Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Katie Woolf spoke with Chief Minister Michael Gunner on Covid Vaccine Rollout and the Scandal

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Katie Woolf spoke with Chief Minister Michael Gunner on Covid Vaccine Rollout and the Scandal · 360 with Katie Woolf

0:00
Speaker 1: Yesterday the COVID nineteen vaccine arrived in the territory. As
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Speaker 1: I mentioned, the first batch of one thousand doses of
0:06
Speaker 1: that coronavirus vaccine landed safely at the International airport. Joining
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Speaker 1: me in the studio is the Chief Minister, Michael Gunner.
0:13
Speaker 1: Good morning, good day, how are you going good? Thank you,
0:15
Speaker 1: Chief Minister, who's going to receive the vaccine first.
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Speaker 2: So in phase one, a priority is those people who
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Speaker 2: are at most at risk. Now, we've obviously had a
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Speaker 2: gold standard quarantine facilities, never had a breach. But as
0:27
Speaker 2: we've seen around the country, the people most at risk
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Speaker 2: of developing COVID nineteen and maybe taking to the community
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Speaker 2: are those who work in quarantine facilities. So essentially the
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Speaker 2: frontline workers are the ones that will be vaccinating first.
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Speaker 2: The COMWORPH government we're doing vaccinations in this first one
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Speaker 2: A tranch as well, and they're focused on the aged
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Speaker 2: and disability sectors who are very vulnerable obviously as we've
0:51
Speaker 2: seen nationally two. But for me, the priority is about
0:54
Speaker 2: making sure that we reduce risk even further at our
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Speaker 2: quarantine facility. So the frontline workers and when can.
1:00
Speaker 1: Those sort of regular territorians I guess you know, I,
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Speaker 1: like myself, expect to receive that vaccine.
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Speaker 2: So I'd say the majority of Territorians will receive their
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Speaker 2: vaccines in the second half of this year. Will be free.
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Speaker 2: It's voluntary, it's effective. We will go through the tranches.
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Speaker 2: There's a lot of the logistics here, so we will
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Speaker 2: be updating territories as we get to each tranch. So
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Speaker 2: we'll give you more detail about your stage when we
1:23
Speaker 2: get there.
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Speaker 3: There's just a lot of moving parts here.
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Speaker 2: I want to make sure we get it right and
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Speaker 2: we focus on each tranch as it comes.
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Speaker 1: All right, let's move along because scandal has plagued the
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Speaker 1: Gunner government last week an extra maaritial affair allegations of
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Speaker 1: drug use by a staffer who works on the fifth
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Speaker 1: floor of Parliament House MLA, Mark Turner ousted from the
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Speaker 1: Labor caucus. One of your staff has resigned. But questions
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Speaker 1: still very much remain unanswered, Chief Finister, when did you
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Speaker 1: first become aware of these allegations?
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Speaker 2: So for me, senior staff advised me of the rumors
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Speaker 2: around the start of the week of February. A a
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Speaker 2: camerent exactly which day it was, but somewhere around there
2:01
Speaker 2: at that point in time we'd heard of rumors, we
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Speaker 2: double checked it back in with them Empa Bay who
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Speaker 2: strongly denied them, and so I was told as much
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Speaker 2: as FYI as anything at that point time. We seems
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Speaker 2: in hindsight, I will tell you that time that they
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Speaker 2: were rumours now strongly denied.
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Speaker 1: So did your staff know about this eighteen days ago?
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Speaker 1: And the verocity of it eighteen days ago?
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Speaker 3: So came to our attention around Feb two.
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Speaker 2: It took a little time to get hold of the
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Speaker 2: men for Blain and others to ask them what was
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Speaker 2: going on, and it was strongly denied.
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Speaker 1: So these allegations are incredibly serious. Why did you treat
2:39
Speaker 1: them only as rumor and internet gossip when it seemed
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Speaker 1: clear to everyone besides you that they weren't so.
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Speaker 2: Wearing a couple of things here, I think it's not
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Speaker 2: controversial to say an allegation who our evidence is gossip.
