Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
We know the Northern Territory Police are continuing to seek
public assistance to locate this twenty six year old, a
known associate of the Mongols Biki gang. So joining us
in the studio right now is the Chief Minister of
the Northern Territory, Leo Finocchiaro. Good morning to you, Good
morning Katians here listeners, Chief Minister, this is I believe
the third escape that we've had in the last sort
(00:22):
of month or so. From what I can recall, we
had the prisoner that escaped from the courthouse, jumped over
the barrier and came running down this way towards the
radio station. We also had another bloke escape from the hospital.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
This is the third.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Is something going on here with the G four S
security or what's the goat no?
Speaker 3 (00:40):
So this is a combination of corrections and other You know,
we have a quite a network of different security that
supports people in custody to remain in custody. And obviously
there have been three very significant issues of late, and
I'm asking the same question, what is going on and
what do we need to do more. Ultimately, we're dealing
(01:01):
with very volatile criminal behavior, so you know, our expectation
around people complying is very low, but we do need
to be supporting our staff to do everything they can.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Some of that is training, some of.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
That is physical infrastructure, but we are reviewing to make
sure that our procedures are as strong as possible.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Yeah, because I can't remember the last time that we've
had sort of three yes scapes, I agree in that
short period of time. But also, if I recall correctly,
I believe that they're all associates of the Mongol spiking,
so I could be wrong.
Speaker 3 (01:32):
Yeah, Look, my recollection is about the same as yours, Katie,
So it's certainly something that I've asked questions about, and
we just you know, urge people if they see anyone
please call one three one, triple four or crime stoppers
and our police are onto the job. But again, it's
a volatile situation that we work in and obviously this
(01:54):
behavior is completely unacceptable, but we will do everything we
can to make sure there's not some sort of breakdown
in our systems that we can do better.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
All right, Chiefiness of the Government this morning announcing foster
and kinship cares across the Northern Territory are going to
receive an increase in financial support. These changes are going
to see fortnightly foster and kinship care allowance increase by
ten percent, well above the standard annual indexation of two
point five seventy five. Why was this important? Why is
(02:22):
this needed?
Speaker 3 (02:23):
This placement establishment payment is really important. It used to
be two hundred dollars now for those people who have
children and even those who don't, everyone understands that kids
are expensive, and when you were taking a child in
an emergency situation, you know you might need a car seat,
you might need betting, you might need toys, nappies, clothing,
I mean bottles, the formula, the list is endless. So
(02:45):
this is a really important recognition that unfortunately, we have
situations in the territory where our precious children are needed
to be removed from their families and put in foster
in kinship care. And so this provides those people really
meaningful payment to make sure they're able to provide whatever
supports that child needs.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
Does this sort of follow feedback that you've received after
the child protection legislative changes or why did you feel
that this was needed?
Speaker 3 (03:12):
This is something we've been working on for a long
time alongside the child protection changes. It's certainly something that
Minister Carl and I are very very passionate about. We
need people to be wanting to put up their hands
to support vulnerable kids. And because the in twelve years
that payment hadn't moved, we did see people dropping off.
They just couldn't afford to be providing that love and
(03:33):
care that a lot of people want to provide.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
And so we're hoping for two things.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
One is that this is recognizing the costs and that
we get better support for our beautiful children. And the
second is it might incentivize people as well to recognize
they won't necessarily be out of pocket and so that
they can provide that really important piece.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
Acknowledgement of the need to retain and to increase the
number of people willing to take on a child.
Speaker 3 (03:57):
Yeah, absolutely, it's all part of it. And I just
think two hundred dollars, you know, twelve years ago probably
wasn't enough even then, Katie, it's certainly not enough.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
Do you think that increase is going to happen though,
because of those legislative changes.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
No, no, it's not because of them. It's something we
were working on separately. So we're doing a range of
things in the care and protection of children's space. As
people understand, we're moving through with that legislation putting people's right,
child's right to be saved first. This is another step
in that system, and there will be many more changes
moving forward.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
Just very quickly.
Speaker 1 (04:28):
How are you going to police it to make sure
that no one's trying to rut the system.
