Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let's get into it because joining me in the studio
right now is the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory Evil.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Or a good morning morning, Katie, our chief.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
Before we get into some of the issues of the week,
can I ask you head out to the supercars on
the weekend STUG.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
It was massive.
Speaker 3 (00:14):
I did. I actually absolutely love the supercars and I
mean I'm not a huge racing enthusiast, but I love
it because there are thousands well I think there were
forty thousand over the two days. Territorians there, well, not
just territorians. I think there was thirty six percent of
the people who attended. We're into state visitors, but everybody's
what's having a great time. The weather was perfect. I
(00:35):
will say major events have done a really good job
moving the focus to kids and families and so there
was a really fabulous kid zone there all undercover undershade.
Kids were playing, having activities, so really lovely feel to
the event. I walked around the event and everybody that
I spoke to, people came up to me from into
(00:56):
State just saying, you know, where else would you want
to be literally at this time of the year. But
I'm going to do one shout out to Rossi Johnson,
who I met a couple of weeks ago at the
fundraiser for cancer for the Alan Walker Clinic. So there
was a ride for cancer around Hidden Valley that had
been organized by Motorsports NT and Clive Baxter and that
(01:17):
the money went to went to Alan Walker, great cause,
and Yossie was there, Rossie Johnson, young young Territory driver
supporting that and I met him again on the weekend.
So he drives in the super utes and he's heading
to Sydney, but he's always looking for sponsorship. So if anybody,
any business is out there, I said, absolutely, we need
to support Bryce forward as well. We've got two people
(01:40):
in the and those really top levels in motorsports. So
Rossi Johnson amazing young guy, lovely young guy, not arrogant,
not brash, just a really nice young guy. I think
he's from Howard Springs. So if anybody wants to do something,
there's got some extra cash before the end of the
financial year, throw some Rossie Johnson's way.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
I love that because you know, I love seeing young
Territorians doing really well on a national and international stage.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
And if there is people out there that are keen
to support him. Give us a call.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
We're happy to get you in contact through the Chief
Minister's office.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
And yeah, really wonderful.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
And we've got so many young, wonderful Territorians at the
moment performing exceptionally well around the place in various sports.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
Oh yeah, I met So, I met his mum and dad,
and I met Bryce's mum. I don't know how they
must be nervous recks. I mean I used to get
nervous watching my son play game of footye let alone
going out in a very very fast car. So lovely,
lovely parents who have obviously sacrificed a lot for their
young or their kids to actually have a career in motorsports.
(02:40):
So great families. Well yeah, well, good on.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Them, Good on them, well, Chief Minister.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Look, we've had numerous Cyclone Tracy survivors contact me over
the weekend to raise concerns about this monument that Council's
planned for Bundella Beach. They the worry is that there
will not be an outcome or an agreement reach by December.
It is on top of concerns already raised on the
show last week. Now I know that this is indeed
a council monument. But are we in a situation here
(03:07):
where maybe the government does need to step in and
say to the council, hey.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
Look this is not appropriate. Yeah, I mean it is
a really difficult one. I'm a Cyclone Tracy survivor. My
family were here for Cyclone Tracy. I was twelve years old,
So you can do the maths A week at how
old time. The Northern Territory government, we're supporting the Remembering
Cyclone Tracy that team, so Richard Krezuk and his team,
we're supporting their memorial. We've put in about one hundred thousand.
(03:34):
I know the federal governments put in three hundred thousand
to that one, and that one they're looking to. You'll
have it at East Point. Brenta has got a petition
because he's been listening to the community. I think there
has been people talking loudly and clearly, not just Cyclone
Tracy survivors, but other people as well about whether the
(03:55):
memorial is appropriate or not and doesn't reflect or do
justice to the memory of, as we said, sadly, seventy
one people who lost their lives in Cyclone Tracy. So
it is, you know, our most significant disaster. But I
also do understand it is hard to get it right
when you come to some sort of memorial, but I
(04:15):
just and I'm sure they are. I hope counsel are
listening very carefully to this, you know, the outcry from
the community, and they even look at what they're doing.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
This is the thing.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
It's seven hundred thousand dollars that's been earmunked for the
monument or for the you know, for what they're proposing
there at Bundela Beach. Now, we spoke to Richard on
the show on Fridays and he had said, Look, I've
got no issue with them developing Bundela Beach and having
a you know, having a sculpture there, but it is
not reflective of what Cyclone Tracy survivors want.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
I mean, do you think that that seven hundred thousand.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Dollars could be better directed to the monument that is
proposed for East Point because they had two options. Ee,
the one that was really really quite you know, quite
like their wish list, I guess you would say, and
then the other that they are moving ahead with because
that's what their budget is allocated to. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Yeah, it's as I said, it's not government, it is council.
But government has put money into Bundela Beach, so I
think we can all understand how beautiful that beach is
and it is underutilized and so that has been a
commitment of ours and I think it's about three million
dollars going into upgrading Bundela so we can get more
people there. It is a large section of land there
(05:28):
that should be used more. We see the trailer boat,
the ski club and the sailing club well used, but
that section in between not well used. So we do
need to do work on that. And as I said,
we've put money in. Yes, I mean I'm hoping counsel
are listening very carefully. It is a difficult one. We
understand that around finding something that people want, it is disappointing.
