Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Chief Minister Natasha Fyles says people’s behaviours have changed post-COVID with crime now a worldwide phenomenon

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Chief Minister Natasha Fyles says people’s behaviours have changed post-COVID with crime now a worldwide phenomenon · 360 with Katie Woolf

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Speaker 1: And joining me in the studio right now is the
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Speaker 1: Chief Minister, Attasha Files.
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Speaker 2: Good morning to you.
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Speaker 3: Good morning Katie, Good morning listeners.
0:06
Speaker 2: Now Chief Finister.
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Speaker 1: Since we last spoke, the Northern Territory Police Commissioner Jamie
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Speaker 1: Chalker has launched legal action to prevent his dismissal. The
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Speaker 1: Northern Territory Supreme Court in Darwin last week set aside
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Speaker 1: three days from June seven for the Commissioner well for
0:22
Speaker 1: his case to be heard by Justice Judith Kelly. Will
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Speaker 1: this matter be sorted before that date or do you
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Speaker 1: expect that this is going to go ahead in court?
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Speaker 4: So, Katie, I don't want to frustrate your listeners. It
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Speaker 4: is a matter that is before the court and I
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Speaker 4: can't comment. We are in negotiations with Commissioner Chalker and
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Speaker 4: I do hope to resolve the matter as soon as possible.
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Speaker 1: So are you hoping that you reach a point where
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Speaker 1: you can finalize those negotiations before it goes to court?
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Speaker 4: So, Katie, as a matter has been commenced in the
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Speaker 4: Supreme Court, I'm aware of reports discussing that, but I
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Speaker 4: can't provide any further comments on it. My focus is
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Speaker 4: on supporting Deputy Commissioner Acting Commissioner Michael me and the
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Speaker 4: Police Force, who are doing an enormous job across the territory.
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Speaker 1: They're doing a hugely enormous job at this point in time.
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Speaker 1: The ABC has reported that during that court hearing last Monday,
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Speaker 1: mister Talker's counsel Arthur Moses sc said that you had
1:14
Speaker 1: sent mister Talker letter late last month that included four allegations,
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Speaker 1: including one that mister Talker had asked the Australian Defense
1:22
Speaker 1: Force to go into Alice Springs. Mister Talker was on
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Speaker 1: the record saying that that was not required. Are you
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Speaker 1: saying that he did want support from the Defense Force
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Speaker 1: or the Federal Police?
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Speaker 4: Katie, I can't comment on those matters that are before
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Speaker 4: the court, and I appreciate that, you know, the community
1:39
Speaker 4: have a right to know certain information. But as this
1:42
Speaker 4: matters before the court and we're trying to negotiate in
1:44
Speaker 4: good faith, I'm very restricted in what I can say.
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Speaker 1: I guess what I'm trying to get to the bottom
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Speaker 1: of is there has been calls for the Federal Police
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Speaker 1: to step in. You know from this from what I
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Speaker 1: can gather from this report, you've said in that letter
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Speaker 1: that he had sought that a seat, but he'd been
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Speaker 1: on the record saying that he hadn't.
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Speaker 2: I think what territorians probably.
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Speaker 1: Want to know is, you know, were we in a
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Speaker 1: situation here where there was arjibarji about whether the federal
2:09
Speaker 1: police should step.
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Speaker 3: In and help Katie. I can't comment.
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Speaker 4: What I can say is that Deputy Commissioner Murphy continues
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Speaker 4: to act during the period that Commissioner Chalk is on leave,
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Speaker 4: and that arrangement will continue to ensure there's no prejudice
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Speaker 4: to territorians or police force members whilst the commissioner's on leave.
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Speaker 1: So is a Northern Territory government prepared to pay the
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Speaker 1: police commissioner out to avoid what could become a very
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Speaker 1: messy legal battle.
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Speaker 4: Katie, I'm very restricted in what I can say, and
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Speaker 4: I don't want to sound repetitive for the sake of it.
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Speaker 3: I know that that frustrates people.
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Speaker 4: But I can just point to that comment that we're
2:40
Speaker 4: in negotiations in good faith with Commissioner Chalker.
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Speaker 2: Are you hoping it gets sorted quickly?
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Speaker 4: Katie, I'm very restricted in what I can say, but
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Speaker 4: I always act in the best interest of territories.
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Speaker 1: All right, Last week, Marian Scrimjaw, Labour's Federal member for Lingiari,
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Speaker 1: spoke to skuy News about an abhorrence situation that she'd
2:57
Speaker 1: witnessed of a man pouring petrol on a woman near
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Speaker 1: the Darwin Airport Tavern bottle shop. The night before Decklan
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Speaker 1: Lavity was fatally stabbed at that same location. Now, she
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Speaker 1: called police five times and could not get through. She
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Speaker 1: eventually called the Commissioner direct. What do you think that
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Speaker 1: this situation says about resourcing within the Northern Territory Police Force.
