Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Chief Minister Natasha Fyles says crime is her “highest priority” and work is underway on early intervention programs for youth

Transcript

Chief Minister Natasha Fyles says crime is her “highest priority” and work is underway on early intervention programs for youth · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Joining me in the studio is the Chief Minister, Natasha Files.
• 0:03
  Speaker 2: Good morning to you.
• 0:04
  Speaker 3: Good morning Katie, Good morning listeners.
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: Now it is safe to say that crime in the
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Northern Territory has reached boiling points. Overnight in Alice Springs,
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: another vehicle stolen and taken for a joy ride through
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: the city, a vehicle from the ABC and Alice Springs
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: in fact, and that police had to then pull out of.
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: The CBD due to the situation.
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: The car was apparently targeting marked police vehicles.
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: According to the Watch commander.
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: Chief Minister is Alice Springs in a state of emergency.
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: Katie.
• 0:35
  Speaker 4: It is unacceptable and it makes me angry to hear
• 0:38
  Speaker 4: this incident that police who.
• 0:40
  Speaker 3: Are there to protect us and keep us safe.
• 0:42
  Speaker 4: And I do need to be careful with my comments
• 0:44
  Speaker 4: because this is obviously a live investigation from police's perspective,
• 0:47
  Speaker 4: but they're trying to investigate what has happened and keep
• 0:50
  Speaker 4: the community safe and people are targeting them and then
• 0:53
  Speaker 4: police have had to put out that public safety message.
• 0:55
  Speaker 4: The community at the moment, not only in Alice Springs
• 0:58
  Speaker 4: but up in the top end, is honestly outraged and exasperated.
• 1:03
  Speaker 4: Are you Katie. It is frustrating me. You can hear
• 1:06
  Speaker 4: that frustration in my voice. And this is the absolute priority.
• 1:09
  Speaker 4: And when I became Chief Minister, I said, we have
• 1:11
  Speaker 4: to do better in this space and we have to
• 1:13
  Speaker 4: keep working, and we are doing that and I will
• 1:16
  Speaker 4: not stop until these incidents stop.
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: Well, I think that the honestly, the community is at
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: boiling point, and I've said that before. I've spoken to
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: people in Alice Springs this morning. They have literally said
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: to me, Katie, we are in a state of emergency,
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: Chief Minister. Are you treating this as if you're in
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: a state of emergency?
• 1:36
  Speaker 4: Katie? This is my highest priority right now, not just
• 1:38
  Speaker 4: for the people of our springs, but right across the
• 1:40
  Speaker 4: Northern Territory. And so we have put in place a
• 1:43
  Speaker 4: number of measures and we will continue to work in
• 1:45
  Speaker 4: our springs. Specifically, we saw that social order response work
• 1:49
  Speaker 4: has collated what is happening in this space, the different
• 1:53
  Speaker 4: service providers working with the town council. I'll be back
• 1:56
  Speaker 4: down there with the cabinet team later in the week
• 1:58
  Speaker 4: and we'll be again meeting with the town council to
• 2:01
  Speaker 4: hear from them and work with them.
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: They know we're never going to see something change overnight,
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: but you literally now have a situation. On the weekend
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: it looked like scenes out of Grand theft auto with
• 2:09
  Speaker 1: kids allegedly behind the wheel of stolen vehicles.
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: In the backs of utes.
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: It is so bloody dangerous, not only to them but
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: also to everybody on the road, to everybody in the community.
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: Now we've got a situation where last night these kids
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: have allegedly stolen the vehicle.
• 2:26
  Speaker 3: They're at risk, the police are.
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: In danger trying to apprehend them, and the community is
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: not only unsafe, but they're broken a You is your
• 2:34
  Speaker 1: government failing the people of Alice, Katie.
• 2:36
  Speaker 4: Those images, and I've seen them, are completely unacceptable and
• 2:39
  Speaker 4: I have been briefed by the Deputy Commissioner for Police
• 2:41
  Speaker 4: again this morning around what has happened, what and the
• 2:46
  Speaker 4: work of police and a lot of people are working
• 2:49
  Speaker 4: incredibly hard in this space, Katie, and they are disappointed
• 2:51
  Speaker 4: because they feel that their work and it is valued
• 2:54
  Speaker 4: and we do need to keep pushing in this space.