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Speaker 2: And I still believe talking about whether someone is isn't
2:55
Speaker 2: having affair is gossip. And I think there's a lot
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Speaker 2: of rumors out there and extremely careful about taking things
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Speaker 2: from gossip to public debate, and that's still going to
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Speaker 2: be a principle of me. For me, what was extremely
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Speaker 2: disappointing here was the lack of early honesty in about
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Speaker 2: what was going on, And even today, I think I'd
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Speaker 2: struggle to accurately describe what has happened between the member
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Speaker 2: for playing and a private season apart from the fact
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Speaker 2: that we all know something has happened and there was
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Speaker 2: There was absolutely a relationship and that relationship was inappropriate.
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Speaker 1: But you've seen those text messages now and obviously you
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Speaker 1: wouldn't describe that as a friendship.
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Speaker 2: No, no, okatie, I would not. And having seen those
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Speaker 2: the alleged messages yesterday, I think it would be also
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Speaker 2: fair to say that you shouldn't be able to deny
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Speaker 2: remembering them or what the general contents or nature of
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Speaker 2: them was, and you should certainly be able to define
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Speaker 2: what your relationship essentially was, or you would know how
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Speaker 2: to define your relationship. So for me, basse only as
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Speaker 2: a ledge messages, there was no excuse for their not
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Speaker 2: being early honesty and receiving those text messages now that
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Speaker 2: now that I have received them yesterday, it's one of
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Speaker 2: those ones, I what do I do with these now
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Speaker 2: that these aren't pleasant reading? So I've sent them on
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Speaker 2: to the i CAC for their information. Now, I don't
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Speaker 2: know if the I can I can't do anything in
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Speaker 2: this space. I'm not sure there's actually been a breach
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Speaker 2: of the i CAAC Act, but thought give it to
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Speaker 2: them for their information. I think as a as a government,
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Speaker 2: we've done the things that we need to do in
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Speaker 2: terms of them. For Blaine, he's been removed from office
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Speaker 2: fareer positions and he's no longer welcome in the in.
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Speaker 3: Our party room. But yeah, i'd be fair to say, so.
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Speaker 1: When did you see these messages? When did you When
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Speaker 1: did you first see these messages?
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Speaker 3: So the only yesterday basically was the.
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Speaker 1: First time did your staff first see these messages?
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Speaker 3: Yesday?
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Speaker 1: So you're telling me that at no point your staff
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Speaker 1: had seen any of the content of these messages up
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Speaker 1: until yesterday.
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Speaker 3: Yeah.
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Speaker 2: I think there's a couple of important points I want
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Speaker 2: to clarify here because there's been some allegations around. Yes,
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Speaker 2: there was the first time we received the messages as
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Speaker 2: screenshots as basically printed off the originals, and we saw
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Speaker 2: them all. We've seen the ones that have been published
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Speaker 2: in the paper, which was you know, be fair to
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Speaker 2: say say, maybe pretty angry. I'm reading these things in
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Speaker 2: the paper, and that was the first time I'm reading it.
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Speaker 1: But my understanding is that the content of some of
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Speaker 1: this had been put to your staff several days ago.
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Speaker 2: I'm happy to get to that. Yeah, I'm haapy to
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Speaker 2: get to that. So I've got to that yesday in
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Speaker 2: the press conference too. So Empty Independent emailed us to
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Speaker 2: their credit. I think it was about three sh on
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Speaker 2: a Monday. Now, for some reason, their server and my
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Speaker 2: servant this is a bit relevant some ways. It came
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Speaker 2: into us about noon on Tuesday. Says prior to QT
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Speaker 2: that message, that email didn't attach any text messages or
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Speaker 2: didn't attach any screen shots. The body of the email
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Speaker 2: claimed to quote text messages.
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Speaker 3: We took that.
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Speaker 2: Down to the member Blaine and said these are alleged
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Speaker 2: text messages, you know the in quotation marks, and he
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Speaker 2: denied those text messages.
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Speaker 1: Didn't you at that point think to yourself, these are
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Speaker 1: really serious, these text messages, though they may be alleged.
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Speaker 1: I should actually conduct some further questioning and some further
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Speaker 1: investigating in this space because it runs the risk of
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Speaker 1: making us look incredibly bad this week.
