Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Member for Solomon Luke Gosling says it’ll be some time before a new youth hub is built at the old Casuarina fire station, with asbestos needing to be removed

Transcript

Member for Solomon Luke Gosling says it’ll be some time before a new youth hub is built at the old Casuarina fire station, with asbestos needing to be removed · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: The new youth hub has been earmarked for the old
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: fire station at Casarina. It's pitched to help curb anti
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: social behavior by providing a safe place.
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: For youth to go.
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: The federal and Northern Territory governments are funding the project.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: And here to tell us a little bit more about
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: it is the Member for Solomon, Luke Gosling.
• 0:17
  Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Luke.
• 0:19
  Speaker 3: Good morning Katie.
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: How are you yeah? Really well now?
• 0:22
  Speaker 4: Luke?
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  Speaker 2: What services and support? Will this hub provide?
• 0:28
  Speaker 3: A whole range of services and supports Codie And it's yeah,
• 0:33
  Speaker 3: I'm really It was a massive priority for me in
• 0:37
  Speaker 3: the election to be able to commit to a youth
• 0:40
  Speaker 3: engagement hub for the Northern suburbs. As your listeners would understand,
• 0:44
  Speaker 3: the Youth check was sold off by its owners sometime
• 0:48
  Speaker 3: ago and we've got a McDonald's there at the moment
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: up in Casarina, so we really needed a new and
• 0:55
  Speaker 3: updated and importantly co designed youth engage and hub. And
• 1:00
  Speaker 3: when I mean co designed, I mean, of course there
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  Speaker 3: are people in not for profit, in the charity sector,
• 1:06
  Speaker 3: in government who know a lot about providing youth services,
• 1:10
  Speaker 3: but co design because the kids need to be involved
• 1:13
  Speaker 3: in the design of those services and they will be
• 1:16
  Speaker 3: a great guide. The Youth Minister Lauren Moss when we
• 1:20
  Speaker 3: announce the Catherina Firestation site said that that in that
• 1:26
  Speaker 3: consultation is happening. And when I was at the Catherina
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  Speaker 3: Senior College graduation on Friday night and well done to
• 1:35
  Speaker 3: all those young adults really now going out into the world.
• 1:40
  Speaker 3: When I spoke with their board, they are really keen
• 1:42
  Speaker 3: as well to be part of that co design process.
• 1:45
  Speaker 3: So it's answer your question. Some of the services will
• 1:48
  Speaker 3: come from those consultations, but we already know what kids need.
• 1:53
  Speaker 3: What a lot of the kids need is a safe
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  Speaker 3: place to go. It might not be safe at home,
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  Speaker 3: It certainly isn't safe on the street, but they need
• 2:02
  Speaker 3: to be attractive for them to go there. While they're there,
• 2:07
  Speaker 3: mentors there providing that support with them about what they're doing,
• 2:12
  Speaker 3: where they're at in life, how the family situation is,
• 2:15
  Speaker 3: what supports might be needed to be provided there, What
• 2:19
  Speaker 3: services are the young person might need, and they might
• 2:23
  Speaker 3: be provided by a government or they might be provided
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  Speaker 3: by the not for profit sector, but really sort of
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  Speaker 3: getting around and where necessary, just working really intensely with
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  Speaker 3: a young person to make sure one that they're safe too,
• 2:36
  Speaker 3: that they've got some hope and prospects for life by
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  Speaker 3: getting them on the right track, whether it be education
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: wise or whether it be indeed into work.
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: So where exactly I mean it's the old fire sotion
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  Speaker 1: as I understand, how exactly did you determined or did
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  Speaker 1: you decide on that site?