• 2:56
  Speaker 4: But those images are absolutely frustrating to me as the
• 2:59
  Speaker 4: Chief minister.
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: What if someone dies on the street. I mean, the
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: thing is out of Alice Springs. We have had that
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: situation before. But what's going to happen if one of
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: these kids that's in the back of the USh or
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: that's in a stolen vehicle either hurts themselves or hurts
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: somebody else.
• 3:16
  Speaker 3: Katie, that's my fear.
• 3:17
  Speaker 4: And in terms of and I need to in terms
• 3:21
  Speaker 4: of young people, we do need to make sure that we.
• 3:24
  Speaker 3: Work through these issues with family.
• 3:26
  Speaker 4: We're looking at the legalities around One of the behaviors
• 3:29
  Speaker 4: that we've spoken about, Katie, is when.
• 3:31
  Speaker 3: You have risky behavior.
• 3:32
  Speaker 4: So kids out at nine and ten o'clock at night
• 3:35
  Speaker 4: on a Monday or Tuesday, and by later in the
• 3:37
  Speaker 4: week they're committing criminal activities and how do we support
• 3:40
  Speaker 4: them and provide that intervention. So we're working so your
• 3:43
  Speaker 4: listeners have an understanding right across the spectrum, not just
• 3:46
  Speaker 4: with police at that point to end, but around stopping
• 3:49
  Speaker 4: this behavior before it gets to what you've just been described.
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: We've told us before about there being two locations that
• 3:54
  Speaker 1: you're keeping an eye on or looking at as to
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: whether it can be somewhere where kids can be taken.
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: At night if they've got no where else safe to go.
• 4:01
  Speaker 2: Where are we at with this?
• 4:02
  Speaker 4: So, Katie, that is where we're looking at the legalities,
• 4:05
  Speaker 4: so we want to provide an option to these young people.
• 4:08
  Speaker 4: We're not going to be detaining them against their will,
• 4:10
  Speaker 4: but we need to be able to say it's ten
• 4:11
  Speaker 4: o'clock at night in.
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: Though, why not if they're actually out there in the
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: back of a car and they are doing things that
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: many people would see as being incredibly unsafe, not only
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: to themselves or to the community, why are they not
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: being apprehended?
• 4:25
  Speaker 4: Oh, Katie, that is if they're participating in criminal activity,
• 4:27
  Speaker 4: they absolutely will be apprehended. But what I'm talking about
• 4:30
  Speaker 4: is the step before that, because we want to stop
• 4:32
  Speaker 4: the behavior before it escalates to that. So engaging with
• 4:36
  Speaker 4: these young people, taking them to a safe place, and
• 4:39
  Speaker 4: then the next day working through from that territory families,
• 4:43
  Speaker 4: child neglect to response how we can support those young
• 4:45
  Speaker 4: people and their families. This is the step before we
• 4:48
  Speaker 4: see this behavior that is unacceptable to our care at Where.
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: Is this at with these locations or this location where
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: they may be able to go.
• 4:55
  Speaker 3: So Minister Kate Wooden is working through all of that.
• 4:57
  Speaker 4: It is complex in terms of the legalities, but I
• 4:59
  Speaker 4: do believe we have to do it because we cannot
• 5:02
  Speaker 4: simply say, oh, it's all too hard. Legally, we need
• 5:05
  Speaker 4: to offer these young people a safe place, a good
• 5:08
  Speaker 4: night's sleep, and then work through how we support them
• 5:11
  Speaker 4: and their families the next morning, not just saying it's
• 5:13
  Speaker 4: too hard from a legal perspective, and a week or
• 5:15
  Speaker 4: two later they're engaged in criminal activity.
• 5:17
  Speaker 3: Okay.