(05:48):
I think we're pushing up against time to have it
completed by well December twenty Christmas Day this year, which
is the fifty years Richard Queeswick meeting with him and
his team tomorrow to get an update on theirs. As
you say, their original design was something that was going
to be in the water and quite substantial. They've had
(06:09):
to modify that.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
So I mean, I just wonder if we can put
all that more money towards that one at ease point
and go, let's do something that is an absolute you know,
like people travel to the Northern Territory to learn more
about Cyclone Tracy. They travel here to go out to
the museum. You know, why are we putting seven hundred
dollars seven hundred thousand dollars towards something that people don't
(06:31):
necessarily want.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
A Another thing that I've had to think about is
I think these the Cyclone Tracy survivors have been very,
very circumspect, very respectful because I remember, you know, well
I've lived here all my life, but the twenty to
thirty to forty years, a lot of the cyclones of
survivors didn't want to be talking about it. I know
my mother, she never wanted to really talk about Cyclone Tracy.
(06:57):
And you know, the impact on people's lives. We understand
that they lost friends, they lost their houses. You know,
we all know that. But this year, the fiftieth, I
have seen people really wanting to actually acknowledge the fifty years.
And that's a big step for a lot of the
survivors because in the past they didn't actually want to
even talk about it, didn't want to remember it. You know,
(07:18):
we all have a quiet little think on Christmas Eve
around it and on Christmas Day think of our friends
and families, and so I think it's been a big
step for the cycle and Tracy survivors to this year
want to actually be a part of the commemoration and
to commemorate fifty years. So it does need to be done.
I think it needs to be done respectfully, and I
(07:38):
think there needs to be more conversations with the survivors
but also the broader community as well. That is a
beautiful area of Bundulla Beach. Let's try and get this right.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Yeah, I think we have to get this right. It
is such a huge part of the Northern Territories history.
We've got to make sure we get it right. So
we will talk to convat Scalis, the Lord Mayor tomorrow,
Chief Beness.
Speaker 2 (07:59):
So let's move along.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
On Friday, we've revealed on the show that there had
been a fire reported at the school in what Air.
Northern Territory Police have arrested two people in relation to
that fire. We understand that nobody was in the building
at the time of the fire and the school was shut.
No injuries had been reported. Do you know how extensive
that fire was.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
So first of all, it's the school at what I
is a Catholic school, so it's a Catholic education. It's
not a Northern Territory government school. But Paul Grieves, who's
the chief executive Officer of Catholic Education, I've had conversations
with him, so must stay so frustrating and just thrives me.
Spare to think that people can be so stupid and
(08:39):
so just ridiculous. So it was a trade training center,
so it was on the school site, but a standalone building.
It was, as we can all imagine, it was a
very secure facility. But the photos I saw was it
was burning under the roof, so that somehow got into
that ceiling area. I would presume that the damage cause
(09:03):
would mean that that building will have to be demolished.
I'm going to be in what I in the next
couple of weeks, and I will go out and obviously
meet with school staff. I mean, I know we're going
on to school holidays, but I'll meet with the community
as well. But you know, that's probably will have to
be demolished and then you've got to rebuild, so that
won't happen for those things don't happen instantly. You know,
(09:23):
I've been infrastructure minutes. I know, you demolish, you clean up,
and then you'll have to go to tender and then
and so independent schools will have to seek funding from
the federal government to build that.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
And so it's their asset.
Speaker 3 (09:36):
That's all right, and so it's but you know, so
you won't have so you know, you won't have that facility.
So the Department of Education are looking to support Catholic ED.
So is there some way that they can convert a
current area because that's one of the things I'm really
determined to see is pathways to employment. And so you
want to see vocational education. You want to see those
(09:57):
schools being taught in secondary school way to engage kids,
to get them into the workforce.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
Absolutely in a community like what I on this point
in time, that's not operational, it's not going to be operational.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
So there's I mean, I think four days left of
this term that will so the school will then have
to look at, you know, getting people in to go
through the process of cleaning it all up, all of
those sorts of things. And as I said, I'll have
that chance to have a look out there, but just
so frustrating that people would do something so bloody stupid.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
I agree, Chief Minesster.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
The ABC is reporting that a major plans being developed
between the Northern Territory government and traditional owners to help
people move out of what following years of tumultuous social unrest?
Is that the case? And what does this plan include?
Speaker 3 (10:39):
So, I mean we see that in a number of communities,
So the large ones like man and Greta, where people
were brought together literally decades and decades ago. So and
in what I think it's something like fourteen language groups,
fourteen clans that came into that community, and there's I said,
some of that was around well just the being able
to develop a community and have people move in. There
(11:00):
was also obviously the impact of missionaries in those places,
but that doesn't always work. We see that continuously where
those clans clash and they continue to clash even to
this day. Unfortunately, those people haven't been able to get
to harmonious relations around that. So one of the options
around that is having closer where there are homelands. So homelands,
(11:24):
we've got homelands. I think there's probably I can't remember
the figure, but least seventy odd homelands, reasonably sized homelands
across the length and breadth of the territory and so
being able to have people return to homelands where then,
as I said, there is less social unrest. They can
get on and have a more peaceful life rather than
having this ongoing feuding which literally has probably been going
(11:46):
on for forty fifty years in what.
Speaker 2 (11:47):
I any idea how quickly that might happen.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
So it's already been happening literally when we saw those
almost two years ago when the houses were burnt down
and there was major fighting. Some of the groups went
back to homeland, went back to their homelands and have
been living there. But of course they don't have a
lot of facilities in those places, which is hard when
you've got little kids as well and you need to
(12:10):
have education. One of the things in our budget is
bitimizing the road between what I and Plumper so that
there's a government school at Plumper, so there will provide
that opportunity for families who may not be going to
the Catholic school because they're feuding or fighting or whatever,
and to be able to travel that forty odd kilometers
to Plumper. But these issues are really difficult issues for
(12:34):
government to deal with and you need to have the
community working as part of those.
Speaker 2 (12:38):
All right, Chief Minister, let's move along.
