents’ visa so that they can join him in the Northern Territory.
Work is continuing to develop proposals to increase the flexibility and introduce new migration schemes to better meet the needs of the Territory. My department undertakes considerable facilitation work with the Territory business community and employers aimed at improving and speeding up migration procedures and processes, resolving problems that are encountered, and improving skilled migration outcomes.
During 2005, I wrote to the Commonwealth Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs on a range of migration-related issues that were adversely affecting Northern Territory employers. This included difficulties being encountered by Northern Territory employers in the electronic lodgement processes introduced by DIMA, and the significant delays being experienced in overseas trade skills recognition.
Another issue raised in my correspondence to the Commonwealth minister proposed changes to Working Holidaymaker visa conditions which restricted backpackers to three months work for any one employer. Following representations from several industry sectors, I canvassed with the minister extending the work restriction period to six months where the visa holder is working for a regional employer. I am pleased to acknowledge that the Commonwealth has announced the Working Holidaymaker work restriction will be lifted to six months from 1 July 2006. I thank the Commonwealth minister for listening to my representation. This change has the potential to considerably benefit Territory employers and help them to address the seasonal skills shortages they experience during their peak seasons of activity.
Time does not permit me to fully address all the work being done by my department in the business and skilled migration area. However, what I have outlined earlier gives members an understanding of the diverse work being undertaken and its value to the Territory employers and business people.
During 2006, my department will be refining the awareness raising and promotional work it undertakes. Awareness raising activities will continue throughout the Territory. However, departmental officers will explore new ways of gaining a greater audience reach and penetration. International promotional activities will continue with a focus on key migration source countries and seeking to maximise outcomes through participation in the targeted DIMA expos. My department will also continue to work closely with industry bodies, ethnic communities and Charles Darwin University to achieve improved migration outcomes. During recent consultations, industry identified the potential of countries such as South Africa and Singapore as potential source countries for skilled workers. Planning for 2006 will see the Territory participate in DIMA’s Australia Needs Skills Expos in the UK and Ireland later this year. There are also plans in place for collaborative work with CDU into India during the financial year.
As members of this House will be aware, migration is a Commonwealth legislative responsibility and, in recent years, the Commonwealth government has made considerable changes to Australia’s migration policies. Today, the national program has an increased focus on skilled migration, and a range of mechanisms have been put in place to encourage migration to the regional areas in Australia. Skilled migration policies are aimed at addressing Australia’s demand for skilled workers, whilst the regional schemes are focusing on addressing critical skill shortages in regional Australia through better dispersal of migrants away from metropolitan centres. We welcome the Commonwealth government’s focus in these areas. Many of the regional schemes they have put in place have greatly assisted our efforts to attract business and skilled migrants to the Territory.
However, we do not sign up to these schemes blindly. Each one is analysed against our own priorities and needs, particularly our efforts to skill and train local people. For example, the Commonwealth recently introduced the Trades Skills Training Visa Scheme to facilitate the entry of overseas workers to fill trade apprenticeships in industries in regional areas of Australia that identified skill shortages.
The Territory government’s Business and Skilled Migration Strategy reflects government’s broad support for employing skilled migrants, but jobs for local people must come first. It is for this reason that the Northern Territory government has taken a decision not to participate in the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. The Territory’s peak trade union body, Unions NT, welcomed this decision with Northern Territory President, Joe Gallagher, supporting the government’s priority in providing jobs for local people, especially young and indigenous Territorians. I can also advise honourable members that a significant number of Territory business people agreed with this decision as well.
Whilst the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy is about boosting our skills base and increasing the number of skilled migrants who chose to live and work in the Territory, skills migration will always be a complementary tool to address skill shortages. Upskilling our own young Territorians is critical in moving the Territory ahead and building our economy, and we believe Territory businesses should be employing Territory apprentices, not bringing in apprentices from overseas. I am also aware of concerns that some businesses are bringing in skilled workers on a temporary basis to fill jobs rather than making a commitment to train people locally.
Once again, our first priority is to see young Territorians given employment and training opportunities, rather than having skilled migrants flown in for short periods of time. I have written to the federal minister to seek her support to ensure that her department has an appropriate focus on the training history of the employers who are seeking to recruit from overseas. I understand that a Commonwealth/state skilled migration working party is reviewing the current system and will make recommendations for improvements.
To conclude, I will leave members with some statistics that I believe clearly demonstrate the success that my department is achieving through the implementation of the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy.
In 2005-06, my department certified 79 regional sponsored migration scheme nominations for employers. These nominations covered 177 people including the applicants’ spouses and dependent children. In 2005-06, there were 246 certifications for regional temporary residence nominations, and these have climbed from 98 in 2004-05, an almost threefold increase in a short period. The Territory government’s sponsorships under the SIR visa have increased from 14 in 2004-05 to 71 to the end of June 2006, a fivefold increase, and there have been seven business skills sponsorships issued during 2005-06. Finally, we have the first Territory sponsorship in place for the newly introduced Investor Retirement visa. These approvals for the Territory are also on the rise.
Recent statistics provided by Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs show that the number of skilled workers coming to Territory on Temporary Residence visas has increased considerably. Territory employers sponsored 180 skilled workers in 2003-04, 352 in 2004-05 and, for the year ended 30 June 2006, the figure has reached 666. I hope that is not an ominous figure. This financial year, in addition to skilled workers, the applications have included a similar number of family members. Past experience shows that the majority of workers who come via a temporary visa move to permanent visas. That is the true success of this scheme.
Similarly, the Permanent Resident Skilled visas have also increased. In 2004-05, 309 visas were issued to applicants and their dependants under skilled migration categories while, to the end of 2006, there have been 429 visas issued to people who have identified the Territory as their intended place of residence.
The desired goal of the Northern Territory Business and Skilled Migration Strategy is to achieve at least 1% of the national skilled migration intake for the Territory. I recognise that this goal is ambitious, particularly in light of increasing national and global competition. While incremental progress is being made, considerable work still lies ahead. I acknowledge the hard work done by departmental staff and, in particular, Mary Cunningham and her team who work tirelessly in providing a quality service to their clients.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I move that the Assembly take note of this statement.
Ms CARNEY (Opposition Leader): Mr Deputy Speaker, I wonder if you would be good enough to tell the people up the back that I would be grateful if they would either lower their voices or have their chat elsewhere. I was very deliberate to not interrupt the minister but, while I am on my feet, I would appreciate not having that babble behind me.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: One minute, Leader of the Opposition. The Leader of the Opposition has objected to the noise from the rear of the gallery. Could the noise be toned down a little?
Ms CARNEY: Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I thank the minister for his statement, which is high on gloss but low on substance. The minister talked more about processes rather than outcomes. Sure, he gave us a couple of cases or instances where people are happy, but one really needs to step back from this to see what it is the Northern Territory Branch of the Australian Labor Party has and has not done.
This government has failed to attract and retain skilled labour. I will say that again: this government has failed to attract and retain skilled labour. The Territory has a declining participation rate in the labour force and we have, I am told, the largest rate of labourers in the workforce in the country. Why is that? In their five years in government, the Labor Party should have done more in the areas of skilled development. Yes, some inroads have been made, but it is hypocritical of government to accept and market full paying students into our university and, at the same time, discourage foreign apprenticeships, as the minister outlined in his statement. In fact, it is the position of the Australian Labor Party to reject any notion that anyone from overseas should get an apprenticeship or should be brought to this country for the purposes of an apprenticeship. I will come back to that.
There is much that can be done. The government should acknowledge the importance of new apprenticeships and trainees from overseas. What about rewarding young Territorians for staying in the Territory, studying in the Territory and choosing to live and work in the Territory permanently or for a very long time? In addition to apprentices and trainees, the Territory also needs professionals like teachers and health professionals, to name just a couple.
The Territory government has been the recipient of the highest rate of federal government funding since 1 July 2003 to 14 July 2006. In fact, nearly $11m has been paid in incentives to the Northern Territory employers of new apprentices. The Australian government’s incentive payments have included rural and regional skills shortage claims of over $400 000 for this financial year. There is a lot of money floating around, money that, as a Territorian, I welcome. However, it is a bit rich to have the government going on and on about policies regarding investment and singing the praises of this government, when any successes - or certainly most of them - have been made as a result of this government riding on the coat-tails of the federal government. This government has form in this regard. It loves the feds when the feds do what this government wants, and it hates them when the feds are irritating them.
Most of this statement, when I first read it - of course, this was a rehash of the one that you delivered during your last sittings that, despite your numbers, you were too lazy to get to last sittings. Here it is again. I read it, and I read it again, and thought they have had a bit more time now. Obviously, between the periods when they are all fighting, a couple of them might go back to their offices’. Who knows? Perhaps they do these things as opposed to just relying entirely on their staff. Maybe some of them went back to their offices and thought: ‘Oh, we will add a few more things into it’. The statement is unchanged, however, in talking about the initiatives of the federal government. Much of what is in the first statement and this statement talks about assistance, financial and otherwise, from the federal government. It is a bit of a glowing reference, I believe, for the federal government, except when it gets to the point of the foreign apprenticeship scheme. As I indicated earlier, I will come back to that.
As members will recall, in the budget reply speech I made in May, the CLP, unlike Labor, is committed to educating Territorians and has developed what we have called the HECS Incentive Payment Scheme, otherwise known as HIPS, for health professionals. HIPS for health workers will not only deliver more skilled health care professionals, but will also keep them in the Territory longer. The CLP policy will pay the HECS bills for nurses and doctors. For every year a nurse or doctor works in the Territory health system after graduation, they will have one full year of their HECS debt paid. HIPS saves the Territory government money and puts money back into the pockets of these health professionals. This is an incentive to get local people to study at Charles Darwin University and to encourage them to stay on in the Territory. It also offers something that no other state or territory offers, and will attract those from other universities to come to the Territory first. Surely, that is what all of us want.
The CLP HIPS scheme is readily applicable to incorporate other professionals, such as teachers, for instance. We know that there is a national shortage of teachers and that jurisdictions are competing vigorously with one another. In other words, whoever pitches the best puts their jurisdiction in the box seat, or in the best position of attracting skilled labourers and professionals around the country.
If this Northern Territory government is serious about attracting a skilled labour force, then it has to go further than its competitors. You would, in a business sense – and this is the minister for Business’ domain - become competitive and make sure that the product you have is better than the business next door. The same system applies when it comes to competing against competitors, even though they are other state and territory governments.
This Territory government really does need to punch above its weight and attract people from all around this country. To do otherwise is an indictment on the inaction of the government. It is not doing service to Territorians who are here, nor does it show any vision for the future.
I want to talk about the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. The Territory government has failed to sign up to the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. If this government was fair dinkum about skilling the Northern Territory, it would support the scheme and not just blindly follow its federal party’s lead, and that of its ultimate master, the trade union body, and oppose this scheme. This government’s attachment to the union movement is not surprising; we see it in governments all around the country. However, surely we in the Northern Territory have always prided ourselves on a being a bit different. Surely, this Northern Territory government, conservative as it is, I would have thought would go the extra mile, and be a bit different from the nationwide counterparts. However, no, alas, this government has failed to sign up to the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme, and this is not in the best interests of the future of the Northern Territory.
This government should be more responsible in ensuring that industry continues in the Territory, and continues for generations to come, and that no particular industry lags or lapses. I would not like to go to the owners of businesses in the Northern Territory and say: ‘I am sorry, we cannot get any workers; the Labor Party does not want us to bring in any skilled workers from outside this country, so your businesses will have to close’. Minister, through you, Mr Deputy Speaker, you are far more interested in chasing the job of the person who sits on your right, the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory. You are far more interested in that and kowtowing to unions than delivering services and good outcomes to Territorians.
The Northern Territory simply cannot afford to take such a blinkered approach to attracting skilled migrant labour in a highly competitive international labour market. Of course, no doubt there was a ring around when the federal member for Watson, Tony Burke, the shadow minister for Immigration, issued his media release on 27 July 2006, when he proudly boasted of the Territory government’s Cabinet decision to reject the Commonwealth’s Foreign Apprenticeship Scheme. He went on - the rest is waffle. This is part of the Labor template and part of the lack of vision and insight which will, at some point, have its electoral toll but, more importantly, have a toll in the future of the Northern Territory and the other jurisdictions when such blind, philosophical adherence to policy actually overshadows doing the decent thing.
There has been much debate on this, not surprisingly. I am always interested to hear what Andrew Robb, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, has to say. Andrew Robb is an interesting character. In any case, he said relatively recently that it was:
- … a grubby attempt …
… to scare people in the electorate in a desperate attempt to restore some voting strength to their original base - a base they betrayed many years ago. What we are seeing is a stunt, plain and simple - an exercise in promoting xenophobia. We are seeing an explicit strategy by the Labor Party to promote xenophobia - to create misplaced fear and misinformation - as a means of appealing to a voter base that they betrayed long ago. We know that is the case; we are hearing it out of the ACTU.
What an interesting thing to have said.
Labor governments generally, and this government in particular, prides itself on being all embracing, all welcoming, when it comes to people who are not from this country and, yet, it has the audacity to say: ‘No, if you want to come to this country and the Northern Territory, and if you want an apprenticeship, we are not going to let you in’. That is as offensive as it is stupid when one considers the difficulties we have in the Northern Territory.
The minister for Business should know - and if he does not he needs to get out more - that businesses across Darwin - and it is the same pretty much throughout the rest of the Territory - are very concerned about building capacity when it comes to our labour force. Clearly, the Northern Territory does not have the skill base of many jurisdictions in some areas. We have a developing set of industries and, yet, we do not have the skill base. Those in business involved with these large ventures say we need to get people from overseas and, yet, this government says: ‘No, we are not supportive of that’. That is, as I have said, absurd and blinded by political fundamentalism.
Many of these people from overseas, as we have seen in other places, are young, qualified, highly skilled, and they bring economic benefits to Australia. They would raise the productivity of Australian workers and alleviate skill shortages. Surely, the minister is not suggesting that there is no skill shortage? They would raise employment and average earnings and make a major contribution to the Territory budget. Given our demand for skilled workers, we should be putting out the welcome mat for these people and trying to do all that we can to encourage our shores for apprenticeship purposes.
The Trade Skills Training visa enables regional employers to take on fee-paying overseas apprentices who meet the skill requirements, where employers cannot fill vacancies by Australians, and in occupations identified in skill shortage. No Australian will miss out on an apprenticeship because of the Trade Skill Training visa. Apprentices accessing the Trade Skills Training visa will not take TAFE places away from Australian apprentices. In fact, more TAFE places are likely to open up as a result of this initiative.
Before an overseas apprentice can fill a vacancy an approved regional certifying body, an RCB, must certify that no Australian apprentice can be found to fill the vacancy drawing on documentary evidence that must be provided by the potential employer. The safeguards are there. You cannot say, minister, that it is not a rigorous process. It is there and, of course, you and your Labor friends have been peddling: ‘Oh, well, if you let these people in they are going to take our jobs’. It just beggars belief!
Here we have the minister for Business, who refuses to do innovative things like, for instance - and there are many examples, one is the HIP scheme proposed by the CLP. If you want to be fair dinkum about getting trained people into the Northern Territory in the health system, why do you not do something about that? No, the minister just does not want to do that. Has he not heard local businesses talk about building capacity? We do not have the capacity here and the Territory is competing with other jurisdictions. What else are they to do? Yet, we have a Business minister of the Northern Territory – anxious though he is to become Chief Minister - for present purposes, at least, saying: ‘No, no, no, we are not going to help your skill shortage labour difficulties because we are going to stand in your way’. This is not a party that is friendly to business.
In any event, the skill training visa system was developed in response to representation from regional industries, many of whom had difficulty filling apprenticeship vacancies. Before an overseas apprentice can fill a vacancy, an approved regional certifying body must certify that no Australian apprentice can be found to fill the vacancy and draw on documentary evidence that must be provided by the potential sponsor.
Mr Henderson: Of which there are none in the Territory.
Ms CARNEY: Mr Deputy Speaker, could you calm down the member for Wanguri?
Mr Henderson: Sorry, sorry.
Ms CARNEY: Thank you. The member for Wanguri has managed to pull himself together.
No position can be filled by a foreign apprentice unless there is certification and documentary evidence that a local apprentice cannot be found. I will say it again because he is not the brightest of lads: no position can be filled by a foreign apprentice unless there is certification and documentary evidence that a local apprentice cannot be found. That means they will not be taking positions from local apprentices. The involvement of full fee-paying apprentices from overseas will help maintain numbers in apprenticeship courses and will help maintain a critical mass. Full fee-paying students will provide an important source of funding and boost the viability of the courses. This helps young Territorians. It keeps training opportunities open and available in their region.
There are safeguards protecting any Australian who wants to take on an apprenticeship. In an economy where businesses are screaming for more skilled workers in order to grow or, at the very least, to sustain their business this Labor government just brushes aside, because of political dogma, a scheme that the trade union movement does not agree with. However, most importantly, this government has closed off a potential avenue for the economic development of the Northern Territory.
