Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie Woolf spoke with Minister for Infrastructure Planning & Logistics Eva Lawler

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Katie Woolf spoke with Minister for Infrastructure Planning & Logistics Eva Lawler · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Three sixty with Katie wolf on Mixed one oh four
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: point nine thanks to Joyce Main Darwin. We know that
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: Lambridge's plan for that two hundred million dollars six star
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Western hotel is no longer happening, with the Northern Territory
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: government reclaiming the site after a twelve month construction extension
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: that it had given to the Chinese company. Well they
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: announced that about a week ago. Now joining us on
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  Speaker 1: the line to talk more about this is the Minister
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  Speaker 1: for Infrastructure, Eva Laula. Good morning to you.
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: Good morning Katie minister. How where are we at?
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  Speaker 1: I know that Lambridge has now confirmed that the hotel
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  Speaker 1: isn't going ahead, so what's the process now?
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  Speaker 2: So we're going to open up a registration of interest
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  Speaker 2: by the end of this month, so that registration of
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  Speaker 2: interest will go out for approximately twelve weeks and we
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  Speaker 2: think that there there will be some very strong interest
• 0:52
  Speaker 2: in that site from other groups and then once that
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  Speaker 2: registration of interest clothes will have a good look at that.
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  Speaker 2: But we have heard that Western are still interested in
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  Speaker 2: having a six star hotel in Darwen as well, so yeah,
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  Speaker 2: things are looking positive unfortunately for Lanbridge. Presume you know
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  Speaker 2: what must have been a business decision for them, but
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  Speaker 2: it is some of our most beautiful land, some are
• 1:18
  Speaker 2: the most attractive land. So it will be a wonderful
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  Speaker 2: site for a hotel and I'm sure there'll be substantial
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  Speaker 2: interest in that.
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  Speaker 1: So so Western's not totally out by the sounds of it,
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  Speaker 1: But Lambridge, the Lanmbridge side of you know, funding things,
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  Speaker 1: is out.
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  Speaker 2: So Lambridge were the ones that were building the facility,
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  Speaker 2: so they actually were the company that would build and
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  Speaker 2: then Western come in and run hotels. You know, Western
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  Speaker 2: run hotels around the world. And during the process I
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  Speaker 2: actually met with Western executives and I mean obviously this
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  Speaker 2: was before COVID. Yeah, you know, they're opening almost like
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  Speaker 2: one hotel a week across the US and the world.
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  Speaker 2: So Western we're at a stage of growing their hotel empire.
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  Speaker 2: And so yeah, it will be around somebody building it
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  Speaker 2: and then someone else running the hotel well, or it
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: could be something else, but that's the registration of interest
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  Speaker 2: process will do. That will bring out the interest in
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  Speaker 2: that site.
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  Speaker 1: And Minister, what would you like to see happen there?
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  Speaker 1: Do you reckon that the hotel is still a good
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  Speaker 1: idea or do you think that you know that with
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  Speaker 1: Landbridge now pulling out that the options are a bit
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  Speaker 1: more broad.
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  Speaker 2: Oh well, I mean personally or professionally, I think it is.
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  Speaker 2: It is beautiful land, and I think it is ideal
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  Speaker 2: land for a new hotel. We haven't had a new
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  Speaker 2: hotel in the CBD built for a long time and
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  Speaker 2: to have a six star hotel would add to our
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  Speaker 2: international tourists. Hopefully we start seeing that in the next
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  Speaker 2: few years. And that's how long it takes to build
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  Speaker 2: obviously a hotel of that size, but it would provide
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  Speaker 2: another string in the bow for the the DA and
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  Speaker 2: really in for tourism in the territory. There's a a
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  Speaker 2: whole group of people that would love to and that
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  Speaker 2: was one of Western selling points, saying that there are
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  Speaker 2: people that book Western hotels only around the world and
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  Speaker 2: I'll only stay at Western for example. So you know
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  Speaker 2: that this is about and you know tourism isn't my
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  Speaker 2: area at all, but there are people that really want
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  Speaker 2: to stay at Western hotels or come for specific hotel
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  Speaker 2: chains and things. But it is about an amazing site
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  Speaker 2: and having that and as I said, another option for
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  Speaker 2: our tourists in the territory.
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  Speaker 1: Minister I've got a question here from Rosie in Darwin
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  Speaker 1: City and it says, good morning, Katie. Can you please
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  Speaker 1: ask Eva Laula if the land where Lambridge was to
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  Speaker 1: be built could be given to the RSL. I feel
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  Speaker 1: it's a perfect place for the RSL for its location.