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  Speaker 3: That's an answer. Sorry, that's a question for Lauren because
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  Speaker 3: it was her department that went through that process of
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: working out where the best place that is available. Obviously
• 3:08
  Speaker 3: you can't put it anywhere. It needs to be available
• 3:12
  Speaker 3: Crown Land. The reason that it's available actually is because
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  Speaker 3: as well as the five million I got committed for
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: the youth engagement hub, I also got a million one
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  Speaker 3: million dollars committed for the men shed. So the Darwin
• 3:26
  Speaker 3: men shed are currently in the old Catherina so we're
• 3:30
  Speaker 3: going to build them a new men's shed that they'll
• 3:34
  Speaker 3: be able to move into, so then we can bulldoze
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  Speaker 3: the old Casarina fire station.
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  Speaker 4: It does have a spesios.
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  Speaker 3: In it, so that'll take a bit of time to
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  Speaker 3: clean up, but then we can crack on with building
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  Speaker 3: the new facility. But the local community has been informed
• 3:53
  Speaker 3: and I think they're going to be really supportive of it,
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  Speaker 3: given that we all know that kids need options, particularly
• 4:03
  Speaker 3: for after school, and this engagement hub is going to
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  Speaker 3: provide a lot of outlets for kids who might not
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: have the support at home that they need.
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  Speaker 4: Well.
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  Speaker 1: And look, we are going to catch up with the
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  Speaker 1: men shed a little bit later this morning and see
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  Speaker 1: you know where they're at. We're trying to you know,
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: to find a new location and that kind of thing.
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  Speaker 1: And also with that funding now, in terms of the
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  Speaker 1: anti social behavior that we're experiencing around that Casuarina area
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  Speaker 1: at the moment, Luke, do you think this is going
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  Speaker 1: to reduce that?
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  Speaker 4: I do, I really do. There were critics of.
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  Speaker 3: The old Youth Shack, but to be honest, as good
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  Speaker 3: as the volunteers were in there, it was not a
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  Speaker 3: facility that would provided a meal and some social support
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  Speaker 3: from the staff and volunteers that work there. But it
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  Speaker 3: was old and it was not fit for purpose. So
• 5:02
  Speaker 3: this facility will keep kids safe while they're there, with
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  Speaker 3: trained adults working with them to help them with whatever
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  Speaker 3: issues they may have, which which obviously keeps them away
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  Speaker 3: from hanging around Casarina, but also they will know that
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  Speaker 3: if they go to Caserina, if they're in trouble, you know,
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  Speaker 3: they don't want to miss out on going to the
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  Speaker 3: engagement hub. I'm not saying that there will always be
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  Speaker 3: that sort of punishment model, of course, but it will
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  Speaker 3: be obviously incumbent on those that are chosen by the
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  Speaker 3: Anti government to run the engagement up that it is
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  Speaker 3: a safe place, but it's more about active. It's proactive
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  Speaker 3: and it's pre empty. It's making sure that kids who
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  Speaker 3: are at risk of being on the street have got
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  Speaker 3: somewhere else to go. And I think in doing that
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  Speaker 3: it's going to stop a slide where kids might fall
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  Speaker 3: in with the wrong crowd and go.
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  Speaker 4: The wrong way.
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  Speaker 1: And so obviously the Northern Territory government is going to
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  Speaker 1: determine who.
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  Speaker 2: Will operate it.
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  Speaker 1: Looked, how soon do you reckon it's going to open, well.
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  Speaker 3: So soon as humanly possible. It is a massive focus
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  Speaker 3: and priority for Lauren Moss. We announced at the fire
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  Speaker 3: station the location we're cracking on with Dipple to make sure.
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  Speaker 3: What we've been able to do is ascertain that the
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  Speaker 3: old Darwin North OSL site where there's going to be
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  Speaker 3: supported accommodation for not only veterans, but for first responders
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  Speaker 3: that need that supported accommodation, if they're a risk at homelessness,
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  Speaker 3: or they just need somewhere.
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  Speaker 4: To go just to reset co located there.
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  Speaker 3: We've got land there for the men shed. Now we
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  Speaker 3: need to crack on ascertain exactly the space there for
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  Speaker 3: the men shed. We're working with Brian on that and
• 7:00
  Speaker 3: he can.