We had the Chief Minister in here this afternoon saying: ‘Oh no, no. We cannot have questions about the member for Sanderson, because Question Time is all about growing and developing the Northern Territory’. I actually do not believe anything the Chief Minister says these days. If her colleagues today took her at her word, and if the bloke who wants her job actually took her seriously, and if he thinks that the business we do as a parliament and the reason we are all here and members on the other side can make a difference because they are in Cabinet, they should be growing the Northern Territory and developing the Northern Territory.
I know the numbers demonstrate it in a fairly graphic way – 19:4. No one understands that more than me, I can assure you. However, there was always a fundamental difference, and history will continue to record there is a fundamental difference. There were many, but one of them was the vision showed by the Country Liberal Party. Members on the other side have taken the mickey over the years, but look around the skyline of Darwin now. Look at this wonderful multicultural society we have in the Top End and tell me that none of that occurred because of the CLP. It did, and it required vision. It required guts and actually stepping up to the plate for your fellow Territorians. Growing and developing the Northern Territory is pivotal to our own sustainability and to where the Northern Territory stands in the national and international marketplace.
Mr Deputy Speaker, while I welcome the statement because, while members were too lazy to get to it during the last sittings – obviously, they are not talking to each other so, perhaps, there will be a bit more work happening - the statement is now upon us. It is good to see at least the statement has seen the light of day. However, as I said at the outset, the statement is high on gloss and low on substance, just like the Chief Minister and the minister for Business.
Ms LAWRIE (Family and Community Services): Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the statement on the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy delivered by the Minister for Business and Economic Development.
The Territory has a long and a very proud history of attracting people from around the globe to enjoy our unique lifestyle. The 2001 ABS Census showed that, in my own electorate of Karama, about 30% of residents were born overseas. This includes people who have come from China, India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Indonesia, Greece, the Philippines, Vietnam and more than 30 other countries to make the Territory their home. Migrants have come to the Territory in search of opportunities they could not realise in their country of birth. The history of migration to the Territory is written in the place names and business names we see every day in the Top End and Central Australia.
We have our early Chinese merchants, the Greeks and Italians who helped build and construct, and migrants from Timor and Vietnam playing a role in agriculture, aquaculture and primary industry. A visit to any of our local markets or annual cultural festivals - the Barrio, the Glenti, Chinese New Year, India at Mindil and many others - demonstrate that migrants to the Territory have embraced the uniqueness of the Territory and retain their strong ties to their culture and tradition of their country of origin. Our local schools provide a rich cultural environment where children from generations of migrants share both their history and their culture.
The minister has outlined key factors that influence migrants’ decisions on where they decide to settle, and they include prior knowledge of the destination, location of family members and, importantly, employment opportunities. The minister’s statement has outlined what his department is doing to make sure that prospective migrants know about the opportunities and the lifestyle available in the Territory. With the diversity of migrants already living in the Territory, there must be skilled workers in almost every country of the world with some family link to the Territory. A key element in marketing the Territory as a destination for skilled migrants should be our multicultural community which we enjoy with contributions of previous generations of migrants. The third criteria is employment opportunity. In my portfolio area alone, there are opportunities for occupational therapists, physiotherapists, podiatrists, childcare workers, social workers and speech pathologists. Community services is a labour intensive sector of our economy and, since 2001, we have virtually doubled the Community Services budget. This has led to a significant demand for skilled workers in our community sector.
Our priority is that young people growing up in the Territory have the opportunities to get the skills that they need to take on jobs in the future. Where there are skill shortages, the work of DBERD in attracting skilled migrants helps retain the access to services and the quality of life that we enjoy in the Territory.
I commend the statement from the Minister for Business and Economic Development. I commend his department for putting the emphasis and the effort into skilled migration in the Territory. I travel around the Territory and I get a common message from the employers; that is, that they see the Skilled Business Migration Scheme as a very important facet to attracting skilled workers to their businesses. It is part of the powerhouse that will drive our economy. I congratulate the minister for working with DBERD in ensuring that the work of Skilled Business Migration within the department is given the due recognition that it requires. I believe it goes a long way to ensure that our government is in tune with the needs of the community, is supportive of multiculturalism in our community, and makes the most of what are sometimes difficult immigration processes to assist businesses in developing and growing which, in turn, provides additional employment opportunities for many Australians.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend the minister for his statement and I know, speaking on behalf of a very multicultural community in the electorate of Karama, it is an initiative that has been welcomed.
Mr VATSKALIS (Primary Industry and Fisheries): Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the statement by my colleague, the member for Wanguri, in regard to skilled migration. Australia, and particularly the Northern Territory, has had a long history of migration that has strongly benefited our society and economy. New migrants enrich and strengthen Australia with their cultures, their energy and their commitment. By any national standard, a multicultural nation that is modern Australia today is a success. Let us face it, the Northern Territory has a parallel history in its development with the rest of Australia. The rest of Australia was actually filled by people who came from somewhere else, from the 1700s to the 1950s, and 1960s and 1970s - wave after wave of migration came to Australia, leaving behind them war-torn countries, civil war and poverty. They came to create a new life and, in turn, they dedicated their life to this new nation, their new country, Australia.
The Northern Territory has a very similar history. If you look back at the history of the Territory since the beginning of the white settlement in this place, wave after wave of different nationalities arrived in the Territory. They arrived at the invitation of the government, because they wanted to populate this enormous empty space - from the Patagonians who came here from South America to farm, to the Chinese who came here via Singapore to work in the mining sector, to the British who came here to work for the Vestey’s abattoir, and the Russians who worked in the ports. They are the first migrants who came to the Territory in the beginning of the 20th century. They made the Territory home and started the development of the Territory.
The railway from Darwin to Katherine, and from Katherine to Larrimah, was built by foreign workers, mainly Greeks and Italians. After the war, in the 1950s, another wave of new migrants came to the Territory, this time from the Greek Island of Kalymnos, as pearl divers in the beginning. After they settled in Darwin, they became the backbone of the building industry. All these people worked here year after year to build a new life in the Territory. It is amazing that these people were not born here, they came here as adults. It was these people who decided that Darwin was home after Cyclone Tracy and they had nowhere to go. They had made their life’s investment in the Territory and, as soon as possible, they came back to build the Territory again. Sometimes, I joke with my compatriots. I tell them they must be the only builders in the world who have had to build the same city twice; the one before 1974 and then the one after 1974.
The Territory is currently going undergoing an extremely busy time. Our growth rate is second to Western Australia; they have about 9.8% a year and we have about 9.4%. Our industries are booming, in particular two industries that rely heavily upon skilled workers. One is the construction industry, the other is the mining industry. I was very surprised to hear on a recent trip to Groote Eylandt that, for the Groote Eylandt resort, the company put out tenders and received only one tender – only one tender for a multimillion resort. Why? It is not because it was too far away - people will travel to all sorts of places to find a job - but because there is so much work around people cannot cope with the amount of construction work.
As a matter of fact, I understand one of the partners of T & M Concreting is travelling to Kalymnos trying to recruit ex-Australian Kalymnians who have now retired in Kalymnos, to come to work here as trained workers so they can meet the demand in and outside Darwin with regard to the construction industry. This is significant because, despite the downturn of the housing industry down south, we still cannot get enough skilled workers.
Whose fault is it? Probably ours, as Australia did not invest a lot in apprentices. We moved quickly to reverse this trend. We have provided enough money and funds to train 10 000 young Territorians in the next four years. We are not going to succeed with that because, again, there are not enough people to be trained. Even if we train them today, it will be four to five years before the first of these apprentices comes out as a tradesperson. Therefore, for the next four to five years, even if things stay as they are today, we are going to have a big problem with a lack of skilled workers.
Another industry that has a great demand for skilled workers is the mining industry. A recent survey of more than 1300 mining industry professionals revealed that skill shortages was the key issue having a detrimental impact on industry profitability and future growth prospects. That is from the web page of the Chamber of Minerals and Energy of Australia. As a matter of fact, I was astounded to find out that for a third year heavy duty diesel mechanic apprentice in Western Australia will earn $100 000 a year. I was also astounded to find out that reefs mines in Western Australia will not proceed because the company finds it impossible to recruit people to work on the mines or in industry servicing the mines, so they had to mothball it until things get better. Are things going to get better? Well, they are not. For the next 10 to 15 years, the mining industry will continue to boom because of the demand in China and, now of course, the demand in India.
Regarding skilled migration in the mineral industry, the mining industry has the lowest participation of overseas-born skilled migrants than the rest of Australia - only 19% compared with 25% for all workers in Australia. Despite their efforts, this participation rate does not increase. Why has it not increased? Because they cannot get skilled workers. Mining all over the world is booming. What is happening is that every time a skilled worker moves from one country to another, they are not replaced by another person; it is just moving around like musical chairs.
Most of the skilled migrants in the mining industry also come from English-speaking countries because of the need to be fluent in English when working in the mining industry for safety reasons and, also, because of the long tradition of mining in English-speaking countries such as the United Kingdom, New Zealand, South Africa, North America and some other African countries. For example, 10% to 20% of mining engineers and other engineering professionals come from South-East Asia, while geology and mining professionals are coming from South Africa, North America and New Zealand. There is competition for skilled migration from other countries due to the combination of a global shortage of skills and the rapid expansion of the mineral industry. It is not only these skilled migrants who are affected by the rapid expansion of the mineral industry; companies producing mining equipment cannot supply enough mining equipment to the mining companies. Even if they can supply them - for example, Caterpillar - they have difficulty sourcing tyres for the machines to provide equipment such as dozers and excavators to the mining industry.
We will continue to face this shortage of skilled workers. Is it something new? No, it is not. In the 1970s, the Territory imported a number of Filipino teachers because of a shortage of teachers. In 2005, we decided to import Filipino nurses, once again because of the shortage of nurses in Australia and worldwide. Now we find out that we have to import doctors and university lecturers. The most recent one is the tiling industry. From my own experience, I can tell you that many people out there who demand workers cannot find them. When they can find workers, the hourly rate they have to pay is exorbitant. I hear tilers are getting paid from $38 to $65 a square metre. I know of one of my constituents who was a university lecturer stopped working as a university lecturer and went back to his old trade as a tiler because he made more money as a tiler than a university lecturer. Good luck to him; he takes advantage of these booming times. I would have done the same if I was in his position. This is a result of the skills shortage.
The Leader of the Opposition said that the reason we have such a multicultural society and many workers here in Darwin is because of the CLP. Wrong, wrong. Until 1976, the Territory was controlled by the Commonwealth and it was the Commonwealth which relocated people and migrants here. In the 1980s, when the Defence Forces decided to come to Darwin, it was not the CLP that caused the building boom of the era; it was a decision of the federal Labor government and Kim Beazley, as the Defence Minister, to relocate the Army to Darwin and the Northern Territory. As a result, there was demand for infrastructure, service, and houses.
The CLP failed in one area; it failed to establish a TAFE, a trade school to train young Territorians. The Territory went from boom to bust. If you have a look at the development graph, you will see there are times it was off the graph and times it goes off the graph in a negative way. They never ever put the money and the effort, and they never had the will, to train young Territorians as trade specialists. We are paying the price for it. I am very pleased that my colleague, the minister for Education, bit the bullet and allocated a significant amount of money to train these Territorians here.
Another thing we have here which could have been exploited more - and I am glad to see some of the executives here – is communication and promotion. How many people out there know where the Territory is? I have been down south many times and have been talking to people and mentioned Darwin, and everybody thinks it is too far away and too hot. People ask if we have hospitals, cinemas or electricity. There must be communication and promotion of our jurisdiction. People do not realise that Darwin is only an hour-and-a-half flight from Bali, three hours from Singapore, and four hours from Sydney.
At the moment, we have a booming economy and what we want are the skills we require being promoted to overseas trade shows, newspapers, magazines, and specific newspapers that cater for professionals. I was informed by a constituent who was working in an advertising office - they were actually working for a Western Australian company requiring diesel locomotive drivers. They advertised in South Africa and New Zealand and they managed to recruit a number of people from those two jurisdictions because they promoted not only the salary and the work, but they promoted the lifestyle. We have to promote the lifestyle, the services that can be provided in the city, the benefits in living in a place like Darwin and the Northern Territory.
We have to develop linkages with organisations but also with the local community. The Darwin multicultural community members have a lot of links with their mother country. Many of them are first generation migrants. They still come and go like going to the next neighbourhood, the next suburb. Many Filipinos go back to the Philippines once a year. The Greeks travel to Greece every one or two years. The same would happen with Indonesians. Many of these people know people who would love to work in Australia. There are opportunities for skilled migrants to come to Australia under visa 457 to work here, and we should exploit these opportunities. Our multicultural society is a social capital and should be utilised more effectively.
The other positive aspect of our multicultural society and multicultural community is that people tend to go somewhere where they know they will find people from their own country, their own tribe, their own ethnic group rather than go somewhere else where there is nobody. Let us not forget that often ghettos are formed because people tend to congregate where a group of their own ethnic group is located. If you look at some areas in Sydney, the only reason there is a significant presence of Greeks, Italians or Chinese is because there is no migrant settlement area and, as the others arrive, they tend to congregate. Providing some comfort, stability, services, knowledge of the language and knowledge of the cultures also helps.
We also have to promote our tolerance – the racial harmony and tolerance - and the services we provide for the multicultural communities, not only the presence of the multicultural organisations and ethnic groups here in the Territory, but also the fact that we are supporting other areas like religious places of worship and the like. A significant number of people who have come to the Territory came because they realised that they can live peacefully and harmoniously and nobody cares if they are Hindus, Muslims, Buddhist or Christians. We see that with a lot of our Indian members of our community; they are very well educated professionals, and the same with the Pakistani community, with many people working in schools and at the university.
It is important that we participate in regional migration programs and influence national migrational policy development. Most migrants will go down south; that is not a secret. The reality is that we have to be able to persuade the federal government that there are specific needs in the Territory and they have to redesign their skilled migration program not only to feed the Victorian, New South Wales or Western Australia governments’ wishes, but also to meet our needs and what we require here in the Territory.
The Northern Territory jurisdiction has grown because people came from somewhere else - semi-skilled migrants, unskilled migrants and skilled migrants. That happened in the 19th and 20th century, and will continue to happen in the future. We went from less than 200 000 people to in excess of 200 000 people. We have a significant construction industry that is currently going ahead in leaps and bounds. The most important is the continuously booming mining industry. However, we do not have the skills, the people, or people who will come here to work in a mining industry.
Recently, I took a trip with my colleague, the members for Daly, to Pine Creek, Batchelor and Katherine. Three companies, CBS Gold, Compass Resources and Territory Iron, in the next year will have operating mines that require 300 people. They will have a big presence in all three towns I mentioned. The reality is that they will not be able to fill all their positions from within the Territory. They do not want to have people fly-in and fly-out; they would rather bring people to settle down. If every person who comes to the Territory settled down and worked in the industry, eventually that person will buy the house, make an investment in the Territory, and will become a Territorian - himself and his family. Every person who will come to work in the Territory, every skilled migrant who will come and get a high paid job in the Territory will bring another two or three people, and they will become another two or three Territorians.
I congratulate my colleague, the member for Wanguri and Minister for Business and Economic Development, on his Skilled Migration Strategy, despite the comments of the Leader of Opposition. We have not heard any constructive comments at all. Criticising all the time is not going to do anything. After all, we can play politics, but we should not play politics with the future of the Territory. I believe both of us want to see the Territory develop and evolve, and some constructive comments will go a long way rather than criticising every single thing that the government presents. They may not like everything and we may have a different point of view, but the reality is that we have a point of view that the final outcome we want is to grow the Territory. We cannot do that without skilled migration.
Ms SACILOTTO (Port Darwin): Mr Deputy Speaker, I support the skilled migration statement which has been presented to the House by Minister for Business and Economic Development.
Skilled migration has built Australia into the magnificent, prosperous nation that it is today. Australia, in 1788, was a convict colony. It was a place of banishment until the gold strikes in 1851. Those first convicts to set foot on Australian soil were the first lot of skilled migrants, one could say. Those men and women were sent to serve sentences in the new land of Australia, mainly from England. A number of the human cargo were skilled in areas such as medicine, law, farming, blacksmithing, dressmaking and banking. Once their custodial sentences were served, many stayed on to continue building a prosperous nation.
Independence was granted in 1901, and migration has been a key to Australia’s development. From 1945 to 2000, almost six million immigrants have settled in Australia, bringing with them skills that has led Australia to have one of the highest living standards in the modern world.
Skilled migration is attributed to the success of the Snowy Mountain Project. In 1949, Prime Minister Ben Chifley launched this project, and more than 100 000 people, 70% of the workforce from over 30 countries, worked on this project. It took 25 years to complete and was within the budget of $820m. Without the use of skilled migration, this could not have been achieved. I would say that this is a superior example where Australia would not have progressed without skilled migration. Many of the men and their families stayed on to live in Australia after the project was completed, making a valuable contribution to Australia’s modern multicultural society.
All over Australia, skilled migration has been used to progress the economy and enrich our culture. In the 1950s, Italian men were allowed entry to work in the cane fields in north Queensland and, in the Northern Territory’s early years, Chinese, Afghans, Greeks and Italians - to name but a few - were encouraged to come and work in this harsh environment. More recently, our society has been enriched with people from so many countries, including Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam; all bringing with them a multitude of skills.