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  Speaker 1: After all, it's where the bombing of Darwin took place.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, I had heard that mentioned, I think earlier this
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  Speaker 2: week as a possible site. But I mean those things
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  Speaker 2: have to be worked through. I mean they can register
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  Speaker 2: their interests, I guess as well, but yeah, I look
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  Speaker 2: at those things aren't up to me to decide at
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  Speaker 2: all that there. You know, people can put in their
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  Speaker 2: expressions of interest and you know, say what they'd like
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  Speaker 2: to see at that site. But no, that's you know,
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  Speaker 2: that's not for me to say. Yeah your native Yeah
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  Speaker 2: at the RSL, for sure, But yeah it's got to
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  Speaker 2: go through a process. Yeah, yeah, yeah, absolutely. But no,
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  Speaker 2: that's an interesting idea as well, Minister, can I ask.
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  Speaker 1: I'm just keen to find out a bit more about
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  Speaker 1: the waterfowl hunting season as well. I know that the
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  Speaker 1: recreational waterfowl hunting season is going to run from the
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  Speaker 1: twenty second of September obviously to the tenth of January,
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  Speaker 1: and on most designated hunting reserves that daily bag limit
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  Speaker 1: of three magpie geese and ten ducks per person. Minister,
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  Speaker 1: why was the decision made to drop those numbers to
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  Speaker 1: three for the geese.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, so, Katie, this is always one that creates some
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  Speaker 2: interest in the territory. And so what we've done is
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  Speaker 2: make sure we've put in the Magpie Geese Management Plan
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  Speaker 2: twenty twenty to twenty thirteen that's available on the depause
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  Speaker 2: websit and that provides a matrix for the numbers of
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  Speaker 2: geese and then how many then the bag limit will
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  Speaker 2: be and what the season will be. So we've taken
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  Speaker 2: it out of you know, these arbitrary decisions, whether you
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  Speaker 2: get lobbied and all of us and said it has
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  Speaker 2: to be based on the science. And that's what we've
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  Speaker 2: done as a government. And so the facts are that
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  Speaker 2: they do an aerial survey which goes from one side
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  Speaker 2: of the top end to the other literally across Arnam
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  Speaker 2: Land out to water, and there are you know, on
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  Speaker 2: a plane, there are people who are then observing and
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  Speaker 2: making the count. They came up with account of nine
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  Speaker 2: hundred and eighty thousand geese, which is a thirty one
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  Speaker 2: percent decline this year, and that's based on not this
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  Speaker 2: year's wet season, but the previous years, two years of
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  Speaker 2: wet seasons where the nesting wasn't good, and so you know,
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  Speaker 2: it is about making sure we can serve and protect
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  Speaker 2: the number of magpie geese so that we do have
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  Speaker 2: you know, a MagPi geese a season, hunting season into future,
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  Speaker 2: long into the future. And so if you look at
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  Speaker 2: the management plan on the grid, it'll say it's under
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  Speaker 2: this figure. This is the bag limits. So it's three
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  Speaker 2: geese which is three geethe per day for that fifteen weeks,
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  Speaker 2: and ten ducks. So it is a drop this season,
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  Speaker 2: but it is about managing the bit' make pigege numbers.
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  Speaker 2: So I met with Field and Game and I know
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  Speaker 2: they weren't happy about that, but the decision is based
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  Speaker 2: on the evidence and the science.
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  Speaker 1: It's not arbitrary at all, Minister I will I did
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  Speaker 1: as you've mentioned there. Obviously, hunters say that this simply
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  Speaker 1: isn't enough to go hunting for the day, and that
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  Speaker 1: they you know, they do their best to keep those
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  Speaker 1: geese numbers sustainable. Take a listen to what Bart Irwin
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  Speaker 1: from Ntfield and Game had to say a little bit
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  Speaker 1: earlier in the week.
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  Speaker 3: Please listen and work with the main stakeholder in the
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  Speaker 3: waterfowl hunting season, which are the hunters. We're prepared to
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  Speaker 3: work at bums off to make sure there are more geese.
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  Speaker 3: That's the main priority, but hunting has no effect on
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  Speaker 3: the overall population. Work with us and we can make
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  Speaker 3: it even better and it can be an economic driver
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  Speaker 3: plus a social and recreational until that promotes well being.
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  Speaker 1: Minister, we are running out of time. But is there
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  Speaker 1: potential for any change to this or is it a
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  Speaker 1: full stop on this topic. It's not changing.