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: We also spoke yesterday to a tour operator and Alice Springs,
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: who had rocks hurled at their tour bus while they
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: were while there were tourists inside smashing the windows. I mean,
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: what is your reaction when you hear this kind of
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: thing we're talking about. Alice Springs, you used to be
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: the Tourism Minister. I know that you used to push
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: very hard to try to get people to travel to
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: Central Australia. I'll tell you what, if you had rocks
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: thrown at your tour bus while you're inside.
• 5:42
  Speaker 2: You wouldn't be recommending it to anybody else.
• 5:44
  Speaker 4: Oh, it's incredibly disappointing, and that's the image that they
• 5:47
  Speaker 4: go home with you. It doesn't matter how good of
• 5:49
  Speaker 4: a time the tour operators and the rest of the
• 5:51
  Speaker 4: community gives them, that's what stays with them and it's unacceptable.
• 5:54
  Speaker 4: And that's why around you know, no need to make
• 5:57
  Speaker 4: sure that when we talk about young people, we don't
• 5:59
  Speaker 4: classify all of these behaviors, but young people. We need
• 6:01
  Speaker 4: to make sure that we invest in it, that we
• 6:03
  Speaker 4: have the coordinated responses to stop this behavior because it's
• 6:06
  Speaker 4: not acceptable.
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: That tour operator is calling for a police escort to
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: bring them into town when the tour ends because.
• 6:13
  Speaker 2: They are not safe.
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: Is that something that the government's prepared to coordinate with
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: the police.
• 6:18
  Speaker 4: So our police continue to work with the community. Tour
• 6:21
  Speaker 4: operators are part of the community. We need to make
• 6:24
  Speaker 4: sure that we stop this behavior. And that is if
• 6:27
  Speaker 4: you know, youth are gathering in groups and we're stopping
• 6:30
  Speaker 4: that risky behavior before it turns into a criminal activity.
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: So not going to have police escorts with that tour operator.
• 6:36
  Speaker 4: So in terms of we'll work with our tour operators
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  Speaker 4: if there's things that they think we can do to
• 6:40
  Speaker 4: support them, I'm not sure you'd take it to the
• 6:42
  Speaker 4: step of a police escort. Well, they're saying they need
• 6:44
  Speaker 4: it because they're that unsafe, and so we need to
• 6:47
  Speaker 4: continue to listen to what the information is that they've
• 6:50
  Speaker 4: got and we need to make sure we act upon
• 6:51
  Speaker 4: that before it turns into criminal activity. Okay, I think
• 6:54
  Speaker 4: the thing that's probably made me feel saddest. I've got
• 6:57
  Speaker 4: to say over the last couple of weeks of some
• 6:59
  Speaker 4: of the issues that her was hearing from Sushira from Kota. Yesterday,
• 7:02
  Speaker 4: the counsel of the aging She joined us on the
• 7:05
  Speaker 4: show to talk about the issue of crime, but also
• 7:08
  Speaker 4: about the issues that have been experienced in Alice Springs.
• 7:11
  Speaker 4: Take a bit of a listen to what she had
• 7:12
  Speaker 4: to say.
• 7:13
  Speaker 5: They're frightened, they won't go out on their own. So
• 7:16
  Speaker 5: this is causing isolation, it's causing fear, and it's traumatizing
• 7:22
  Speaker 5: for seniors. We have about thirty people in on a
• 7:25
  Speaker 5: Monday in dal And doing pilarateis and then another thirty
• 7:28
  Speaker 5: doing armchair aerobic since they come in into my office
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  Speaker 5: every time they're in there and they're not going to casarina.
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  Speaker 5: They're too frightened to go to casina. So what should
• 7:39
  Speaker 5: be a nice outing and a nice shopping trip is
• 7:42
  Speaker 5: turning into something so traumatizing. Now, really, who's suffering here?
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  Speaker 5: If something has to happen, Why should we seniors be
• 7:51
  Speaker 5: living in fear, not enjoying our golden years we had
• 7:55
  Speaker 5: contributed to the growth of the Northern Church, to the
• 7:58
  Speaker 5: economic and the social fabric of the Northern Turkey. And
• 8:02
  Speaker 5: here we are, we're hiding in our own homes. Even
• 8:05
  Speaker 5: in our own homes, we aren't the state.