It is my view that Territorians will benefit from further skilled migration. The blending of this knowledge can only make our workforce more equipped with the skills to take up employment in our strong developing economy. The benefit to industry - whether it is tourism, mining, health, farming or education - can only bring greater opportunities the more exposure the Territory has to skilled migration.
In my own electorate of Port Darwin, the use of skilled migration is appreciated. I hear from a very good source that a local hairdressing salon has brought two young male hairdressers from the Philippines to work in the salon. This expertise will translate to a sharing of new techniques and skills with other staff in the salon.
The impact of skilled migration in the tourism industry would have touched most Territorians if they have had a meal, a drink, or stayed overnight in a hotel. Throughout Australia, tourism benefits greatly from skilled migration to fill seasonal jobs that, if left vacant, could severely impact on the industry. It is my understanding that the entertainment hub of Mitchell Street is very keen to have young travellers from other parts of the world work in positions that may not be attractive to locals.
You only have to try to engage an electrician, carpenter or another tradesperson to know there is still a huge shortage in the construction industry. Skilled migration will benefit this industry immensely. Health is also benefiting from skilled migration, with doctors, nurses and allied health professionals boosting employment numbers across Australia and the Territory. These highly skilled people will fill positions that have been vacated by Territorians who are choosing to advance their skills by accepting international employment opportunities. I believe this could be described as skilled migration in reverse.
A new initiative of the government has been, for the first time in 2005, to incorporate skilled migration into the October Business Month agenda. The government has also had a display at Emigrate 2005. This is the principal migration expo in the United Kingdom. The Northern Territory display attracted a high number of quality inquiries, from professionals to tradespeople, all keen to know more about the opportunities available in the Northern Territory. Migration delegations to the United Kingdom and Ireland have also been undertaken. Information was circulated to members of the Territory Construction Agency and the Australian Hoteliers Association, and employers in these and other related industries were very keen to link with skilled overseas people to fill positions they could not fill from our local population.
The Department of Business, Economic and Regional Development manages and coordinates skilled migration schemes in the Northern Territory. The government is committed to attracting skilled business migrants who will make a positive contribution to the development of the Northern Territory. Since winning government in 2001, the Territory government has advanced its effort to attract business and skilled migrants to live and work in the Northern Territory. It is well recognised that most of the newcomers choose to settle in the capital cities. However, I believe that with the new opportunities opening up in gas, mining, Defence and property development, many skilled new Australians will choose to settle in regional locations like the Northern Territory.
In the NT, Budget 2006-07 invested $84m in training 10 000 new apprentices and trainees over the next four years. This means a strong commitment to VET and other programs in this area. The outcome of this investment will mean Territorians will be skilled to enter their chosen fields and contribute to building a stronger Territory economy. I am sure that some of this training may be given and assisted by skilled persons from other countries.
In summing up, the Territory needs to meet strong challenges and remain competitive in the global market. We need to plan for the future, and skilled migration is a part of this future. Currently, construction work in the Darwin region is estimated at $2.5bn, with another $811m in proposed works, with private construction accounting for around 90% of the current value and 80% of the proposed value. Skilled employees will be required to progress these contracts.
The Northern Territory economy is predicted to continue to strengthen over the coming years, and will increase in exploration and resources development. The tourism market also shows strong growth and, if our wonderful Northern Territory is to continue on this path, a better understanding of the labour market is needed. Workforce planning is essential, and issues that are impacting on the Northern Territory will require careful planning and consideration if we are to overcome the current shortages in our labour market. Skilled migration can play an enormous role in satisfying all of the abovementioned issues.
Overseas skilled migration continues to be a source of labour supply for the Northern Territory, particularly in skills shortage areas. Some 27% of settlers entered the Northern Territory under the skill scheme during 2003 and 2004. However, in considering all of this information, we must not forget that the first priority of this government is jobs for Territorians. The first focus is providing jobs for local people, with particular focus on training, especially young and indigenous Territorians.
Finally, Mr Deputy Speaker, I acknowledge the efforts and achievements of the business and skilled migration team in the Department of Business, Economic and Regional Development. This team has been instrumental in attracting skilled people to the Territory, enriching our community and helping grow our economy. Thank you to Mary Cunningham, Irene Russell, Edwina Reid and Donna Owen.
Mr BURKE (Brennan): Mr Deputy Speaker, I thank the minister for his statement today. Skilled migration is an important avenue of attracting those from other areas of the world to the Territory to enhance our workforce and the skills that are represented in that workforce. There is no doubting that there is a place for the skilled migration programs in the Territory economy, and in directing the policies of government to enhance the economy. Skilled migration programs such as those run by the federal government can fill places that otherwise we cannot fill. It helps industry expand into new areas or expand existing areas, and also increases capacity and the ability to create a bigger local economy.
It is a good step for the government to listen to both employers, employer organisations, employees and employee organisations, because the workplace has both classes of people represented in it - employers and employees. Whilst employees would like their employers to be as successful as possible, they also have some concerns about skilled migration and their own place in the workforce; a concern, I quickly add, is shared by all responsible employers. Employers who are successful know that looking after their people, especially in an economy such as ours, is vital to the continued success of their business.
I find it surprising that the Leader of the Opposition could accuse the government of being beholden to the union movement when the minister has advised of the activities that he, as minister, and this government as a whole, has undertaken to engage with employer groups and listen to their concerns and the advice of employer groups.
I note the minister said in his statement that he wrote to all Territory industry associations advising them of government activities and future opportunities, and inviting them to work with the government to maximise outcomes for the Territory from the promotions that were being undertaken. At their heart, skilled migration policies, as the minister said, are aimed at addressing Australia’s demand for skilled workers. The regional schemes are focused on addressing critical skill shortages in regional Australia through better dispersal of migrant labour away from major metropolitan areas. There is an inclusive strategy to fulfil the needs of employers, and you cannot do that without engaging with employers and their representative bodies about what they feel their needs are.
The whole of the country is in the grip of skill shortages in a variety of trades in vocational areas, not to mention professional areas such as engineering, for example. The Northern Territory is not unique in that sense; it shares that shortage with the rest of the country. It is interesting, is it not, that when the Howard government first came to power and started slashing funding from training bodies, and slashing the incentives to employers to take on trainees, the ACTU warned that these measures would lead to skill shortages in the future - prophetic. The federal government ignored that advice and maintained its program and we, as the country, are bearing the fruits of that short-sightedness.
I have focused heavily so far on the role of government in listening to employers. I should say this government has an equal role in listening to employee groups and employee representatives such as the union movement. I have said before in this Assembly, and I will say it again, that if you want to find out what is going wrong in an industry go and talk to the union movement because their members are telling their organisers of some of the things that are going on. Some of those things will be affecting employers because there are many employers - a vast majority of employers - who try to do the right thing by their employees, but have to compete with others who may not wish to do so and can gain an advantage over competitors by not providing the full entitlements to which their employees are entitled.
I commend the government in listening to the union movement, as it should. Skilled migration has a role where we cannot fill positions from skilled domestic labour. If an employer is trying to obtain labour from elsewhere overseas and using the government’s migration schemes simply because it does not want to fulfil obligations that the domestic labour force wishes or has a right to expect should be fulfilled, then those employers need to be excluded from the programs.
I note the minister has written to the federal government asking for a review of the schemes to ensure that there is a good training record of an employer as part of assessing whether an employer’s application to participate in the skilled migration program should be entertained. I commend him for doing so, the same as I fully support this government’s position that it will not be part of the scheme which is the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. We owe it to our young people to ensure that they have traineeships, training available, that avenues for their development are not closed off because it is easier to bring someone from overseas in than train someone domestically. No parent or young person will thank any government for closing off avenues to training. It may be a quick fix to bring people from overseas rather than train our own people but, in the long term, it makes the Territory dependent on migration rather than having a skilled domestic labour force.
This government committed $84m to continue with the training of apprentices and trainees to meet the target of 10 000 new trainees and apprentices over four years. That is an excellent commitment, and I commend the government again for pursuing that. It is part of an employment strategy - a fairly comprehensive strategy - and one which marks this government in stark contrast to previous Territory governments. That is something for which this government can stand proud.
There may be criticism from the opposition for not taking part in the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. This government should accept that criticism and hold its head up high. If the opposition has a different policy and does not wish to support young Territorians, then that is up to them ...
Dr Lim: What a load of hogwash!
Mr BURKE: When I take any opinion from the member for Greatorex in relation to employment matters and industrial relations, it will be a cold day in hell, indeed.
Dr Lim: Wet behind the ears and you think you know so much.
Mr BURKE: Not on industrial relations! This federal government has ripped the carpet from under the feet of Australians - and Territorians more than others.
Any equality of bargaining power? No. Any safety of employment? No. The opposition members sit there and say regardless of our domestic resources, we should be bringing people in from overseas and undercutting the very employers who are the backbone of private industry in the Territory, those employers who do the right thing, who invest their resources in young Territorians and are not just here for a quick buck and escape. That is the business and the community that this government supports, and I have no shame in standing here and saying it.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I commend the statement to the House, I thank the minister for it. I repeat: 10 000 new apprentices and traineeships in four years under this government.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Mr Deputy Speaker, congratulations on your promotion.
Referring to the comments of the member for Brennan, he said that his government is going to train 10 000 new apprentices and trainees over the next four years, and so did the minister. Yet, his colleague, the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, said that it is not possible to train 10 000 trainees and apprentices over the next four years because there are not enough people to be trained in the Territory. Who is right? Which minister is right? There is the minister who says it is not possible. You know what? I agree; it is not possible because the numbers are just not there. The Labor Party says: ‘Oh, we are not going to allow the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme, we are not going to support that’. Other states have already supported it, but this Territory will not because they are pandering to their Labor mates. Not taking part in the Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme is like saying to the people that they are going to recruit when they go through their overseas delegations: ‘Oh, please come to the Territory, we want you, we want you, but as soon as you want to come and complete or get some training, oh no, you are not wanted, not needed’. This is xenophobia that the ALP is demonstrating once again.
Listen to what the media had to say when the federal Leader of the Opposition criticised this aspect of skilled migration. He talked about: ‘I am all for skilled migration’. So did this government. However, the federal Opposition Leader said: ‘All for skilled migration as long as they are not Chinese or Indian’. How disgraceful is that? Returning to the roots. I will read a little article from The Australian, 24 May 2006. The title is ‘Spectre of White Australia still haunts the ALP’. I quote a couple of lines:
- Kim Beazley seems to be returning to Labor’s roots.
- …
Now he is using it to attack the Howard government’s skilled migration program. The Opposition Leader is not against skilled migration, apparently, except when migrants come from China or India or other ‘low-wage countries’.
This is the disgraceful attitude of the Labor Party, and it appears that Territory Labor supports the federal Labor Opposition Leader as well.
The idea about bringing people to the Territory to work is because, first of all, we have low unemployment - thank you, Mr John Howard – and we do not have enough people or population to train. Therefore, we bring them in to provide us with skills that we are desperately in need of. It is amazing when the minister said: ‘We have to do all we can to bring enough skills into the Territory to ensure that our business employers continue to have a pool to employ from’. However, we do not have that pool so we should be opening our doors wide open to allow anybody who so chooses to live in the Territory - whether they are trained fully yet or yet to be trained - to take up jobs in the Territory. Our kids have all the opportunities in the world to be trained. Let us make sure they continue to get that also.
Migration has always been a benefit to all host communities. One would want to think that the people who come from whatever country to a host country are usually the ones who are prepared to make a change, to take an adventure - risk takers who will benefit the host country. That is what it is about, and we should be welcoming them all here.
It is strange, though, when I see that we are short of doctors and nurses. The member for Port Darwin said: ‘Yes, we welcome them and we want more of them’. Yet, when we are so very short of nurses, I hear on the grapevine that the Health department has said no more nurse recruitment for the next three months. I just cannot understand why that would happen. No more recruitment of nurses for the next three months? I have to, therefore, ask the question: why? Have we run out of money in the Health budget again? We have issues in the hospital, and there is an edict from the department of Health that says no more recruitment.
I know there are people out there trying to recruit agency nurses to come to the Territory if they can, but nobody seems to want to help them at all. I know of one agency that is based in the Territory that goes overseas to recruit professional staff, where they pay for themselves to go, pay for the recruitment processes, and the advertising. Eventually, they are successful in the recruitment; they bring the recruited staff to Australia, go through all the process with Immigration themselves and then, in fact, house them in the Territory until such time as they are placed in employment.
What help do they get from the government? Nothing! You just wonder why people like that bother to continue to work so very hard to ensure that we have a continuing stream of professional staff coming to the Territory. Once they get here? The Minister for Multicultural Affairs said, hand on heart: ‘This is fantastic; these are people from overseas who are coming to live in the Territory’. What does the Office of Multicultural Affairs do to support these staff when they are here? Do they provide them with at least a cross-cultural induction to ensure that when they work in the Territory they understand the culture of Territorians, the level and the quality of service that Territorians expect? I do not see the Office of Multicultural Affairs contributing significantly to that at all.
I know several doctors in Alice Springs who have been victimised by the department of Health, by the hospital management. These people come to me because they have nowhere else to turn. They are terrified to complain through the system because they then feel that they will be further subjected to discrimination. These are documented cases that I have. When you raise the subject, the government does not seem to want to know. Well, maybe it is time for this government, through the Office of Multicultural Affairs or even through the Office of Anti-Discrimination, to go and seek these professionals out, take them aside, and let them make the complaint in camera so that their plight is understood by this government. Then they can do something about it, because right now they are working under huge discrimination and it is simply unfair.
The issue of skills migration is, no doubt, something that is very important for the Territory. With just about 200 000 people living in the Territory with an economy that is set to boom, that is more through international economic drivers and the resource boom that Australia is benefiting from rather than from any direct action by this government.
We need to have those skilled people here. It is important that this government recognises that and also recognises that they cannot continue to pander to the interests of their union mates. I understand in another state one of the unions expressed great outrage at news of the recruitment of apprentices from overseas under the new Trade Skills Training Visa Scheme. Yet, that same union is reported to be in negotiations with an international recruitment agency to bring in hundreds of temporary skilled workers at half the pay rate of Australian workers. Under that proposal, the other half of the foreign workers’ salaries will go into a union-controlled trust fund. That is disgraceful. If that is not hypocrisy to the nth degree, I do not know what is. Here is a union saying: ‘No, you cannot have this. This is taking jobs away from Australians. This is preventing our youth from being trained. That is all right; we will recruit foreign workers. We will bring them into Australia, pay them half the going rate, but we will keep the other half of their salary and stick it into a union-controlled trust fund’. This is what we in Australia say is a corrupt practice if it was practised in South-East Asia or other countries ...
Mr Henderson: What are you talking about? Which union?
Dr LIM: Do your own research, minister. You were asked a question.
Mr Henderson: Who? Which union?
Dr LIM: Do your own research. Your Labor mates should tell you which union that is. Maybe you should do that.
Mr Henderson: Which union?
Dr LIM: You should do your own research and get your union mates to tell you who is doing what.
Mr Henderson: You make allegations and you do not attribute them to anyone.
Dr LIM: Minister, research it yourself because I have done the research. I know what it is.
Mr Henderson: Tell me who it is. What is the problem with identifying which union you are making this allegation about?
Dr LIM: If you would like me to name that in response to this interjection from members opposite, then I suggest you read The Australian, Friday, 20 January of this year. You will read it quite clearly as to where that is. It is a real problem, isn’t it, where unions would go to that extent and, then on the other hand, criticise skills migration.
I am reading it in another way, pleased that this government is attempting to recruit as many skilled migrants as possible, because we know for a fact that we do not have the numbers here. No matter how quickly we can train them, based on figures provided by the government’s Employment and Training department, even if they had 10 000 trainees and apprentices for the next four years, the attrition rate would be at least 50% and the qualifying rate is well below 50%. Therefore, we are not going to get the numbers we want.
I come back to the issue I raised earlier about the xenophobia within the Labor Party. Obviously, this is not going to be voiced by the local state Labor governments or by the federal opposition. I quote again from this article in The Australian, 24 May 2006, entitled ‘Spectre of White Australia still haunts the ALP’, and ‘they’ refers to the federal Leader of the Opposition and Labor’s federal immigration spokesman:
- Yesterday they brought on a parliamentary debate on foreign apprentices. There are actually no foreign apprentices in the country, and only a handful of visas approved, which may not be taken up.
Beazley will claim he isn't racist, he is just protecting Australian workers' rights; that is, his union mates' privileges and rorts.
They just happen to be under threat from Asians and Indians.
It is reminiscent of Victoria at the turn of the century, when unions successfully agitated for legislation to put skilled Chinese furniture-makers out of business and out of the country because they were too competitive with the local industry.
I jump a paragraph. I will read again:
- As for Chinese workers, with their statement on Monday Beazley and Burke put out a chart purporting to show the burgeoning growth of immigration of skilled foreign workers from low-wage countries. Interestingly, China didn't feature.
When you go to the minister’s statement and get the statistics of where the skilled migrants come from, in fact, the United Kingdom contributed 25% of the total. China was only about 11%, and Malaysia and Indonesia were 5% each. These guys are so xenophobic that they jump at shadows and accuse everyone else just to protect their union mates ...
