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Katie Woolf spoke with the Leader of Government Business Natasha Fyles · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: You are listening to mix one oh four point nine's
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  Speaker 1: three sixty and joining me on the line is the
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  Speaker 1: Health Minister Attasha Files.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning, Good morning, Katie, Good morning listeners.
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  Speaker 1: Minister, were just talking about people getting their steps up
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  Speaker 1: each day. I believe you got yours up on the
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  Speaker 1: weekend running in the city to serve Well.
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  Speaker 2: I think you got yours up too, didn't it, Katy.
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  Speaker 3: It's the only way to go great.
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  Speaker 2: It was really great though. I've never done anything like
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  Speaker 2: that before and I actually enjoyed it and it's lovely
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  Speaker 2: to see the variety of people people you know and think, oh,
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  Speaker 2: I didn't think they're a runners. So yeah, it was
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  Speaker 2: a really fun event. The well done to the organizers.
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  Speaker 2: You're being able to put it on during COVID.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, I agree.
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  Speaker 1: Well let's get into it and we know this earlier
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  Speaker 1: in the week and certainly yesterday we spoke about the
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  Speaker 1: changes which the Gunner government is pushing through Parliament, which
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  Speaker 1: is going to abolish the Scrutiny Committee set up back
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  Speaker 1: in twenty sixteen to enhance transparency and accountability.
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  Speaker 3: Minister, why are these changes being made so.
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  Speaker 2: For listeners, Katie? The Scrutiny Committee was a process that
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  Speaker 2: we introduced in twenty sixteen when we did only have
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  Speaker 2: a two person opposition and so we've never seen a
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  Speaker 2: committee like it in any other parliament. But now we
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  Speaker 2: have a more conventional opposition, we believe that the process
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  Speaker 2: that we have for legislation is is enough. And also
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  Speaker 2: really in these times of COVID, we need to be agile,
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  Speaker 2: we need to be responsive and not sort of block
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  Speaker 2: things with a bureaucratic barricade.
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  Speaker 1: Look, I've got to say it comes across quite arrogantly,
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  Speaker 1: particularly given the fact that it was the first day
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  Speaker 1: of Parliament sitting on Tuesday.
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  Speaker 3: Do these changes come into place immediately?
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, I think it's the leader of the Opposition
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  Speaker 2: that is sort of highlighting that she doesn't even have
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  Speaker 2: the confidence since her team. This is part of the
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  Speaker 2: sessional orders. So every assembly that meets were the fourteenth
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  Speaker 2: Assembly and so we'll sit for the next four years,
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  Speaker 2: we have sessional orders. So it's like the rule book
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  Speaker 2: that we operate under. In as I said that twenty
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  Speaker 2: sixteen parliament, when we did have only two opposition members,
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  Speaker 2: we had this scrutiny committee process. But in putting together
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  Speaker 2: the orders for this assembly, we decided to go back
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  Speaker 2: to that more conventional approach. There is still a committee
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  Speaker 2: stage for legislation. There is still the abilities if a
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  Speaker 2: legislation is a large piece of legislation, quite complex, it
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  Speaker 2: can go to an exposure draft bill. So there's still
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  Speaker 2: the processes within the parliament for scrutiny of bills. It's
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  Speaker 2: just that we want to be agile and responsive without
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  Speaker 2: delaying legislation.
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  Speaker 1: So what you're saying is that you feel as though
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  Speaker 1: the scrutiny process takes too long and it's no longer
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  Speaker 1: required because there is a big enough opposition.
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  Speaker 2: Now correct, We believe there's a more conventional opposition. Legislation
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  Speaker 2: will continue to be scrutinized and debated through the parliamentary
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  Speaker 2: process and we just want to get on with the
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  Speaker 2: job of delivering the territory.
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  Speaker 1: Do you think it's appropriate though, given the fact that
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  Speaker 1: the government is set to hand down a budget next month,
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  Speaker 1: it's the first real look into the finances in eighteen months,
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  Speaker 1: and you're abolishing this process.
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, the budget bill would never have gone through
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  Speaker 2: this process. It never has in the past. It goes
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  Speaker 2: through the estimates process and that is still in place.
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  Speaker 2: So the bill. The budget will be handed down in November.
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  Speaker 2: The Budget Bill, the Chief Minister will speak to that,
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  Speaker 2: it will go off to the Estimates Committee for a
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  Speaker 2: week of hearings and then come back into the Parliament.
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  Speaker 2: So the leader of the Opposition is showing her and competence.