Speaker 3 (04:31):
Look, I'm not sure how the department runs through those massinations,
but at the end of the day, we ask people
to be on call twenty four hours. We drop babies
off at two o'clock in the morning in horrendous circumstances,
and people who are putting the hand up to be
foster and kinship carers. You know, generally speaking, people do
the right thing and we need to be supporting people
(04:52):
to take.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
It's a it's a big deal. It's a tough job.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
I've got a few friends that do it, and I
take my hat off to anybody if it is doing that.
I think it's a really important role. It is, Chief Finesster.
I want to move along because there's a lot happening
around the place this morning. We are expecting the opposition
to be meeting today over this ongoing saga with Manuel
Brown local media reporting on Friday and over the course
(05:16):
of the weekend that he'd apparently admitted through an interview
that was aired, that his fourteen year old son did
indeed drive his car out on an out station. Now, look,
people will make up their own minds what they think
about that, But the fact is Selena Yubo had been
on this show just last week saying that no, that
was not her understanding of what had happened. What do
(05:37):
you think needs to happen here? Does Manuel Brown need
to be referred to privileges?
Speaker 2 (05:41):
What needs to happen?
Speaker 3 (05:43):
Look, I think Labor undoubtedly in crisis talks around this,
and you know it's been something that they haven't been
able to put to bed. More information keeps coming to
light around this behavior, and you know, Selena, as a
leader of the Labor Party needs to make some some really.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Tough decisions here. Did you do well?
Speaker 3 (06:02):
I think this is about you know, really, Manuel Brown
should be stepping down.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
That's what he should be doing. But if he's together from.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
Certainly from his portfolios and ultimately his community would judge
his actions at the next election. But this is one
for the Labor team to sort out and for Selena
to stand up and show what her leaderships.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
Would be a proper investigation into you know, the way
in which the you know, the allowance for the vehicle washoes,
cab charges, fuel card, all that kind of thing.
Speaker 3 (06:34):
Yeah, undoubtedly there's more water to go under this bridge, Katie.
And there's always the opportunity for the Assembly to refer
members to the Privileges Committee and still have to do that. Well,
any member of the Parliament can do that, so well, yeah,
we could, We absolutely could. I think we need to
see what happens over the next twenty four hours. Obviously,
laborer in crisis talks, but this is a this is
(06:57):
a mess of their own making and we're focused on delivering.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Should they do that themselves?
Speaker 3 (07:02):
Yeah, they probably should, Katie. There's a lot of things
that should happen and haven't. I think people are disappointed
by what's been going on, and it's a great distraction.
You know, Labour are sitting there talking about themselves. We're
getting on with the job of governing for all Territorians
and there's still a few weeks until Parliament sits and
I'm sure it will all be you know, become clear
at that point, all right.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
Couple of quick ones. Territory Day, we know that. You know,
it wrapped up with fewer injuries than in previous years
and some really great vibes. Unfortunately though, they were halted
to some degree when we started taking calls, you know,
on this show last week about some of what was
going on along the esplanade. Have you seen some of
that vision and do you think that there needs to
(07:46):
be police follow up for those people that were actually
like throwing fireworks at other individuals.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
Oh, it's so disappointing. You know, we pride ourselves on
the freedoms we have as a territory, and that comes
with great responsibility and a responsibility to your fellow territory
and to do the right thing so that we can
continue to celebrate Territory Day in this unique and amazing way.
Now I want to congratulate everyone. I'll start by congratulating
everyone who did the right thing because it was we
(08:13):
you know, all the response from police and emergency services
and our fieries. They were generally very happy. People's incidents
were down, injuries were down, so people celebrated well. But
we did see some incredibly appalling footage come out on
social media, which I condemn in the strongest possible terms,
and our police have full opportunity in it to go
(08:35):
after them because they've broken the law.
Speaker 1 (08:37):
Three sixty have now confirmed that with police that they
are reviewing that vision that's circulating on social media. I mean,
it'll be interesting to see what follows on from that next.
But do you think we need some changes so that
if people are using fireworks like with intent to hurt
someone else or to cause havoc, that they should focus consequences.
