Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Property Council NT Director Ruth Palmer has slammed the NT Government for acting too slow on crime saying it had the damning survey results from local businesses for about two weeks

Transcript

Property Council NT Director Ruth Palmer has slammed the NT Government for acting too slow on crime saying it had the damning survey results from local businesses for about two weeks · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Now you will recall I guess it was probably two
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  Speaker 1: weeks ago we caught up with the Property Council here
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  Speaker 1: in the Northern Territory. They'd conducted a sentiment survey on
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  Speaker 1: the impacts of property crime as well as anti social behavior,
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  Speaker 1: and the survey revealed that property crime, vehicle theft and
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  Speaker 1: violent and threatening behavior was significantly impacting businesses right across
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  Speaker 1: the Northern Territory. Now joining me in the studio to
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  Speaker 1: talk a little bit more about what the government have
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  Speaker 1: announced and whether it goes far enough and the reaction
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  Speaker 1: I guess following on from that survey a couple of
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  Speaker 1: weeks ago, is Ruth Palmer, the executive director of the
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  Speaker 1: Property Council here in the Northern Territory. Good morning to you.
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  Speaker 2: Ruth, Morning Katie, Thanks for having me now. Ruth.
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  Speaker 1: Obviously, the announcement made by the Northern Territory government yesterday
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  Speaker 1: a lot of political discussion, I guess about that. We
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  Speaker 1: just spoke to Alex Bruce from Hospitality and he said
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  Speaker 1: there is still quite a bit of detail that you know,
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  Speaker 1: that their industry is after when it comes to what
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  Speaker 1: was announced yesterday, particularly in terms of security outside those
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  Speaker 1: and some of the different securing of those premises. But
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  Speaker 1: I guess there is no doubt that across the board
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  Speaker 1: around the territory, based on that recent survey that you did,
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  Speaker 1: it's not just license menus that are concerned about the
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  Speaker 1: issues with crime and antisocial behavior.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's right, Katie. You know, we've got members right
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  Speaker 2: across the territory. And you know we I've got members
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  Speaker 2: that include Woolworths, Casarina Square, Yiperinia down in Ala Springs,
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  Speaker 2: the Zacoli Shops, property owners throughout the territory that have
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  Speaker 2: retail tenants in their business. So you know, when we're
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  Speaker 2: having these conversations, I'm not coming from an uneducated view.
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  Speaker 2: You know, I'm on the ground speaking to these people
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  Speaker 2: all the time. They're calling, they're ringing, they're providing photos,
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  Speaker 2: you know, information that is showing the kinds of behavior
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  Speaker 2: that's occurring. And that's why we have been pushing it
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  Speaker 2: for the last couple of years for action to be
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  Speaker 2: taken to be able to combat this issue. And now,
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  Speaker 2: unfortunately we have seen the death of a young lad
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  Speaker 2: going about his daily business, doing his job, and you
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  Speaker 2: know that that's one that's too far. Like, you know,
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  Speaker 2: this is a this is something should have been corrected.
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  Speaker 2: And you know, we've been having these conversations. We've spoken
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  Speaker 2: with the police Minister, the Chief Minister, and you know,
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  Speaker 2: like we've given them data, we give them these surveys,
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  Speaker 2: we give them the responses four hundred and sixty two
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  Speaker 2: people who did the survey, and you know, it's just
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  Speaker 2: so sad to see that it's happened.
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  Speaker 1: It's too late, Like it is incredibly tough to see.
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  Speaker 1: And I think that even overnight, you know, we've seen
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  Speaker 1: that situation at the loading bay there in the city
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  Speaker 1: in Austin Lane, another example of a knife being used
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  Speaker 1: and of a dangerous situation that we are encountering in
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  Speaker 1: the territory because there has been that escalation and that
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  Speaker 1: was something that was raised in the survey also.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, So one of the questions we asked is what
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  Speaker 2: behavior people had experienced in their premise, whether it be
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  Speaker 2: in their workplace or their property, a business property. And
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  Speaker 2: one of the things that thirty percent of people said
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  Speaker 2: that they had been physically assaulted and that that people
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  Speaker 2: were walking round with edged weapons with some of the commentary. Now,
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  Speaker 2: thirty percent of people out of four hundred and sixty
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  Speaker 2: two respondents had been physically assaulted. That should be enough
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  Speaker 2: in itself for the Chief Minister and the Police Minister
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  Speaker 2: to take immediate action. Thirty percent of people physically assaulted.