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  Speaker 2: She doesn't have the confidence in her team that she
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  Speaker 2: doesn't understand.
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  Speaker 1: Ultimately, though, won't this mean that the government can push
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  Speaker 1: through any legislative changes you like, as we don't have
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  Speaker 1: two levels of parliament like in other states, I you know,
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  Speaker 1: things like changes to the pet legislation like we've spoken
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  Speaker 1: about earlier in the week.
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  Speaker 2: So Katie, in terms of legislation, it is still unless
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  Speaker 2: being debated on an urgency introduced in one sitting sits
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  Speaker 2: for at least thirty sittings days where members can talk
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  Speaker 2: to their community, talk to stakeholders, then comes back in
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  Speaker 2: and can still go through a committee stage process within
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  Speaker 2: the Parliament to be passed. So there is certainly checks
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  Speaker 2: and balances around legislation.
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  Speaker 1: So from your perspective, the reason that this is happening
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  Speaker 1: is because you want to be able to move things
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  Speaker 1: through more quickly because of COVID.
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  Speaker 2: We don't want to have bureaucratic barricades in place, Katie.
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  Speaker 2: Territories just want to to do what is in their
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  Speaker 2: best interest. There is still the appropriate checks and balances.
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  Speaker 2: We have an opposition member of eighteenth. I would have
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  Speaker 2: said that for strong opposition, the leader of the opposition
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  Speaker 2: certainly casting out over her team's ability, but territorians can
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  Speaker 2: be reassured that there is processes in place. We tried
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  Speaker 2: something different for the twenty sixteen parliament in the session
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  Speaker 2: of Laders Katie. Ninety percent of those bills came back
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  Speaker 2: and said fine to pass. There is still the processes
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  Speaker 2: around complex bills where an exposure draft can be provided
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  Speaker 2: to the community ahead of the bill being introduced. So
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  Speaker 2: we believe there's the appropriate checks and balances. The leader
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  Speaker 2: of the opposition is harping on about nothing.
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  Speaker 1: Well, I guess at the time though that this was introduced,
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  Speaker 1: it was it was said that it was being introduced
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  Speaker 1: as scrutiny committees were being introduced to ensure that there
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  Speaker 1: was transparency and accountability. That transparency and accountability is being
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  Speaker 1: questioned now given the fact that these changes are being made,
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  Speaker 1: I guess what really doesn't help the argument of the
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  Speaker 1: government is the fact that even on the front page
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  Speaker 1: of the paper today, you know, we see that there's
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  Speaker 1: been an FOI I put in to take a closer
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  Speaker 1: look into a report into the cost of renewable energy,
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  Speaker 1: and you know, out of one hundred and eighteen pages
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  Speaker 1: of that report, one hundred and sixteen have been redacted, Katie.
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  Speaker 2: In terms of processes, there's a number of processes that
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  Speaker 2: allows government to provide information to the public. But at
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  Speaker 2: times and foliing is a structure around it, this legislation
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  Speaker 2: around it, and the decision was made.
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  Speaker 1: Can you see though, how you know to some territories
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  Speaker 1: listening this morning that it maybe seems as though the
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  Speaker 1: government has said that they're going to be open and transparent,
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  Speaker 1: but they're not really doing things that seem like.
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  Speaker 2: They are, so Katie. The freedom of information decisions are
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  Speaker 2: made by officers according to that legislation and that act.
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  Speaker 2: The reasons for the decisions are curly explained by the
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  Speaker 2: relevant officer, and there is avenues for people that apply
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  Speaker 2: they want a FOIE information, there is a processes through
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  Speaker 2: the Information Commissioner for them to get further avenues or
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  Speaker 2: get further explanation if they so wish.
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  Speaker 1: I mean do you think it's appropriate though, that an
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  Speaker 1: FOI request into report into renewables has been pretty much
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  Speaker 1: entirely redacted, So, Katie.
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  Speaker 2: I don't understand the reasons why the Officer has redacted
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  Speaker 2: parts of that. Territorians know that renewables mean loyl prices
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  Speaker 2: and more local jobs and we're certainly focused on that.
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  Speaker 2: We've got our road Map to Renewables report which sets
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  Speaker 2: out that pathway. But in terms of transparency as a government, yes,
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  Speaker 2: we've made a decision for this parliament around the session
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  Speaker 2: Lord is not to have a Scrutiny Committee, but we
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  Speaker 2: still established a range of reform, including the Independent Commissioner
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  Speaker 2: against Corruption.