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  Speaker 2: No, it's a full stop on this topic. And as
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  Speaker 2: I said, the Mad Potife Management Plan twenty twenty to
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  Speaker 2: twenty thirty, there was extensive consultation with Field and Game,
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  Speaker 2: and as I said, this is what happens every year
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  Speaker 2: we have these arguments and disagreements with Field and Game.
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  Speaker 2: I think they probably would not want any bad limit really,
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  Speaker 2: But you know, I'm the Environment Minister and I am
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  Speaker 2: looking long term into the future, and I base my
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  Speaker 2: decisions on the absolutely outstanding scientists that we have in
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  Speaker 2: the Department of Environment, so you know, have a look
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  Speaker 2: at the management plan that provides the bad limits that
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  Speaker 2: will be the bag limit into the future for government.
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: And that's what did you minister?
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  Speaker 1: A couple of really quick questions. Obviously, the grand stand,
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  Speaker 1: it has been well and truly on the agenda for
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: quite a long period of time.
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  Speaker 3: Now.
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  Speaker 1: We had the Chief Minister on the show yesterday and
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  Speaker 1: asked him a lot of questions about this. He held
• 8:19
  Speaker 1: off on saying which minister took the twelve million dollar
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  Speaker 1: proposal to build the grand stand to the cabinet? Are
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  Speaker 1: you prepared to tell us which minister it was?
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  Speaker 2: Well, as I said that, there are protocols, protocols around cabinet,
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  Speaker 2: so it was the Chief Minister's chair of Cabinet. It's
• 8:35
  Speaker 2: the person that takes that into cabinet, So it was
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  Speaker 2: the Chief Minister who was responsible for taking that into cabinet.
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  Speaker 2: And the Chief Minister said that, and he said that
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  Speaker 2: all along. But you know, Katie, I know people keep
• 8:48
  Speaker 2: again revisiting this issue. But there was the KA Commission
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  Speaker 2: that has investigated this thoroughly. That again was you know,
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  Speaker 2: that was an initiative of the Labor government. That report
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: is absolutely thorough. It was eighteen months in the making,
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  Speaker 2: so plenty of people can have a plenty of say.
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  Speaker 2: But that's the report and I encourage anybody who has
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  Speaker 2: concerns to read the report. It says and clears ministers
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  Speaker 2: in this government. Absolutely, that's what the report does.
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  Speaker 1: It doesn't entirely clear the Chief Minister's office, as we
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  Speaker 1: know he's former chief of staff. I mean, do you
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  Speaker 1: still support what the Chief Minister has said and do
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  Speaker 1: you have confidence that he's done the right thing?
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely? Absolutely support the Chief Minister as he has explained.
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  Speaker 2: He did a media interview afterwards and has continued to
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  Speaker 2: say and explain that, yes, you would we do things differently,
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  Speaker 2: Yes we would, and we have put checks and balances
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  Speaker 2: in place. Governments do give grants, whether that's the sporting
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  Speaker 2: groups or whether it is to government, local governments, to council.
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  Speaker 2: Governments give grants all the time. It was the Chief
• 10:00
  Speaker 2: Club that was responsible then for not following the correct
• 10:03
  Speaker 2: procurement processes. I know how difficult procurement is. I have literally,
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  Speaker 2: I think nearly every time a tender goes out people
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  Speaker 2: concerned about that tender process. You have to be so
• 10:17
  Speaker 2: far above board, which is why as a minister, I
• 10:19
  Speaker 2: keep right out of diple procurement. But that's where you know,
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  Speaker 2: things went very badly wrong around the procurement, and that's
• 10:28
  Speaker 2: things that were put in place around that. Sporting groups
• 10:31
  Speaker 2: or organizations are going to get grants they need and
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  Speaker 2: we will have much closer look at how they go
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  Speaker 2: about procurement.
• 10:37
  Speaker 1: Minister, I am out of time, but I do want
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: to ask, are you going to be going to the races?
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  Speaker 2: No, but I think I've been once in ten years.
• 10:45
  Speaker 2: You know, horse racing isn't my thing at all. You know,
• 10:49
  Speaker 2: I'm a much more a football or an NRL or
• 10:51
  Speaker 2: a hockey person, so I don't have a big interest
• 10:55
  Speaker 2: in going to the races anyway. But I wouldn't be
• 10:58
  Speaker 2: going Minister.
• 10:59
  Speaker 1: I've run out of time. It is eleven o'clock. I've
• 11:01
  Speaker 1: got a head to the National News. Thank you for
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: speaking with us this morning.
• 11:04
  Speaker 2: Thank you, Katie Bye.
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: Thank you.