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Katie Woolf spoke with Senator Sam McMahon · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Mix one O four point nine dot com dot you
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  Speaker 1: for all the latest news and information. Now three sixty
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  Speaker 1: with Katie Wolf. Everyone is listening Mix one oh four
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  Speaker 1: point nine, one hundred percent.
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  Speaker 2: We have certainly been trying our best to get our
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  Speaker 2: hands on the Prime Minister this morning to get him
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  Speaker 2: on the show, to no avail at this point. But
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  Speaker 2: joining me on the line, well, the next best thing.
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  Speaker 1: You'd have to say.
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  Speaker 2: The Senator for the Northern Territory, Sam McMahon, Good morning
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  Speaker 2: to you, Senator.
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  Speaker 3: Good morning Katie.
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  Speaker 2: Well, look, we are very pleased to have you on
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  Speaker 2: the show this morning, Senator, because this is a massive
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  Speaker 2: announcement for the Northern Territory. We're sort of still waiting
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  Speaker 2: for some of the details to come through, and I
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  Speaker 2: know that the Prime Minister is going to be out
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  Speaker 2: a bit later today making this announcement. But seven hundred
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  Speaker 2: and forty seven million dollars on four of the Northern
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  Speaker 2: Territories well ADF training sites, Senator, can you just talk
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  Speaker 2: us through these different locations to begin with?
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, Kady, Look, this is part of a much wider
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  Speaker 3: defense infrastructure upgrade in the Northern Territory that covers many areas.
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  Speaker 3: But this specific announcement covers Robertson Barracks, the two sort
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  Speaker 3: of training areas that are close to Darwin being Kangaroo
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  Speaker 3: Flats and Mount Bundy, and also Bradshaw's Station now our
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  Speaker 3: very large field training area. So there's upgrades for those four.
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  Speaker 3: As you've said, seven hund and forty seven million dollars
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  Speaker 3: worth of work, most of which is going to go
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  Speaker 3: to local contractors.
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  Speaker 2: Now, we did have the member for Solomon, Luke Gosling
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  Speaker 2: on the show a bit earlier this morning, and he
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  Speaker 2: said that it is a re announcement, and he said,
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  Speaker 2: while it's very welcome that it is money that had
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  Speaker 2: already been earmarked for the territory. What's your response to that.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, look, that's true, it is money that had already
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  Speaker 3: been committed, but this is detailing where that money's committed.
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  Speaker 3: So this is going into far more detail than just
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  Speaker 3: the wider commitment of money. This is saying what's going
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  Speaker 3: to be happening where and over a very specific time
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  Speaker 3: frame which is starting this year, giving detail and clarity
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  Speaker 3: around what works are going to be done as part
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  Speaker 3: of this package. And as I said, there will be
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  Speaker 3: a lot of work for local contractors. There's been a
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  Speaker 3: lot of work done over the past couple of years
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  Speaker 3: in making sure that local small contractors and businesses get
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  Speaker 3: to take part in some of these big announcements.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, I think that that is such an important aspect
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  Speaker 2: to this. And I did speak with Dave Malone from
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  Speaker 2: Master Builders earlier today and he'd said, you know that
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  Speaker 2: that is where that work has been happening over the
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  Speaker 2: last couple of years and really commended everybody on that
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  Speaker 2: that we have reached the point now where it is
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  Speaker 2: going to be a situation where locals are going to
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  Speaker 2: benefit here. Yeah.
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  Speaker 3: Absolutely, And look I talked to Dave as well, and
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  Speaker 3: he advises me that their members are sort of operating
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  Speaker 3: at about fifty percent capacity at the moment, so they
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  Speaker 3: have the capacity to double what they're currently doing, so
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  Speaker 3: they will greatly benefit from this work and this announcement.
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  Speaker 2: Senator, When you talk about the amount of money that
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  Speaker 2: we are discussing here, seven hundred and forty seven million
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  Speaker 2: dollars into defense, how big an impact do you think
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  Speaker 2: that this is going to make in the Northern Territory
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  Speaker 2: in terms of the positive for those local contractors and
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  Speaker 2: in terms of jobs.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, I think it will make a huge impact. I mean,
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  Speaker 3: it's no small amount of money. It's a huge pot
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  Speaker 3: and it's going to start flowing very shortly, and it's
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  Speaker 3: going to be flowing over the next couple of years.
