Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Infrastructure, Planning and Logistics Minister Eva Lawler says a new taskforce has been established to ensure government owned buildings meet building standards

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Infrastructure, Planning and Logistics Minister Eva Lawler says a new taskforce has been established to ensure government owned buildings meet building standards · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Yesterday the Northern Territory government announced a task force has
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  Speaker 1: been established to ensure that TiO Stadium has a valid
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  Speaker 1: occupancy certificate. So Marara's premier sporting stadium has yet to
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  Speaker 1: be certified under the Building Act of nineteen ninety three,
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  Speaker 1: with the ikak As we know launching an investigation into
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  Speaker 1: the matter back in March. Now joining me on the
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  Speaker 1: line is the Minister for Planning and Infrastructure on various
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  Speaker 1: other portfolios, as well as the Treasurer Eva Laula. Good
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  Speaker 1: morning to you.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning, Katie.
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  Speaker 1: Minister you yesterday announced this Building Compliance task Force in
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  Speaker 1: an effort to bring the stadium up to code to
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  Speaker 1: gain the occupancy certificate. You've also extended that declaration exempting
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  Speaker 1: TiO Stadium from the Building Act requirements for at least
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  Speaker 1: six months past June thirty. Why do we need this
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  Speaker 1: task force?
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, the Building Compliance task Force isn't just about Marara.
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  Speaker 2: It is about other government owned buildings that are in
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  Speaker 2: our building control zones. Because that's what Marara has thrown
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  Speaker 2: up that there are a number of other buildings, government
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  Speaker 2: owned buildings that also aren't compliant. So these are historic,
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  Speaker 2: these are legacy buildings, buildings that were built you know
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  Speaker 2: in the in the late eighties or after Cyclone tracy
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  Speaker 2: eighties and nineties. So the work at Marra has you know,
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  Speaker 2: revealed basically just how complex it is that you know,
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  Speaker 2: there are buildings that need to meet those compliance or
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  Speaker 2: they need to be have occupancy certificates and they haven't
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  Speaker 2: got them. So there is a lot of work to
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  Speaker 2: be done and that's what it's about. So that some
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  Speaker 2: of those buildings may it may just be outstanding paperwork.
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  Speaker 2: So some of those, through the task force may be
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  Speaker 2: able to be managed, you know, through administration going back
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  Speaker 2: having a look at what was there in the past,
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  Speaker 2: what needs to be done. Others might need more than that.
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  Speaker 2: So around Marara, the contractors as well as the certifiers
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  Speaker 2: have been working you know, very tirelessly and diligently over
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  Speaker 2: the last six months. And the issue that I've now
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  Speaker 2: run into is around professional indemnity insurance. We're seeing this
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  Speaker 2: globally across Australia as well, that these insurance insurers are
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  Speaker 2: putting you know, increasingly more conditions on certifiers if they
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  Speaker 2: are going to have to certify a building. And so
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  Speaker 2: that's another issue that we face and that's what the
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  Speaker 2: issue is around Marara particularly, Yeah, because I think.
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  Speaker 1: A lot of people listening going to be thinking, you know,
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  Speaker 1: why is it taking so long for for Maurra to
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  Speaker 1: get that certificate.
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  Speaker 2: So yeah, I mean it was built, as we know,
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  Speaker 2: thirty years ago. The Northern Territory government has continued to
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  Speaker 2: invest in Marra throughout that time. I mean, you know,
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  Speaker 2: the roof has been replaced, there's it's been brought up
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  Speaker 2: to accessibility standards. That's been done. You know that there's
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  Speaker 2: been renovations to the toilet, the canteen, all of those things.
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  Speaker 2: The actual seating is just about to be all replaced
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  Speaker 2: as well. So you know, we do spend ongoing money
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  Speaker 2: on ongoing maintenance on all government buildings. You know, there
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  Speaker 2: is that repairs and maintenance. There's about a ninety three
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  Speaker 2: million dollar repair and repairs and maintenance budget this year
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  Speaker 2: and every year. But it is about making sure that
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  Speaker 2: those buildings have the occupancy certificate or there's a layer
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  Speaker 2: down called a Certificate of substantial compliance or a Certificate
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  Speaker 2: of Existence. So in twenty sixteen the Building Act was
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  Speaker 2: amended to have those three different levels. I guess you'd
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  Speaker 2: call them of clients. But this is the issue with
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  Speaker 2: Marara is now around getting that professional indemnity, so having
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  Speaker 2: a certifier that will professionally indemnit indemnify the work that
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  Speaker 2: they're going to do. So this is the work of
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  Speaker 2: the task force. This is why we're set up the
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  Speaker 2: task force because it is complex. You know, those things
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  Speaker 2: weren't done at the time. What paperwork needs to be done,
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  Speaker 2: what other work needs to be done. Then to make
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  Speaker 2: sure that they're compliant. How can we get these buildings
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  Speaker 2: to get to that occupancy certificate level? And it's it's
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  Speaker 2: not unique. Other states and territories are in the similar
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  Speaker 2: boat across Australia.