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Speaker 2: Yeah, so we had the same HR powers place powers
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Speaker 2: as any other employer, the I was reliant on honesty here, really,
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Speaker 2: so we had no access to the text messages.
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Speaker 3: I couldn't go look at text messages.
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Speaker 2: I had no ability to go look at primary source
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Speaker 2: materials I was relying on.
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Speaker 1: It was in that email.
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Speaker 3: It was alleged in quotation marks, it wasn't attached.
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Speaker 2: So why I've now received on Sunday is the actual
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Speaker 2: print ounce of the screenshots.
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Speaker 1: And upon seeing those, you've deen them so serious that
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Speaker 1: they need to be passed on to the IKAK. So
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Speaker 1: why would they not deem that serious a week ago?
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Speaker 2: Well that there's an important distinction here. A week ago
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Speaker 2: they came in alleged like they weren't attached. I think
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Speaker 2: the significant difference here. It was in a body of
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Speaker 2: an email with some of the alleged someone who has anyway,
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Speaker 2: they came in the body of an email in quotation marks,
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Speaker 2: alleged to be the text messages, and they were denied
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Speaker 2: I had, And so I was reliant at that point
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Speaker 2: on And let's be clear, Member Blaine comes across for
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Speaker 2: incredibly and he's an ex police officer, and he was saying, no,
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Speaker 2: those messages are not true.
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Speaker 3: And so I was in a position of.
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Speaker 2: Trusting my colleague and teammate or trusting someone who sent
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Speaker 2: me an email claiming that these are messages but not
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Speaker 2: attaching And why wouldn't you not attaching the original messages?
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Speaker 1: All right? Now, I believe that really there are two
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Speaker 1: parts to this scandal, the aspect which involves an MLA
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Speaker 1: having an extramarital affair, and the one which involves the
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Speaker 1: alleged uice of illicit substances by one of your staff.
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Speaker 1: Now you're incredibly critical of the former Chief Minister Adam
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Speaker 1: Giles when an MLA in his team sent a lude
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Speaker 1: video to a woman who wasn't his wife. How's this different?
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Speaker 3: So there's a couple of things here.
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Speaker 2: First of all, let's be clear, I do genuinely believe
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Speaker 2: that you shouldn't be having affairs that I think we
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Speaker 2: can all we can all agree on that point, and
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Speaker 2: you should and if asked about it, you should be
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Speaker 2: honest with me, and so I know what I'm dealing
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Speaker 2: with as a staff member, be upfront. The difference between
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Speaker 2: the two incidents, and that there are some and they
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Speaker 2: are important, is when the former member Blaine's incident became
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Speaker 2: public is because of a complaint from a woman who
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Speaker 2: identify herself as a victim, and it came attached with
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Speaker 2: the evidence, and so we had everything in front of
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Speaker 2: us immediately. In this instance, the promatism still hasn't identified
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Speaker 2: ourself as a as a victim here, so we're not
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Speaker 2: dealing with a victim. And I still haven't seen some
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Speaker 2: of the evidence in that. In that instance, I've seen
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Speaker 2: the messages from the member for Blaine have been provided
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Speaker 2: to me anonymously, but I haven't seen those other messages.
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Speaker 2: But what we made clear to that former staff member
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Speaker 2: is that we do expect honesty, and we weren't receiving
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Speaker 2: honesty all right.
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Speaker 1: After the woman at the center of the labor scandal
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Speaker 1: spoke to me and the ABC on a last week,
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Speaker 1: text messages were reportedly exchanged between her and MLA Mark Turner.
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Speaker 1: Now Turner reportedly asked her to make a public statement
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Speaker 1: and say, I'm annoyed my words have been twisted this morning.
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Speaker 1: I'm not in a relationship with anyone. I have and
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Speaker 1: have had friends who are MLAs, and I'm not in
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Speaker 1: a relationship with any of them. I've not been in
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Speaker 1: a sexual relationship with any of them. Regardless of how
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Speaker 1: anyone tries to twist it. Did Mark Turner get the
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Speaker 1: proposed statement checked by anyone on the fifth floor of Parliament?