Speaker 1 (12:39):
We know that we have obviously had the parliamentary estimates
process happening last week.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
One of the areas that you were.
Speaker 1 (12:46):
Questioned about was the IKAK, the Independent Commissioner against Corruption.
We know that the KAC Commissioner is on leave at
the moment after a pretty bitter situation reportedly between he
and his ex wife. Have you any idea when he's
expected back.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
No, I don't know. He's on sick leave.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Now tell me what does it mean that you know?
Speaker 1 (13:08):
What is it going to mean in terms of the
second report into Michael Gunner's travel prior to the last
election that you were expecting overcoming weeks.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
I think I don't think I'll have any impact into
that because there is I mean, there's a whole group
of people that work in the IKAK, So there are
a number of large number of staff and often with
those reports, with those investigations as well, they put them
out to a legal firms, so they don't do all
the work necessarily in house. So I mean, obviously I'm
(13:37):
at arm's length. I have absolutely no influence. There's an
acting IKAQ Commissioner. As I said, there's a whole group
of people. I don't think it would just be the
KAC commissioner.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
So you are still expecting that, I mean.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
Right, nobody tells you know, I'm not privy to this information.
But you know, all I have is the information that
was made public when the IKAQ Commissioner previously put out
the first report and said that there'll be a second
report that'll come out. You know, Katie, I want this
report to come out the sooner the better. It has
gone on far too long. We all understand that the
KAQ Commissioner himself even said that, and the acting KAQ
(14:12):
Commissioner spoke around time frames when she was interviewed or
during estimates. So it needs to come out the sooner
the better. As I said, I'm hoping that timeline will
be as soon as possible.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
There has been a lot said about the fact that
there were no adverse findings for the former Chief Minister,
Michael Gunner, but reading through that report, it does not
pass the pub test that he took those flights in
the lead into an election. It was literally as I understand,
you know in his diary that they were polling days
when he was traveling there. I mean, do you think
that the labor parties should pay this money back?
Speaker 3 (14:44):
So, Katie, as I said, this one has been a
difficult one and I don't think so, because there are
a number of things. First of all, election travel, so
anybody oppositional government election travel isn't part of the cap.
So we all have a cap around how much money
we can spend. So you know, the seats that we have,
(15:07):
the twenty five seats across the Northern territory, how many
that we can have, and how much money we can
spend on those. So travel isn't because in my electorate,
I can park my car and I can doorknock my
whole electric very very different to Guada or Mulca where
you have to chart a plane. So the actual funding
of that isn't in the cap anyway.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
But the other one caretake of time.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
You know, during those weeks when you're not supposed to
be traveling.
Speaker 3 (15:31):
Don't know, so there will be local members that will
still travel, and wasn't his electric But again in the
report makes it clear that that hasn't been clear, and
that's why when I got in, when I became Chief Minister,
I have done two bits of work. One also was
the messiness around the shares and the conflict of interest.
(15:52):
That report will be coming out very soon in the recommendations,
so that was one part of work. The second one
was providing really clear guidelines to all of the staff
on the fifth floor, all of the ministers. Around travel guidelines,
it is confusing. You see federal ministers, let's have Albow Dutton,
you know Scott Morrison, they fly the whole time during Caretaker.
(16:17):
They're flying all around Australia during Caretakers. It was alright,
it wasn't actually clear. It was confusing around that the guidelines.
I can still and I've said I won't. I've said
I accept the recommendations and I've said I won't travel
during Caretakers. So when we go into Caretaker, which will
be the first of August, I've said I won't, and
(16:37):
I've told my all of my ministers don't. I mean,
of course, if there's a terrible disaster in What's of
course I will travel there or in Nalla Springs. But
I've said I won't to make it clear do you
want to do the right thing?
Speaker 2 (16:54):
Do you want to do Gunner should pay that money back?
Speaker 3 (16:57):
No, as I said, because the rules weren't clear at
the time, they really were. They were ambiguous around that. Again,
you can you could with the rules as they are now,
you could still travel during Caretaker if you are a
minister or a chief minister, out into communities or across
the northern territories and past the pub test. I don't so,
(17:17):
but that's why I brought in. That's why I've made
it really clear. I've put in guidelines. Hey, Arks, Lea
and Arks the opposition whether they have are they going
to be.
Speaker 2 (17:26):
Traveling Springs during Caretaker because I've.
Speaker 3 (17:29):
Said I'm not, And so I've made it really clear.
You know, July is a busy time for us, we're
all at the shows, so Catherine TenneT Creek, Alice Springs.
But I've said after you know from Caretaker.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
No, and so do you think it was appropriate as well? Though,
that you know that he'd travel with his family at
that time like that was you know, That's another part
of it. I think that like the people are sort
of quite furious at the use of taxpayers dollars.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
Yeah, oh yeah, absolutely understand that, Katie. But I mean
politicians travel all the travel across the Northern Territory all
the time, and you can take family members. You know,
I don't have my children are growing up. You know,
I don't have my husband passed away, so I travel
by myself and so I know, but there are times
when people do take their partners when they travel, and
you know, that's just a factive life at times. And
(18:17):
I mean I think we're a government that's actually had
less and less of our partner's traveling. I think, you know,
Gary Higgins.
Speaker 1 (18:25):
I don't have an issue with it, but I think
that the line's got absolutely crossed. You know, when you
when you're in care taker mode and you've got somebody
traveling out to remote communities on polling days and that's
where people are going hang on a sick This is
not appropriate.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
That money should be paid back, right.
