Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie Woolf spoke with NT News Editor Matt Williams

Transcript

Katie Woolf spoke with NT News Editor Matt Williams · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Joining me on the line right now is Matt Williams,
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: the editor of the Northern Territory News. Good morning to you, Matt.
• 0:07
  Speaker 2: MORNINGTI good to speak to you.
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Yeah, you too, now, Matt, Well, this situation around these
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: very serious allegations is really taking on a mind of
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: its own. I guess you'd have to say the Chief
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: Minister again this morning dodging questions on this topic.
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 0:25
  Speaker 3: Look, it's a really interesting play the chief ministers taking
• 0:28
  Speaker 3: in terms of responding to these serious allegations. Now, this
• 0:33
  Speaker 3: sort of what sort of kicked it off yesterday We
• 0:36
  Speaker 3: ran a little item in our Bushranger column on Sunday
• 0:39
  Speaker 3: which implicated a territory political party member in the incident.
• 0:43
  Speaker 3: Now we didn't name which a political party it was
• 0:46
  Speaker 3: on Sunday. However, Leah Finocchio, the opposition leader, was quick
• 0:51
  Speaker 3: to come out yesterday morning and say it wasn't anyone
• 0:55
  Speaker 3: in her party who was involved. And she put out
• 0:57
  Speaker 3: that statement calling for the Chief Minister to address the issue.
• 1:02
  Speaker 2: And look, look what we can say.
• 1:04
  Speaker 3: The allegations are serious, as Leah said, So look it's
• 1:10
  Speaker 3: obviously very we've got to be very careful what we
• 1:12
  Speaker 3: say about it, you know, no names have been mentioned
• 1:15
  Speaker 3: that at this point, but look, it is a serious
• 1:18
  Speaker 3: situation that I think the Chief Minister needs to address
• 1:22
  Speaker 3: and a little bit more detail.
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: Order thought, yeah, And so then he responded to you
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: guys via a statement yesterday, because there has been a
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: lot sort of floating around on various social media pages
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: about these allegations. But then he put out a statement
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: yesterday via the NT News and I guess it really
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: focused more so on COVID than what it did in
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: actually addressing the allegations that are being made.
• 1:48
  Speaker 3: Yeah, look, it was a bit of a bizarre statement.
• 1:51
  Speaker 3: I thought to be Yeah, you know, you got something
• 1:54
  Speaker 3: serious like this floating around, and I think the best
• 1:56
  Speaker 3: way to do its front up and answer the question.
• 1:59
  Speaker 3: And we said inctorial today, you know, we saw what
• 2:01
  Speaker 3: happened to Eddie McGuire when he tried to spin his
• 2:04
  Speaker 3: way out of trouble a couple of weeks ago. It
• 2:06
  Speaker 3: just didn't go down well with the public.
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: Or indeed his club or former plats or anyone. So
• 2:12
  Speaker 2: I think, look, there's a there's obviously a lot at
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: stake for the people who are.
• 2:18
  Speaker 3: Allegedly involved, and you know, I'm not going to go
• 2:22
  Speaker 3: into too much detail about what the connections are with
• 2:26
  Speaker 3: those people and other people out in the community and
• 2:28
  Speaker 3: indeed their connections with the Chief Minister. But yeah, look,
• 2:32
  Speaker 3: I think it is something. You know, things like this
• 2:35
  Speaker 3: just don't go away. So I think this is where,
• 2:38
  Speaker 3: you know, real leaders need to stand up and make
• 2:41
  Speaker 3: a stand.
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: Yeah, look, I agree with you, and you know, I'm
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: certainly aware of the allegations. I know that you guys
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: have put in a number of calls, so you certainly
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: made contact with some of the people allegedly involved. You
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: yet to hear or there yet to respond at this point, aren't.
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: They No, we made several calls last week and also
• 3:03
  Speaker 3: text message the people who are allegedly involved, and look,
• 3:07
  Speaker 3: there's been no response welsoever. So I think the listeners
• 3:10
  Speaker 3: can probably put to and two together to work out
• 3:13
  Speaker 3: why they haven't responded.
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: And I also have to say, throughout.
• 3:16
  Speaker 3: This since we've been chasing this story, there there has
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: never been one phone call to me or one phone
• 3:23
  Speaker 3: call to our journalists denying these allegations. So again, I
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: think the listeners can probably work that out for themselves.
• 3:32
  Speaker 3: Something to this and you know, let's be honest. Cocaine
• 3:37
  Speaker 3: is a prohibited drug, it's legal to use it, and
• 3:41
  Speaker 3: you know some other things that were going on as well.
• 3:44
  Speaker 3: We're probably a little bit below the belt.
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: Well, I tell you what, Matt, I'll be watching parliament
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: this week much more interested than than usual. I guess
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: it's going to be an interesting one, isn't it.
• 3:58
  Speaker 3: Well, you know the Territory Parliament's then, you know, since
• 4:02
  Speaker 3: the Jobs government has been pretty short on scandals really,
• 4:06
  Speaker 3: so you know, this is one that's certainly bubbling a lot.
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: It will it will cause Labor a lot of trouble,
• 4:12
  Speaker 3: no doubt about that. You know, they can sit on
• 4:15
  Speaker 3: it and try and sweep it under the carpet. But
• 4:18
  Speaker 3: I think there's planning more to play out. And we
• 4:20
  Speaker 3: actually first became aware that this was going on. You know,
• 4:25
  Speaker 3: there was a lot going on on social media pages
• 4:28
  Speaker 3: last week, but we actually became aware of it before that.
• 4:31
  Speaker 3: So we've sort of been working on this story for
• 4:34
  Speaker 3: a little while and now, so it was always going
• 4:37
  Speaker 3: to come out eventually.
• 4:38
  Speaker 2: But as I said, we have to be a little
• 4:40
  Speaker 2: bit careful what we say. But there's plenty more to come.
• 4:43
  Speaker 1: Well, Matt, We'll be keeping a very close eye on
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: it and I know plenty of others will be as well.
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: I'm also due to catch up with Erin early who
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: is of course with the United Workers Union, but she's
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: the president of the Labor Party, so we'll ask her
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: a couple of questions at about nine thirty as well.
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: Always appreciate your time, Matt Williams, thank you very much
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: for having a chat with me.
• 5:04
  Speaker 3: Thanks Katie, thank you.
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: And Matt Williams is of course the editor of the
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: Northern Territory News