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Speaker 2: Thank you for asking this question, Katie. I can categorically
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Speaker 2: deny that we ever saw or were party to any
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Speaker 2: of these text messages. I am incredibly angry about the
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Speaker 2: fact that Member Blaine did this has been confirmed by
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Speaker 2: the private citizen. It'd be fair to say I was
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Speaker 2: furious on the Thursday when I learned of this interac action.
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Speaker 2: I think it was highly inappropriate and it went again
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Speaker 2: to the extent and nature of this relationship not being
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Speaker 2: honestly told to me or my team.
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Speaker 1: Who do you think then he had to get the
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Speaker 1: statement checked.
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Speaker 3: By I don't know.
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Speaker 2: I don't know, to be honest, Katie, but it wasn't
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Speaker 2: with us, and I think it was a bloody dumb
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Speaker 2: thing to do that.
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Speaker 1: He's reportedly told the woman that he would get advice,
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Speaker 1: and the advice was not to say anything if he
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Speaker 1: didn't seek advice from you or anybody on the fifth
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Speaker 1: floor of Parliament. Was it someone from the Labor Party?
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Speaker 2: I honestly don't know, Katie. We were obviously providing him
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Speaker 2: support through this periods. He would any member of our team,
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Speaker 2: but our support would not go to this.
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Speaker 3: This was dumb.
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Speaker 1: Okay, did any member of your staff provide advice to
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Speaker 1: the woman at the center of the scandal through Mark
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Speaker 1: Turner at any point?
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Speaker 2: No?
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Speaker 1: Okay? Who wrote Mark Turner's speech that he delivered in parliament?
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Speaker 2: So we work remark on that. So we provided support
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Speaker 2: to the men for Blaine about the.
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Speaker 1: Statement of sex. So despite I know that we've obviously
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Speaker 1: you and I see it differently in terms of when
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Speaker 1: you first saw those text messages and the verocity of
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Speaker 1: those But despite that, then you guys worked with him
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Speaker 1: on that statement, which you know realistically said that there
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Speaker 1: was nothing to see here, that he just set a friendship.
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Speaker 2: Let me build into that, Katie, because this is a
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Speaker 2: very important moment in time. So obviously strongly denied all
11:29
Speaker 2: the way through this by the Memphi blame. We helped
11:32
Speaker 2: him with a statement. So I sat down with him
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Speaker 2: on the Wednesday afternoon and said, there's now an allegation
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Speaker 2: that a labor MLA had a sexual relationship with a
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Speaker 2: private citisen that's now been articulated. At that point that
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Speaker 2: allegation hadn't been actually articulated. I said, mate, you need
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Speaker 2: to make a statement now and based of everything you've
11:51
Speaker 2: been telling me all the way through their you need
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Speaker 2: to deny that. That's the device that you're giving me.
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Speaker 2: We sat down that night and about well, i'm going
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Speaker 2: to say about half hour before he went and delivered
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Speaker 2: the statement.
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Speaker 3: He made some changes to the statement.
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Speaker 1: So you sat down with him.
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Speaker 2: Copeatedly that day and I said to him, Katie, the
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Speaker 2: only way through this mempher baying is brutal honesty, like
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Speaker 2: embarrassing honestly. You have to be completely upfront and you're
12:15
Speaker 2: going to go on the floor of Parliament. You cannot
12:17
Speaker 2: mislead the floor of Parliament. So you've denied this to
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Speaker 2: me up to this point in time. You now need
12:23
Speaker 2: a publicly deny it. There's now been an articulated allegation.
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Speaker 2: You need to deny based of what you've told me.
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Speaker 2: We worked with him around the denial. Just before we
12:34
Speaker 2: went into the chamber to give the statement, he made
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Speaker 2: what in my opinion were material changes to the statement
12:40
Speaker 2: that took out some very important denials.
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Speaker 1: So you reckon he's changed it. After speaking to you.
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Speaker 2: I physically saw it the changes I know, like the
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Speaker 2: statement that I saw and then the statement that he gave.
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Speaker 3: Please let me get through this, Katie.