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  Speaker 2: It's just not good enough.
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  Speaker 1: Are you disappointed that the government hadn't taken action sooner?
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  Speaker 2: I would would have really loved to have had deeper
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  Speaker 2: conversations around the information that was provided in that survey
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  Speaker 2: which we presented. It was a forty one page report
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  Speaker 2: with every single comment, every single piece of information was
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  Speaker 2: in that survey. So they had that survey for two
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  Speaker 2: weeks and you know, and now we're hearing the changes
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  Speaker 2: now yesterday because someone died.
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  Speaker 1: Now. I mean, I think that a lot of the
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  Speaker 1: discussion that I'm hearing this morning. I've heard it from Alex,
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  Speaker 1: I've heard it on the text line. It's something that
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  Speaker 1: I'd said earlier in the week as well, is that
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  Speaker 1: we're sort of just at the point as well where
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  Speaker 1: we want those political differences put aside and I actually
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  Speaker 1: want to see all of our parliamentarians work together for
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  Speaker 1: a safer all Northern territory because that is the big concern,
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  Speaker 1: and it has been a big concern for an awful
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  Speaker 1: long period of time.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely. You know what I would like to see and
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  Speaker 2: like you've said as well, Katie, party politics put aside.
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  Speaker 2: This is a serious issue. The CLP and the ALP
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  Speaker 2: need to work together. They need to come together, come
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  Speaker 2: up with a solutions based, sensible policy for this issue.
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  Speaker 2: You know, that's what Territorians deserve. They deserve to have
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  Speaker 2: their leaders working together. You know, there's skills across both
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  Speaker 2: sides and to be able to work together means that
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  Speaker 2: there will be that collective approach. We will get that
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  Speaker 2: sensible policy up and it needs to happen now. You know,
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  Speaker 2: we've got Parliament on at the moment. You know, we
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  Speaker 2: don't want to hear bickering across question time or across
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  Speaker 2: the floor. We want to see that there is action,
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  Speaker 2: a serious action that's coming out of this. And you
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  Speaker 2: know we do need to put that politics aside because
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  Speaker 2: the territory deserves it.
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  Speaker 1: Do you feel as though the announcement that was made
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  Speaker 1: yesterday was enough?
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  Speaker 2: I think it's a start, but there is still so
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  Speaker 2: much detail that needs to come out of that. You know,
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  Speaker 2: a review how long does a review take? I know
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  Speaker 2: you said that to Alex Bruce just before. How long
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  Speaker 2: does a review take to happen. We need the emergency
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  Speaker 2: powers in immediately. We need resources and support for police.
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  Speaker 2: You know, our survey said that eighty five percent of
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  Speaker 2: people said that there was not enough resources for the police.
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  Speaker 2: So you know, these are the immediate action responses that
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  Speaker 2: need to happen. Police need the resources to be able
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  Speaker 2: to combat this immediate issue that's happening now as a
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  Speaker 2: result of the policies in the past that unfortunately haven't
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  Speaker 2: worked and led to the behavior that we're seeing now.
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  Speaker 1: Well, Ruth Palmer, we are going to have to leave
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  Speaker 1: it there. We are going to be speaking to the
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  Speaker 1: Police Commissioner at about ten twenty this morning, so stick
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  Speaker 1: around for our listeners. There's plenty more coming your way
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  Speaker 1: after ten o'clock. Ruth, thanks so very much for your
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  Speaker 1: time this morning.
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  Speaker 2: Thanks Katie,