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  Speaker 1: And I know I've asked you this before. You know,
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  Speaker 1: whether TiO is safe for people to still be attending
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  Speaker 1: events there. So firstly, I mean is it.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, So all the advice that I've got is that
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  Speaker 2: it is absolutely safe. So around the fire safety issues,
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  Speaker 2: there's been work ongoing, work done anyway in the past,
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  Speaker 2: but they've had, you know, some tenders that have been
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  Speaker 2: out and around looking at the hydrants and the boosters
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  Speaker 2: and you know you'd have to talk to a fiery
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  Speaker 2: about it. But you know, the fire control panels that
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  Speaker 2: all of those things has been more work done around that,
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  Speaker 2: so it's safe through that way. As I said, it's
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  Speaker 2: had the accessibility upgrades, all of the work that's been
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  Speaker 2: done has met the current Australian standard and all the
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  Speaker 2: work that has been done over the years has been
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  Speaker 2: certified as well. So it was that original work that
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  Speaker 2: was done in nineteen ninety and as I said, that
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  Speaker 2: was that was at that time government buildings were built
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  Speaker 2: and obviously because they are built by your contractors and
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  Speaker 2: for the government, a lot of them obviously didn't go
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  Speaker 2: through the right processes to get those occupancy certificates at
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  Speaker 2: the time. So you know that there has been work
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  Speaker 2: in the past around doing this, but there always got
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  Speaker 2: to an end a stage where it was always seen
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  Speaker 2: as too complex. And you know, I'm the minister and
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  Speaker 2: i have been the Minister for a while and you
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  Speaker 2: know I'm determined to get these issues sorted out once
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  Speaker 2: and for all because it has gone on and on
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  Speaker 2: and on. So you know, working with Andrew Kirkman, the CEO,
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  Speaker 2: we said, this work needs to be this needs to
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  Speaker 2: be resolved, We need this to be sorted and so
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  Speaker 2: whether it is around you know, sorting paperwork, whether it
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  Speaker 2: is about having a team of people that can come
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  Speaker 2: in and you know, work through and be persistent around that.
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  Speaker 2: You're managing it case by case, which will be the
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  Speaker 2: you know, the things that will be needed to be done,
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  Speaker 2: and we may need to amend legislation, there may need
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  Speaker 2: to be exemptions, but I need to know, as I
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  Speaker 2: said in my term of government, that we've done everything
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  Speaker 2: that we can to get these issues sorted out. So
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  Speaker 2: you would you.
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  Speaker 1: Need to amend legislation then to be able to make
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  Speaker 1: TiO compliant.
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  Speaker 2: Well not so at the moment we're exempting, so I
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  Speaker 2: can I don't Probably there's I may not need to. Well,
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  Speaker 2: I don't need to because you know, at the moment
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  Speaker 2: I can put in the minister can put in exemptions
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  Speaker 2: in around that. But you know, longer term, is there
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  Speaker 2: other options around that? So you know, if this issue
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  Speaker 2: of professional indemnity insurance continues to come up, is there
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  Speaker 2: something that can be done? But minister or government buildings
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  Speaker 2: by the way, just to let people know, all government
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  Speaker 2: buildings are self insured anyway by the Northern Territory governments,
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  Speaker 2: so we don't actually get someone to ensure a government building.
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  Speaker 1: Is this work happening, you know, because because you know
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  Speaker 1: that there is an ik investigation underway and to mitigate
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  Speaker 1: any findings that might come out of that.
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  Speaker 2: No, so you know, we were already doing the work
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  Speaker 2: well before the IKAK came and you wrote to us
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  Speaker 2: around TiO Stadium. We're already doing the work around TiO.
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  Speaker 2: There was already work being done around these buildings. But
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  Speaker 2: it is about making sure that we can get this done.