Speaker 3 (18:39):
And that's why I've bought in very clear guidelines, Katie,
and I've said ladling clearly to all of my staff,
all of my ministers. No nobody is traveling, and so
you know, I have to look forward, Katie, I can't
wit backwards at what happened pre right, chief a.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
Couple of really quick ones Tiger Brennan visit. How far
off are we from this fully opening.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
Fully openings a while, as I said, probably later in
the year. But so what we're opening today is the
east of the lane inbound, So we did outbound recently,
so you'll be able to if you're coming from Palmerston Rural,
you'll be able to go underneath the overpass inbound. That
then obviously frees up that section where the road was
to do that final work for the ramp up and
(19:20):
over towards Barrama Road and then out to well the
link ups to Stuart Highway, I mean the link ups
to Tiger Brennan. So yeah, fantastic to see that project continuing.
What people don't understand is East Arm is going to
get very very busy. So we've we've got the fuel
tanks there. Those fuel tanks will provide avgas obviously to
(19:40):
defense at the airport. There will be more and more
trucks going from those fuel tanks to the airport. That's
number one. We've also got the ship lift. So people
say to me, it's a lot of you know, it's
a big It is a big build. It is a
big build. We know that's been a really dangerous intersection,
but East is going to get substantially more busy. And
(20:02):
you used to see that previously where you had loaded
fuel trucks that would be turning, the lights would change
and the fuel trucks would still be going through. So
it does need to be done because you know, into
the future easter with the maritime industry out there as
well with the ship lift, but with those fuel tanks,
we are going to have lots of trucks traveling that section.
(20:22):
In the budget also is the double laning of Berrima,
that Berrima Road between the Stuart Highway and Middle Arms
me sorry Tiger Brennan as well.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Now, one of the other areas that I know you
are hoping that we grow is obviously the gas industry
gas hearings in Canberra today.
Speaker 2 (20:38):
What are you hoping happens?
Speaker 3 (20:40):
I am hoping it will be much better than the
probably the worst, one of the worst things I've ever
done in my political life. So the Middle Arms Senate
inquiry was an absolute debarkle. You had Lydia Thoughpe wearing
a T shirt saying stop Middle Arm. I thought a
Senate inquiry was one step down from a royal commission.
I thought the panel would be neutral, that they would
(21:02):
listen and then they would write their report, and of
course if you don't agree with it, you can put
in a dissenting report. It was shocking, It was absolutely
just ridiculous. I spent, you know, time preparing for that.
I had my staff, Louise McCormack people preparing. It was
just a political grandstanding by the Greens. It was absolutely shocking.
(21:23):
As I said, it was just it was probably one
of the probably the worst couple of hours of my
political life, because I just could not believe how bad
the behavior were of Pocock, Lydia Thorpe Cox from so
the Senator Cox from Wa. They were just terrible.
Speaker 2 (21:43):
Do you feel that they were just being totally unfair
or was just ridiculous?
Speaker 3 (21:47):
They didn't, they wouldn't they would ask questions, they didn't
want to know the answers. It was purely political, absolutely
purely political. And so I'm hoping and as I said,
all the Green groups, all in mental groups, all got
their opportunity to talk in Darwin, the proponents, none of
them got the opportunity. Even the Independent EPA Paul Vogel
(22:10):
was supposed to speak, he didn't get an opportunity, so
to me, they made sure that the Green Group's got
our chance up here and as I said, all of
the proponents now will be in Canberra, so.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
And that clearly wasn't fair from your perspective, think.
Speaker 3 (22:23):
You need to give everybody a fair go. You know,
that's one of the things one of the values of
mine is around I don't mind people that you know.
I know the on toil and gas industry has arguments
on both sides, and I've listened to all of those
over the eight years that I've been a minister. But
this was just an absolute debarcle and as I said,
just a shocking behavior from Lydia Thorpe and Sarah Hanson
(22:47):
Young as well. You know, they just actually it was
just ridiculous. And people who were there, I thought most
of them would probably would have well, the Green groups
that were there obviously would have thought it was fine,
but even then I think they might have been embarrassed
by how just how biased and poor it was.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
How are you going, like, how is the party going
at the moment in terms of the gas debate, because
you're obviously quite pro gas, and you can see that
the impact that you'll have in the territory in terms
of the economy and creation of jobs and industry for
the NT. I know that there's some within the Labour
Party that can barely bring themselves to say that they support.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
Gas and labor. You have obviously a continuum of people
around the left and more centralist, and I'm obviously as
centralist and as also being a treasure in the Northern Territory.
I understand the value to the economy, the need for
jobs in the territory, and as I said, this was
one of the things that I sent said at the
Senate inquiry and I got booed loudly, Katie. But you
(23:42):
cannot complain around the quality of schools, You cannot complain
around wait times at hospitals, you cannot complain about the
roads in the Northern Territory. If you do not want
us to grow our revenue. Otherwise I have to keep
going with a begging bowl to Canberra and rely on
more GST than the whims of Canberra. We have to
grow our industries and the onsoil and gas can be
(24:04):
an industry that can be done well. It can be
done carefully and it can balance that economic and ecological.
But as I said, we do need to see more
money coming to the territory. We need to develop our
own source revenue and that is an absolute fact.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
Well, Chief Minister evil Ala, we better leave it there.
Thank you as always for your time this morning.
Speaker 3 (24:24):
Thank you Katie, thank you
Let's get into it because joining me in the studio
right now is the Chief Minister of the Northern Territory Evil.
Speaker 2 (00:05):
Or a good morning morning, Katie, our chief.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
Before we get into some of the issues of the week,
can I ask you head out to the supercars on
the weekend STUG.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
It was massive.