Mr Warren: That is amazing. You are bloody amazing.
Dr LIM: That is the truth of it all. Your statistics, quoted by your minister in his statement, state clearly that the United Kingdom contributes 25%. That is the majority, the huge bulk of it. Why, then, does the Labor Party continue to bark this message: ‘It is dangerous, terrible, do not bring too many of them in because they are going to take jobs away from Australians’ ...
Mr Henderson: We went to China, we have been to India, we have been to Manila a few times.
Dr LIM: I pick up on the minister’s interjection. He said it in his statement and he is repeating it in his interjection, that he has been to those countries to recruit. I congratulate him for doing that. I say to the minister, once he gets those recruits in the Territory, make sure that they are supported. Make sure they are supported by the Office of Multicultural Affairs. Make sure that there are adequate resources being provided to ensure that these people learn English so that they are able to participate fully, not only in the workplace but in the society of the Northern Territory. They need to do that so that they can be full participants in our community.
Unfortunately, at this point in time, that is not happening. Unfortunately, at this time, when they are within our public service, they are not being adequately supported. In fact, they are being discriminated against; exploited by the system. I told you about the doctors at the Alice Springs Hospital who have been given the most undesirable rosters, the most difficult terms of inadequate training within the hospital rotation. Why are they treated like that? When you ask the doctors in private: ‘Why are you allowing yourself to be forced into this sort of rostering?’, the response is: ‘If we do not do what we are told, our visa support will be taken away. Thus, we then have to be kicked out of the country’. The minister pulls a face and says: ‘That is not true’. That is true, minister, and it would pay you to find out from these professionals. Do it in private or ask an officer from the Anti-Discrimination Commission so that the doctors and nurses feel that they are not going to be victimised further once they identify themselves. It is a problem. It is a major problem, and until you can sort that out, your skilled migrants will not end up staying in the Territory. That is why there was such a huge exodus of doctors leaving the Territory in the first couple of years of your government. They took off because they were not getting the support or the respect that they deserved.
Skilled migration has been called for by employer groups and business groups. I am glad that the federal government has responded to it by increasing the number of visas that are available. It is good to see that Mary Cunningham and her crew, also supported by the government - and I am glad to see that happen - working very hard to try to get as many people into the Territory as possible. If the government can assure me, and reassure me that the support for these skilled migrants will be there when they arrive in the Territory, then I will be happy. However, until that happens skilled migrants will continue to be concerned about coming to the Territory.
Mr NATT (Drysdale): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I am pleased to support the minister’s report on the Business and Skilled Migration Strategy outcomes and the ongoing support and services provided to Northern Territory industry and employers by this government. Building the Territory’s population and boosting our skills base is a top priority for the Northern Territory government. The Northern Territory Business and Skilled Migration Strategy will ultimately strengthen, broaden and diversify Northern Territory business and employment skills base, as well as, potentially, accelerate our population growth.
As the minister stated in his report, migration has played an integral part in the development of Australia and, of course, the Northern Territory. Many migrants have succeeded in businesses over the years and, in many ways, have helped shape Australia into the diverse and multicultural society it is today. Fellow members mentioned the pearl divers, the mineral industry workers, construction tradesmen and several others, all migrants from countries far and wide who have come to Australia for a specific purpose and made Australia their home and have contributed greatly to the history of our great country and our multicultural population.
Long gone are the times of the Snowy Mountains, where all non-British migrants were only deemed suitable for low skilled jobs, irrespective of their qualifications. It has been reported that up to 50% of migrants Australia-wide with tertiary qualifications hardly, or never, got to use them. These cases are missed opportunities to boost the Australia economy and its capacity for innovation. By deliberately targeting the pool of migrant skills, it can lead to increased organisational competitiveness, not to mention the benefits they bring to local business, our local economy and, of course, our community.
When I started by first year of a fitting and turning apprenticeship with General Motors Holden in Adelaide, I was one of 120 fitter and turner apprentices taken in that year. In that same year, GMH hired approximately 15 electrician apprentices, 12 pattern maker apprentices, three sheet metal apprentices and two blacksmith apprentices. In total, approximately 150 apprentices were employed that year to undertake trade training. When I left GMH 10 years later, the total apprenticeship intake was about 12. Computerised machines, competitiveness in the motor vehicle construction industry and advanced mechanism knowledge has taken its toll.
The other interesting point I would like to draw your attention to is that, out of the approximate 150 apprentices who were taken on the same year as me, only about 10 of those people are still working in the trade they originally trained in. Many, like myself, have chosen different career paths and see no attraction in returning to the work bench. I guess also, in the years following my apprenticeship, many companies fell on hard times and the mechanisation I mentioned forced tradesmen to pursue other fields and other interests. This meant that many good tradesmen were lost to their fields of original employment.
Many businesses around Australia and, more importantly, in the Territory, are finding it difficult to attract and retain skilled, qualified and experienced workers and this is creating a big problem. In most cases, this is due to the fall-out of the tradesmen of my era and the lack of support from industry, and the lack of industry in many places around the country to bring numbers back to the trades. A hiatus was established in many trades and the gap has been difficult to fill. The Northern Territory’s current strong economic growth, buoyed by new development in the mining, construction, Defence, tourism, hospitality and the gas project has compounded the problem for the shortfall of skilled workers.
In the past, migrants have come to Australia with skills that have not been recognised in this country. The accounting body CPA Australia reported in 2002 that, ‘The lack of skilled and motivated staff is a major barrier for employment’. However, skills were being terribly wasted back then in the eagerness to get into Australia. Migrants were keen to get a job - any job that became available, regardless of their skills. However, employment well below potential can hardly be recognised as a sensible use of skills. Numerous examples of migrants wishing to make it in Australia some years ago and taking just any job are frequent. A former minister for Finance in the Upper Nile state of Sudan was reportedly packing mobile phone cases at one stage. An Italian accountant with 25 years of experience became a taxi driver after several years of unsuccessful job applications. The reasons for these situations are numerous: poor language skills, inadequate administration procedures in qualification recognition are very prevalent, as were socio-psychological factors and organisation practices.
It is interesting to note, however, that many migrants have not allowed these setbacks to stop them from achieving their goals. The Business Review Weekly regularly lists the rich 200 and the fast 100, and many examples of migrants who have made the big time appear on these lists - great examples of not sitting back accepting the barriers but pushing forward with confidence. It has been found that migrants lucky enough to find themselves in the ‘in demand’ category had an opportunity to quickly improve their English language skills in a professional environment. Those who did not were forced to accept employment of any kind, only to see their language skills deteriorate. I witnessed examples of this during my employment at GMH. Many of the European tradesmen I worked with were very capable tradespeople with admirable work ethics. Several of them held down responsible positions such as supervisors, foreman and leading hands and, due to their continued interaction with fellow workers and tradesman, their communication skills were exceptional. On the other hand, the migrant workers who opted to work on the production lines, although they were dedicated workmen, had very limited opportunity to practice their language skills and found it very difficult to communicate in English because they were working within a confined environment with their fellow countrymen.
Another area of restriction for migrant trained professionals was the incompatibility of their capabilities with the Australian professional environment. I understand lawyers from Europe are a good example. The gaps in qualifications further complicate their employment opportunities in Australia. It is extremely pleasing that many of these barriers are now being removed and addressed. Applicants are now being properly screened and evaluated in various areas of requirements in their chosen field. The federal government has made considerable changes to the migration policies with an increased focus on skilled migration, and a range of mechanisms have been put in place to encourage migration to regional Australia.
These schemes are focused on addressing critical skills shortages in regional Australia through better dispersal of migrant skills into centres outside of the capital cities. Awareness and information sessions are being organised by the Department in conjunction with the Chamber of Commerce and DIMA, and have been held in all of the regional centres in the Northern Territory. These sessions have enabled employers to exchange information on their business circumstances and have highlighted the areas where major skills shortages are currently being experienced. Since the launch of the strategy, I understand about 8500 migrated-related inquiries have been made by employers, the community sector and interested migrants. What a great result it has been.
In an addition to these regional visits for information gathering and dispersing activities, the department has visited several migration expos overseas to promote and raise the profile of the Northern Territory to potential migrants in a number of migration source countries. I also understand that information packs were distributed at the expo displays, information seminars were arranged and, as a result, several CVs were collected from potential migrants interested in making the Northern Territory a place of work and home.
I believe that this new strategy will assist to eliminate many of the barriers currently facing potential skill migrants in emigrating to Australia and the Northern Territory. Coupled with the revised Temporary Overseas Skilled Migration visas, employers can sponsor overseas people in occupations that are in shortage for periods of between three to four months. In assessing the employers’ eligibility in becoming a sponsor, the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs requires information about its history, financial viability, training records, future plans and the benefits that accrue to Australia via their recruitment. This is a great move allowing the skilled worker comfort in knowing his employer has a viable business, and the comfort knowing that his staying here will allow him or her to settle.
The Northern Territory Skilled Independent Regional visa has also been introduced into its regional migration scheme and allows skilled people who find it difficult to qualify as independent migrants to access additional points through the sponsorship in the Northern Territory. It is pleasing to see people holding these SIR visas must live in regional Australia for at least two years and work for at least 12 months of those two years to be eligible for permanent residence. The commitment of the employee to live and work in regional Australia is a huge boost to the whole of the Northern Territory, due to the fact that the entire area of the Northern Territory is classed as regional. It allows opportunities to work in places such as Alice Springs, Nhulunbuy, Borroloola, etcetera.
I am also extremely pleased to see that an emphasis has been placed to assist our local young people attain apprenticeships without overseas competition or opposition. It is important for the Territory to retain a skill base for the future and it is extremely essential that our local businesses retain their skills to hold fast their expanding industry and economy. Trainees and apprentices are our future and an employment strategy this government can be proud of.
All in all, I am proud to see that this government has taken some bold steps to ensure the Territory moves forward. I congratulate Mary Cunningham and the department for their foresight and their hard work in this area. Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I commend the statement to the House.
Mr HENDERSON (Business and Economic Development): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I thank all members for their contribution to the debate tonight, some more than others. I will try to rebut some of the false information that was being portrayed by the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Greatorex.
First of all, we all acknowledge in this House that Australia and the Northern Territory, our nation and our Territory, have to a large part been built on migration policies over the years. A number of us in this House were born overseas; a number of us have come here from interstate. Australia has always had a commitment, at varying degrees - and we certainly go back over the last 25 or 30 years - to building our overseas migration rates to this great country of ours.
The Leader of the Opposition talked about the statement being full of process not outcomes. Maybe the Leader of the Opposition only got three-quarters of the way through the statement and did not conclude reading the statement, because there were significant outcomes outlined in some numbers at the end of the statement. Without rehashing all of them in their entirety, the difference between the numbers of skilled migrants who came to the Northern Territory and the various numbers of different visa categories were up from 852 in 2004-05 to 1590 in 2005-06. We look to build again on that number in 2006-07. In short, we doubled the number of skilled migrants - in fact, it was nearly double, 738 - coming to the Territory in one year. That is a very significant achievement.
For the Leader of the Opposition to say that there have been no outcomes as a result of all this hard work that people in my department have been doing in conjunction with the peak industry bodies across the Northern Territory who have committed significant time, effort and resources to this, is insulting and offensive. It goes to show that the Leader of the Opposition was either too lazy to read the statement or, if she did read the statement, she is just trying to be offensive regarding the significant outcomes that have been achieved - an additional 738 Territorians working in Territory businesses across the Northern Territory.
I can certainly say from the businesses that I visit around the Northern Territory - in every centre and the regional centres included - which have taken part in this scheme are very complimentary of the work of the departmental team, very supportive of the policy, and see significant outcomes for their business. The only complaints that I receive from business in regard to our efforts to maximise migration through this scheme is the amount of time it actually takes to process applications through Commonwealth agencies, particularly in the trade recognition section of Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, and under-resourcing here in the Territory. I am certainly not playing politics. All of us, as ministers, would like more resources in all areas of our departments. I suppose the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs is the same. However, the only complaint that I receive is the time it takes for processing these various categories in relation to the Commonwealth approval processes.
The Leader of the Opposition said that this statement is all about process and not about outcomes and is all hot air. I will get those comments out to business people and industry associations who have committed a lot of time, effort and resources to this. They will be quite surprised, once again, by the Leader of the Opposition’s lack of understanding as to what is actually happening out there in the business community.
The Leader of the Opposition spent a lot of time on the decision of the Territory government not to participate in the visa category to bring apprentices from overseas to the Northern Territory, and made all sorts of comments about us following our federal Labor leader’s position on this. I say again to the Leader of the Opposition - she obviously does not study the detail and timing with various decisions - that we actually made this decision prior to our federal colleagues having made their decision. We looked at our commitment here in the Territory to skilling and training our own people - an $84m commitment to train 10 000 Territorians over four years. Minister for Employment, Education and Training, I think we are already over 3000? We are ahead of our targets?
Mr Stirling: Yes, yes.
Mr HENDERSON: The minister was telling me the other day that we have doubled the number of apprentices starting the first year of their apprenticeship this year. We have many hundreds of businesses across the Northern Territory taking advantage of various schemes relating to subsidies that the Territory government provides to employers to take on an apprentice. Apprentices are taking on a grant scheme of $1000 for blue collar apprentices in hard-to-fill trades. Our commitment is to train our young people.
Why the Leader of the Opposition would think that, with the huge numbers of particularly indigenous young Territorians - a part of our demographic that is going to increase over the next 10 to 20 years – we, as a government, from a policy position would not focus on doing everything we can and leaving no stone unturned in maximising apprenticeships and traineeships for our young people who are going to become an increasing component of our workforce, is beyond me. I have not met one employer in the Northern Territory who actually wants to bring an apprentice in from overseas. There are all sorts of issues regarding duty of care and occupational health and safety. I have not met one employer who has said to me: ‘I cannot get an apprentice into my company and I want to bring in an apprentice from overseas’. Why we would focus our policy effort and the resources that we have in our department on training people from overseas when we have such a huge need and a demographic need to train our own young Territorians is beyond me.
If that is the position of the Leader of the Opposition, that we should be promoting apprenticeships overseas in the Territory and wasting government resources to do that to an employment market where there is no demand, it is again totally beyond me. I can tell the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Greatorex that I did canvass this decision with quite a significant number of Territory employers who are long-term Territorians who have had businesses here for very many years, both in Alice Springs and Darwin, and they have all supported this government’s decision 100%. Some of them have even issued media releases on it.
Leader of the Opposition, if you are going to come in here and be so critical and try to score some cheap political points, go out and test your arguments with the private sector and the people who are employing apprentices, who are bringing in skilled migrants from overseas either on a permanent or temporary basis, and you will find that most of them - virtually all of them - support the government decision.
She said that we are riding on the back of the federal government, and the federal government is responsible for migration policy and actually issues the visas. What this government does, and seeks to do wherever we can, is not to play cheap politics with the federal Coalition, but to work with them to advance the interests of the Northern Territory. We, as ministers, all do that. If we have to have a disagreement, we have a disagreement, but all of us try very hard to have a good working relationship with federal ministers to try to maximise the benefits to the Northern Territory.
I say again, history is always a good teacher. When the CLP were in government, there was one person in the old Department of Business and Industry who actually focused on skilled migration - one person with hardly any budget at all. The previous CLP governments had not participated for many years in the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs’ migration shows promoting the Northern Territory overseas for migrants. It is to their eternal shame that previous CLP administrations - certainly the last one or two of them at least - did not resource that area of the department nor participated in overseas promotions to promote the Northern Territory as a destination for migrants. For the Leader of the Opposition and the member for Greatorex - who has been in this parliament and sat as part of government for many years and would know the truth of what I am saying – to be critical of our government’s efforts belies history and the neglect of the CLP governments in trying to promote the Northern Territory as a destination for business and overseas migrants.
I thank all my colleagues on this side of the House for their supportive comments. All of those members and ministers know of people in their electorates - we all have people in our electorates - who have recently arrived from overseas. We all know employers who are bringing in migrants from overseas, and they all know that this effort by the government is appreciated. Of course, we could always do more; you can always do more with more.
The member for Greatorex was quite extraordinary in his comments regarding us having taken a policy decision not to bring in apprentices from overseas, but to focus the efforts of this government at a policy and resource level, and a funding level to training our own people. That demographic of our people is getting younger and younger. Why he thinks that that policy position is xenophobic is completely beyond me. The leap of consciousness from the member for Greatorex is quite extraordinary.
The motivation for the government going down this path is that, at the end of the day, we have Aboriginal people who are 30% of our population - the youngest part of our demographic – with huge unmet education and training outcomes amongst that population. It also creates a very real opportunity for us, as the indigenous population grows to 50% of our population in 20 years time, to focus as much of our training and employment effort for those Territorians as we possibly can. That is the opportunity. That is where we, as a government, and all Territorians would expect us to focus our effort, not running around overseas trying to promote the Northern Territory as a place for overseas apprentices to come and do their training. It is patently ridiculous. For the member for Greatorex to say it is xenophobic is just arrant nonsense.