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  Speaker 1: Now, in terms of just to go back to those
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  Speaker 1: changes that are happening in Parliament when it comes to
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  Speaker 1: question time, things have changed in that space as well,
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  Speaker 1: haven't they.
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie. In terms of question time, when we had
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  Speaker 2: that unusual situation where we had only a two member
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  Speaker 2: opposition and we had I think it was seven independents
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  Speaker 2: at one point last term, we had a situation on
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  Speaker 2: Wednesday where question time was shared around. As I've said,
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  Speaker 2: we believe this parliament is more conventional and so question
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  Speaker 2: time each day we'll have a question from government and
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  Speaker 2: a question from opposition. And what we saw yesterday was
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  Speaker 2: that we saw I think it was five questions to
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  Speaker 2: the government and six questions to the opposition. So certainly
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  Speaker 2: question time is meant to replicate the parliament. We have
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  Speaker 2: more than fifty percent of the seats, yet yesterday we
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  Speaker 2: got less than fifty percent of the questions. But that's
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  Speaker 2: the process under the Session Lord as for disassembly, so you.
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  Speaker 1: Feel as though the changes that have been put into
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  Speaker 1: place are open and transparent. You feel as though the
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  Speaker 1: government is doing the right thing here.
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  Speaker 2: Katie also outlined in the sixteenth in sorry, in the
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  Speaker 2: thirteenth Assembly in twenty sixteen, we had a very unconventional
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  Speaker 2: makeup of the Northern Churchy Parliament and we put measures
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  Speaker 2: in place to allow for that. But as we have
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  Speaker 2: an eighth person opposition, I think the only person that
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  Speaker 2: needs to explain this is the leader of the opposition.
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  Speaker 2: And so why she's so against these changes. It really
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  Speaker 2: shows a lack of confidence in her team.
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  Speaker 1: Well, I think it also though it wasn't just her,
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  Speaker 1: you know, obviously Robin Lamley's fuming about it. We had
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  Speaker 1: Jerry Wood call in yesterday there's plenty of people that
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  Speaker 1: are raising concerns, so I think you know, it's not
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  Speaker 1: just sort of the Opposition leader saying that this isn't appropriate.
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  Speaker 1: It's a number of people's even you've got the Criminal
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  Speaker 1: Lawyers Association talking to the abc as today saying that
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  Speaker 1: they didn't think it was a good move.
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  Speaker 2: Katie. I've explained the facts to listeners this morning in
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  Speaker 2: terms of we had a different makeup last time. We've
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  Speaker 2: got a far more conventional parliament this time. There is
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  Speaker 2: still processes within the parliamentary system protects and balances and
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  Speaker 2: so people can I think they want us to get
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  Speaker 2: on with the job of government. They want us to
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  Speaker 2: be able to pass legislation. So in terms of a bill,
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  Speaker 2: you could potentially have a bill introduced in November and
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  Speaker 2: it would sit all the way through until March. When
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  Speaker 2: we need to be agile and respond to the issues
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  Speaker 2: that are facing the territories, particularly now, we can't afford
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  Speaker 2: for those lengthy time delayed, particularly when you look back
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  Speaker 2: at the bills and the feedback that was provided by
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  Speaker 2: the scrutiny committees, and with no disrespect to the work
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  Speaker 2: that was done by those committees in the past, but
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  Speaker 2: the large majority came back with no recommendations for change.
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  Speaker 2: And so, as I've outlined, when we do have larger
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  Speaker 2: pieces of legislation, can bring them in as an exposure
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  Speaker 2: draft bill. There is nothing stopping a minister from referring
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  Speaker 2: a bill to the Public Accounts Committee, for example. There's
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  Speaker 2: nothing stopping the bill from sitting out for one sitting
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  Speaker 2: if people do need to provide feedback and local members
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  Speaker 2: want time to be able to go back to their communities.
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  Speaker 2: So there is checks and balances within the parliamentary process
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  Speaker 2: around legislation.
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  Speaker 1: Do you feel as though the Gunner government, the government
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  Speaker 1: that you are part of at the moment, is as
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  Speaker 1: open and transparent as it possibly can be.
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  Speaker 2: We certainly, as I said Katie, have put in a
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  Speaker 2: range of measures, and most notably that Independent Commissioner against Corruption.
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  Speaker 2: There is checks and balances and there is processes and
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  Speaker 2: they're balanced. And you know we've been talking about freedom
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  Speaker 2: of information. There's legislation there, there's offices, there's processes around it.