Speaker 3 (00:14):
I did. I actually absolutely love the supercars and I
mean I'm not a huge racing enthusiast, but I love
it because there are thousands well I think there were
forty thousand over the two days. Territorians there, well, not
just territorians. I think there was thirty six percent of
the people who attended. We're into state visitors, but everybody's
what's having a great time. The weather was perfect. I
(00:35):
will say major events have done a really good job
moving the focus to kids and families and so there
was a really fabulous kid zone there all undercover undershade.
Kids were playing, having activities, so really lovely feel to
the event. I walked around the event and everybody that
I spoke to, people came up to me from into
(00:56):
State just saying, you know, where else would you want
to be literally at this time of the year. But
I'm going to do one shout out to Rossi Johnson,
who I met a couple of weeks ago at the
fundraiser for cancer for the Alan Walker Clinic. So there
was a ride for cancer around Hidden Valley that had
been organized by Motorsports NT and Clive Baxter and that
(01:17):
the money went to went to Alan Walker, great cause,
and Yossie was there, Rossie Johnson, young young Territory driver
supporting that and I met him again on the weekend.
So he drives in the super utes and he's heading
to Sydney, but he's always looking for sponsorship. So if anybody,
any business is out there, I said, absolutely, we need
to support Bryce forward as well. We've got two people
(01:40):
in the and those really top levels in motorsports. So
Rossi Johnson amazing young guy, lovely young guy, not arrogant,
not brash, just a really nice young guy. I think
he's from Howard Springs. So if anybody wants to do something,
there's got some extra cash before the end of the
financial year, throw some Rossie Johnson's way.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
I love that because you know, I love seeing young
Territorians doing really well on a national and international stage.
Speaker 2 (02:04):
And if there is people out there that are keen
to support him. Give us a call.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
We're happy to get you in contact through the Chief
Minister's office.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
And yeah, really wonderful.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
And we've got so many young, wonderful Territorians at the
moment performing exceptionally well around the place in various sports.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
Oh yeah, I met So, I met his mum and dad,
and I met Bryce's mum. I don't know how they
must be nervous recks. I mean I used to get
nervous watching my son play game of footye let alone
going out in a very very fast car. So lovely,
lovely parents who have obviously sacrificed a lot for their
young or their kids to actually have a career in motorsports.
(02:40):
So great families. Well yeah, well, good on.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
Them, Good on them, well, Chief Minister.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
Look, we've had numerous Cyclone Tracy survivors contact me over
the weekend to raise concerns about this monument that Council's
planned for Bundella Beach. They the worry is that there
will not be an outcome or an agreement reach by December.
It is on top of concerns already raised on the
show last week. Now I know that this is indeed
a council monument. But are we in a situation here
(03:07):
where maybe the government does need to step in and
say to the council, hey.
Speaker 3 (03:10):
Look this is not appropriate. Yeah, I mean it is
a really difficult one. I'm a Cyclone Tracy survivor. My
family were here for Cyclone Tracy. I was twelve years old,
So you can do the maths A week at how
old time. The Northern Territory government, we're supporting the Remembering
Cyclone Tracy that team, so Richard Krezuk and his team,
we're supporting their memorial. We've put in about one hundred thousand.
(03:34):
I know the federal governments put in three hundred thousand
to that one, and that one they're looking to. You'll
have it at East Point. Brenta has got a petition
because he's been listening to the community. I think there
has been people talking loudly and clearly, not just Cyclone
Tracy survivors, but other people as well about whether the
(03:55):
memorial is appropriate or not and doesn't reflect or do
justice to the memory of, as we said, sadly, seventy
one people who lost their lives in Cyclone Tracy. So
it is, you know, our most significant disaster. But I
also do understand it is hard to get it right
when you come to some sort of memorial, but I
(04:15):
just and I'm sure they are. I hope counsel are
listening very carefully to this, you know, the outcry from
the community, and they even look at what they're doing.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
This is the thing.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
It's seven hundred thousand dollars that's been earmunked for the
monument or for the you know, for what they're proposing
there at Bundela Beach. Now, we spoke to Richard on
the show on Fridays and he had said, Look, I've
got no issue with them developing Bundela Beach and having
a you know, having a sculpture there, but it is
not reflective of what Cyclone Tracy survivors want.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
I mean, do you think that that seven hundred thousand.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Dollars could be better directed to the monument that is
proposed for East Point because they had two options. Ee,
the one that was really really quite you know, quite
like their wish list, I guess you would say, and
then the other that they are moving ahead with because
that's what their budget is allocated to. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (05:08):
Yeah, it's as I said, it's not government, it is council.
But government has put money into Bundela Beach, so I
think we can all understand how beautiful that beach is
and it is underutilized and so that has been a
commitment of ours and I think it's about three million
dollars going into upgrading Bundela so we can get more
people there. It is a large section of land there
(05:28):
that should be used more. We see the trailer boat,
the ski club and the sailing club well used, but
that section in between not well used. So we do
need to do work on that. And as I said,
we've put money in. Yes, I mean I'm hoping counsel
are listening very carefully. It is a difficult one. We
understand that around finding something that people want, it is disappointing.
(05:48):
I think we're pushing up against time to have it
completed by well December twenty Christmas Day this year, which
is the fifty years Richard Queeswick meeting with him and
his team tomorrow to get an update on theirs. As
you say, their original design was something that was going
to be in the water and quite substantial. They've had
(06:09):
to modify that.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
So I mean, I just wonder if we can put
all that more money towards that one at ease point
and go, let's do something that is an absolute you know,
like people travel to the Northern Territory to learn more
about Cyclone Tracy. They travel here to go out to
the museum. You know, why are we putting seven hundred
dollars seven hundred thousand dollars towards something that people don't
(06:31):
necessarily want.