I remind the member for Greatorex that, if he wants to throw that type of language about, he was a member of parliament in the lead-up to the 2001 election where the CLP preferenced One Nation ahead of the Labor Party in the seat of Nelson. He was a member of that party that took the decision at that time. I did not notice the member for Greatorex making any public statement that he did not support that preference deal. He did not make statements at the time; he has not since. I remind the member for Greatorex of the policy position that he supported over the Labor Party candidate from Pauline Hanson’s maiden speech in the federal parliament. Pauline Hanson was the founder of the One Nation Party that the CLP preferenced over the Labor Party. This is what Pauline Hanson said:
- I and most Australians want our immigration policy radically reviewed and that of multiculturalism abolished. I believe we are in danger of being swamped by Asians. Between 1984 and 1995, 40% of all migrants coming into this country were of Asian origin. They have their own culture and religion, form ghettos and do not assimilate.
That is the policy position the member for Greatorex and the CLP supported in the preference deal in the seat of Nelson, over and above preferencing the Labor Party. In that election, we put One Nation last on every ballot paper across the Northern Territory, as we always would put any party that espoused that type of policy position. Member for Greatorex, if you are going to come in here and throw around words like ‘xenophobic’, have a good, long look in the mirror because that is the type of expedient, grubby, political opportunism that you supported in 2001.
The member for Greatorex was also saying that there were not enough young people to train. The member for Greatorex either has blinkers on and does not see the thousands of young Territorians who are not, and who should be, part of our workforce - not all indigenous Territorians, but the vast majority of them. Those are the people we should be committed to training, not bringing in people from overseas for those jobs. Therefore, when the member for Greatorex says there are not enough young people to train, take your blinkers off. You are saying that indigenous people should not be part of the workforce; it is all too hard, and we should not be focusing on that particular area.
The member for Greatorex made some extraordinary comments, and I will follow up on these allegations that doctors at the Alice Springs Hospital were being victimised, having rosters imposed on them that were onerous and debilitating - those were not the words that he used. He did use the word ‘victimise’, but I did not hear all of what he said. I will go back through the Hansard. These doctors were so scared of their employers and their terms of tenure that they were not prepared to complain to anyone. I give the member for Greatorex my word that I will investigate those allegations. If there was any semblance of truth – and I am sure the Minister for Health would back me up on this- that overseas doctors were being exploited at Alice Springs Hospital, then supervisors are going to be in for a very stern ‘please explain’. The member for Greatorex does have an obligation, if he believes that people are being discriminated against, to make a complaint to the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner. Those complaints will be investigated. If there is any semblance of truth to his allegations, that is outrageous; it should not be happening. Again, I will not take the member’s comments at face value. We will test those comments and see if there is any truth or veracity to them at all.
He also talked about the numbers that I quoted from regarding the make-up of migrants to the Northern Territory and where they came from. Because the majority of skilled migrants to the Northern Territory last year were from the United Kingdom - which will include, I assume, Northern Ireland as well - at 25% that, somehow, we were being xenophobic and this was proof that we were not encouraging more migrants from other countries to come to the Northern Territory. What arrant nonsense! He again shows his level of ignorance. The UK and Ireland has been, for many years, the main source of migration to Australia for a lot of historical links. He, obviously, did not read the statement that went into detail of the number of times that the department, myself included - I have not been to India but have certainly been to China – has been promoting the Northern Territory. The department has been to China on a number of occasions, to India, and to the Philippines on many occasions. Of course, he did not mention that because it did not suit his argument. We are promoting the Northern Territory to migrants around the world. We do not care what colour you are, what your religion is, what ethnic background you come from; if you are looking to come to Australia and you meet those qualifications you are more than welcome in the Northern Territory. We want you here and we will embrace you.
It was really a pretty hypocritical rant from the member for Greatorex. If he wants to go down the path of calling this government xenophobic, I find that offensive, and I point to his part in history in preferencing One Nation on what they supported.
I thank the member for Drysdale for his quite enlightening comments about the number of apprentices his employer was taking in years ago, and how many they were bringing in 10 years later - 150 a year down to 12 is really quite significant. If you replicate that across Australia you can see why Australia dropped the ball and we have such a skill shortage now.
I thank all members for their part in the debates here this evening, and congratulate some very hard-working officers in my department who do so much in this area. Mary Cunningham’s team also includes Irene Russell, Edwina Reid, and Donna Owen - all public servants who, if we were to get that amount of outcome out of all of our public servants, we would really be kicking some goals. They have doubled the number of migrants coming to the Northern Territory, in conjunction with the business community. That is a huge effort from a team of four people. My thanks and congratulations, and the thanks and congratulations of all members of this House go to those people.
Motion agreed to; statement noted.
PERSONAL EXPLANATION
Member for Greatorex
Member for Greatorex
Madam SPEAKER: The member for Greatorex has approached me about making a personal explanation. I have given him my leave to do so.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Madam Speaker, I want to comment on what the Leader of Government Business alluded to. He misrepresented me regarding my support for Pauline Hanson and her One Nation Party. In fact, I am on record, interviewed by the member for Arnhem in her former life as the 7:30 Report anchor about Pauline Hanson. I expressed in no uncertain terms my position about Pauline Hanson; that, in fact, as long as I am in this House, Pauline Hanson will not be part of the CLP policy. I say that without any qualification whatsoever. I suggest that – well, not suggest - I accuse the Leader of Government Business for misrepresenting my position on Pauline Hanson and One Nation. Never have I ever supported that person nor ever would I.
TABLED PAPER
Auditor-General’s August 2006 Report to the Legislative Assembly
Auditor-General’s August 2006 Report to the Legislative Assembly
Madam SPEAKER: Honourable members, I table the Auditor-General’s August 2006 Report to the Legislative Assembly.
MOTION
Print Paper - Auditor-General’s August 2006 Report to the Legislative Assembly
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I move that the report be printed.
Motion agreed to.
MOTION
Note Paper - Auditor-General’s August 2006 Report to the Legislative Assembly
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I move that the Assembly take note of the report, and that I have leave to continue my remarks at a later hour.
Motion agreed to.
ADJOURNMENT
Ms MARTIN (Chief Minister): Madam Speaker, I move that the Assembly do now adjourn.
On 15 August, I had the pleasure of hosting a reception at Parliament House to mark the 100th anniversary of the arrival of Father Francis Xavier Gsell in Darwin. I was joined at the function by His Excellency Archbishop Ambrose De Paoli who is the Apostolic Nuncio in Australia; His Excellency Archbishop Joseph Dor, Archbishop of Strasburg in France where Bishop Gsell came from; Father Mark McDonald, Superior General of the Missionaries of Sacred Heart; Father Raymond Dossman representing the French Province of the Missionaries of Sacred Heart; Father Tim Brennan, Provincial Superior of the Australian Province of the Missionaries of Sacred Heart; and, of course, our very own Bishop Ted Collins, Bishop of Darwin.
Father Gsell’s arrival here in the Top End a century ago effectively marked the beginning of the ministry and service of the Catholic Church in the Territory.
Most Territorians today will think of Father Gsell as a pioneer; in fact, one of our great pioneers. He came here with the rather impressive title of Apostolic Administrator of the Catholic Church in the Northern Territory and went on to become the first Bishop of the re-named Diocese of Darwin. He oversaw the growth of the Catholic Church across the Territory, initially here in Darwin, then at Bathurst Island, Alice Springs, Arltunga, Wadeye, Tennant Creek, Pirlangimpi and Katherine.
His legacy is immense, and there is no doubt that the Catholic Church has played a major role in building and shaping the society we have in the Territory today. Its support of families and communities across the Territory is well known, and its work with Aboriginal people has been and continues to be a vital part of its mission. The achievements of the church are many and their influence has extended far beyond the Catholic community in an area of education and in its charitable programs, just to name two.
I take this opportunity to acknowledge the contribution of Bishop Gsell’s successors, Bishop John O’Loughlin and Bishop Ted Collins and the more than 200 Missionaries of the Sacred Heart priests and brothers who have served the Catholic communities and people of the Territory. Happy anniversary, and may the work of the Catholic Church continue to make a real difference to the lives of Territorians.
Last month, I had the pleasure of opening the TOGART Exhibition of Contemporary Art held in the Main Hall of Parliament House. Those fortunate enough to visit the exhibition were able to see a slice of the very best of contemporary art in the Northern Territory. The Territory is at the crossroads of artistic expression of many cultures, including Aboriginal and settler artists, as well as artists from our near neighbours in South-East Asia. Nowhere else in Australia is the linking of diverse and divergent cultural traditions so dramatic as we see here. The breadth and diversity of the TOGART exhibition was witness to that.
The TOGA Group, as principal developers of our Darwin waterfront project, has shown that it is prepared to back the work of our contemporary arts and artists, not just through the exhibition, but for many years to come with the establishment of the TOGART Contemporary Art Award, which begins next year. The commitment of TOGA to art in the Territory is a reminder that the waterfront project is not just about bricks and mortar, or jobs and development; it is very much about the lifestyle we choose to lead here and the cultural life of our community. In fact, an intrinsic part of the waterfront project has been our commitment to public art as an integral part of the design of the new waterfront precinct.
The waterfront, along with the convention centre, will become a focus for cultural activities in this city, as well as providing new places for displaying the work of visual artists. The waterfront is destined in many other ways to inspire us into the future. I acknowledge the principals of the TOGA Group for their commitment to the waterfront, and to the future of the cultural life of the Territory. I congratulate them and all the artists for a wonderful exhibition.
Earlier this month, I was fortunate enough to see the Australian Ballet perform Giselle with our very own Darwin Symphony Orchestra at the Gardens Amphitheatre. Around 7000 people of all ages and from all walks of life, and from as far away as the east Kimberley, attended the performance. It was the first visit by the full dance company to Darwin in a quarter of a century, and the very first time in the history of the Australian Ballet that it was accompanied by a community-based orchestra. It was a magical night with a uniquely Territory feel, sitting under the stars and surrounded by the tropical splendour of the George Brown Botanic Gardens. As the Northern Territory News reported, and every one of us there knew too well, we were even treated to a shooting star as well as an owl hunting for flying foxes. The owl was successful. Halfway through the first act, an owl with a squawking fruit bat in its claws, came right across the centre of the stage and ended up in a tree at one side and proceeded to do what an owl does to a fruit bat, much to the fruit bat’s annoyance. It was a unique part of an outdoor Darwin experience.
The performance of Giselle was supported by a government grant of $45 000 to the ballet, and was also backed by Telstra and the Darwin City Council. Judging by the performance and the feedback from those lucky enough to be there - and, of course, the performance was free - it was certainly money well spent. The CEO of the ballet, Richard Evans, expressed a strong interest in the ballet returning and, by all accounts, members of the ballet loved Darwin, with a number of them staying on for a few days with their families.
Congratulations and thanks must go to all the performers and the support staff of the Darwin Symphony Orchestra and, in particular, to their conductor, Martin Jarvis. They did us all proud. I also thank the many volunteers who worked on the night, and to the drivers from Arafura Shuttle Buses who assisted Territory seniors to and from the ballet. Like those thousands of Territorians there, we all look forward to their next visit.
The Tropical Garden Spectacular at the Botanic Gardens is a favourite event for many people. It is certainly one of mine, in one of my very favourite locations. I went along this year, and I reckon that it was the best spectacular I have attended – and I have been to a few of them over the years. It was well organised, beautifully set out and, as usual, the atmosphere in the Botanic Gardens really set off the Tropical Garden Spectacular.
The displays were good and, in particular, Power and Water’s new Water Wise brochure grabbed my attention. As you know, Mr Deputy Speaker, I have a keen interest in water efficiency and I will be following up with Power and Water and the garden industry to get their views on how we should move our water wise emphasis further.
Speaking of compelling displays, I make a special mention for the palm mulcher. This is a new invention, only about a couple of years old, and is one thing that we in Darwin struggle with. We get mulchers that cannot cope with palms. They do all kind of crunchy things to them, but they do not make them into a good mulch you can use in your garden. A new one has been developed, and I watched it working with great interest. It chops palms into little bits, just over 5 cm wide, and does it very efficiently. It is just the kind of thing you need in a tropical garden. It is not cheap but, if you look at what you spend on the cost of a trailer to take all those wretched fronds to the dump, then my household worked out that it was only worth about two trailers. We are currently in a position of having to buy a new one. So, you never know, we might just get that new mulcher.
Getting back to the Garden Spectacular in particular, the event seems to get better and better each year, and it is now a fixture on our Dry Season calendar for both locals and visitors to the Top End. I know that we get repeat visitors who venture north especially for the spectacular, which says a lot about its quality. In fact, the previous night at the Bulldogs/Port match, I met a woman who had come up for that match but was here for a few days as well. She came from Victoria. She had just spent the day at the spectacular and could not stop talking about it. She said it was wonderful and it was something that she had not expected, and had enjoyed her day there. I have a feeling the 2006 Tropical Garden Spectacular will not be her last.
The event remains popular because its organisers never rest on their laurels. They are a genuinely creative bunch who look at making the event different each year. I congratulate and thank the nursery and garden industry of the NT and their hard-working boss, Simon Smith, the dedicated members of the Garden Spectacular’s organising committee, and the many volunteers who made this event possible, not forgetting Rotary which mans the gate. I am looking forward to next year’s event.
Ms CARNEY (Araluen): Mr Deputy Speaker, tonight I talk about an important issue to most people in Alice Springs. The matter has been discussed in parliament today, and it is appropriate that I put on the Parliamentary Record the issue of the demountables in Alice Springs.
The fact is that management of the whole demountable accommodation issue in Alice Springs has been a debacle entirely attributable to the Northern Territory government. The need for emergency housing which is suitably appropriate for indigenous people is undeniable, and the concept behind the demountables is a good one.
However, an appropriate area, or areas, needs to be identified and they need to be appropriately managed. It is not appropriate to locate the demountables within the town boundaries, having regard to the 10 sites identified by the Northern Territory government’s consultant. Anyone who has the slightest regard for the people of Alice Springs - I have an enormous regard for the people of Alice Springs, which is why I take them seriously - even those on the government side would say at best that they have a slight regard for the people of Alice Springs, would understand their concern after the list of 10 sites was outlined in a story in the Centralian Advocate a week or so ago. The concern has many dimensions.
One of the concerns is that people do not want the demountables to turn into another poorly managed town camp. To keep its side of the agreement, the Northern Territory government must identify locations and take responsibility for the relocation and the re-establishment of the demountables. However, this Labor government is contemptuous of the people of Alice Springs in its management of this issue and others, and its failure to consult with the community.
The Territory’s Housing Minister gave one of the worst interviews I have ever heard on radio on 16 August. To say he was incoherent was something of an understatement. In any event, the lack of confidence that arose after his interview surprised even me, because the Minister for Housing did nothing to tell the people of Alice Springs about this concept - did nothing to take responsibility for his role in it. He did his best to cover and protect his Chief Minister, although he did not even do that very well. I was very concerned when the Minister for Housing kept talking about what he described as ‘due process’. It would appear that the Territory’s Housing Minister is of the view that anyone wishing to object to the location of these demountables needs to write a submission to the Development Consent Authority. That is not consultation by anyone’s language. Why should the people of Alice Springs be forced, having been overlooked in anything vaguely resembling consultation, to sit at home in front of their computers writing submissions?
The minister also mucked up, through his inconsistencies, the roles and responsibilities he has in relation to this project. I have been very clear on this project, even though the Housing Minister and his Chief Minister have not been. The concept is, as I have said, a very good one but great care needs to be taken as to their location.
This morning, I met with the federal Indigenous Affairs minister, Mal Brough. I outlined to him the concerns of residents of Alice Springs; that is, those who contacted me and contacted others, who in turn contacted me. I told him in very clear and unambiguous terms why it was that the sites identified by the apparently ‘leaked’ – there is that word again, another ‘leaked’ document from government - list were inappropriate. The federal minister gave me his assurance and, in turn the people of Alice Springs an assurance, that the demountables will not be located in a residential area.
What was interesting in my discussion with Mr Brough this morning was that the Territory government has been disingenuous and difficult in keeping its end of the bargain. Mr Brough told me that he had not received a list of the sites until it was made public. Not even the federal minister, who is paying for all of this to the tune of $30m, has been kept in the loop. If that is not an indictment on the Minister for Housing, I do not know what is. The minister agreed with me that there should be sound and extensive community consultation. However, he said he would not sign off on the location of the demountables - a joint responsibility of the Territory and the Commonwealth governments - unless the people of Alice Springs were satisfied with it, and certainly not if these demountables would be located in a residential area.
To make matters worse, the residents of Alice Springs have been kept largely in the dark. Not even the town’s Mayor, a paid-up Labor Party member that she is, knew anything about the 10 proposed sites. That, again, speaks to the disarray of this government and the contemptuous way in which they regard the people of Alice Springs. No one knows where the 10 sites came from. All we know is that consultants were employed by the Territory government. No one was asked what their views were about the 10 sites. In his appalling media interview on 8HA on 16 August, the minister referred to key stakeholders as the town council and Tangentyere Council. He barely referred - and when he did it was towards the end - to the people of Alice Springs. It is the measure of this government, and we are used to it even though it is frustrating - even the people of Alice Springs are used to it - this government hitching its wagon up to its friends and supporters and targeting what it sees are key interest groups.