• 8:08
  Speaker 1: What a sad and embarrassing indictment really on our community.
• 8:12
  Speaker 2: At the moment.
• 8:13
  Speaker 3: We should absolutely be supporting our seniors.
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  Speaker 4: They have cared for us and they are more vulnerable
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  Speaker 4: because of their age, they're not as physically fit, and
• 8:22
  Speaker 4: we absolutely as a whole community should be supporting them.
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  Speaker 4: And it is cowardly to pick on more vulnerable people
• 8:28
  Speaker 4: in terms of Casurinas who raise specifically, what we have
• 8:32
  Speaker 4: done in Ala Springs is we have responded to those
• 8:34
  Speaker 4: August crime statistics going in working with counsel, the Chamber
• 8:37
  Speaker 4: of Commerce, police across.
• 8:39
  Speaker 3: We've now pivoted to this social order response.
• 8:42
  Speaker 4: We've started engagement in the Casarina Northern Suburbs area, working
• 8:45
  Speaker 4: with the shopping center for example, working with all of
• 8:48
  Speaker 4: those involved in the space around how we can put
• 8:51
  Speaker 4: in place measures to prevent and make people feel that
• 8:54
  Speaker 4: they can, you know, head over to Casurina and have
• 8:56
  Speaker 4: a coffee.
• 8:56
  Speaker 1: All right, So Chief Minister We've got a situation at
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: the moment moment as well where there was a meeting yesterday.
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: There was business owners that had met yesterday to raise
• 9:07
  Speaker 1: their concerns around crime. Why did you not attend that meeting?
• 9:11
  Speaker 4: Oh, Katie, I meet and listen to the community every
• 9:14
  Speaker 4: single day, But I'm not going to attend a meeting
• 9:17
  Speaker 4: that is put up by the COORP with someone that
• 9:20
  Speaker 4: has racist views and racist hatred here in the territory.
• 9:22
  Speaker 4: This is bigger than that, and in fact, we have
• 9:25
  Speaker 4: got leaders in the Indigenous and Aboriginal community that want
• 9:27
  Speaker 4: to be at the table. So I'll be bringing people
• 9:29
  Speaker 4: together in a collaborative sense, not attending hate meetings.
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: But really, would you call it a hate meeting? I
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: get that one of the one hundred percent to understand,
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: and I said this on the show yesterday that one
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: of those organizers had said racist comments. I saw those
• 9:45
  Speaker 1: comments and I think they're atrocious. There is no way
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: that I can done any kind of commentary in that way, in.
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: Any way, shape or form.
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: But you've also got the likes of the Scouts out
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: there talking about the fact that they've been broken in
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: into Can you really describe that as a hate meeting.
• 10:02
  Speaker 3: Yes, Katie, you describe the.
• 10:04
  Speaker 1: Scouts raising their concerns about the break ins as being
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: a hate meeting.
• 10:08
  Speaker 4: No, the organizer of that particular meeting, and they organized
• 10:11
  Speaker 4: a meeting a couple of weeks ago, and conveniently only
• 10:13
  Speaker 4: one political party was invited to that. They've organized another meeting.
• 10:17
  Speaker 4: I won't go down to that level. I will meet
• 10:19
  Speaker 4: every single person, I will listen to the community and
• 10:22
  Speaker 4: territorians can be assured that is what I do each
• 10:24
  Speaker 4: and every day.
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: What about the meeting that happened in Catherine All the
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: one that happened in Alice Springs.
• 10:28
  Speaker 4: So, of course business in the regional areas is important,
• 10:32
  Speaker 4: and that's why we get out, that's why we're heading
• 10:33
  Speaker 4: down to Alice Springs later this week. But I won't
• 10:36
  Speaker 4: go to meetings that are organized by people that have
• 10:38
  Speaker 4: motives such as the comments we saw.