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Speaker 2: The statement I saw, then the statement he gave, and
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Speaker 2: he made a material change. That was late on the
13:00
Speaker 2: Wednesday night. I slept on that on Wednesday night. I
13:03
Speaker 2: came in Thursday morning very angry, as did most of
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Speaker 2: my team. We'ld all thought about that overnight. I thought,
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Speaker 2: this is now a substantive change to the story, so
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Speaker 2: the denial essentially of a physical relationship. Because I understand,
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Speaker 2: I feel what you're saying about the statement. It went
13:19
Speaker 2: from being a very strong statement to not being a
13:22
Speaker 2: very strong statement.
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Speaker 1: Siva a very strong statement, if I'm honest, because I
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Speaker 1: think the majority of Territorians actually had been reading the
13:30
Speaker 1: paper and listening to this show throughout the week and
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Speaker 1: really thought that there was more to this than what
13:36
Speaker 1: you did. And that's what I'm really struggling to understand
13:38
Speaker 1: at this point.
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Speaker 2: I think it's really important to trust your teammates, and
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Speaker 2: I did, and I did up to the point in
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Speaker 2: time where he changed his story.
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Speaker 1: All right, so he's obviously at.
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Speaker 3: That point, Katie.
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Speaker 2: We went receiving like all the way through this, and
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Speaker 2: I think I finally seen them the Sunday. There are
13:52
Speaker 2: people out there who had more information than me. I
13:56
Speaker 2: was relying on with never Blaine's word versus other people's words.
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Speaker 2: Now have seen the messages as I did on Sunday.
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Speaker 1: He's obviously misled parliament. Does he deserve to stay in Parliament?
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Speaker 2: Well, because he changed his statement, I've able checked that, Katie.
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Speaker 2: I'm not sure if because of the changes. I think
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Speaker 2: he made those changes to the statement on Wednesday night
14:18
Speaker 2: to try and avoid misleading Parliament.
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Speaker 3: I believe that he got elected to represent the people.
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Speaker 3: Are blamed. The people are blaming to make.
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Speaker 2: This decision many ways, not me, And what he needs
14:28
Speaker 2: to do right now is earned back the trust of
14:32
Speaker 2: people are blaming at the least, either double down and
14:34
Speaker 2: recommit to doing his job, which is working for the
14:36
Speaker 2: people are blamed, or make a big decision like that.
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Speaker 1: So should he stay in Parliament? He's my question.
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Speaker 3: So for me, he got elected to do a job.
14:44
Speaker 3: In his decide if he wants to do that job
14:46
Speaker 3: or not.
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Speaker 1: All right, let's move to the second part of this scandal,
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Speaker 1: and that's allegations of cocaine news by one of your staff.
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Speaker 1: Are you investigating this?
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Speaker 2: I want to be really clear. I have absolutely no
15:00
Speaker 2: evidence of any cocaine use by my staff. I've got
15:05
Speaker 2: a lot of all my staff are extremely hard working.
15:08
Speaker 2: This cross all the mysterial offices, extremely hard working. I
15:11
Speaker 2: know a lot of them have been very emotionalless week
15:12
Speaker 2: because they feel they've been essentially besmirched here. At no
15:15
Speaker 2: stage has any evidence come forward about any one of
15:18
Speaker 2: my team using cocaine.
15:19
Speaker 1: Why someone stood down.
15:21
Speaker 2: Though they were not honest with us at all about
15:25
Speaker 2: the nature of their relationship and the exchange of the
15:29
Speaker 2: information that they had, there's no disclosure, and even when
15:32
Speaker 2: they'd give an opportunity to disclose, the disclosed fully so
15:36
Speaker 2: they then went on leave.
15:38
Speaker 1: So it's over a personal relationship.
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Speaker 2: Over a personal over the failure to adequately and honestly
15:47
Speaker 2: inform us of the nature of their relationship.
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Speaker 1: Are you aware if the MLA in question was in
15:53
Speaker 1: the room when allegedly illicit substances were being taken.
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Speaker 2: No, my understanding for the messages I've seen now, the
16:02
Speaker 2: only reference to cocaine is the private citizen talking about
16:05
Speaker 2: using it at a night when the men for blame
16:07
Speaker 2: wasn't there.