However, there is a broader obligation and that obligation is to provide good government to the people of Alice Springs who this government has neglected so badly for so long. I note that the Chief Minister is on the public record maybe eight, nine, 10 months ago saying that she would spend one week a quarter in Alice Springs because that would, in her mind, demonstrate according to her thinking, that she did care about the people of Alice Springs. I invite the Chief Minister to provide me - and if she does not want to provide to me, to provide Alice Springs media or, in the alternative, anyone in Alice Springs - with her diary entries because I am not sure - in fact, I have some confidence - that she has not spent one week a quarter in Alice Springs.
As I said at the outset, there is a need for action on indigenous issues. It is very sad to see that this government under the leadership of the Chief Minister - although for how long who knows - that she has had to be dragged kicking and screaming every inch of the way when it comes to indigenous issues. This is best demonstrated by the memo issued by the member for Millner, and reportedly leaked by the member for Macdonnell. If her own colleagues are frustrated and angry with the Chief Minister, little wonder the people of Alice Springs are similarly irritated, frustrated and, in some quarters, many are very angry with her.
There is a concern within the community of Alice Springs that, without a detailed plan that the townspeople should know about, two new town camps will be established rather than the strategic placement of emergency demountable accommodation and the development of existing town camps to meet the needs of the people in Alice Springs. That is the concern and this government has done nothing to dispel it. They have been secretive when it comes to what exactly has been the deal with the federal government. Thankfully, we know the terms of the arrangement. It has been very interesting to see the Chief Minister go to ground and the Housing minister come out and be less than clear, at worst incoherent, in his explanation of what the situation is.
There is no doubt, in my view, that the federal government has so far fulfilled its side of the agreement, of the deal, done with the Territory government some months ago. Now the Territory government needs to fulfil its part of the bargain. They cannot just walk away from this. They cannot just say: ‘Here are your demountables. See you later’. If they are committed - I do not think the Chief Minister is, but I am of the view that some of her colleagues probably are - to achieving better outcomes for indigenous people in Alice Springs, then this government certainly needs to pay very careful attention to not only the placement of the demountables but also to the long-term interests of indigenous and non-indigenous people in Central Australia.
We have said in the past - and it has been somewhat encouraging to hear the Chief Minister’s colleagues saying so in relatively recent times - that the Chief Minister, although she is the Indigenous Affairs Minister, is not committed to improving the outcomes for indigenous Territorians. The list of examples just goes on and on.
For my part, and as a local member in Alice Springs, I thought it appropriate to place on the record the high level of concern that has arisen as a result of this issue, and to urge, to the extent that I am able, the Territory government, having had its eye off the ball thus far, to at least produce a concerted effort to ensure that better outcomes are attained for the people of Alice Springs.
I note that in a media release issued on 7 December 2005 headed ‘Government commits to vision for Alice’, the Chief Minister talked about Alice in 10. You will recall that there is a committee called Alice in Five – much more proactive than Alice in 10. However, I digress. In any event, towards the bottom of the press released dated 7 December 2005, the Chief Minister said:
- There are many priorities and projects the community will be asked to make comment on including …
Then there are a number of bullet points:
safety in the community;
law and order;
substance misuse and improved school attendance;
water re-use;
residential land release;
a new master plan for the Alice Springs Desert Park;
world heritage listing for the West MacDonnell Ranges, and
Alice Springs as a solar centre.
These were the priorities of this Chief Minister eight months ago. Nowhere in this media release did she refer to better outcomes for indigenous Territorians. Nowhere in this media release did she say: ‘We have a problem with the town camps. Let us do something about it’. She did not even touch on some of the key issues that are confronting Alice Springs. Of course, it was the Lateline interviews in May of this year that have caused some level of activity from this government, although it is nowhere near enough, but that has forced the Chief Minister to do something. Only eight months ago, she did not think there was much to do. Thank God for the Lateline interviews.
It is terribly disappointing that the Chief Minister still refuses to demonstrate any commitment to indigenous and non-indigenous people in Alice Springs. I hope, however, this exercise and the ordinary conduct of her minister has demonstrated to her - if not her then her advisors - that more care needs to be taken to ensure the people of Alice Springs get a fair deal from this Chief Minister. In essence, my message to the Assembly, Mr Deputy Speaker, is that this Chief Minister needs to do much better. She needs to do much better immediately and she needs to get on top of her issues.
Mr DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Stuart.
Mrs Braham: Mr Deputy Speaker, that is not the convention. The convention is three ways. No, I am not on the opposition. You know that.
Dr TOYNE: I have a meeting to go to.
Mrs Braham: You are out of order, Mr Deputy Speaker.
Mr Mills: Oh, order!
Mrs Braham: Well, it is. Come on, you know convention.
Dr TOYNE (Stuart): Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker, and I do apologise to the member for Braitling.
Much has happened in my electorate since the last sittings. The opening of the new clinic at Yuendumu on 5 July was a highlight, as my friend and long-term Health department employee Dr Didi Devanesen and I were asked to open it. Didi has a long association with Yuendumu, as he was the first visiting doctor there and he introduced health workers and health worker training into our system. He worked out of a large tin shed in the old days. Connie Nungarrayi Rice and Robbie Walit also helped with the opening. They currently work for Health.
Some of the local ladies danced a tribute to Jilly Nakamarra Spencer who is now deceased and who worked as a health worker for many years and, even in retirement, continued to assist the Health department by contributing both traditional and mainstream knowledge. I also had the pleasure of joining with members of the Spencer family to open a commemorative garden for the female health workers at Yuendumu. It was good to catch up with Wendy Baarda, Sister Clare and Sister Magali, James and Violet Marshall, Ned and Judith Hargraves, Neville Poulson and Thomas Rice who sang and accompanied the dancers on boomerangs, Manager, Christine Doby, and the health worker, Nola Wilson, and many others. I had a lovely day and always enjoy visiting my old home.
Yuendumu Health Centre was commissioned in November 2005 and completed at a cost of $3.2m. The Australian government contributed $1m of that amount. The health centre is evidence of the cooperation that exists in improving remote health infrastructure between the Northern Territory Department of Health and Community Services and the Australian government Department of Health and Ageing. Yuendumu Health Centre is tangible proof that the Northern Territory government’s five year Building Healthier Communities framework is delivering tangible results that will strengthen and improve local health services and extend medical outreach services to our remote areas. The design of the new facility involved key community members and staff at Yuendumu, with the result being a highly functional, culturally appropriate health care centre. The new building includes purpose-built areas for women and men, dental care, education and training for staff, as well as emergency care and pharmacy.
The opening day also featured an excellent display of bush medicines. They were placed at the women’s entrance of the health centre. Workers were available to explain the uses of various bush medicines, and they described how they work both ways in order to provide comprehensive and acceptable health care to people in the region.
Still on the subject of Yuendumu, I attended the sports weekend which celebrated Yuendumu community’s 60th anniversary, and I think it was the 47th staging of the Yuendumu sports weekend. It is a very old and traditional event in Central Australia. I was presented at the sports weekend with a book by local author, Liam Campbell, simply titled Darby. Liam attended the Mt Evelyn Christian School as a student and visited Yuendumu during their yearly excursion and got to know old Darby who made a big impression on him. I have felt for a very long time that someone should write Darby’s extraordinary life story, and I am very pleased that Liam tackled it. I have since read the book and have thoroughly enjoyed the journey and all its memories, as well as the numerous pictures of Darby’s life.
I congratulate Lisa Hall, a teacher from Utopia school, elsewhere in the electorate, who was a recipient of the DEET scholarship recently. Lisa will be focusing her studies on integrating traditional knowledge as a way of retaining secondary education students. Her studies will build on knowledge and her indigenous colleagues’ forum in 2005 at the World Indigenous Peoples conference in New Zealand. The scholarship will see her travel to Canada and Alaska, and I wish her the best of luck.
It would be remiss of me not to speak of these developments in the Warlpiri area, particularly without mentioning the current situation as regards family feuds in that area. While it is fantastic to be opening clinic buildings and celebrating the establishment of a secondary course at Yuendumu under the new remote secondary programs that the government is pursuing, the reality, at the moment, is that these attempts to initiate new services out in the communities of Willowra, Nyirripi and Yuendumu are being severely impacted on by family feuding. The Warlpiri were able to mediate a feud between a number of the families late last year, a mediation that has actually had, according to the police, very strong impacts on the level of violence and disruption associated with those families. There were parallel feuds, both at Willowra and between some families at Nyirripi and Yuendumu, which again flared up prior to and during the Yuendumu sports weekend.
These feuds are getting to a very worrying level of both pre-planning and the degree of weaponry that the antagonists are now taking to these clashes. We are seeing quite frightening sharp-edged weapons such as machetes, swords, homemade weapons, as well as more traditional spears and found objects such as star pickets and the like. There is no future to this situation other than an absolutely continued descent into anarchy and trauma visited on families, fear between families, and dysfunction within the communities that are blighted by these activities. It has also flowed into Alice Springs and, prior to the sports weekend, police raided one of the town camps in Alice Springs and disarmed some 50 family members of quite serious level offensive weapons.
We have a lot of work to do. In fact, I would like to repeat what I have already said publicly regarding these situations. We urge the families to enter into a formal mediation as quickly as possible; that the more respected and senior members of those families need to initiate or indicate a willingness to join us - the Justice Department, the police, the courts, their own countrymen and countrywomen - in seeking to break this cycle of violence, this spiral of violence, that can only go one way. It will get more and more extreme over time, be more and more disruptive to the communities; it will vandalise more and more of the common and domestic infrastructure of the communities, and simply will defeat any attempt to advance the situation of the families in that area of my electorate.
We will go anywhere at any time. However, we believe that we need to draw this process into a similar model that we used last year with the initial feud. It does require someone to come in and support the prominent family members because they cannot do it alone. They have been trying; they are pretty demoralised at attempting to take on these younger adults by themselves. They need help. We are more than happy to provide help. We know how difficult these situations are to resolve and how dangerous they can be, because one step wrong and things can actually get worst rather than better.
Barbara Weis from the Office of Crime Prevention and Sergeant White from the police in Alice Springs are prominent in the current work that is going on. I have to report that one of the most hopeful signs at the moment is that many of the senior members of the non-aligned families - the ones not involved in these feuds - are offering themselves as a reference group to act as a bridge to the people from these families we need to get involved in the mediation. Hopefully, that is a sign that communities have realised that there is no future the way things are going, and this has to be dealt with, and dealt with urgently and forthrightly.
I say, finally, the law is there and the law will be enforced. If people are breaking the law and assaulting other people, and using offensive weapons, they will end up in gaol. There is going to be no quarter given on that front whatsoever. If that is part of the solution then, so be it. Gaol, policing, and enforcement alone are not going to stop this. If they were going to stop it, they would have done it years ago. However, some of these conflicts have been going for up to seven years and we have to find a new way of pulling them up.
Mr Deputy Speaker, I hope that members of this House will wish the Department of Justice, the police, all the luck and the best in the world, and also the very brave Warlpiri people who have come forward to say: ‘Let us see if we can help with you a solution here’.
Mrs BRAHAM (Braitling): Mr Deputy Speaker, I am pleased to hear the minister talk about these particular problems in the House so openly and honestly. I understand how difficult it is for these families. Let us hope that we do get some resolution out of these negotiations.
I also need to make a comment about the demountables that we heard so much about today. I am confused about what these demountables have actually become. I thought they were going to be for short-term accommodation but, now, there seems to be a hint that they may be for permanent accommodation. We are hearing stories from both sides.
We heard the Leader of the Opposition accusing the Territory government of not participating in the debate. The Territory government was saying the federal government is being unilateral in their decision-making. In the middle of it, the Alice Springs Town Council seems to be left in the dark. The most important point that the Leader of the Opposition made is that the people of Alice Springs should be consulted. They should not be left out of the loop. For them, there is the potential for a town camp situation to be resurrected, another complex that could cause all the antisocial problems that we experience so much in Alice Springs. If the intent was to help with the shortage of housing in town camps and on communities, then that is probably where they should go. However, I am really unclear as to what these demountables are for. I have to admit I also have concerns about demountables in their current state and how suitable they are as accommodation for Aboriginal people with large families. I am not quite sure whether they are the most appropriate means of accommodation anyway.
If the federal government wants to put the demountables in or near Alice Springs, then the Territory government, the Alice Springs Council and the community must be involved in the decision-making. I have sent off a press release to the federal minister voicing my concern and saying exactly that: let us make sure we get consultation with people who it is going to affect most of all.
Tonight, I also want to show the parliament the Australian Lions Drug Awareness Foundation drug kit, ‘How to make your community aware of alcohol and other drugs and the harm they can cause’. This particular kit has been put out in conjunction with the Drug Education Network Incorporated and the Australian Lions Drug Awareness Foundation. Keith McEwan, the Northern Territory Director and one of the founding members of Lions in Alice Springs, brought this particular kit into my office to show me. It really is a very exciting joint initiative. The two organisations have established this resource to assist parents and schools to address the issue of drugs.
They have put this kit out for use by community workers, teachers, health professionals, community groups, families - whoever. It is a very informative pack. It has a lot of pamphlets that talk about drugs and their effects. Inside this particular one it goes through the different common drugs that are used such as cannabis, amphetamines, alcohol, tobacco, ecstasy and so on. It also has a number of pamphlets aimed at parents: worry-free teenage parties; a parents and adolescents getting along guide; as well as the 10 steps to keep your child smoke-free; party hard, but party safe; and teenagers and safe partying. They are excellent little pamphlets. They also have some very good posters to go with it. These kits cost $20 and you can order them through your local Lions member.
I urge all members of the House to buy one of these kits for each of their secondary schools, so that they can see what is there. I believe they will find that secondary schools will be quite impressed with the work and the depth of understanding that has gone into this particular pack. It really is very good. With it also, CAYLUS in Alice Springs have put out this poster; hey bro, which way you gonna go? It shows the bad way and the good way. On the back it talks about petrol sniffing:
- Petrol sniffing is dangerous. It can kill you. Anytime you do it, it melts nerves in the brain causing irreversible damage. Research shows a sniffer who has used petrol for seven years can recover fully if they stop for two years. Past that amount of time, the brain cannot make a full recovery. If you have a petrol habit or someone in your family is a sniffer, contact your local health department. Get help. Some people say it is up to the family to stop a sniffer, but it can be too hard, so get some help.
It is a simple poster but it has a very strong message: ‘Go the wrong way, this is how you will end up. Go the right way, and you have a happy family’. I commend CAYLUS for putting out that poster at the same time as this particular kit from the Lions. I thank Keith McEwan for bringing this to me. It is a valuable resource and I hope that people in this House also get a copy of it and see how good it is.
Our Centralian of the Year, Mary Meldrum, was involved in a motor vehicle accident several weeks ago. Unfortunately, the other driver was unlicensed and the car that hit Mary was unregistered and, of course, uninsured. Mary had her little 22-year-old Honda smashed up and it is possibly irreparable. A group of people from the Alice Springs Memorial Club where Mary Meldrum does a lot of fundraising for people have put together a committee and worked to see if they could resolve Mary’s problem.
Mary is renowned for, week after week, fundraising for different groups. She belongs to the Memo Bowling Club and she often fundraises and gets people involved. This gesture by people to help Mary through this predicament was really quite overwhelming for Mary, and quite staggering in her eyes. They raised over $13 000 and then they found that - I am trying to think who it was - Centralian Motors …
Dr Lim: Centralian Motors, that is right.
Mrs BRAHAM: … gave them a vehicle at low cost. It was a little Hyundai Getz and it has personalised number plates: Mary M. They had an auction on Saturday night which, unfortunately, I was not able to attend, but they said it was great. They raised enough money to cover the rego, the fuel, insurance, tyres, etcetera, for quite some time. Mary is going to be well outfitted. Mary is one of those people who works hard for everyone in Alice Springs and this embarrassed her a little. However, it is such a worthy thing for these people of the Memo Club to have done for Mary Meldrum. I know she will be delighted when she gets back into town. The car was there with a great big bow. Of course, it is red because her little old Honda was red, too, so Mary Meldrum will be driving around town in a great new car.
I congratulate and thank the club members, George James, the Alice Springs Memorial Club President, and Andrea Sullivan and Kay Eade. I know there are other people involved in that committee but I do not have their names with me at this time. It is great to see the community of Alice Springs get together behind someone who does so much for other people, now doing things for her. It reflects the wonderful town we have and the wonderful people who live in it.
I also want to mention tonight a conference that occurred in Alice Springs. It was the Australian Federation of Civil Celebrants Conference. It is the first time I have come across this federation. Roger Thompson was the president, and we had an organising committee in Alice Springs: Penny McConville, Meredith Campbell, Bruce McRae, and Barry Densley from Katherine. There were around 90 participants from all around Australia who attended this conference. The theme was rather lovely: ‘Time to Celebrate from the Heart of Australia’. Civil ceremonies offer a viable alternative to religious ceremonies for many citizens. I suppose it is quite interesting that the number of civil ceremonies, in fact, seems to be increasing. They are now approximately 54% of all marriage ceremonies and that is quite a lot. If you look back in history, you will find that church ceremonies would have been the largest.