• 10:40
  Speaker 1: All right, let me just take you through some of
• 10:42
  Speaker 1: the issues that we've got, which I know you're very
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: much aware of. But even this morning, we've spoken about
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: senior's not feeling safe to go out on the street
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: or to go and do their shopping.
• 10:51
  Speaker 2: We've spoken about a tour operator.
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: Calling for a police escort to bring them back into
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: town safely. In Alice Springs, we have spoken about children
• 11:01
  Speaker 1: allegedly in the back of a use driving around like
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: scenes out of Grand Theft Auto. We are talking about
• 11:08
  Speaker 1: a situation overnight where a vehicle's been stolen allegedly from
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: a media organization. Police are encouraging people to stay out
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: of the CBD due to.
• 11:18
  Speaker 2: How dangerous it is.
• 11:20
  Speaker 1: That car then targeting marked police vehicles according to the
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: Watch commander. Chief Minister, I'll ask you again, are we
• 11:27
  Speaker 1: in a state of emergency?
• 11:29
  Speaker 4: What I can say, Katie is this is a huge concern.
• 11:32
  Speaker 4: It is the biggest issue we're facing in that social
• 11:35
  Speaker 4: sense in the Northern Territory and it's the absolute priority
• 11:37
  Speaker 4: for me and the ministers in our government.
• 11:40
  Speaker 1: And if there isn't change, and if there isn't change quickly,
• 11:45
  Speaker 1: whose heads on the chopping block?
• 11:47
  Speaker 4: So, Katie, when I became the Chief Minister, I said
• 11:49
  Speaker 4: I would listen, that it didn't have to be my idea,
• 11:51
  Speaker 4: and I will continue to do that. So we have
• 11:54
  Speaker 4: and I've outlined for your listeners, and I speak to
• 11:57
  Speaker 4: you regularly so that people can understand the different method.
• 12:00
  Speaker 4: There's not one thing we can do, and that is
• 12:02
  Speaker 4: why we've come together in that collaboration in Ala Springs.
• 12:05
  Speaker 4: We're moving that as well to northern suburbs. But you've
• 12:08
  Speaker 4: got a lot of government and non government services working
• 12:11
  Speaker 4: in this space. But what we're seeing is unacceptable and
• 12:13
  Speaker 4: we need to see change.
• 12:14
  Speaker 2: I'll ask you a question that I've asked you before.
• 12:16
  Speaker 1: Do people now just have to sit and be patient
• 12:20
  Speaker 1: and hope that this change makes a difference.
• 12:22
  Speaker 3: No, we need ideas.
• 12:23
  Speaker 4: We need people to report behaviors, they need to press
• 12:26
  Speaker 4: charges when it happens. We need to make sure, we
• 12:29
  Speaker 4: need to make sure that we don't let any little
• 12:31
  Speaker 4: things slip by. We have to have that coordinated response.
• 12:34
  Speaker 4: There is youth is one aspects. We know alcohol is
• 12:37
  Speaker 4: one aspect, and we know that people just committing criminal
• 12:39
  Speaker 4: behavior is another part of it, and we have to
• 12:41
  Speaker 4: have a multifaceted approach to target it.
• 12:44
  Speaker 1: How for you, as the Chief Minister, how quickly do
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: you want to see some change in this space? Because honestly,
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: the community is screaming out there, crying out And I
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: said that to you right from when you became the
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: Chief Minister, and unfortunately, according to a lot of people,
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: getting better.
• 13:01
  Speaker 4: So Katie, it's something that every single day we're working
• 13:04
  Speaker 4: on these measures, working with the government agencies, the tools
• 13:07
  Speaker 4: I've just been talking about. You know, some of the
• 13:08
  Speaker 4: difficult conversations. Things often aren't straightforward. But I'm not just
• 13:11
  Speaker 4: accepting no, we can't do that. Pushing so that we
• 13:15
  Speaker 4: can have a solution for our community.
• 13:17
  Speaker 1: And if things don't change, will the Police Minister stay
• 13:20
  Speaker 1: in place? Will the police commissioner? Will you stay in place?
• 13:23
  Speaker 2: Katie?
