Mayor of Alice Springs Matt Patterson reacts to the curfew being extended.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
And the Mayor of Alice Springs, Matt Patterson, joins me
on the line.

Speaker 2 (00:04):
Good morning to you, Matt, Good morning Katie.

Speaker 3 (00:07):
Thanks for having me, Matt. Beautiful weather on a beautiful
Alice Springs day.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Sounds like it's glorious weather.

Speaker 1 (00:12):
And are people feeling pretty upbeat today with the news
from the Chief Minister that this curfew is going to
be extended until next Tuesday?

Speaker 3 (00:23):
Yeah, I mean people are very happy with the extension.
I think people, you know, just have had two weeks
of fresh air basically, and you know, I think the
attitude with residents and Alice Springs has been completely different
and it's made a dramatic impact. And you know, I
think the Chief Minister has shown great leadership and done

(00:44):
something that's not really been done before and it's had
a massive impact on the social wellbeing of the community.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
Now tell me, the Chief Minister had said again earlier
this morning on the show, basically what they're looking then
at longer term is you know, how they can keep
the effects of that curfew in place without having to
have the curfew in place.

Speaker 2 (01:08):
What do you make of that, Matt?

Speaker 3 (01:11):
Yeah, I mean, we're not going to be under the
inverted Commas curfew forever and you know, we needed that
circuit breaker. The big impact is the police, Kadie, that
just the visual presence of them, the proactive policing that
they've been able to do, has had a positive effect.
And just the engagement and walking down the street. And

(01:31):
that's the comments from most of the community is it's
completely different at night and people are willing to go
down the street and also just the visual of present
visual presence of police. They feel safe and you know,
it's been a really nice change, mate.

Speaker 1 (01:45):
What needs to happen, you know longer term? What a
local saying to you.

Speaker 3 (01:51):
Yeah, I think it's it's certainly the resourcing piece. We
certainly need more police than malice springs. It's brought some
attention this morning that the two hundred police officers, none
are actually pegged for our springs, so that's disappointing. But
I think it is clearly the resourcing issue. And also
if these kids are on the street because it's safer
for them to be there than than at home, then

(02:13):
we need to really look at some safe places for
kids to go rather than go back home.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
Yeah, and you know this is the thing, I guess
we have seen and this is another thing that the
Chief Minister had sort of pointed to earlier this morning
that yes, the curfew has made a difference, but also
those additional police on the ground have made a massive difference.
So with the review being released yesterday and you're saying,
then with those two hundred officers that you've learned that
none of those are going to be for ours', that's

(02:41):
tough to hear.

Speaker 3 (02:44):
Yeah, it is, and you know it's really hard to
you know, I think my position to think about the
long term when it's the here and now and you know,
we're just trying to get through week by week, and
I think the extension is clearly beneficial to get us
through school holidays. So you know, we'll continue to advocate
and we'll be from our end. But as I said,

(03:04):
the resources have got on the ground at the moment
helping dramatically.

Speaker 1 (03:09):
Those officers were due to arrive, if not already, from
South Australia.

Speaker 2 (03:13):
How has that been going.

Speaker 3 (03:15):
Yeah, look, I'm not sure if they're here or not yet.
I think they were mental Land of eight forty. But again,
you know, I think I think we'll see more positive impact.
Obviously Wednesdays. Our bottle shops are open today again after
two days of being shut, so we'll see. I think
that they've announced that the palis or point of sale
intervention will remain for the near future, so I think

(03:38):
that's also beneficial.

Speaker 1 (03:40):
Yeah. Look, I have seen a letter that obviously went
from the Northern Territory Police to those licensed takeaway premises
and it had said that with the training commitment, so
this was yesterday that those recruit constables we're going to
see studies in Alice on Wednesday, the tenth of April,
and post this date that there would be a vision

(04:00):
to the hybrid posey operation.

Speaker 2 (04:03):
What are you hearing on the ground though.

Speaker 3 (04:07):
I'm hearing that there'll be full coverage for the near future, okay,
And so you know that's obviously going to be well
received by the public. The challenges I mean, if you
remove these point of point of sail inspectors or license
inspectors or palis whatever we want to call them, it's
going back to the you know, the lapsing of stronger

(04:28):
futures and we've seeing the carnage that ensued from that.
So you know that's their role. You know, who does it?
I let other people decide that someone needs to be there,
especially whilst we're going through changes. We can't just make
all these dramatic changes and expect everything to be okay.
We need to just think about the unintended consequences of

(04:49):
what will happen when we do make a change.