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Speaker 1: So do you have any knowledge of any allegation of
16:12
Speaker 1: staff on the fifth floor of Parliament House using illegal substances.
16:17
Speaker 2: Yep, So I argon there's two things here. One, I've
16:19
Speaker 2: absolutely no information or evidence.
16:21
Speaker 3: About that at all.
16:23
Speaker 2: I am aware that there's a lot of roomors out
16:24
Speaker 2: there in the politics as an industry that.
16:28
Speaker 1: With respect, Chief Minister, what you referred to earlier last
16:31
Speaker 1: week was rumor and innuendo, and obviously it turned out
16:34
Speaker 1: to be a much bigger issue than what you'd initially thought.
16:39
Speaker 1: So in this case, do you think that it's time
16:41
Speaker 1: to bite the bullet and maybe take a closer look
16:44
Speaker 1: into these allegations as well.
16:47
Speaker 3: Yes. So there's a couple of things I do here regularly.
16:50
Speaker 2: So today I'll be having a hole of office, hall
16:54
Speaker 2: of floor staff meeting where I'll be reinforcing our values,
16:58
Speaker 2: and this is obviously one of them.
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Speaker 3: That's not a new thing.
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Speaker 2: I've done that regularly, but I think it's timely to
17:03
Speaker 2: do it again. I just want to be really clear
17:06
Speaker 2: here because right now this is a rumor, and there
17:10
Speaker 2: are and politics lots of rumors. There's no evidence to
17:12
Speaker 2: support this rumor, and I've got a lot of staff
17:14
Speaker 2: at the moment who are feeling a bit damaged because
17:17
Speaker 2: this rumor is going around and no ability to defend themselves,
17:19
Speaker 2: So I do feel important.
17:21
Speaker 1: Do you had to meet with any staff from your
17:23
Speaker 1: office or others in recent time to speak to them
17:26
Speaker 1: about the alleged juice of illicit substances?
17:29
Speaker 3: No, because we've got no evidence to support that.
17:32
Speaker 1: Has your chief of staff, your current or former had
17:35
Speaker 1: to meet with staff on the fifth floor about the
17:37
Speaker 1: alleged juice of illicit substances?
17:40
Speaker 2: So both my current chief of staff and my former
17:42
Speaker 2: chief of staff, I've asked them to reinforce with all
17:46
Speaker 2: our staff the same message I reinforced with my caucus
17:48
Speaker 2: and cabinet, and that goes to values of which this
17:50
Speaker 2: is one of them. So absolutely, but part of a
17:53
Speaker 2: broader conversation about what our values are.
17:56
Speaker 1: If at any point it is found that drugs have
18:01
Speaker 1: been used by anyone on the fifth floor or in
18:03
Speaker 1: your team, will you take action?
18:05
Speaker 3: It's utterly unacceptable and indefensible.
18:07
Speaker 1: Have you have police asked you for information or assistance
18:10
Speaker 1: from your office into this space.
18:12
Speaker 2: No, I'm not ware of any police investigation and police
18:14
Speaker 2: haven't confirmed and investigation.
18:15
Speaker 1: So will you at any point launch an investigation or
18:19
Speaker 1: do you feel that there's nothing to see here.
18:20
Speaker 3: Well, there's probably a couple of things here.
18:23
Speaker 2: I don't have any extraordinary workplace powers beyond anyone else.
18:27
Speaker 2: I can only do what any other boss or employee
18:29
Speaker 2: would do. People have private lives. I've done everything I
18:34
Speaker 2: can do. Beast in the information I have when it
18:36
Speaker 2: comes to our staff, and I think on I'm going
18:38
Speaker 2: to do today when I sit down the staff again,
18:40
Speaker 2: is just really remind them of all our values, of
18:42
Speaker 2: which this is one.
18:43
Speaker 1: Do you support drug testing in Parliament House?
18:46
Speaker 2: I have a general view against drug testing full stop
18:48
Speaker 2: will be a very large public service over twenty two
18:51
Speaker 2: thousand people.
18:51
Speaker 1: I don't think specifically for Parliament House.
18:54
Speaker 3: Well, no, I don't.