Speaker 3 (06:32):
A Another thing that I've had to think about is
I think these the Cyclone Tracy survivors have been very,
very circumspect, very respectful because I remember, you know, well
I've lived here all my life, but the twenty to
thirty to forty years, a lot of the cyclones of
survivors didn't want to be talking about it. I know
my mother, she never wanted to really talk about Cyclone Tracy.
(06:57):
And you know, the impact on people's lives. We understand
that they lost friends, they lost their houses. You know,
we all know that. But this year, the fiftieth, I
have seen people really wanting to actually acknowledge the fifty years.
And that's a big step for a lot of the
survivors because in the past they didn't actually want to
even talk about it, didn't want to remember it. You know,
(07:18):
we all have a quiet little think on Christmas Eve
around it and on Christmas Day think of our friends
and families, and so I think it's been a big
step for the cycle and Tracy survivors to this year
want to actually be a part of the commemoration and
to commemorate fifty years. So it does need to be done.
I think it needs to be done respectfully, and I
(07:38):
think there needs to be more conversations with the survivors
but also the broader community as well. That is a
beautiful area of Bundulla Beach. Let's try and get this right.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Yeah, I think we have to get this right. It
is such a huge part of the Northern Territories history.
We've got to make sure we get it right. So
we will talk to convat Scalis, the Lord Mayor tomorrow,
Chief Beness.
Speaker 2 (07:59):
So let's move along.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
On Friday, we've revealed on the show that there had
been a fire reported at the school in what Air.
Northern Territory Police have arrested two people in relation to
that fire. We understand that nobody was in the building
at the time of the fire and the school was shut.
No injuries had been reported. Do you know how extensive
that fire was.
Speaker 3 (08:17):
So first of all, it's the school at what I
is a Catholic school, so it's a Catholic education. It's
not a Northern Territory government school. But Paul Grieves, who's
the chief executive Officer of Catholic Education, I've had conversations
with him, so must stay so frustrating and just thrives me.
Spare to think that people can be so stupid and
(08:39):
so just ridiculous. So it was a trade training center,
so it was on the school site, but a standalone building.
It was, as we can all imagine, it was a
very secure facility. But the photos I saw was it
was burning under the roof, so that somehow got into
that ceiling area. I would presume that the damage cause
(09:03):
would mean that that building will have to be demolished.
I'm going to be in what I in the next
couple of weeks, and I will go out and obviously
meet with school staff. I mean, I know we're going
on to school holidays, but I'll meet with the community
as well. But you know, that's probably will have to
be demolished and then you've got to rebuild, so that
won't happen for those things don't happen instantly. You know,
(09:23):
I've been infrastructure minutes. I know, you demolish, you clean up,
and then you'll have to go to tender and then
and so independent schools will have to seek funding from
the federal government to build that.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
And so it's their asset.
Speaker 3 (09:36):
That's all right, and so it's but you know, so
you won't have so you know, you won't have that facility.
So the Department of Education are looking to support Catholic ED.
So is there some way that they can convert a
current area because that's one of the things I'm really
determined to see is pathways to employment. And so you
want to see vocational education. You want to see those
(09:57):
schools being taught in secondary school way to engage kids,
to get them into the workforce.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
Absolutely in a community like what I on this point
in time, that's not operational, it's not going to be operational.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
So there's I mean, I think four days left of
this term that will so the school will then have
to look at, you know, getting people in to go
through the process of cleaning it all up, all of
those sorts of things. And as I said, I'll have
that chance to have a look out there, but just
so frustrating that people would do something so bloody stupid.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
I agree, Chief Minesster.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
The ABC is reporting that a major plans being developed
between the Northern Territory government and traditional owners to help
people move out of what following years of tumultuous social unrest?
Is that the case? And what does this plan include?
Speaker 3 (10:39):
So, I mean we see that in a number of communities,
So the large ones like man and Greta, where people
were brought together literally decades and decades ago. So and
in what I think it's something like fourteen language groups,
fourteen clans that came into that community, and there's I said,
some of that was around well just the being able
to develop a community and have people move in. There
(11:00):
was also obviously the impact of missionaries in those places,
but that doesn't always work. We see that continuously where
those clans clash and they continue to clash even to
this day. Unfortunately, those people haven't been able to get
to harmonious relations around that. So one of the options
around that is having closer where there are homelands. So homelands,
(11:24):
we've got homelands. I think there's probably I can't remember
the figure, but least seventy odd homelands, reasonably sized homelands
across the length and breadth of the territory and so
being able to have people return to homelands where then,
as I said, there is less social unrest. They can
get on and have a more peaceful life rather than
having this ongoing feuding which literally has probably been going
(11:46):
on for forty fifty years in what.
Speaker 2 (11:47):
I any idea how quickly that might happen.
Speaker 3 (11:50):
So it's already been happening literally when we saw those
almost two years ago when the houses were burnt down
and there was major fighting. Some of the groups went
back to homeland, went back to their homelands and have
been living there. But of course they don't have a
lot of facilities in those places, which is hard when
you've got little kids as well and you need to
(12:10):
have education. One of the things in our budget is
bitimizing the road between what I and Plumper so that
there's a government school at Plumper, so there will provide
that opportunity for families who may not be going to
the Catholic school because they're feuding or fighting or whatever,
and to be able to travel that forty odd kilometers
to Plumper. But these issues are really difficult issues for
(12:34):
government to deal with and you need to have the
community working as part of those.
Speaker 2 (12:38):
All right, Chief Minister, let's move along.
Speaker 1 (12:39):
We know that we have obviously had the parliamentary estimates
process happening last week.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
One of the areas that you were.
Speaker 1 (12:46):
Questioned about was the IKAK, the Independent Commissioner against Corruption.