• 13:23
  Speaker 4: Our Police Minister is somebody with tenacity. She is absolutely
• 13:26
  Speaker 4: driving this each and every day. And that coordination between territory,
• 13:30
  Speaker 4: families and police, we are seeing more coordinated approach the
• 13:33
  Speaker 4: domestic and family violence. So I think that the Minister
• 13:36
  Speaker 4: Warden is doing a fantastic job in this space. And
• 13:38
  Speaker 4: equally with police. We've got police officers from the Commissioner
• 13:42
  Speaker 4: right down to our newest recruits on the beat across
• 13:44
  Speaker 4: the territory. They certainly are not giving up on this.
• 13:48
  Speaker 1: Well, I don't think anybody thinks that the police are
• 13:51
  Speaker 1: giving up on this.
• 13:52
  Speaker 2: I think that.
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: Everybody, you know, it seems as though everybody's got the
• 13:55
  Speaker 1: right intentions here and everyone's saying the right things. But
• 13:58
  Speaker 1: unfortunately there isn't you know, there isn't change coming into
• 14:02
  Speaker 1: play right now, and so I think people are really
• 14:04
  Speaker 1: exasperated and they're not quite sure what to say to
• 14:07
  Speaker 1: you well, what to say to those impositions of power
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: to try and you know, make the territory the best
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: place that it can be.
• 14:15
  Speaker 4: And so for your listeners, Katie, and for our community,
• 14:17
  Speaker 4: they need to understand this is absolutely our biggest priority
• 14:21
  Speaker 4: in terms of it might be a simple idea, it
• 14:23
  Speaker 4: might be something complex, but they can be assured that
• 14:26
  Speaker 4: we're not just saying no because it's not our idea.
• 14:28
  Speaker 4: That's why we came together with Yellow Springstown Council for example.
• 14:32
  Speaker 4: It's why I meant, you know, different levels of government
• 14:34
  Speaker 4: and community members. But we certainly will be continuing in
• 14:37
  Speaker 4: this space, leaving no stone unturned.
• 14:39
  Speaker 1: Are there going to be some additional boot camps or
• 14:42
  Speaker 1: some additional programs because a lot of people feel as
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: though there is no real punishment if kids are breaking
• 14:49
  Speaker 1: the law at the moment.
• 14:50
  Speaker 3: So, Katie, that is an interesting point.
• 14:52
  Speaker 4: And we've got more than sixty percent of youth that
• 14:54
  Speaker 4: go through a diversion program will not reoffend. Police are
• 14:57
  Speaker 4: telling me that it is a bigger cohort. So we
• 15:00
  Speaker 4: are in fact engaging with certain and I want to
• 15:03
  Speaker 4: engage with young people before they commit these offenses. I
• 15:06
  Speaker 4: also don't want to have a broad brushstroke that it's
• 15:08
  Speaker 4: all young people, because there's some incredible young people around
• 15:10
  Speaker 4: identity is so I.
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: Don't have to tell may I go out to different
• 15:13
  Speaker 1: sporting events and different things every weekend and see those
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: incredible young people. But at the moment we've got a
• 15:18
  Speaker 1: really small portion that are wreaking havoc soci community.
• 15:22
  Speaker 4: The Minister for Police is working through in terms of
• 15:24
  Speaker 4: those repeat offenders, but what police are also telling me
• 15:27
  Speaker 4: is that it is new offending and in some cases
• 15:30
  Speaker 4: not known to police. That's why I think it's so
• 15:32
  Speaker 4: critical that step before. We can't just say, oh, you know,
• 15:35
  Speaker 4: we wait till a crime occurs. We have to engage
• 15:37
  Speaker 4: in that risky behavior before it occurs.
• 15:40
  Speaker 2: All right.
• 15:40
  Speaker 1: I do want to move along because there has been
• 15:42
  Speaker 1: a lot happen over the last sort of couple of days.