The Australian Federation of Civil Celebrants Inc is the largest national professional association of civil celebrants in Australia. Its membership is over 800 in all states and territories. I am not quite sure how many we have in Alice Springs, but I do know of the three who are on the organising committee, and that they work continually. Civil celebrants do not just officiate at ceremonies such as marriage; they preside over funerals, naming, renewal of vows, and so on. It has 95 student celebrant members also and has a national office. One of the representatives from that office attended the convention.
Civil celebrants also have to do some professional training regularly and keep up to date with legislation as it goes through. Therefore, the conference, run over two days, had a number of professional development opportunities as well as other interesting sessions for them to participate in. There were a number of sessions which included cultural aspects of ceremony, and it was nice to know that Bessy Price and her husband actually spoke at the conference.
I congratulate Penny McConville, who did an enormous amount of work, Bruce McRae, Meredith Campbell and Barry Densley. They used my office for their teleconferences. They worked incredibly hard to make this a success. I know the people who participated in this particular conference went away thinking what a wonderful place Alice Springs was. It is small conferences like this that really keep the town going. Over the past few months, if you look at the conferences we have had at Alice Springs, they are not always large, but ones of around 100 really offer quite a lot to the town. I say to the organisers, again, well done. It is nice to know that the civil celebrants had such a great time in Alice Springs. I know they will continue their great work that they do for people in making sure that they have a harmonious and pleasant ceremony.
They asked: why do people always want to be married on a hill? Of course, the Northern Territory has many hills to attract people. I know some of the civil celebrants often say: ‘Here we go, up we go another hill’ to make sure it is a beautiful setting. That is what attracts people to Alice Springs. There are an amazing number of tourists who want to be married at Ayers Rock or Kings Canyon, or some of our beautiful gaps around the place. I can understand that they would have to be a very well prepared group of people to make sure the wedding goes smoothly, making sure the bride and everyone is very happy with the end results. Congratulations to those people also.
Mr KIELY (Sanderson): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, today I inform the House of a wonderful community gathering that took place on Anula Oval on Sunday, 16 July 2006. First of all, I would like to provide a little history as to how this community-based event came about.
During the 2005 Dry Season, the Darwin City Council completed the construction of an area playground with some of the most modern and aesthetically appealing play equipment you could imagine. Not only this, the playground had erected over the top of it a very effective and colourful shade structure and, below the equipment, soft fall and a substantial base of sand was laid. Ample bench and table seating was placed on the perimeter of the playground for parents and carers to sit while their children played, and there is a nearby public toilet facility as well as water fountains. There is ample car parking as well as a full-sized oval adjacent to the playground.
As you can visualise by the description just given, this is, indeed, a beautiful, well-sited and welcomed amenity for the families of Waters Ward. Recognition and thanks need to be given to the Waters Ward councillors, especially Ms Jo Sangster for the public consultation she arranged during the conceptual stages of the establishment of this playground. To celebrate the opening of this playground, the Waters Ward aldermen – namely, Jo Sangster, Dorothy Fox and Allan Mitchell, arranged with the Lord Mayor, Mr Peter Adamson, for a sausage sizzle and the Darwin City Fun Bus to be on hand to provide a carnival-like atmosphere. Coincidentally, at the same time, the local youth Australian Rules Football team, the Sanderson Swans, were playing a home game on the adjacent oval, and so their families, joining in with other young families who attended the opening, indeed, made it a great afternoon for community fun.
I was also there with my family, and I noted what a great thing this was. I thought to myself: ‘It would be great if we could get this community spirit happening on a more regular basis’. To this end, I made a commitment, in May 2005, to the electorate of Sanderson that I would continue to work with our aldermen and other community groups to deliver a family picnic day in the park annually.
Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I seek leave to table a copy of a flyer I sent out to my constituents at the time advising of this intention.
Leave granted.
Mr KIELY: In late May, early June 2006, I met with Allan Mitchell and John Leer from the Anula Neighbourhood Watch and we discussed having a joint function between the local aldermen, I as local MLA, and Neighbourhood Watch. The three of us met in my office and we canvassed a few ideas such as jumping castles, fun buses, etcetera. In the end, we came up with the idea of the Darwin City Brass Band playing in the park, a display from Anula Neighbourhood Watch and, perhaps, a display from Darwin City Council. I did not see a need for me to put up any display as my primary concern to have a family picnic day was met, and I was very happy indeed. Allan Mitchell took on the job of lining up the brass band, and he also did up the template for the flyer advertising the concert. I would also like table that flyer, Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, which was drafted by Alderman Mitchell - a fine piece of work.
Mr ACTING DEPUTY SPEAKER: Are you tabling that document?
Mr KIELY: I seek leave, Mr Acting Deputy Speaker.
Leave granted.
Mr KIELY: John Leer organised the Neighbourhood Watch display and organised the sausage sizzle. My job was print up and arrange distribution of the flyers to Wulagi, Northlakes, Malak and Marrara. John Leer organised, through the Anula Neighbourhood Watch, to have his members distribute the flyers through Anula. What a good job we all did. On the day we had in excess of 200 people attend. Never before had so many families gathered at one time in a park to enjoy a great Sunday arvo of brass band music.
On this note, if you would pardon the pun, it is timely to provide some information on the Darwin City Brass Band contribution. A full band took part on the day and I am advised they thoroughly enjoyed doing it. The band was placed in a semi-circle configuration as to allow maximum viewing by the audience, who happily sat on the grass on their blankets and, for some, at the tables and chairs they brought along. The band could not function as well as it does without the stewardship of a very professional committee. The members of this committee deserve a special mention. They are president, Iris Beale; vice president, Frank Roberts; secretary, Elaine Farnham; treasurer, Tim Jacobs; musical director, Ron (Robo) Roberts; and deputy band master, Frank Roberts.
The musicians and their instruments of choice on the day were: solo cornet - Tim Jacobs, Frank Haydock, and Grant Roberts; repiano cornet - Bill Buckley; second cornet – Emily Duckett and Maree Hasewski; third cornet - Ruth Sheridan; flugelhorn - Kim Burdon; solo tenor horn - Elaine Farnham; first tenor horn - Julie-Anne Lubke; second tenor horn - Jeremy Liew; baritone - Ron Roberts; euphonium - Henry May and Paul Fisk; first trombone - Tony Beale; second trombone - Jack Duckett and Anthony Liew; bass trombone – Iris Beale; Eb bass - Frank Roberts and Terry Hine; Bb bass - Colyn Bierton; and percussion – Leigh Radford and Mick Burton.
Soloists on the day were Emily Duckett – her first time in public - cornet solo One Day; Kim Burdon, flugelhorn solo Aranjeuz Mon Amour; Frank Haydock, Tim Jacobs, Grant Roberts, cornet trio Trumpets Wild; Mick Burdon, comedy item on the triangle, The Eternal Triangle.
I arrived a little after the start, so I missed Allan Mitchell opening the event. I did, however, manage to catch most of the performance as did the other aldermen who were present and gave their support on the day; namely, Dorothy Fox and Joanne Sangster. Neighbourhood Watch had a very impressive display and was staffed by local Anula members, as well as Sergeant Jeff Mosel. The sausage sizzle was organised and cooked by members of - I am sorry I cannot be 100% sure, but I think it was Apex.
I also had the task of seeking support from our local businesses at Anula and I am very pleased to say that the Anula Takeaway and Hingston Chinese Takeaway donated gift vouchers which were drawn on the day. A big thank you to these great supporters of our local Anula community. They provide great food outlets and I recommend to all and sundry to get down there and have a pretty good takeaway meal.
I had the opportunity to wind up the concert and say a big thank you to everyone for providing such a fine picnic atmosphere. I promised that we would go on to make this an annual event. I even had people come up to me afterwards and said we should have it more often.
On a more sombre note, I must express my disappointment that some people are spreading the story that I, somehow, am claiming credit for the day. Let me say here and now that no time have I claimed sole credit for this day, nor was it my intention to ever do so. This was a joint effort between Anula Neighbourhood Watch, Alderman Mitchell and me. I hope this settles that matter and clears up any misunderstandings or mischief that has been floating about but never brought directly to my attention.
I would like to draw attention to the Adopt-a-Park program that is in place in Palmerston. On the council website, the heading dealing with Adopt-a-Park says:
- The aim of the Adopt-a-Park program is to keep natural green areas like the Palmerston Escarpment and Mitchell Creek plus our local parks in Palmerston clean, attractive, shady and safe for everyone in our community to enjoy.
What does it involve?
I would like to see Anula Park adopted by the people of Anula just as the people of Palmerston do with their parks. I do not think our local council has such a program at the moment. However, I will be writing to them shortly to see how we can get together to get such a program going. I believe this Adopt-a-Park program is good for the community, and I am sure that we will all be able to work together to get something like this happening for our constituents.
In conclusion, I thank all and sundry who made the day such a success. I look forward to next year, to working with our local aldermen and other community groups once again to, hopefully, emulate this success. Most importantly, I thank all those families who came along and I look forward to seeing them and their friends next year.
Dr LIM (Greatorex): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, I join the member for Braitling in congratulating the Alice Springs community - in particular the Alice Springs Memorial Club - for the fundraiser that they conducted for Mary Meldrum. I was aware of Mary Meldrum’s misfortune with her car accident, and the response from the Alice Springs community through the fundraising has just been absolutely remarkable. I believe something like $12 000 cash was raised prior to the auction last Saturday night. I am also sorry that I was unable to attend, as I had to attend a wedding of my wife’s work colleague that same evening. However, I heard the member for Braitling described it as a very successful event. I am sure Mary would be most chuffed with the response that she received. It is not often during our lifetime that we see a community respond with such generosity, expressing its appreciation for the work that one has done. Mary Meldrum truly deserves every bit of support that she received from our community trying to demonstrate to her the regard and respect that the community has for Mary. Their response is just one indication of how highly regarded she is.
I want to spend my time tonight speaking about the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association meeting I attended in New Zealand last week. On behalf of the Northern Territory Legislative Assembly, I was the delegate from the Territory to New Zealand. That was the first time I had visited that country. It is significant that New Zealand, up to the first moment that the Maoris settled in that country, was uninhabited. Some 1000 years ago, the Maoris migrated through the South Pacific to the North Island. Later, the second settlement was by Australians who went from Sydney to New Zealand around 1840 and, since then, that country has slowly developed. It now has a population of approximately just over four million. They anticipate there will be about 4.5 million by about 2015.
I attended the conference with the Clerk of the Assembly, Ian McNeill, and we were the only two delegates from the Territory. Delegates from other states also attended, as well as delegates from the member nations of the South Pacific.
Many of the topics discussed were of great interest. I have a full set of the papers debated at the CPA Conference. I recommend members to at least browse the documents, if not read them. I thought the paper by Sir Geoffrey Palmer on The Stable Government and the Role of Parliament was very interesting. He described the MMP system - the multi-member proportional representation government of New Zealand. I tried to find an analogy or a parallel, and it was very difficult to understand their system.
To condense what I learned about the MMP system: each New Zealander casts two votes in very much the same way as we do ourselves in a federal election. We cast one vote for the House of Representatives and one vote for the Senate. In Australia, while we can either vote for a Senator individually or vote for the parties, along the party lines. In New Zealand, a New Zealander casts two votes, one for a House of Representative member, and a second vote for what they call List members which, is essentially, a party ticket of lists of members. Where, in Australia a government is determined by the majority of the House of Representatives, in New Zealand, the government is elected based on the majority in the List vote. Therefore, if a party receives the majority of votes from the List votes, that party then is the government.
However, for at least the last two elections under MMP, if not the last three, New Zealand has always had a minority government. The party with the most number of seats, while not attaining the majority of seats, would need to then negotiate with other parties to try to form a coalition that would have the majority of votes. Sometimes, it becomes very hairy. In fact, the party with fewer seats could still be in government if it is able to negotiate a coalition with other parties to achieve the majority of seats in parliament. Then, when they sit, they sit in one House; it is a unicameral parliament.
If you look at the Australian situation, the Senate and the House of Representatives would sit as joint sittings of parliament all the time. There is no separation between the Upper House and the Lower House. In New Zealand, the List members and the House of Representatives members all sit together in a single Chamber, and that is it; there is no other House.
Because it is a minority government, any policy the government wishes to initiate needs the cooperation of the other member parties in its coalition, which means it takes a lot of negotiation before the New Zealand government can achieve the passage of legislation. I suppose the minority government forces the party in government to negotiate the terms of its policy. It is very much as though, as in Australia, you have the House of Representatives where one party is the majority and does not have the majority in the Senate. Therefore, the government is then forced to negotiate through their policies.
Since the MMP system has been in, I believe New Zealand has always had a minority government and, hence, all the negotiations that they have to undertake. I understand also that, currently, all select or standing committees in the New Zealand parliament are dominated by non-government members, so the majority is always held in others’ hands. It appears that the system works well for New Zealanders. They feel that they are able to achieve a fairer form of representation. List members also allow minority parties to secure better representation within the parliament than would be the case for single member electorates.
There was a paper on post-legislative review. It discussed the issue of legislation that has been passed by parliament, and when legislation is looked at again following passage. Obviously, they have ways of doing it such as using a sunset clause or compulsory review at a set time. If you have a compulsory review of legislation at a set time, it would take a lot of effort and resources to make sure that the legislation could be passed. It could be looked at and then brought back to parliament for reintroduction. However, sunset clauses are not that good either because, if you were to write a sunset clause into an item of legislation, at the point in time when the sunset clause comes into effect, that legislation falls over. Unless the public service is constantly aware that this is the case, that could possibly leave a big gap in legislation because the sunset clause had removed that legislation from the books.
CPA conferences, particularly in the Pacific region, always raise the issue of global warming and the impending catastrophe from rising sea levels. Island nations such as Tuvalu and Kiribati are now suffering the effects of saltwater inundation of their land, as well as incursion of salt water into their potable water table. That continues to pose huge problems for these island nations, and we continued to debate this issue. Those countries that are under threat continue to complain about the lack of action from first world nations such as New Zealand and Australia who say: ‘Yes, we hear you, we hear you’ However, it appears that nobody seems to be prepared to take any action. I believe it is time for first world nations to actually put their money where their mouths are, to say: ‘Yes, we are going to do something’ and be quite concrete about what they are going to do. These island nations that are under threat need to express what they truly want. Do they want to stay on the island nations and, therefore, ask first world nations to ensure that their islands do not get inundated, such as by reclaiming land from the ocean, or express that they do want to go and live elsewhere? First world nations can then put their minds to addressing how they can assist in re-establishing these people in other places.
There were some 21 papers altogether and we talked at great length about many papers. One of the papers that would have been interesting for, say, our workforce, was the paper presented by the ACT branch, The Role of the Whip in a Small Parliament. The delegate went on to explain what she did as the Whip, and others then contributed from an opposition point of view, and also from the Labor government’s point of view in Australia. I said at the end of that everybody was very civilised about the whole debate. They had pairings, apart from the normal duties of the Whip being the sheep dog, making sure that everybody was doing the right thing and all that.
Pairings appear to be quite common in other state parliaments and, for the life of me, I could not understand it, because pairings only advantage the government. It does not advantage the opposition one iota, especially when there is only a slim margin between government and opposition. The government, obviously, requests pairings so that a minister or whoever can go off and do his or her own thing in the promotion of government. Why would the opposition support that? Surely, it is up to government to arrange its own affairs in a way that it can do its own thing without having the opposition to make way for it?
There were other discussions about the role of the CPA monitoring human rights and there was a bit of a debate, which some people thought might be a bit ethnocentric. It was a good conference. It was not hard work; it was five days of conferencing. We had four speakers at each session, morning and afternoon, so it kept us busy right through the whole period.
Unfortunately, the conference was marred by the passing of the Maori Queen. The Maori Queen passed away on the Tuesday or Wednesday of that conference and there was much grieving, especially among the Maori people in New Zealand. We all sent our condolences to the Maori people and the people of New Zealand.
Mr ACTING DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Greatorex, before you do sit down, there were a couple of documents you suggested parliamentarians might want to read. Do you want to table them?
Dr LIM: Yes, I am happy to leave a whole set of papers. I seek leave to table all these papers.
Leave granted.
Mrs MILLER (Katherine): Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, the Katherine Art Prize was held on Thursday night, 10 August, and is traditionally the first event of the Katherine Flying Fox Festival. This year’s event was the 30th anniversary of the Katherine Prize and that is quite an achievement for what was started by Brian and Jeanette Lambert all those years ago. As you can imagine, Katherine Town Council has an extensive collection after all these years. The Lambert family takes great pride in this annual event and their commitment to it is ongoing. The management of the collection is ongoing as well.
A special guest at this event was Her Excellency, Mrs Miamunah Vera Syafik, Consul of the Republic of Indonesia for the Northern Territory. The Master of Ceremonies was Peter Farnden. Prior to the opening of the art prize, guests were entertained by the Cantarbillay Children’s Choir under the leadership of Jan Murphy, and were treated to Indonesian traditional dancers from Darwin. To mark the 30th anniversary of the prize, a cake was cut by Mayor Anne Shepherd, and Craig and Deb Lambert.