We know that the KAC Commissioner is on leave at
the moment after a pretty bitter situation reportedly between he
and his ex wife. Have you any idea when he's
expected back.
Speaker 3 (13:02):
No, I don't know. He's on sick leave.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Now tell me what does it mean that you know?
Speaker 1 (13:08):
What is it going to mean in terms of the
second report into Michael Gunner's travel prior to the last
election that you were expecting overcoming weeks.
Speaker 3 (13:16):
I think I don't think I'll have any impact into
that because there is I mean, there's a whole group
of people that work in the IKAK, So there are
a number of large number of staff and often with
those reports, with those investigations as well, they put them
out to a legal firms, so they don't do all
the work necessarily in house. So I mean, obviously I'm
(13:37):
at arm's length. I have absolutely no influence. There's an
acting IKAQ Commissioner. As I said, there's a whole group
of people. I don't think it would just be the
KAC commissioner.
Speaker 2 (13:46):
So you are still expecting that, I mean.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
Right, nobody tells you know, I'm not privy to this information.
But you know, all I have is the information that
was made public when the IKAQ Commissioner previously put out
the first report and said that there'll be a second
report that'll come out. You know, Katie, I want this
report to come out the sooner the better. It has
gone on far too long. We all understand that the
KAQ Commissioner himself even said that, and the acting KAQ
(14:12):
Commissioner spoke around time frames when she was interviewed or
during estimates. So it needs to come out the sooner
the better. As I said, I'm hoping that timeline will
be as soon as possible.
Speaker 1 (14:23):
There has been a lot said about the fact that
there were no adverse findings for the former Chief Minister,
Michael Gunner, but reading through that report, it does not
pass the pub test that he took those flights in
the lead into an election. It was literally as I understand,
you know in his diary that they were polling days
when he was traveling there. I mean, do you think
that the labor parties should pay this money back?
Speaker 3 (14:44):
So, Katie, as I said, this one has been a
difficult one and I don't think so, because there are
a number of things. First of all, election travel, so
anybody oppositional government election travel isn't part of the cap.
So we all have a cap around how much money
we can spend. So you know, the seats that we have,
(15:07):
the twenty five seats across the Northern territory, how many
that we can have, and how much money we can
spend on those. So travel isn't because in my electorate,
I can park my car and I can doorknock my
whole electric very very different to Guada or Mulca where
you have to chart a plane. So the actual funding
of that isn't in the cap anyway.
Speaker 2 (15:26):
But the other one caretake of time.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
You know, during those weeks when you're not supposed to
be traveling.
Speaker 3 (15:31):
Don't know, so there will be local members that will
still travel, and wasn't his electric But again in the
report makes it clear that that hasn't been clear, and
that's why when I got in, when I became Chief Minister,
I have done two bits of work. One also was
the messiness around the shares and the conflict of interest.
(15:52):
That report will be coming out very soon in the recommendations,
so that was one part of work. The second one
was providing really clear guidelines to all of the staff
on the fifth floor, all of the ministers. Around travel guidelines,
it is confusing. You see federal ministers, let's have Albow Dutton,
you know Scott Morrison, they fly the whole time during Caretaker.
(16:17):
They're flying all around Australia during Caretakers. It was alright,
it wasn't actually clear. It was confusing around that the guidelines.
I can still and I've said I won't. I've said
I accept the recommendations and I've said I won't travel
during Caretakers. So when we go into Caretaker, which will
be the first of August, I've said I won't, and
(16:37):
I've told my all of my ministers don't. I mean,
of course, if there's a terrible disaster in What's of
course I will travel there or in Nalla Springs. But
I've said I won't to make it clear do you
want to do the right thing?
Speaker 2 (16:54):
Do you want to do Gunner should pay that money back?
Speaker 3 (16:57):
No, as I said, because the rules weren't clear at
the time, they really were. They were ambiguous around that. Again,
you can you could with the rules as they are now,
you could still travel during Caretaker if you are a
minister or a chief minister, out into communities or across
the northern territories and past the pub test. I don't so,
(17:17):
but that's why I brought in. That's why I've made
it really clear. I've put in guidelines. Hey, Arks, Lea
and Arks the opposition whether they have are they going
to be.
Speaker 2 (17:26):
Traveling Springs during Caretaker because I've.
Speaker 3 (17:29):
Said I'm not, And so I've made it really clear.
You know, July is a busy time for us, we're
all at the shows, so Catherine TenneT Creek, Alice Springs.
But I've said after you know from Caretaker.
Speaker 1 (17:40):
No, and so do you think it was appropriate as well? Though,
that you know that he'd travel with his family at
that time like that was you know, That's another part
of it. I think that like the people are sort
of quite furious at the use of taxpayers dollars.
Speaker 3 (17:55):
Yeah, oh yeah, absolutely understand that, Katie. But I mean
politicians travel all the travel across the Northern Territory all
the time, and you can take family members. You know,
I don't have my children are growing up. You know,
I don't have my husband passed away, so I travel
by myself and so I know, but there are times
when people do take their partners when they travel, and
you know, that's just a factive life at times. And
(18:17):
I mean I think we're a government that's actually had
less and less of our partner's traveling. I think, you know,
Gary Higgins.
Speaker 1 (18:25):
I don't have an issue with it, but I think
that the line's got absolutely crossed. You know, when you
when you're in care taker mode and you've got somebody
traveling out to remote communities on polling days and that's
where people are going hang on a sick This is
not appropriate.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
That money should be paid back, right.
Speaker 3 (18:39):
And that's why I've bought in very clear guidelines, Katie,
and I've said ladling clearly to all of my staff,
all of my ministers. No nobody is traveling, and so
you know, I have to look forward, Katie, I can't
wit backwards at what happened pre right, chief a.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
Couple of really quick ones Tiger Brennan visit. How far
off are we from this fully opening.