Speaker 3 (08:55):
I don't think we need separate laws for that. There
are ready laws in place that protect people. Now, you know,
we can't punish everyone for the stupidity of a few,
and we certainly saw you know, quite a lot of
you know, ordinary behavior can put it that way, and
it spoils it for everyone. But you know, I want
to maintain, you know, all of the positives that came
(09:18):
out of Territory Day.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
It was incredible and for those people who chose to
do the.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
Wrong thing, you just let everyone down, including yourselves, and
it was a disgrace.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
I do want to ask you just very quickly.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
We did talk about the PPSOS last week with the
acting the Acting Police Commissioner Travis Wurst, but I know
that on that first week on the job, they've been
pretty busy. I don't know whether they were involved in
a lots on Territory Day, but they've been pretty busy
over the last sort of seven days that they've been
in operation.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
Yeah, they are so fined up and ready to go.
I did see our ppsos out on Territory Day out
at Mindle with our constable teams who are mentoring them
right across the territory. So it's been terrific and they
have been so busy. We've had thirty one people placed
in protective custody over that first week. Nine people have
been arrested by ppsos for disorderly behavior and even outstanding warrants,
(10:08):
which again is fantastic. They've engaged with over a thousand
people during point of sale interventions in you know, Catherine
and Alla Springs and issued sixty band drinkers orders. So
the pretty powerful stuff for a very small squad.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
How big a difference do you hope that they are
going to make as they you know, as they sort
of really hit the ground.
Speaker 3 (10:30):
Oh, I'm very very excited about this, Katie, and to
see our ppsos and constables working together makes me really proud.
This is I think in one week they have shown
their worth already.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
And we have such a small group.
Speaker 3 (10:42):
That was a twenty one person squad who've spread out
across Darwin, Catherine and Alas as we built to two
hundred over the next couple of years. People will really
notice the difference. And if you see one of them
mountain about just give them a shout out. They're really
working hard.
Speaker 1 (10:56):
Did get a question from Jodie last week? How does
their uniform differ from the normal uniform.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Yes, you will notice it.
Speaker 3 (11:02):
So our normal police uniform has the white and the blue,
whereas the ppsos have yellow and blue. So if you
see yellow and blue, that's a Ppso tell them they're
doing a great job. Pump up their tires because you
know there's only that one little squad Territory White at
the moment, but we've got two more this year, four
more next year. People will really start to notice a difference.
Speaker 1 (11:22):
All right, Chief Fitest, I know your press for time,
but I've got a couple of questions that I do
still want to ask. Over the weekend the Northern Territory News,
who's reporting that a Coronial Inquest has heard that the
Darwin Private Hospital went weeks without a doctor available on
site around the clock in the lead up to the
death of seventy five year old Beverly Rinsky back in
twenty twenty four. Now nurses told the court there were
(11:44):
times that there were no registered medical officer rosted on,
including when missus Rinsky's condition deteriorated after surgery. The inquest
has also heard that the hospital now ensures that a
doctor is always on shift and those proceedings are indeed
continuing now. I understand, of course that the private hospital
is not the responsibility of the Northern Territory government, but
(12:06):
I'm sure I, like everybody else, reading that over the weekend,
was absolutely horrified to think.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
That that was the case.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
Is there a service agreement or something in place to
ensure that there are minimum standards met at the Darwin
Private Hospital.
Speaker 3 (12:22):
It was very concerning and eye opening to read that
over the weekend. Katie, absolutely, and I'm glad it has
been rectified for those people who remain concerned. But ultimately
you're right, we don't have any direct ability to control
or influence those operations at Darwin Private. They are federally regulated,
so I'm sure in the wake of this tragic death
(12:45):
and coronial that the regulator is now having greater oversight,
which I suspect is why the hospital has responded by
making sure they have someone always available.
Speaker 1 (12:54):
So there's nothing in the Northern Territory government's wheelhouse.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
Yeah, no, nothing technically other than pressure. Obviously were fighting
the fight with you know now that they're in receivership
and waiting for resolution on maternity services. So it's not
a good time for the private hospital, I think it's
safe to say, but we do watch these things carefully. Unfortunately,
it requires the federal government to make any to take
any regulatory actions, which we would support if that's what's required.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
Yeah, I absolutely agree. I think that we cannot be
in a situation ever again where that is the case.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Absolutely, just really quickly.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
Power and Water. Last week it was being reported that
the CEO, Junapollard, is going to be finishing up in September.
Andy mccreadie's stepping in to the chairperson's role, not the
CEO position, of course, but there has been speculation that
this move may see the three arms of our essential
services brought back into one umbrella or the opposition claims
(13:47):
that you're trying to privatize.