The entries in this year’s event were from across the Territory and of a high standard. Judge Allison Gray, the Assistant Curator of the Northern Territory Museum and Art Gallery, certainly had a busy time selecting the winner from the 34 entries. The $2500 Brian and Jeanette Lambert Art Acquisition Award went to an outstanding entry by local artist, Jan Milner Cole. Jan’s painting, which is quite large, is called Intimate Space and was inspired by the Baruwei Walk in Nitmiluk National Park. Jan has moved away from the traditional meaning of landscape as a vista or panorama, and has chosen to paint a form of portrait of nature caught at different times. There is no doubt that Jan’s painting was a favourite amongst some very interesting and diverse entries.
The $2000 Katherine Craft Acquisition Award was won by very popular local potter, Danny Murphy with a pot called, Red Sand and Spinifex. Again, this was a popular choice and it was pleasing to see that both winners were from Katherine. To me, that highlights the quality of the artists and the craftspeople we are fortunate enough to have living and working in the Katherine region.
The youth are not forgotten in the Katherine Prize and, although the entries this year were down on previous years, the standard was still very good. The Youth Award for 17 to 18 years old went to Lauren Dwyer for The Dragon Toaster and, in the 13- to 14-year-old category the winner was Mareesa Bates. Well done to all the artists who contributed to the success of this year’s Katherine Art Prize.
The Katherine Flying Fox Art and Cultural Festival held a function at the Katherine Civic Centre Grounds on Saturday 12 August called, The Main Event. The Master of Ceremonies for the late afternoon evening event was Shelley Davis from the Katherine Region Tourist Association. This event brought many sectors of the community together, with the usual Tick Market being held at the Civic Centre, and included a large display of vintage vehicles organised by Wayne Russell, horse rides, and a showcase of performances by Katherine people of all ages. These included the very popular Cantarbillay Children’s Choir, the very versatile and talented Jen Scott Trio and the band, Neo, from Darwin. It was great to see so much support for this function.
The Main Event featured a presentation of a community dance performance called, Emerge which was, in essence, the Katherine community performing for the Katherine community. There was an enormous amount of time and energy put into this production by so many Katherine people, including some very talented primary and high school students who were coordinated by Rachael McLellan, and they are to be congratulated for such a fabulous performance. Katherine Regional Arts coordinated the production with Toni Tapp Coutts as the project manager, Lewis Lampton as lead choreographer, with assistant choreographers, Lyndal Carbery, Danielle Aquino and Marichu Rawson.
I have taken the story of Emerge from the program of the day and will include that in this adjournment. I add my thanks to the Jawoyn Association for permission to use the dreamtime story of Nitmiluk for the Emerge performance. The performance emerged through the choreographers’ and dancers’ interpretation of the traditional Jawoyn story of how Katherine Gorge and surrounds came to be. Emerge is a contemporary dance that begins in the dreamtime with Bula and his wives on a journey across the Top End creating the landscape as they go. Nabilil, the Rainbow Serpent, travels through this same country carrying fire sticks and a dilly bag full of water. Through Wurli Wurlinjang country, mosquito dreaming, Nabilil slaps the mosquitos away. He has a dangerous encounter with hawks, pigeons, and crows as he travels through the blue tongue dreaming place. The birds want his water and fire, but they cannot defeat him. He is too clever for them. Nabilil rests in the Katherine Gorge and the only sound he hears is, ‘Nit, nit, nit, nit’, from the cicadas and, so, the place is Nitmiluk, the cicada dreaming. Nabilil then encounters a swarm of ferocious cave bats who also want his water and fire. They came upon him and the Nabilil is unable to fight and loses the battle. The water flows from his dilly bag and the fire sticks fall onto the ground. The birds happily swoop down to the water and drink and dance around the rivers and streams that now flow from Nabilil’s dilly bag. They discover Nabilil’s fire sticks and begin to cook their food with the fire, and everyone celebrates and rejoices for they now have food and water.
As you can see from that story, this was a very energetic performance. The cast of this very energetic production included Lewis Lampton as Bula; Cynan Dowling as Nabilil; and Cecelia Johns and Terrah Bestmann as the wives. Core dancers were Colleen McQuay, Myrt Stanley, Stacey Hopkins, Rebecca Mewburn, La Toya Albert, Tony Marshall, Rachael McLennan, Jade Mewburn, Ben Elliott, Wanita Costales, Anisa Cadel, Karmen Butler, Lauren Barritt, Nadia Menmuir, Kelsey Wilson, and Nicole Rowan.
The Filipino dancers were Marichu Rawson, Bless Jeffery, Leslie Egan, Rosine Hewitt, Marilyn Rowbottom, Estelita Odquin, Joannah Bumanlag, Russell Smith and Mark McBride.
The cicadas, bats and mosquitos were the young ones from primary and high school: Brooke Black, Deanna Allison, Kendall Slater-Booth, Kasey Lee Nimmo, Courtney Dwyer, Deanna Slater, Charlayne Green and Ali Campbell. The dance performance was absolutely outstanding.
The costume designers for this production were Toni Tapp Coutts, Danielle Aquino, Marichu Rawson, Lyndal Carbery and Brigid Thomas; make-up and hair by Megan Holt and Brigid Thomas; lighting and sound by Andrew Dudley Enterprises of Total Entertainment Services; backstage managers were Mary-Lou McGregor-Shaw, Jo Nicol and Sarah Gooda; with documentation by Carly Franklin, Charles McGregor-Shaw, Andrew Mathieson and Nicole Rowan.
Congratulations and thanks must go to all the parents who encouraged and supported their children to attend rehearsals to be part of the Emerge community dance performance. They would have been proudly watching. It was a credit to the whole of the Katherine community to see so much effort put into that performance. A special thank you to Katherine Town Council for organising that as well.
Also, as part of the Flying Fox Festival, St Paul’s Anglican Church in Katherine several years ago opened its doors to a community event of music and art to be held during the Flying Fox Festival. The church is a beautiful building with stained glass windows and a great location to display art and to sit outside on the lawn area and listen to musical performances. Last year and again this year, the Anglican church ladies prepared assorted curries with all the condiments and delicious homemade sweets for people to purchase, and to enjoy while listening to the performances in between viewing the art and craft and talking and chatting together. The exhibition this year, held on Sunday evening, 19 August, was sponsored by Greenhill Galleries Adelaide and had 73 entries and was very well received.
Former Katherine resident, Kathleen Short, undertook the very difficult task of judging the art and the craft. The winner of the award for 2006 was local artist, Jan Milner Cole, with a piece titled, Passion 1. Jan is excelling in her artwork, having won the Katherine Prize the previous week and also has recently painted a portrait of Mayor Anne Shepherd which is hanging in the Katherine Town Council Chambers. It really is a marvellous piece of work and she has done a wonderful job.
Musical entertainment at the Arts and Craft Festival was provided by talented locals and they included Jan Murphy and the Cantarbillay Choir again - very busy people lately - and Jen Scott with choir members. There is so much talent in and around Katherine, this event provided a great opportunity for everyone to enjoy just what we have in our town.
The evening was very successful due to the tireless effort of the Anglican ladies who provided such delicious home cooked food, Anglican Pastor Jeremy Greaves, Carly Franklyn from Territory Craft, Kathleen Short, Katherine Town Council, Katherine Research Station for the loan of their display boards, all volunteers who assisted in the moving of the church furniture to allow for the displays, Mrs Milne for her wonderful display of dolls, and all the artists who entered the competition and for the works that were sold.
I add that I made two purchases there myself, one of which I am wearing tonight that was from Kerryn Taylor who does some beautiful needlework. I purchased another beautiful scarf from Carolyn Whitting who is another very talented artist in Katherine.
As Jeremy said at the end of the evening, it was so successful that next year’s event is a challenge to meet the outcomes of the 2006 St Paul’s Music and Art Festival.
The following morning, St Paul’s held their church service in the old original church next door to celebrate 50 years from 1956 to 2006. It is a corrugated iron tin shed church, but it certainly has a lot of memories. It was very cosy, with everyone squeezed into the historical church, and made all the more special by the presence of Earl and Wendy James who were married in that church 50 years ago. I believe theirs was the first wedding held in the church, so that made the service even more special. It is very special to be able to celebrate 50 years of marriage, and I am sure Earl and Wendy have many happy memories of their wedding day and were happy to relive that occasion in Katherine. We were glad that they chose to do that.
The newer, larger St Paul’s Anglican Church was built following the 1998 flood. Many memories were shared over morning tea following the service. We have had a very hectic time in Katherine for this Flying Fox Festival.
On Friday, 18 August, I had the pleasure of opening an art exhibition in the June Tapp Room in Katherine by two local artists and long-time residents of Katherine, Gillian Ellett Banks and Jan Milner Cole. The June Tapp Room was filled to the maximum, attesting to the professionalism and popularity of these two ladies who are very different in their artistic style and presentation. In all, there were so many pieces of art on exhibition they completely covered the walls of this room, which certainly displayed the hard work that Gillian and Jan have put in over a long time. These works were, as usual, very professionally and magnificently framed by Peter Farnden. The artwork on display was very well received and a very pleasant evening was had by all. The exhibition was conducted over the weekend to enable people to come in at their own time and leisure.
The past two weeks have been fantastic for art and culture lovers in Katherine, with the activities held over the 2006 Katherine Flying Fox Festival. I have thoroughly enjoyed and appreciated the work that has been displayed by all the arts and crafts people of Katherine and surrounding regions. We have so many talented people across so many mediums, and their ability to be able to display their artistic talent is certainly supported in Katherine.
Mr ACTING DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Blain, welcome back.
Mr MILLS (Blain): Thank you, Mr Acting Deputy Speaker, not that I was missing. I was here all the time, in a sense.
I provide a preliminary report on a very recent trip to our near neighbour, Indonesia, and particularly Nusa Tenggara Timur. It is worth visiting our near neighbour – which is closer to Darwin than Tennant Creek. Bear in mind that our neighbour is always our neighbour. There will be no change in that, therefore, we are obliged to find ways of deepening our understanding, learning how to cooperate so that we can explore avenues of mutual benefit. That is not possible without the respect which comes from good relationships.
That was well and truly received by our hosts, from the Municipal Office, or Walikota, Mayor, Sam Lerrick, and all of his officers who made sure that the contingent visiting - in this case, Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club - was very well received. The Northern Territory Eight Ball Team were also in West Timor and they commenced their competition last night. I am pleased to report, in Round 1, they came out on top – 12:8, I believe, was the final score - with two more rounds to go.
Seeing these two activities firsthand, demonstrated the importance of these kinds of engagements. The effect being in another country had on the young members of the Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club - some of them have never been abroad before - helped them understand what we actually have in Australia by contrast. The interesting thing with the three different trips just in the last year - with the Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club, the NT Eight Ball and the Women’s Soccer that visited in April – is that every single group has made a generous and voluntary contribution to welfare work in West Timor; in each of those cases with children. The NT Eight Ball has an ongoing relationship with a very poor school in Soe, inland from Kupang. It was so moving to see the boys from Palmerston La-Faek welcomed by orphans. These boys were moved to tears and have decided, as a club, that they will contribute on a regular basis to support these many orphans and orphanages in West Timor. The girls did the same with another orphanage.
All of these sorts of things may be small in the grand scheme of things but they are very important. They are the critical links in building deeper respect and connection between one region and another. I will talk more about this in time to come, because there is much to explore and report, of a substantial nature, particularly when we consider the close proximity of these nations, East Timor, West Timor, and Indonesia to the Northern Territory of Australia. I will report in time to come on the development of the concept of greater and closer links between those three nations. That will be the subject of my comments at later contributions.
At this point, I wish to make specific reference to the young men of the Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club who very recently returned from a tournament in Kupang. The Palmerston La-Faek Soccer Club has a long connection to East Timor, being originally La-Faek, and amalgamated with Palmerston. The La-Faek was the team that largely comprised the East Timorese community, joined the Palmerston community in 1999 to form a new club. The coach, Jose Da Silva; his wife, Maria Furtado Silva; Neil McDade from the Football Federation, Northern Zone; and the players, Neil Fraser, Nathan and Michael Cavanough, Vadim Bendin, Michael Holliday, Nathan Trevena, James Hamilton, Connor McDade, Samuel Oketa and Alvin Dingle, have been wonderful ambassadors for the Northern Territory and our country. They have been moved by the quality of the hospitality, and I am proud to report that each of those young men and the officials accompanying them did a marvellous job in carrying themselves as fine ambassadors.
I will get down to the nitty gritty. People ask how the competition went. You can probably guess what I mean when I say that the game was the winner, which is code for saying we did not win. The first match was played against the team representing the City of Kupang, the provincial capital. The boys did an amazing job to be able to withstand a very professional and high-level team. They had never encountered such strong competition before. One of the members of the Kota Kupang team was a national player, equivalent of the Socceroos, if you want to use the Australian comparison. They were held to 6:0, but the boys handled themselves beautifully and came away knowing that they had met extraordinary competition, and managed to hold this team to a reasonable level of competition. They went away with genuine respect for the Indonesian players. I have to say that the young players from Palmerston also earned the respect of the crowd.
The next game was against a team from Nusa Cendara, the state-run university in West Timor. An excellent competition, 1:0. I am starting to understand why people are so excited about soccer. With just one goal being scored, it was a very exciting match. In the words of Ron Barassi, who has never lost a game, it is just that the siren sounded a little too early. In this case, if the siren had sounded a little later, I am sure the team for Palmerston would have managed to score another goal at least. It was a very good competition and the boys acquitted themselves well.
The final game was a mixed competition where they joined with the university and wore the university strip and played the Kota Kupang team. In a noble gesture, that team is now being prepared to play in the Timorese Cup. It was a good opportunity for them to be prepared.
A very interesting aspect of the whole exercise was the inclusion of the East Timorese refugees who are residing in West Timor as members of the team. It was humbling for the boys to learn the background of the young lads who joined our team. We deliberately invited them because of the previous connection to East Timor, and because of the underlying desire within West Timor, East Timor, and Australia, for closer links between the three countries. Our gesture to include East Timorese refugees in the team was very well supported by the West Timorese.
The first step for the boys from Palmerston was to buy boots for the boys. Everybody plays soccer in every village square and on street corners with balls that have long passed their use-by date in any Australian playground, and have been happily kicked around by young lads. There are so many thousands of young people wanting to participate in sport at the highest level. These East Timorese refugee lads were very skilful players. In spite of the language difficulties, a very strong link developed between these Timorese lads and the boys from Palmerston.
At a later time, I will give a further report on the eight ball. All of these comments on sport are a means to address the real issue; that is, how we work to find better ways of exploring those avenues of mutual benefit.
The interesting development in the region is the formation of a trilateral seminar series. That seminar series involved the Deputy Ambassador from the Australian Embassy; Professor Fox from the Australian National University; Dr Carole Kayrooz from Charles Darwin University; Nelson Santos, the Secretary General for Foreign Affairs in Timor-Leste; Professor Franz Umdata, the Rector or the equivalent of the Vice Chancellor of the Nusa Cendara University; and also the special assistant for Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Indonesia.
They have focused their efforts on a single issue: how to build better relations within our immediate region, with the support of Indonesia, to explore closer links to East Timor with the involvement of Australia. These trilateral discussions hold very interesting possibilities for the Northern Territory. It is time for us to consider how we can find ways of exploring issues to our mutual benefit. I will explore aspects of this in a later contribution.
At that seminar, which was held only three weeks ago the Governor of East Nusa Tenggara, Mr Peter Tallow, was there and the Mayor of Kupang, Mr Sam Lerrick. As I previously mentioned, there were speakers from the different universities as well as other guests and visitors. Once I have made a copy of these papers I will present them to the parliament for anyone who is interested. I urge members, particularly of the government, to take an interest in this and I offer bipartisan contribution to any of these matters. These are not political matters regarding the ALP or the CLP; they are issues of long-term interest to all Territorians. If anyone has skill, experience or a passion for these matters, they should be involved. I advocate a bipartisan approach.
It was disappointing, I might add, that there was no representation from the Northern Territory government at this seminar. I understand the circumstances for the very late withdrawal of the Chief Minister, and that is understood. However, to not send a replacement from 19 members, I thought, was an opportunity sadly missed. For that reason, I will present these papers to the parliament, and now, and in subsequent contributions, I urge members opposite, particularly those with an interest in building greater understanding of our near neighbour and the possibilities of trilateral relationships between Indonesia, West Timor, Timor-Leste and the Northern Territory - Australia in that case – to see there is an opportunity for the development of greater strategy.
From the Indonesian point of view, West Timor is regarded as the southern gateway into Asia. We regard ourselves, just a little way away, as the northern gateway into Asia. It is, therefore, these two places which should make greater connection. It is a big world out there. For the Territory to engage strategically we need to do the things that have been done of recent times - with no criticism from myself or members of the opposition of the recent visits. However, there is a need to really focus on what we can actually achieve in a coordinated and comprehensive way. That starts with Nusa Tenggara Timur. That relationship will build linkages further into the archipelago. I look forward to making further contributions and more detailed comment on aspects of the trilateral relationship built through that seminar.
Motion agreed to; the Assembly adjourned.
Last updated: 04 Aug 2016