• 15:45
  Speaker 1: I guess you'd say, well last week when it comes
• 15:47
  Speaker 1: to our health system. Now, we've spoken a lot in
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: recent years as well about this very issue, and we
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: learned over the weekend that surgeries were canceled to meet
• 15:54
  Speaker 1: pressure to discharge patients earlier than normal after code yellows,
• 15:58
  Speaker 1: we're issued at three of the Northern ti Ritrees hospitals
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: in seventy two hours and according to some medical professionals,
• 16:04
  Speaker 1: there's no sign of the situation in terms of that
• 16:07
  Speaker 1: stress ending anytime soon. We do know that those code
• 16:11
  Speaker 1: yellows have now been lifted, but how would you describe
• 16:14
  Speaker 1: the situation at Royal Dalwen Hospital and Palmerston Regional Hospital
• 16:18
  Speaker 1: right now?
• 16:19
  Speaker 2: Are they still under stress?
• 16:21
  Speaker 4: So, Katie, we have an incredibly busy hospital and Palmeston
• 16:24
  Speaker 4: and RDH working together, it's one of the busiest emergency
• 16:27
  Speaker 4: departments in the country, I'm told. In terms of the
• 16:29
  Speaker 4: code yellow, it's a point within our system to acknowledge
• 16:32
  Speaker 4: that we're experiencing a peak in demand and we need
• 16:35
  Speaker 4: to enact measures to keep both our staff and our
• 16:38
  Speaker 4: patients safe. So that Code yellow is a part of
• 16:40
  Speaker 4: a system and so there is a number of factors
• 16:43
  Speaker 4: that drive the hospital demands Katie, and we're talking to
• 16:47
  Speaker 4: you over a period of time, there's a number of
• 16:49
  Speaker 4: measures that we're working on to reduce those pressures within
• 16:52
  Speaker 4: the hospital.
• 16:53
  Speaker 1: System now, we do know this morning the Australian College
• 16:55
  Speaker 1: for Emergency Medicine has indeed released a report at seven
• 17:00
  Speaker 1: one hundred and forty six presentations per one thousand population,
• 17:04
  Speaker 1: the Northern Territory had the highest presentation rate per one
• 17:07
  Speaker 1: thousand population across all states and territories. Given that we've
• 17:11
  Speaker 1: seen those cold yellows more frequently and that's not going
• 17:14
  Speaker 1: to change, is enough being done for our health system
• 17:17
  Speaker 1: right now?
• 17:18
  Speaker 4: So, Katie, we do know that we have a chronically
• 17:20
  Speaker 4: unwell population and that does result in more emergency department presentations.
• 17:25
  Speaker 4: What we're trying to do is work so that we
• 17:27
  Speaker 4: avoid those hospital presentations, that we can keep people in
• 17:29
  Speaker 4: community and care for them. We're trying to have bed
• 17:32
  Speaker 4: flow within our hospital. We have fifty long stay patients Katie,
• 17:35
  Speaker 4: where they could be cared for and better supported by
• 17:39
  Speaker 4: them and their families in another location, such as age care.
• 17:42
  Speaker 4: Mental health has been a key focus for us, so
• 17:45
  Speaker 4: we are building new mental health infrastructure. But this is
• 17:47
  Speaker 4: an absolute priority for me as the Health Minister.
• 17:49
  Speaker 1: Where are things at with those age care bits? Because
• 17:52
  Speaker 1: my understanding is there's about seventy five people who should
• 17:54
  Speaker 1: be in age care facilities, but are actually in beds
• 17:57
  Speaker 1: at the hospital.
• 17:58
  Speaker 2: I know that earlier this year you'd told us.
• 17:59
  Speaker 1: About the funding for an additional sixty beds, So where
• 18:03
  Speaker 1: are those at?
• 18:04
  Speaker 4: So, Katie, age care is the responsibility of the Commonwealth
• 18:06
  Speaker 4: government and what happens is we have providers that bid
• 18:08
  Speaker 4: on those beds. They're provisionally provided the funding and in
• 18:11
  Speaker 4: the territory we don't see that come to fruition. So
• 18:13
  Speaker 4: we have stepped in and said, right, we're going to
• 18:15
  Speaker 4: bid on these beds. We're going to work with the
• 18:17
  Speaker 4: providers in age care so that we can see this
• 18:20
  Speaker 4: come to fruition in the Northern Territory. But it does
• 18:22
  Speaker 4: take time. But the Department of Health, I understand, has
• 18:25
  Speaker 4: been working with age care providers looking at how we
• 18:28
  Speaker 4: can get those beds built.