Speaker 2 (13:49):
What's the goal here?
Speaker 3 (13:51):
Oh gosh, the opposition is scrambling for a distraction from
their own crisis. Katie, We I mean I for two
elections have made it absolutely clear there is no privatization
and we stand by our election commitments and your listeners
know that because we are delivering on our commitments as
we have promised. You know, we thank Juna Pollard so
(14:11):
much for her service to parent Water.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
Which stands shad did she choose to leave.
Speaker 3 (14:15):
No, she's decided to, you know, step aside and move
on to other things. And I stood on stage with
her at GTN T Awards on the weekend, which was fantastic,
recognizing parent Water's incredible apprentices.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
So, you know, we thank Juna very much.
Speaker 3 (14:30):
Andrew McCready's is coming in as the new chair and
we're really excited about the future. This is about making
sure our power networks are strong and stable going forward.
We don't want all of these you know, people will
be very familiar with price increases and we need to
get that working more efficiently and for the betterment of
all territory.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Not only that, we saw. I'm going to be blunt
about the bit of a shit show when it came
to the billing that was happening as well last year.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
I mean, is this about.
Speaker 1 (14:57):
Bringing it back in together or you kind of having
a look at how things are operating.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
More broadly, we still have the three streams, and so
this is just about doing things better. We have a
huge community service obligation that government pays. But I just
I hate saying that because it's not government. There's no
such thing as government money. It's taxpayers money, and so
we taxpayers subsidize their own power bills and we just
need to be more efficient, doing things smarter and having
(15:24):
a set of fresh eyes look at things is not
a bad thing, Katie.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
So we're really.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
Focused on making sure these entities are strong, moving in
the one direction, delivering stable, reliable, affordable power and water
for all territories.
Speaker 1 (15:37):
Chief Minister, we better leave it there. Thank you so
much for your time.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
As always, thank you, take care and happy night week everyone.
Fifty years of Deadly it's a big week.
We know the Northern Territory Police are continuing to seek
public assistance to locate this twenty six year old, a
known associate of the Mongols Biki gang. So joining us
in the studio right now is the Chief Minister of
the Northern Territory, Leo Finocchiaro. Good morning to you, Good
morning Katians here listeners, Chief Minister, this is I believe
the third escape that we've had in the last sort
(00:22):
of month or so. From what I can recall, we
had the prisoner that escaped from the courthouse, jumped over
the barrier and came running down this way towards the
radio station. We also had another bloke escape from the hospital.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
This is the third.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Is something going on here with the G four S
security or what's the goat no?
Speaker 3 (00:40):
So this is a combination of corrections and other You know,
we have a quite a network of different security that
supports people in custody to remain in custody. And obviously
there have been three very significant issues of late, and
I'm asking the same question, what is going on and
what do we need to do more. Ultimately, we're dealing
(01:01):
with very volatile criminal behavior, so you know, our expectation
around people complying is very low, but we do need
to be supporting our staff to do everything they can.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Some of that is training, some of.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
That is physical infrastructure, but we are reviewing to make
sure that our procedures are as strong as possible.
Speaker 1 (01:20):
Yeah, because I can't remember the last time that we've
had sort of three yes scapes, I agree in that
short period of time. But also, if I recall correctly,
I believe that they're all associates of the Mongol spiking,
so I could be wrong.
Speaker 3 (01:32):
Yeah, Look, my recollection is about the same as yours, Katie,
So it's certainly something that I've asked questions about, and
we just you know, urge people if they see anyone
please call one three one, triple four or crime stoppers
and our police are onto the job. But again, it's
a volatile situation that we work in and obviously this
(01:54):
behavior is completely unacceptable, but we will do everything we
can to make sure there's not some sort of breakdown
in our systems that we can do better.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
All right, Chiefiness of the Government this morning announcing foster
and kinship cares across the Northern Territory are going to
receive an increase in financial support. These changes are going
to see fortnightly foster and kinship care allowance increase by
ten percent, well above the standard annual indexation of two
point five seventy five. Why was this important? Why is
(02:22):
this needed?