Speaker 1 (04:51):
All right, So, Matt, from your perspective, I know, the
chiefiness is saying that Friday there'll be an announcement sort
of longer term, she's heading back to Allie Springs this week.
From your perspective, you know what really does need to
happen so that you have that long term change, you know,
so that you've got people able to continue to go
out for dinner back in Alice Springs out you know,

(05:12):
in the mall and that kind of thing. Again.

Speaker 3 (05:15):
Yeah, I think it's all Yeah. I think it's about
investment in the remote communities and the role out of
that two fifty million. I haven't been dramatically you know,
I've been supportive of the two fifty and it rolling
out slowly. I think that's important that the consultation is
done right, so the right investment happening in the remote
community's economy, out in remote communities because we'll continually see

(05:37):
other springs used as a service hub with less investment
in the remote community. So it's all about that. But
I think the big one is there's got to be
a safe place for these kids to go, and we
should try a youth for you know, a big advocate
for youth boys and spoke about until I'm blue in
the face. But they're in every other jurisdiction, Kdie, we
need one in the territory, especially in our springs.

Speaker 2 (05:58):
Where do you reckon it should be in Alice man.

Speaker 3 (06:01):
All of I think, you know, you know where. There's
a lot of land in our springs, so there's plenty
of opportunity. I think the first piece is getting a
commitment from government and working that out. Secondly, I think
that the federal government have a role to play here
as well. And you know there's locations that will be
beneficial here and especially getting young people into jobs. The

(06:23):
success rate of these layers is astronomical.

Speaker 2 (06:28):
Well, I just think, you.

Speaker 1 (06:29):
Know, we've got to look at these longer term solutions.
You and I have been talking about this, well at
least for a whole year, but we're actually talking about
it before things really blew up. Last year as well,
and you know, the time for changes now, like the
time for action is absolutely now. We have seen that
over the last couple of weeks from the Chief Minister.
So let's hope that we are going to continue on

(06:52):
that path. I know that you guys, you know the
people of Alice Springs absolutely need.

Speaker 3 (06:56):
It, oh absolutely, And I think that what we've seen
in the last two weeks is now, I think there's
a belief that there is light at the end of
the tunnel because we've seen government have put their foot
down and made some big calls, and I think people
are really supportive of the Chief Minister and much he's
been able to do. And you know, we'll continue on.

(07:17):
But as I said, we know it can be done,
and the police has been amazing as well.

Speaker 1 (07:22):
Matt. Has there been much traction, you know, we know
that there's been a few groups that have sort of
come out and said, you know, question whether the curfew
is lawful or whether it should happen. Has that gained
much traction in Alice Springs?

Speaker 3 (07:36):
Yeah, I think they've read the room and quite down
a little bit. I think what people forget is on
paper they might say that it won't work but the
two weeks preceding the curfew, Katie, we had two young
men lose their lives in a sixteen year old girl
horrendously bashed and ship in the street. Now we've had
a police present, the visual presence of the curfew and

(07:56):
all of those sort of things. We haven't seen that.
We have not seen any of that carnage or you know,
that horrendous behavior. So I don't buy that these expertsy,
so called experts, when they say it won't work, you know,
they should get out of their ivory towers and actually
come to our springs and say what will work for
the short term, not the medium and long term stuff.

(08:17):
What's going to work here? And now? Clearly, as I said,
the Chief Miness has made a decision and it has
worked because facts prove that it has worked.

Speaker 2 (08:25):
Matt Patterson, the mayor of Alice Springs.

Speaker 1 (08:28):
Good to catch up with you this morning, mate, And
I'm really pleased that there's some hope for the people
of Alice Springs. I hope that we are on the
path to some change.

Speaker 3 (08:41):
There's been a nice change.

Speaker 2 (08:42):
Here, mate.

Speaker 1 (08:43):
How good would it be if you and I could
catch up and you know, talk about some of the
great stuff that's going on in Alice Springs, and you know,
there is great stuff that goes on. There's so many
wonderful people that live there. I long for the day
where I don't have to get on air and talk
about the crime and all the issues that are happening
around the territory and when we can, you know, focus
a bit more on some of the wonderful stuff that happens.

Speaker 3 (09:04):
Yeah, I meet me too. I mean, obviously this has
taken a dramatic impact for our tourism operators and businesses
in town as well, and they felt the pinstry COVID,
so we you know, it is an amazing place and
we need to promote it to be that way. But
obviously we just need to get through this bump in
the road and it can go back to the wonderful
place it was.

Speaker 1 (09:21):
Yeah, smot On, Matt Patterson, talk to you again soon,
Thanks mate

Speaker 3 (09:26):
Good on you, thank you, thank you,