18:55
Speaker 2: How come I just don't think it's I don't think
18:57
Speaker 2: it's necessary. I think it's costly. I just think it's
18:59
Speaker 2: time waste.
19:01
Speaker 1: Chief Minister, you are the leader of the Northern Territory
19:03
Speaker 1: and obviously you deal in public perception, and right now
19:06
Speaker 1: the perception is that the government's plagued by scandal. Do
19:09
Speaker 1: you have the support of your caucus yes. Do you
19:11
Speaker 1: have the support of your cabinet yes. Do you have
19:13
Speaker 1: the support of the Labor Party yes? How well, have
19:17
Speaker 1: you actually met with the Labor Party.
19:19
Speaker 2: I've been speaking with the President. We're going to have
19:21
Speaker 2: a few more conversations. I've let her know that the
19:24
Speaker 2: mempher Blaine's exclusion from our party room should be taken
19:27
Speaker 2: as a recommendation for them to reconsider his membership status.
19:30
Speaker 2: I know this is a tricky thing for them, but
19:32
Speaker 2: how they handle that, not not necessarily in terms of
19:34
Speaker 2: whether he's value stand up or not, but just legally
19:36
Speaker 2: what we can or can't do in terms of how
19:38
Speaker 2: they handle their membership.
19:39
Speaker 3: But they absolutely seriously need to consider it.
19:41
Speaker 1: Should he be asked it.
19:42
Speaker 3: Well, in my opinion, he hasn't met our standards.
19:44
Speaker 2: I just know it's easier for us to remove them
19:46
Speaker 2: from the party room than it is for them to
19:48
Speaker 2: remove them from the party.
19:49
Speaker 3: And we've seen that. It's not a new debate.
19:51
Speaker 2: We've seen that Victoria there was a very public person
19:54
Speaker 2: and there's a difficult process around that. So they actually
19:56
Speaker 2: have to consider it, and they also need to consider
19:58
Speaker 2: our membership rules.
20:00
Speaker 3: This is something that's difficult for them to do.
20:01
Speaker 1: Chief Minister, do you accept that you should have handled
20:04
Speaker 1: this differently?
20:05
Speaker 2: If I'd no one more, we will have handled it
20:07
Speaker 2: earlier and publicly, and I wish we had received these
20:12
Speaker 2: text mesures earlier than Sunday afternoon. I absolutely would have
20:17
Speaker 2: preferred to handle this early, strongly, publicly. It was a
20:22
Speaker 2: shit of a week. It's not how I would have
20:23
Speaker 2: liked to have played this week at all. And it
20:26
Speaker 2: just goes again to the points of honesty.
20:28
Speaker 1: Have you demonstrated the standards that you set out in
20:32
Speaker 1: your detailed thirty seven page document called Restoring Integrity to Government?
20:36
Speaker 2: I think you saw very strong actions on the Thursday
20:39
Speaker 2: when we had evidence of the extent and nature of
20:41
Speaker 2: the relationship, and we acted to remove from office, fare
20:45
Speaker 2: positions and from our party room. And we did that
20:47
Speaker 2: when we had the evidence.
20:48
Speaker 1: Should you have acted earlier?
20:50
Speaker 2: We acted as soon as we had that evidence. So
20:52
Speaker 2: we did the best we could with information we had.
20:54
Speaker 2: I don't regret not acting on gossip. I want to
20:57
Speaker 2: be our back things.
20:57
Speaker 1: Up, Chief Minister. Do you think you can survive this
21:00
Speaker 1: and remain the Chief Minister?
21:01
Speaker 3: Yes?
21:02
Speaker 1: All right, we better leave it there. We appreciate you
21:04
Speaker 1: answering all those questions this morning. Thank you very much
21:07
Speaker 1: for your time.
21:08
Speaker 3: Thank you.
21:08
Speaker 1: It's our Chief Minister, Michael Gunner. There the phones are
21:11
Speaker 1: going berserk. We have got so many messages flowing through.
21:14
Speaker 1: Zero four one eight nine, five seven, three six nine
21:17
Speaker 1: is the number if you'd like to send us a
21:19
Speaker 1: message