Speaker 3 (02:23):
This placement establishment payment is really important. It used to
be two hundred dollars now for those people who have
children and even those who don't, everyone understands that kids
are expensive, and when you were taking a child in
an emergency situation, you know you might need a car seat,
you might need betting, you might need toys, nappies, clothing,
I mean bottles, the formula, the list is endless. So
(02:45):
this is a really important recognition that unfortunately, we have
situations in the territory where our precious children are needed
to be removed from their families and put in foster
in kinship care. And so this provides those people really
meaningful payment to make sure they're able to provide whatever
supports that child needs.
Speaker 1 (03:04):
Does this sort of follow feedback that you've received after
the child protection legislative changes or why did you feel
that this was needed?
Speaker 3 (03:12):
This is something we've been working on for a long
time alongside the child protection changes. It's certainly something that
Minister Carl and I are very very passionate about. We
need people to be wanting to put up their hands
to support vulnerable kids. And because the in twelve years
that payment hadn't moved, we did see people dropping off.
They just couldn't afford to be providing that love and
(03:33):
care that a lot of people want to provide.
Speaker 2 (03:36):
And so we're hoping for two things.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
One is that this is recognizing the costs and that
we get better support for our beautiful children. And the
second is it might incentivize people as well to recognize
they won't necessarily be out of pocket and so that
they can provide that really important piece.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
Acknowledgement of the need to retain and to increase the
number of people willing to take on a child.
Speaker 3 (03:57):
Yeah, absolutely, it's all part of it. And I just
think two hundred dollars, you know, twelve years ago probably
wasn't enough even then, Katie, it's certainly not enough.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
Do you think that increase is going to happen though,
because of those legislative changes.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
No, no, it's not because of them. It's something we
were working on separately. So we're doing a range of
things in the care and protection of children's space. As
people understand, we're moving through with that legislation putting people's right,
child's right to be saved first. This is another step
in that system, and there will be many more changes
moving forward.
Speaker 2 (04:27):
Just very quickly.
Speaker 1 (04:28):
How are you going to police it to make sure
that no one's trying to rut the system.
Speaker 3 (04:31):
Look, I'm not sure how the department runs through those massinations,
but at the end of the day, we ask people
to be on call twenty four hours. We drop babies
off at two o'clock in the morning in horrendous circumstances,
and people who are putting the hand up to be
foster and kinship carers. You know, generally speaking, people do
the right thing and we need to be supporting people
(04:52):
to take.
Speaker 2 (04:52):
It's a it's a big deal. It's a tough job.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
I've got a few friends that do it, and I
take my hat off to anybody if it is doing that.
I think it's a really important role. It is, Chief Finesster.
I want to move along because there's a lot happening
around the place this morning. We are expecting the opposition
to be meeting today over this ongoing saga with Manuel
Brown local media reporting on Friday and over the course
(05:16):
of the weekend that he'd apparently admitted through an interview
that was aired, that his fourteen year old son did
indeed drive his car out on an out station. Now, look,
people will make up their own minds what they think
about that, But the fact is Selena Yubo had been
on this show just last week saying that no, that
was not her understanding of what had happened. What do
(05:37):
you think needs to happen here? Does Manuel Brown need
to be referred to privileges?
Speaker 2 (05:41):
What needs to happen?
Speaker 3 (05:43):
Look, I think Labor undoubtedly in crisis talks around this,
and you know it's been something that they haven't been
able to put to bed. More information keeps coming to
light around this behavior, and you know, Selena, as a
leader of the Labor Party needs to make some some really.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Tough decisions here. Did you do well?
Speaker 3 (06:02):
I think this is about you know, really, Manuel Brown
should be stepping down.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
That's what he should be doing. But if he's together from.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
Certainly from his portfolios and ultimately his community would judge
his actions at the next election. But this is one
for the Labor team to sort out and for Selena
to stand up and show what her leaderships.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
Would be a proper investigation into you know, the way
in which the you know, the allowance for the vehicle washoes,
cab charges, fuel card, all that kind of thing.
Speaker 3 (06:34):
Yeah, undoubtedly there's more water to go under this bridge, Katie.
And there's always the opportunity for the Assembly to refer
members to the Privileges Committee and still have to do that. Well,
any member of the Parliament can do that, so well, yeah,
we could, We absolutely could. I think we need to
see what happens over the next twenty four hours. Obviously,
laborer in crisis talks, but this is a this is
(06:57):
a mess of their own making and we're focused on delivering.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Should they do that themselves?
