Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Well, we've been talking quite a bit this morning about
the Chief Minister pitching the Northern Territory as the answer
to some of the biggest questions the country's facing during
her first speech at the National Press Club, so that
she was in canber obviously she's there for the Facing
North event, but it is the first time that we've
seen her front the National Press Club and speak, and
(00:21):
she was touting the territory government's goal of achieving that
forty billion dollar economy as well by twenty thirty.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Now joining me on the line to talk a little.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Bit more about this is Professor Rolf Gerretson from Charles
Darwin University. Professor Gerretson, good to have you on the
show this morning.
Speaker 3 (00:40):
Okay, nice to talk to you again.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
Lovely to speak to you.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Now.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
What was your reaction to the Chief's address yesterday.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
I think you could summon up as a wry smile.
You could call it aspirational universe commershy, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
It seemed a bit that way.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
I felt, professor like she was, you know, she was
really trying to drum up the support of the territory
and h and you know, be territory proud. But I
guess that some of us were struggling a bit to
get on that journey.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
Yeah, I mean, I can understand. The territory has a well,
as you know, even structurally, it has a looming budget problem,
and it's going to be exacerbated by the fact that
several of our large minds that deliver revenues and projects
that deliver revenues to the territory government, they're going to
(01:39):
be closing down over the last decades, you know, the
Grout Island Magnique's Mind for instance, and the walk Side
a Weeper. So the territory has an even bigger budgety,
a future budgetary problem than we at present realized. So
she's desperately trying, if you like, spur along the gas
(02:03):
development because that will provide budget revenues. I mean, and
that is really what is behind it.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
So getting ahead of the cliff, you might say.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
Yeah, yeah, which from a purely economic point of view
is obviously very sensible.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
Now yeah, sorry you continue, Well.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
I was going to say, you don't want a nasty
surprise in five years time. So she can get minds
and development going sooner rather than later, those revenues will
flow in and substitute for the manganese and bok size.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
And professor taking that into account, and then also obviously
looking at the fact that the Northern Territory government does
continue to talk about achieving that forty billion dollar economy
by twenty thirty.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
I mean, do you think that that's achievable.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
I think there are supply bottlenecks that afflict the territory,
transportation and labor principally, so you know, virtually everything is delayed.
I mean, there's very few large projects are coming on
time because of the you can't get the skill trades people,
(03:23):
you can't you know, you can't get gear up from
down south, et cetera, et cetera, So that those supply
bottle necks will lead to delay. So I'm pessimistic about
any sort of timeline that says, you know, we're going
to finish the ship lift in twelve months, and we're
going to do this, and we the Middle Arm is
going to be done in the like six months and whatever.
(03:45):
So I think the usual territory factors will impede progress.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
Now the you know sometimes well I think quite often,
I guess we talk about red tape, page tape, green tape,
all those kinds of things.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Is that part of what's holding us back.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Well, the territory undoubtedly has too many public servants who
are administrators, supervisors and managers and not actually doing anything. Yeah,
So that leads to delay because you've got too many
layers in the bureaucracy, so that if you know, some
businessman comes with a proposal, it can take eighteen months
(04:27):
or two years to get the proposal, you know, through
all the bureaucratic hurdles. So that is a real problem.
But given that Darwn is essentially a public service town
and the public servants control the vote in the northern suburbs,
I can't see that changing very quickly.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Yeah right, Hey, tell me what did you make of
the Chief Minister well, taking on the teals and the trolls.
Speaker 3 (04:55):
I think that made good politics back home, didn't Yeah?
Speaker 2 (04:59):
I think so.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Well.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
I think that was the a wasn't it?
Speaker 3 (05:03):
The target audience wasn't if you liked the audience in
the on the Eastern Seaboards seas, Yeah, the audience was down.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:13):
I mean it's fired up some of those that are
opposed to, you know, to the project at Middle Arm.
It's fired up, you know, some of the environmentalists. I
suppose yeah, sorry, you go.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Well, I'm going to say, yeah, that that is I
mean when I say a planet, it was the target
audience was done and that also included the environmentalists who
of course don't like middle Arm or cracking.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
Professor, how big an impact do you think or like,
how with middle arm? You know she's talking about how
how vitally it's sort of needed not only for us
in the Northern Territory but right across the nation. What
do you tell, well, like, what is your take on
middle arm and and is it really a key to
the Northern territories prosperity.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Well, it's what I call the dominant narrative in territory
economic development, which is projectism. You know, there's always a
pressure on the government to have some big project that's
going to you know, due up the economy, and so
middle Arm is the latest. You know, we've had a
history of this, the Fort, the Darwin Waterfront project, and
(06:27):
you know it's going back right back to the both
the hotel, back in the early years of self government.
So the territory government there is some political imperitive for
the territory government to have a large project and little
arm is the current large project.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
Well, we'll have to wait and see.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
Really, you know, what does get going, how quickly it
gets going, and what kind of impact it's going to
have for the territory.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
I spise, whyon't.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
We Well, we can't do anything else, so we have
the way.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
That's right, Professor Rolf Garretts, and I really appreciate your
time this morning.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
Thank you so very much for having a chat with me.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Always a pleasure.
Speaker 2 (07:07):
Kate, thank you you too.