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: So is there any real time estimate on that, because,
• 18:32
  Speaker 1: like I said, it's something you and I spoke about
• 18:34
  Speaker 1: I think.
• 18:34
  Speaker 2: Either at the beginning of this year or at the
• 18:36
  Speaker 2: end of last year.
• 18:37
  Speaker 4: Yeah, Katie, Unfortunately, it's one of those things that just
• 18:41
  Speaker 4: takes time in terms of the beds are provisionally allocated,
• 18:44
  Speaker 4: you work through the process, the beds are built. But
• 18:46
  Speaker 4: we know with more territories staying in the territory to retire.
• 18:50
  Speaker 4: It's a key priority and will continue to work in
• 18:52
  Speaker 4: this space, Chief Minister.
• 18:53
  Speaker 1: Before I let you go this morning, a few people
• 18:55
  Speaker 1: have been in contact with us about the power prices.
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: We know that across the nation we're seeing increases in
• 19:00
  Speaker 1: power prices. A lot of people really concerned about those
• 19:04
  Speaker 1: power prices going up.
• 19:05
  Speaker 2: Now, can you just.
• 19:05
  Speaker 1: Confirm for us Obviously Power and Water is a government
• 19:08
  Speaker 1: owned corporation, So does that mean that our power prices
• 19:12
  Speaker 1: are going to stay as they are?
• 19:14
  Speaker 4: So, Katie, that's a really important point. And I know
• 19:17
  Speaker 4: that the cost of living is a huge pressure for
• 19:19
  Speaker 4: Territorians and they're hearing this information. Forty and fifty percent
• 19:22
  Speaker 4: increases that will not happen in the territory under my leadership.
• 19:26
  Speaker 4: This is a point of difference between US and the COLP.
• 19:28
  Speaker 4: You're absolutely right, they're government owned corporations. We put in
• 19:31
  Speaker 4: a community service obligation, so we put in and support
• 19:34
  Speaker 4: those government owned corporations. And we've said that power prices
• 19:37
  Speaker 4: will just they'll increase it a small percentage around CPI
• 19:40
  Speaker 4: two or three percent, Katie, not the percentage increases that
• 19:43
  Speaker 4: are being talked about in the broader media.
• 19:45
  Speaker 2: So when are they going to go up that two
• 19:47
  Speaker 2: or three percent?
• 19:48
  Speaker 4: So, Katie, that's just a yearly CPI increase. They will
• 19:51
  Speaker 4: not go up the forty to fifty percent that's been quoted.
• 19:54
  Speaker 1: Is that something that happens every year? That three or
• 19:57
  Speaker 1: four percent or in line with CPI?
• 19:58
  Speaker 4: It's yeah, it's just a couple of And I'm happy
• 20:00
  Speaker 4: to get that figure too, because I know this is
• 20:02
  Speaker 4: a point that's raised with me as well. People are anxious,
• 20:05
  Speaker 4: but there is no significant increases to power and water
• 20:07
  Speaker 4: for territorians.
• 20:08
  Speaker 3: We believe that every territory and where.
• 20:10
  Speaker 4: They are, should have access to power a reliable source,
• 20:14
  Speaker 4: and that's why they should be government owned corporations.
• 20:16
  Speaker 1: Look, some people listening are still going to go, do
• 20:17
  Speaker 1: you know what will fee? Three percent or four percent?
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: Still going to hit me hard, Katie. I think it's
• 20:21
  Speaker 1: two point seven percent. But I will get that figure
• 20:23
  Speaker 1: to you.
• 20:24
  Speaker 2: Okay, that'd be good. Thank you, Chief Minister.
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: We will leave it there as always, Thank you very
• 20:28
  Speaker 1: much for your time this morning.
• 20:29
  Speaker 3: Take care,