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  Speaker 2: So we've put more staff onto, you know, this team
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  Speaker 2: that will look at these these buildings and as I said,
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  Speaker 2: I'm determined to make sure that we get these to
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  Speaker 2: either occupancy certificate or substantial compliance, that we get these
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  Speaker 2: things sorted out because they are legacy issue. It's gone
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  Speaker 2: on for thirty years.
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  Speaker 1: So Marister, what other buildings will the task force be
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  Speaker 1: looking at? Because you said that there could be you
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  Speaker 1: know that they're obviously these others. What other buildings are
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  Speaker 1: they going to need to have a look at.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, So the task forces advised me that they will
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  Speaker 2: provide so this is the work that they're doing now,
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  Speaker 2: they'll provide a list, they're saying that they'll put there'll
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  Speaker 2: be a website so they'll have that this available for
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  Speaker 2: the public and the work that needs to be done
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  Speaker 2: or where they're up to with so that information will
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  Speaker 2: be provided, is it said in coming weeks around that.
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  Speaker 2: But one of the things I also mentioned is, you know,
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  Speaker 2: it's nearly fifty years in Cyclone Tracy, and I think
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  Speaker 2: that's a big issue for all of us in government
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  Speaker 2: as well, because there were buildings that were built after
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  Speaker 2: Cyclone Tracy and now they're fifty years old. So you know,
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  Speaker 2: whether that is around schools, you know, other government buildings,
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  Speaker 2: we do need to make sure, as we said, that
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  Speaker 2: we'll have to get to a stage where we're starting
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  Speaker 2: to replace and do even more substantial upgrades around that
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  Speaker 2: fifty years. Since Tracy is important.
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  Speaker 1: To well here it is I mean, is there a
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  Speaker 1: possibility that some of these government buildings may not actually
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  Speaker 1: be saved to occupy.
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  Speaker 2: No, definitely not, because what we do is we have
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  Speaker 2: we have cyclical maintenance, so there is ongoing checks on
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  Speaker 2: these buildings. So there is, as I said, a whole
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  Speaker 2: maintenance schedule that the Department of Infrastructure follows, So there's
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  Speaker 2: cyclical maintenance, there's regulatory maintenance checks as well, and then
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  Speaker 2: they check every three years the condition of the building
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  Speaker 2: so people who work in government buildings will tell you
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  Speaker 2: that every few years there's people that come around and
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  Speaker 2: will check you whether it's from the carpet to the
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  Speaker 2: exit signs, all of those sorts of things checked. And
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  Speaker 2: you know, we spend nearly one hundred million this year.
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  Speaker 2: It's ninety three on repairs and maintenance. And now that
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  Speaker 2: happens continuously. So if you're the example, I know very
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  Speaker 2: well if you're a principal in a school, you have
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  Speaker 2: your administrative manager in the school and you access either
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  Speaker 2: urgent miners if they're or repairs and maintenance depending on
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  Speaker 2: what needs to happen to make sure that your school
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  Speaker 2: building stays up to up to well, you know, whether
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  Speaker 2: it's conditional looking good as well, or as I said,
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  Speaker 2: if there is important regulatory things that need to be updated.
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  Speaker 2: These buildings are safe.
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  Speaker 1: We are just about out of time. I do want
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  Speaker 1: to ask you, though, very quickly. We know the Chief
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  Speaker 1: Minister this morning announced measures aimed at preventing crime and
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  Speaker 1: anti social behavior. They include cross agency collaboration, a public
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  Speaker 1: order response unit, and changes to BIZ secure. Do you
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  Speaker 1: think that these measures are going to be enough to
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  Speaker 1: have an impact on the very serious issues that we're
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  Speaker 1: seeing at the moment with crime and anti social behavior.
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  Speaker 2: I think with antisocial behavior and crime, it's one of
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  Speaker 2: those things that you have to constantly continue to work
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  Speaker 2: on because it's a bit like you know, banging sharks
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  Speaker 2: or whatever it is, isn't it. You know, you have
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  Speaker 2: to continue to really focus on those issues because you know,
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  Speaker 2: they change, they chop, and they go from one thing
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  Speaker 2: to another. So from my point of view, yes, this
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  Speaker 2: is great, but for all governments it is about constantly
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  Speaker 2: taking that next step and being in front of some
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  Speaker 2: of these issues. So I think it was a good
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  Speaker 2: announcement today, but there's always work in this area that
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  Speaker 2: needs to be done.
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  Speaker 1: Minister, we are going to have to leave it there.
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  Speaker 1: We really appreciate your time this morning. Thanks so much
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  Speaker 1: for having a chat with us.
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  Speaker 2: Thanks Katie, thank you