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  Speaker 4: Start he's build.
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  Speaker 3: We can get the current or their equipment out of
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  Speaker 3: the old Cazarina fire station, establish them in Marara, and
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  Speaker 3: then we can crack on with a build so well
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  Speaker 3: as quickly as possible.
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  Speaker 1: And we'll catch up with the men shed about ten
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  Speaker 1: forty five this morning. Luke, I do want to ask
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  Speaker 1: you before I let you go. We know the federal government,
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  Speaker 1: or we know the Northern Territory government, i should say,
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  Speaker 1: is proposing these changes well, updating the anti discrimination laws,
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: and they're pushing through this week. It looks as though
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  Speaker 1: they're going to push through this week, much to the
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: concern of different religious schools and also religious groups in
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  Speaker 1: the Northern Territory.
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  Speaker 2: Do you support these changes.
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  Speaker 3: There's a number of really positive changes in this build
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  Speaker 3: that will prevent discrimination against people of faith and get
• 7:55
  Speaker 3: through the introduction, for example, of anti pulifications and we
• 8:01
  Speaker 3: support them as federal labor. And you will remembericated we
• 8:04
  Speaker 3: it had lots of debate about this federally. What has
• 8:09
  Speaker 3: happened federally for labor and then we're now the current
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  Speaker 3: federal government. Is that we said that we would protect
• 8:17
  Speaker 3: teachers and other staff in religious schools from discrimination, but
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  Speaker 3: we'd also maintain the right of those schools the preference
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  Speaker 3: people of their own faith in the selection of their
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  Speaker 3: own staff.
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  Speaker 4: So that is our position.
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  Speaker 3: And what I can tell you is earlier this month,
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  Speaker 3: as the Attorney General, Mark Grayfus has asked the Australian
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  Speaker 3: Law Reform Commission to review religious exemptions for religious schools
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  Speaker 3: in anti discrimination law. Now we'll get that advice from
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  Speaker 3: the Law Reform Commission in April and that'll be the
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  Speaker 3: crucial first step in coming up and following through on
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  Speaker 3: our commitment to extend anti discrimination protections to more Australian
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  Speaker 3: so legislation later this year.
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  Speaker 1: Should the Northern Territory government be holding off until the
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  Speaker 1: federal government has done that.
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  Speaker 3: That's an option for them to do when it comes
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  Speaker 3: to part of you know, and that's a decision that
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  Speaker 3: they'll make.
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  Speaker 1: Well, they said this morning that they're going to eat
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  Speaker 1: that they're not going to wait until the federal government's
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  Speaker 1: done that.
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  Speaker 2: Do you think that's the right move, Well.
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  Speaker 3: It's it would allow them to see what the very
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  Speaker 3: experienced people at the Law Reform Commission come up with.
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  Speaker 3: But also legislation can always change in the future if
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  Speaker 3: there's a review that federally there's an alignment, makes sense,
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  Speaker 3: but that's a decision for them to make. The other
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  Speaker 3: thing they can.
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  Speaker 4: Do, of course, Katie, is.
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  Speaker 3: Listen to what some of their own members in the
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  Speaker 3: community are saying about religious education and the culture that
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  Speaker 3: not only people from that religion, but people from perhaps
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  Speaker 3: no religion see as what they want for their.
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  Speaker 4: Kids because of the culture that's provided.
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  Speaker 3: And I think there's still then an opportunity and I'm
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  Speaker 3: sure they're doing this as having a conversation about how
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  Speaker 3: do we get the balance right between protecting individuals and
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  Speaker 3: their rights but also not discriminating against religious and faith
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  Speaker 3: based schools in what they're trying to do as well.
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  Speaker 3: So I think there's a balance there to be struck,
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  Speaker 3: and I wish them all the best in their deliberations.
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  Speaker 3: I think it's important to not only respect the faith
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  Speaker 3: based communities. After all, they teach about one third of
• 10:48
  Speaker 3: territories kids. I think there is an opportunity to get
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  Speaker 3: that balance right, and I know those discussions are happening
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  Speaker 3: at the moment.