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  Speaker 2: So I feel confident that we are doing our job
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  Speaker 2: of governing but also providing opportunities for territory.
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  Speaker 3: And I mean, but it looks, it does look as though.
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  Speaker 1: It's a bit of a mockery that FOI situation if
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  Speaker 1: you've got one hundred and eighteen page report and then
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  Speaker 1: you've got pretty much the whole lot of it has
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  Speaker 1: been redacted.
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  Speaker 2: Katie A provided explanation. We're getting on with the job
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  Speaker 2: of what we need to do. We've certainly in the
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  Speaker 2: first sitting days outlined a clear agenda. We've kept territory
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  Speaker 2: in say through the COVID and now we're focused on
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  Speaker 2: their job.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, we are going to have to get ready to
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  Speaker 1: wrap up. I know you pressed for time and we
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  Speaker 1: appreciate the fact you've given up your time this morning
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  Speaker 1: to have a chat with us. So I do want
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  Speaker 1: to just ask you quickly though we've obviously got those
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  Speaker 1: expats arriving early tomorrow morning. As I understand it, how
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  Speaker 1: are things going to what's the process and how's it
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  Speaker 1: all going to work?
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, this is an example of the territory playing
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  Speaker 2: a leading role during the coronavirus crisis and when Australians
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  Speaker 2: need a hand, and these are AUSI mums, dads, grandparents.
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  Speaker 2: There's some tragic stories about people that are caught up
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  Speaker 2: overseas and we've put our hand up to help. That
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  Speaker 2: Center for National Resilience that Howard brings will quarantine around
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  Speaker 2: five hundred perpatriated Australians each fortnight. And it's Katie, really
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  Speaker 2: important for Territorians to note that we are learning from this.
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  Speaker 2: We're able to use our knowledge and expertise in that facility,
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  Speaker 2: but tax payers won't be out of pocket. The Commonwealth
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  Speaker 2: is jumping up and so we're looking forward to welcoming
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  Speaker 2: these people into our facility which is the highest standard,
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  Speaker 2: the gold standard for quarantine.
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  Speaker 3: Tomorrow, Minister.
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  Speaker 1: Just finally, it's been reported today three thousand extra public servants.
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  Speaker 1: The Commissioner for Public Employments annual reports been released and
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  Speaker 1: shows the public service has ballooned by more than three
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  Speaker 1: thousand in the last two years twenty three thousand, five
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  Speaker 1: hundred and ninety as of June. Why has this happened
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  Speaker 1: despite their you know, supposed to be a hiring freeze
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  Speaker 1: and supposed to be you know, measures in place to
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  Speaker 1: not have this going on.
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, I'm not aware of all the specifics at
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  Speaker 2: that that I can point, for example, to the Department
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  Speaker 2: of Health. We've made a really strong focus around rather
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  Speaker 2: than having a transient workforce that is a casualized workforce,
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  Speaker 2: giving people permanency and so switching from a reliable reliability
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  Speaker 2: of nursing staff from agency nursing staff through to people
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  Speaker 2: that are permanently department We certainly are conscious of the
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  Speaker 2: budget and implementing a languent recommendations from that report. So
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  Speaker 2: certainly each individual agency is making sure they do their job.
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  Speaker 2: But there is situations where agencies will see an increase
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  Speaker 2: in the ft. But there's good reason to it, all right.
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  Speaker 3: No doubt.
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  Speaker 1: A topic that we will talk about tomorrow on the week.
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  Speaker 1: That was Natasha Files, Leader of Government Business and also
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  Speaker 1: Health Minister.
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  Speaker 3: Always appreciate your time.
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  Speaker 2: Thank you, Thank you.
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  Speaker 1: You are listening to mix one oh four point nine's
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  Speaker 1: three sixty is twenty four minutes after nine o'clock. Quite
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: a few of you getting in contact with us this morning.
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  Speaker 1: There's one message here that just simply sees, Katie, what
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  Speaker 1: are they trying to hide when it comes to that
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  Speaker 1: redacted report.
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  Speaker 3: I can only assume.
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: Look, we're going to be catching up with Matt Cunningham
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: before ten o'clock and finding out a bit more about
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: what the situation is there. I've got one here, Hi
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: Katie what a joke on Natasha Files, mentioning response times
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: I got broken into Tuesday, reported at at seven pm,
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  Speaker 1: and I'm yet to hear back from the police in
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  Speaker 1: her own backyard of Nightcliff. Where's the response or transparency?
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  Speaker 1: So bloody sick of excuses, says that Texter