Speaker 3 (18:58):
Fully openings a while, as I said, probably later in
the year. But so what we're opening today is the
east of the lane inbound, So we did outbound recently,
so you'll be able to if you're coming from Palmerston Rural,
you'll be able to go underneath the overpass inbound. That
then obviously frees up that section where the road was
to do that final work for the ramp up and
(19:20):
over towards Barrama Road and then out to well the
link ups to Stuart Highway, I mean the link ups
to Tiger Brennan. So yeah, fantastic to see that project continuing.
What people don't understand is East Arm is going to
get very very busy. So we've we've got the fuel
tanks there. Those fuel tanks will provide avgas obviously to
(19:40):
defense at the airport. There will be more and more
trucks going from those fuel tanks to the airport. That's
number one. We've also got the ship lift. So people
say to me, it's a lot of you know, it's
a big It is a big build. It is a
big build. We know that's been a really dangerous intersection,
but East is going to get substantially more busy. And
(20:02):
you used to see that previously where you had loaded
fuel trucks that would be turning, the lights would change
and the fuel trucks would still be going through. So
it does need to be done because you know, into
the future easter with the maritime industry out there as
well with the ship lift, but with those fuel tanks,
we are going to have lots of trucks traveling that section.
(20:22):
In the budget also is the double laning of Berrima,
that Berrima Road between the Stuart Highway and Middle Arms
me sorry Tiger Brennan as well.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Now, one of the other areas that I know you
are hoping that we grow is obviously the gas industry
gas hearings in Canberra today.
Speaker 2 (20:38):
What are you hoping happens?
Speaker 3 (20:40):
I am hoping it will be much better than the
probably the worst, one of the worst things I've ever
done in my political life. So the Middle Arms Senate
inquiry was an absolute debarkle. You had Lydia Thoughpe wearing
a T shirt saying stop Middle Arm. I thought a
Senate inquiry was one step down from a royal commission.
I thought the panel would be neutral, that they would
(21:02):
listen and then they would write their report, and of
course if you don't agree with it, you can put
in a dissenting report. It was shocking, It was absolutely
just ridiculous. I spent, you know, time preparing for that.
I had my staff, Louise McCormack people preparing. It was
just a political grandstanding by the Greens. It was absolutely shocking.
(21:23):
As I said, it was just it was probably one
of the probably the worst couple of hours of my
political life, because I just could not believe how bad
the behavior were of Pocock, Lydia Thorpe Cox from so
the Senator Cox from Wa. They were just terrible.
Speaker 2 (21:43):
Do you feel that they were just being totally unfair
or was just ridiculous?
Speaker 3 (21:47):
They didn't, they wouldn't they would ask questions, they didn't
want to know the answers. It was purely political, absolutely
purely political. And so I'm hoping and as I said,
all the Green groups, all in mental groups, all got
their opportunity to talk in Darwin, the proponents, none of
them got the opportunity. Even the Independent EPA Paul Vogel
(22:10):
was supposed to speak, he didn't get an opportunity, so
to me, they made sure that the Green Group's got
our chance up here and as I said, all of
the proponents now will be in Canberra, so.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
And that clearly wasn't fair from your perspective, think.
Speaker 3 (22:23):
You need to give everybody a fair go. You know,
that's one of the things one of the values of
mine is around I don't mind people that you know.
I know the on toil and gas industry has arguments
on both sides, and I've listened to all of those
over the eight years that I've been a minister. But
this was just an absolute debarcle and as I said,
just a shocking behavior from Lydia Thorpe and Sarah Hanson
(22:47):
Young as well. You know, they just actually it was
just ridiculous. And people who were there, I thought most
of them would probably would have well, the Green groups
that were there obviously would have thought it was fine,
but even then I think they might have been embarrassed
by how just how biased and poor it was.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
How are you going, like, how is the party going
at the moment in terms of the gas debate, because
you're obviously quite pro gas, and you can see that
the impact that you'll have in the territory in terms
of the economy and creation of jobs and industry for
the NT. I know that there's some within the Labour
Party that can barely bring themselves to say that they support.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
Gas and labor. You have obviously a continuum of people
around the left and more centralist, and I'm obviously as
centralist and as also being a treasure in the Northern Territory.
I understand the value to the economy, the need for
jobs in the territory, and as I said, this was
one of the things that I sent said at the
Senate inquiry and I got booed loudly, Katie. But you
(23:42):
cannot complain around the quality of schools, You cannot complain
around wait times at hospitals, you cannot complain about the
roads in the Northern Territory. If you do not want
us to grow our revenue. Otherwise I have to keep
going with a begging bowl to Canberra and rely on
more GST than the whims of Canberra. We have to
grow our industries and the onsoil and gas can be
(24:04):
an industry that can be done well. It can be
done carefully and it can balance that economic and ecological.
But as I said, we do need to see more
money coming to the territory. We need to develop our
own source revenue and that is an absolute fact.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
Well, Chief Minister evil Ala, we better leave it there.
Thank you as always for your time this morning.
Speaker 3 (24:24):
Thank you Katie, thank you
Popular Podcasts
Bookmarked by Reese's Book Club
Welcome to Bookmarked by Reese’s Book Club — the podcast where great stories, bold women, and irresistible conversations collide! Hosted by award-winning journalist Danielle Robay, each week new episodes balance thoughtful literary insight with the fervor of buzzy book trends, pop culture and more. Bookmarked brings together celebrities, tastemakers, influencers and authors from Reese's Book Club and beyond to share stories that transcend the page. Pull up a chair. You’re not just listening — you’re part of the conversation.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!