Speaker 3 (07:02):
Yeah, they probably should, Katie. There's a lot of things
that should happen and haven't. I think people are disappointed
by what's been going on, and it's a great distraction.
You know, Labour are sitting there talking about themselves. We're
getting on with the job of governing for all Territorians
and there's still a few weeks until Parliament sits and
I'm sure it will all be you know, become clear
at that point, all right.
Speaker 1 (07:23):
Couple of quick ones. Territory Day, we know that. You know,
it wrapped up with fewer injuries than in previous years
and some really great vibes. Unfortunately though, they were halted
to some degree when we started taking calls, you know,
on this show last week about some of what was
going on along the esplanade. Have you seen some of
that vision and do you think that there needs to
(07:46):
be police follow up for those people that were actually
like throwing fireworks at other individuals.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
Oh, it's so disappointing. You know, we pride ourselves on
the freedoms we have as a territory, and that comes
with great responsibility and a responsibility to your fellow territory
and to do the right thing so that we can
continue to celebrate Territory Day in this unique and amazing way.
Now I want to congratulate everyone. I'll start by congratulating
everyone who did the right thing because it was we
(08:13):
you know, all the response from police and emergency services
and our fieries. They were generally very happy. People's incidents
were down, injuries were down, so people celebrated well. But
we did see some incredibly appalling footage come out on
social media, which I condemn in the strongest possible terms,
and our police have full opportunity in it to go
(08:35):
after them because they've broken the law.
Speaker 1 (08:37):
Three sixty have now confirmed that with police that they
are reviewing that vision that's circulating on social media. I mean,
it'll be interesting to see what follows on from that next.
But do you think we need some changes so that
if people are using fireworks like with intent to hurt
someone else or to cause havoc, that they should focus consequences.
Speaker 3 (08:55):
I don't think we need separate laws for that. There
are ready laws in place that protect people. Now, you know,
we can't punish everyone for the stupidity of a few,
and we certainly saw you know, quite a lot of
you know, ordinary behavior can put it that way, and
it spoils it for everyone. But you know, I want
to maintain, you know, all of the positives that came
(09:18):
out of Territory Day.
Speaker 2 (09:19):
It was incredible and for those people who chose to
do the.
Speaker 3 (09:21):
Wrong thing, you just let everyone down, including yourselves, and
it was a disgrace.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
I do want to ask you just very quickly.
Speaker 1 (09:29):
We did talk about the PPSOS last week with the
acting the Acting Police Commissioner Travis Wurst, but I know
that on that first week on the job, they've been
pretty busy. I don't know whether they were involved in
a lots on Territory Day, but they've been pretty busy
over the last sort of seven days that they've been
in operation.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
Yeah, they are so fined up and ready to go.
I did see our ppsos out on Territory Day out
at Mindle with our constable teams who are mentoring them
right across the territory. So it's been terrific and they
have been so busy. We've had thirty one people placed
in protective custody over that first week. Nine people have
been arrested by ppsos for disorderly behavior and even outstanding warrants,
(10:08):
which again is fantastic. They've engaged with over a thousand
people during point of sale interventions in you know, Catherine
and Alla Springs and issued sixty band drinkers orders. So
the pretty powerful stuff for a very small squad.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
How big a difference do you hope that they are
going to make as they you know, as they sort
of really hit the ground.
Speaker 3 (10:30):
Oh, I'm very very excited about this, Katie, and to
see our ppsos and constables working together makes me really proud.
This is I think in one week they have shown
their worth already.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
And we have such a small group.
Speaker 3 (10:42):
That was a twenty one person squad who've spread out
across Darwin, Catherine and Alas as we built to two
hundred over the next couple of years. People will really
notice the difference. And if you see one of them
mountain about just give them a shout out. They're really
working hard.
Speaker 1 (10:56):
Did get a question from Jodie last week? How does
their uniform differ from the normal uniform.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Yes, you will notice it.
Speaker 3 (11:02):
So our normal police uniform has the white and the blue,
whereas the ppsos have yellow and blue. So if you
see yellow and blue, that's a Ppso tell them they're
doing a great job. Pump up their tires because you
know there's only that one little squad Territory White at
the moment, but we've got two more this year, four
more next year. People will really start to notice a difference.