Well, we've been talking quite a bit this morning about
the Chief Minister pitching the Northern Territory as the answer
to some of the biggest questions the country's facing during
her first speech at the National Press Club, so that
she was in canber obviously she's there for the Facing
North event, but it is the first time that we've
seen her front the National Press Club and speak, and
(00:21):
she was touting the territory government's goal of achieving that
forty billion dollar economy as well by twenty thirty.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Now joining me on the line to talk a little.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Bit more about this is Professor Rolf Gerretson from Charles
Darwin University. Professor Gerretson, good to have you on the
show this morning.
Speaker 3 (00:40):
Okay, nice to talk to you again.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
Lovely to speak to you.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Now.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
What was your reaction to the Chief's address yesterday.
Speaker 3 (00:49):
I think you could summon up as a wry smile.
You could call it aspirational universe commershy, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
It seemed a bit that way.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
I felt, professor like she was, you know, she was
really trying to drum up the support of the territory
and h and you know, be territory proud. But I
guess that some of us were struggling a bit to
get on that journey.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
Yeah, I mean, I can understand. The territory has a well,
as you know, even structurally, it has a looming budget problem,
and it's going to be exacerbated by the fact that
several of our large minds that deliver revenues and projects
that deliver revenues to the territory government, they're going to
(01:39):
be closing down over the last decades, you know, the
Grout Island Magnique's Mind for instance, and the walk Side
a Weeper. So the territory has an even bigger budgety,
a future budgetary problem than we at present realized. So
she's desperately trying, if you like, spur along the gas
(02:03):
development because that will provide budget revenues. I mean, and
that is really what is behind it.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
So getting ahead of the cliff, you might say.
Speaker 3 (02:14):
Yeah, yeah, which from a purely economic point of view
is obviously very sensible.
Speaker 2 (02:23):
Now yeah, sorry you continue, Well.
Speaker 3 (02:26):
I was going to say, you don't want a nasty
surprise in five years time. So she can get minds
and development going sooner rather than later, those revenues will
flow in and substitute for the manganese and bok size.
Speaker 1 (02:44):
And professor taking that into account, and then also obviously
looking at the fact that the Northern Territory government does
continue to talk about achieving that forty billion dollar economy
by twenty thirty.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
I mean, do you think that that's achievable.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
I think there are supply bottlenecks that afflict the territory,
transportation and labor principally, so you know, virtually everything is delayed.
I mean, there's very few large projects are coming on
time because of the you can't get the skill trades people,
(03:23):
you can't you know, you can't get gear up from
down south, et cetera, et cetera, So that those supply
bottle necks will lead to delay. So I'm pessimistic about
any sort of timeline that says, you know, we're going
to finish the ship lift in twelve months, and we're
going to do this, and we the Middle Arm is
going to be done in the like six months and whatever.
(03:45):
So I think the usual territory factors will impede progress.
Speaker 1 (03:52):
Now the you know sometimes well I think quite often,
I guess we talk about red tape, page tape, green tape,
all those kinds of things.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Is that part of what's holding us back.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Well, the territory undoubtedly has too many public servants who
are administrators, supervisors and managers and not actually doing anything. Yeah,
So that leads to delay because you've got too many
layers in the bureaucracy, so that if you know, some
businessman comes with a proposal, it can take eighteen months
(04:27):
or two years to get the proposal, you know, through
all the bureaucratic hurdles. So that is a real problem.
But given that Darwn is essentially a public service town
and the public servants control the vote in the northern suburbs,
I can't see that changing very quickly.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Yeah right, Hey, tell me what did you make of
the Chief Minister well, taking on the teals and the trolls.
Speaker 3 (04:55):
I think that made good politics back home, didn't Yeah?
Speaker 2 (04:59):
I think so.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
Well.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
I think that was the a wasn't it?
Speaker 3 (05:03):
The target audience wasn't if you liked the audience in
the on the Eastern Seaboards seas, Yeah, the audience was down.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:13):
I mean it's fired up some of those that are
opposed to, you know, to the project at Middle Arm.
It's fired up, you know, some of the environmentalists. I
suppose yeah, sorry, you go.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Well, I'm going to say, yeah, that that is I
mean when I say a planet, it was the target
audience was done and that also included the environmentalists who
of course don't like middle Arm or cracking.
Speaker 1 (05:38):
Professor, how big an impact do you think or like,
how with middle arm? You know she's talking about how
how vitally it's sort of needed not only for us
in the Northern Territory but right across the nation. What
do you tell, well, like, what is your take on
middle arm and and is it really a key to
the Northern territories prosperity.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Well, it's what I call the dominant narrative in territory
economic development, which is projectism. You know, there's always a
pressure on the government to have some big project that's
going to you know, due up the economy, and so
middle Arm is the latest. You know, we've had a
history of this, the Fort, the Darwin Waterfront project, and
(06:27):
you know it's going back right back to the both
the hotel, back in the early years of self government.
So the territory government there is some political imperitive for
the territory government to have a large project and little
arm is the current large project.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
Well, we'll have to wait and see.
Speaker 1 (06:46):
Really, you know, what does get going, how quickly it
gets going, and what kind of impact it's going to
have for the territory.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
I spise, whyon't.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
We Well, we can't do anything else, so we have
the way.
Speaker 1 (06:58):
That's right, Professor Rolf Garretts, and I really appreciate your
time this morning.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
Thank you so very much for having a chat with me.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
Always a pleasure.
Speaker 2 (07:07):
Kate, thank you you too.
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