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  Speaker 1: Look, do you think that that legislation currently as it
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  Speaker 1: seeks to think that it does respect those religious schools
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  Speaker 1: and people's religious freedoms.
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  Speaker 3: I haven't seen the latest version of where they're at,
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  Speaker 3: but all I'll say, Katie is that it's important to
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  Speaker 3: get the balance right. The cultures at schools are derived
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  Speaker 3: from a number of things, but one of those is
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  Speaker 3: obviously in choosing their own staff, and for example, the
• 11:26
  Speaker 3: Bishop of Darwin and the Northern Territory, the Catholic Bishop,
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  Speaker 3: I should say, has made it clear that they employ
• 11:33
  Speaker 3: people from a range of backgrounds and diversities and sexual
• 11:37
  Speaker 3: orientations and so forth. They are respectful education facilities. I
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  Speaker 3: think what their point is that we want to have
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  Speaker 3: the ability in our own schools to select the staff
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  Speaker 3: that will meet our charter and our responsibility to the
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  Speaker 3: kids and the parents that send their kids there. So
• 11:59
  Speaker 3: I haven't seen the most up to date version, but
• 12:01
  Speaker 3: I know there's conversations happening because you know, there's a
• 12:05
  Speaker 3: many members of not only the NTY government and the
• 12:08
  Speaker 3: cross Bench, but there's people of goodwill that just want
• 12:11
  Speaker 3: to get this balance right. So I wish them all
• 12:13
  Speaker 3: well with their discussions today.
• 12:16
  Speaker 1: Well, Luke Gosling, the federal member for Solomon, Good to
• 12:18
  Speaker 1: speak with you.
• 12:19
  Speaker 2: Actually before I let you go, Bas wanted me to ask.
• 12:22
  Speaker 1: He called through just a couple of moments ago and
• 12:24
  Speaker 1: wanted me to ask, where are things at with the
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: petrol prices and trying to bring them down?
• 12:30
  Speaker 4: Good question.
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  Speaker 3: Particular particular the stresses for people who have vehicles and
• 12:38
  Speaker 3: eat diesel, because the price of that is just is
• 12:42
  Speaker 3: just unbelievable and it's hard to reconcile it. I know
• 12:45
  Speaker 3: the answers that I've been getting down here are around.
• 12:48
  Speaker 3: You know, there's less production of it because there's been
• 12:51
  Speaker 3: less duel during the pandemic, etc. But that doesn't make
• 12:54
  Speaker 3: it any easier when you're trying to fill a car,
• 12:57
  Speaker 3: and I know that I know there's a lot of
• 13:01
  Speaker 3: hurt there. What we've done is talk to the a
• 13:04
  Speaker 3: Triple See about this as part of a bigger discussion
• 13:07
  Speaker 3: that we're having with the gas companies. And the energy providers,
• 13:12
  Speaker 3: and we will step in and determine prices that they
• 13:17
  Speaker 3: must set if that's needed. We've said that we'll do
• 13:20
  Speaker 3: that before Christmas. Now that's gas in terms of running
• 13:23
  Speaker 3: our economy and running industry. When it comes to fuel, though,
• 13:28
  Speaker 3: there is a firm commitment and a determination in Federal
• 13:33
  Speaker 3: Labor to make sure that the gouging stops will give
• 13:37
  Speaker 3: the atriable see everything that they can. But the atrible
• 13:40
  Speaker 3: c can't do it all. We know that all they
• 13:42
  Speaker 3: can flag is where there's unconscionable profiteering behavior, and we've
• 13:47
  Speaker 3: made a clear that we will not tolerate that.
• 13:50
  Speaker 1: Luke Gosling will leave it there. Thank you as always
• 13:53
  Speaker 1: for your time.
• 13:54
  Speaker 3: Cheers Guttie, thank you