Speaker 1 (11:22):
All right, Chief Fitest, I know your press for time,
but I've got a couple of questions that I do
still want to ask. Over the weekend the Northern Territory News,
who's reporting that a Coronial Inquest has heard that the
Darwin Private Hospital went weeks without a doctor available on
site around the clock in the lead up to the
death of seventy five year old Beverly Rinsky back in
twenty twenty four. Now nurses told the court there were
(11:44):
times that there were no registered medical officer rosted on,
including when missus Rinsky's condition deteriorated after surgery. The inquest
has also heard that the hospital now ensures that a
doctor is always on shift and those proceedings are indeed
continuing now. I understand, of course that the private hospital
is not the responsibility of the Northern Territory government, but
(12:06):
I'm sure I, like everybody else, reading that over the weekend,
was absolutely horrified to think.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
That that was the case.
Speaker 1 (12:14):
Is there a service agreement or something in place to
ensure that there are minimum standards met at the Darwin
Private Hospital.
Speaker 3 (12:22):
It was very concerning and eye opening to read that
over the weekend. Katie, absolutely, and I'm glad it has
been rectified for those people who remain concerned. But ultimately
you're right, we don't have any direct ability to control
or influence those operations at Darwin Private. They are federally regulated,
so I'm sure in the wake of this tragic death
(12:45):
and coronial that the regulator is now having greater oversight,
which I suspect is why the hospital has responded by
making sure they have someone always available.
Speaker 1 (12:54):
So there's nothing in the Northern Territory government's wheelhouse.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
Yeah, no, nothing technically other than pressure. Obviously were fighting
the fight with you know now that they're in receivership
and waiting for resolution on maternity services. So it's not
a good time for the private hospital, I think it's
safe to say, but we do watch these things carefully. Unfortunately,
it requires the federal government to make any to take
any regulatory actions, which we would support if that's what's required.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
Yeah, I absolutely agree. I think that we cannot be
in a situation ever again where that is the case.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Absolutely, just really quickly.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
Power and Water. Last week it was being reported that
the CEO, Junapollard, is going to be finishing up in September.
Andy mccreadie's stepping in to the chairperson's role, not the
CEO position, of course, but there has been speculation that
this move may see the three arms of our essential
services brought back into one umbrella or the opposition claims
(13:47):
that you're trying to privatize.
Speaker 2 (13:49):
What's the goal here?
Speaker 3 (13:51):
Oh gosh, the opposition is scrambling for a distraction from
their own crisis. Katie, We I mean I for two
elections have made it absolutely clear there is no privatization
and we stand by our election commitments and your listeners
know that because we are delivering on our commitments as
we have promised. You know, we thank Juna Pollard so
(14:11):
much for her service to parent Water.
Speaker 2 (14:13):
Which stands shad did she choose to leave.
Speaker 3 (14:15):
No, she's decided to, you know, step aside and move
on to other things. And I stood on stage with
her at GTN T Awards on the weekend, which was fantastic,
recognizing parent Water's incredible apprentices.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
So, you know, we thank Juna very much.
Speaker 3 (14:30):
Andrew McCready's is coming in as the new chair and
we're really excited about the future. This is about making
sure our power networks are strong and stable going forward.
We don't want all of these you know, people will
be very familiar with price increases and we need to
get that working more efficiently and for the betterment of
all territory.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Not only that, we saw. I'm going to be blunt
about the bit of a shit show when it came
to the billing that was happening as well last year.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
I mean, is this about.
Speaker 1 (14:57):
Bringing it back in together or you kind of having
a look at how things are operating.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
More broadly, we still have the three streams, and so
this is just about doing things better. We have a
huge community service obligation that government pays. But I just
I hate saying that because it's not government. There's no
such thing as government money. It's taxpayers money, and so
we taxpayers subsidize their own power bills and we just
need to be more efficient, doing things smarter and having
(15:24):
a set of fresh eyes look at things is not
a bad thing, Katie.
Speaker 2 (15:27):
So we're really.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
Focused on making sure these entities are strong, moving in
the one direction, delivering stable, reliable, affordable power and water
for all territories.
Speaker 1 (15:37):
Chief Minister, we better leave it there. Thank you so
much for your time.
Speaker 3 (15:40):
As always, thank you, take care and happy night week everyone.
Fifty years of Deadly it's a big week.
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