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  Speaker 3: And for many of our businesses and our contractors and suppliers,
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  Speaker 3: that's going to be a fantastic news that they're going
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  Speaker 3: to have continuity of work coming their way over the
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  Speaker 3: next few years. And it's also going to flow on
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  Speaker 3: to other businesses that aren't directly involved, because you know,
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  Speaker 3: as you well aware, businesses that employ people, those people
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  Speaker 3: that need to live somewhere, eat somewhere, kids go to school,
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  Speaker 3: et cetera. So it's going to have a great flow
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  Speaker 3: on effect through the territory, much greater than just that
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  Speaker 3: seven hundred and forty seven million.
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  Speaker 2: Now, Senator, we know that it's been well documented, certainly
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  Speaker 2: in recent months, the tension I guess you'd say between
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  Speaker 2: China and Australia. Do you think that when we talk
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  Speaker 2: about the top end and indeed the Northern territory Ie
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  Speaker 2: Darwin and this massive defense investment, do you think that
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  Speaker 2: it does make us a greater target.
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  Speaker 3: I don't think it makes us a greater target. I
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  Speaker 3: think it makes us better prepared should we need to
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  Speaker 3: engage in some sort of force posturing, which I mean
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  Speaker 3: is obviously what is what is happening, that we need
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  Speaker 3: to make sure that we are prepared and ready and
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  Speaker 3: that we are capable of defending ourselves should the need arise,
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  Speaker 3: and also that we're seen to be doing that, which
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  Speaker 3: is what the posturing is all about, that we're seen
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  Speaker 3: to be capable of defending ourselves if we need to.
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  Speaker 2: So really, I guess it's a strategic move.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, absolutely, it's strategic, and it's preemptive. So you know,
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  Speaker 3: if something at some stage happens to the north of us,
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  Speaker 3: we're not left scrambling to try and to try and
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  Speaker 3: get some sort of defense up here. We've got it
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  Speaker 3: here already in place, ready to go. So it's a
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  Speaker 3: very sort of preemptive move to make sure that we're
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  Speaker 3: ready for anything that will happen to our north.
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  Speaker 2: And what would you say to any territory in listening
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  Speaker 2: this morning that maybe feels a bit concerned by that.
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  Speaker 3: I'd say, don't be concerned, be reassured that the government
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  Speaker 3: and the country is acting in a response way to
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  Speaker 3: be prepared for anything that may eventuate.
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  Speaker 2: Senator, I am keen to ask you as well this morning.
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  Speaker 2: We've been speaking quite a bit, and I know you
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  Speaker 2: and I have spoken about this previously as well. We've
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  Speaker 2: been speaking quite a bit in recent days about the
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  Speaker 2: situation out the Howard Springs quarantine facility. We've now got
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  Speaker 2: fifty three active cases out there. It is the highest
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  Speaker 2: number that we've ever had here in the territory at
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  Speaker 2: any one time, particularly when you're talking about those being
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  Speaker 2: cared for at at Howard Springs. We know that the
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  Speaker 2: handover of that facility is due to take place next
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  Speaker 2: week from the OSMAT team across two NT Health. Are
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  Speaker 2: you feeling confident about that?
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  Speaker 3: No, not at all. I'm quite concerned about that, And
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  Speaker 3: as we've spoken previously, you know, I'm very concerned that
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  Speaker 3: control should not pass from Ozmat, that they need to
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  Speaker 3: have an integral role, that they are the experts in
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  Speaker 3: biosecurity and quarantine and running the facility, and that it
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  Speaker 3: is imperative to the safe operation of that facility that
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  Speaker 3: Lenna Taris and his ultimate team still regain control over
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  Speaker 3: those areas of operation of the facility.
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  Speaker 2: Senator, Is that something that you're going to be saying
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  Speaker 2: to the Prime Minister today.
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  Speaker 3: Absolutely Look, I've had numerous conversations with the Health Minister
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  Speaker 3: Greek Hunt over it, so I'm pretty sure that the
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  Speaker 3: PM is well aware of my concerns and Greg's concerns,
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  Speaker 3: and yes, i will absolutely be talking to him about
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  Speaker 3: it today.
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  Speaker 2: Well, I'll be really keen to find out whether there
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  Speaker 2: is any movement or change in that space. Senator for
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  Speaker 2: the Northern Territory, Sam McMahon always appreciate your time. Thanks
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  Speaker 2: very much for speaking with us this morning.
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  Speaker 3: No worries, Thanks very much, Katie, thank you