3:20
Speaker 4: So Katie and I need to be careful not to
3:22
Speaker 4: comment to that specific incident because it'll be under investigation.
3:25
Speaker 4: But in terms of police and that the calls going
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Speaker 4: through to the emergency number, so triple O, one three one,
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Speaker 4: triple four, they have increased significantly. I don't have those
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Speaker 4: numbers before me, but we have put resource into that DEESK,
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Speaker 4: which is that joint management, so you have ambulance, fires
3:41
Speaker 4: and police that sit at that call center so that
3:43
Speaker 4: they can best manage and cater for those calls. But
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Speaker 4: it has been something that there's been a period of
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Speaker 4: time where particularly those one three one, triple four calls
3:51
Speaker 4: are taking quite a long time and that's information from
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Speaker 4: the public coming through. So it's something that we have
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Speaker 4: put resources into, but we clearly need to do more work.
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Speaker 1: Well, it sounds like if you've got a situation where
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Speaker 1: something incredibly serious like that is happening, I mean calling
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Speaker 1: through five times, not being able to get through. She's
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Speaker 1: lucky enough to obviously have the Police commission as number
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Speaker 1: to be able to call every day.
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Speaker 2: People do not have that luxury.
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Speaker 1: And I want to say right from the outset that
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Speaker 1: everybody knows the police are doing an incredibly good job.
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Speaker 1: But I think the problem that you've got right now
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Speaker 1: is that crime seems to be on the increase.
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Speaker 2: No matter how you look at it, this issue is
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Speaker 2: not going away. But there seems to be a real.
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Speaker 1: Pushback from the Northern Territory government in terms of either
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Speaker 1: increasing resources for the Northern Territory Police in terms of
4:36
Speaker 1: feed on the.
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Speaker 2: Ground or asking for help from the FEDS.
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Speaker 4: Oh, Katie, we absolutely acknowledge the issues the community safety,
4:43
Speaker 4: the crime concerns.
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Speaker 2: You thing to acknowledge them, but not actually.
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Speaker 3: Sought through it.
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Speaker 4: But Katie, we've increased the budget, we have increased the
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Speaker 4: range of resources that police, but also others that work
4:55
Speaker 4: in this space have in terms of the calls. When
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Speaker 4: they go through to that call set, there is a
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Speaker 4: team there. It's a joint team so that they can
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Speaker 4: best decide what resources and prioritization goes.
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Speaker 1: In some cases you're not even getting to the point
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Speaker 1: where it's able to be to be actually tree arched.
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Speaker 4: So they're not able to get through. So Katie, that
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Speaker 4: the Triple O calls nationally are monitored. We acknowledge there's
5:18
Speaker 4: been an increase to emergency centers, you know our emergency center,
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Speaker 4: and that's why you've seen that joint communications have additional resources.
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Speaker 4: We're not saying we won't do more into the future.
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Speaker 4: It's really important that people are able to get through
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Speaker 4: and you sometimes have as you would be aware, multiple
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Speaker 4: people calling through for an incident, and even just the
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Speaker 4: ability for people to know that are at that incident
5:41
Speaker 4: or have witnessed it that some help is on the way.
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Speaker 3: So those types of processes.
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Speaker 1: So is there going to be any budget announcements around
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Speaker 1: the police and an increase in resources more police for
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Speaker 1: the Northern territory.
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Speaker 4: So, Katie, absolutely, there's more police that have recently graduated
5:59
Speaker 4: and there's I think seventy in training.
6:01
Speaker 3: Presently.
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Speaker 4: The police budget is something that is important, Katie, and
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Speaker 4: we've increased that allocation of budget.
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Speaker 3: But it's not just the dollars.
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Speaker 4: It's making sure that they have access to the resources
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Speaker 4: to do their job.
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Speaker 1: So on that note, a few weeks ago you'd told
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Speaker 1: me that there were hundreds of police on leave. You
6:16
Speaker 1: didn't have the exact figure. How are those numbers looking now, Katie.
6:20
Speaker 4: So there's a range of reasons why someone might be
6:22
Speaker 4: on leave, and we've seen a backup obviously the COVID
6:25
Speaker 4: period we demanded more of our frontline people, not just
6:29
Speaker 4: nurses and doctors and those in the health, but we
6:32
Speaker 4: had police fulfilling roles. So trying to give them very
6:35
Speaker 4: much earned leave recreation leave, I should say, But also
6:39
Speaker 4: that broader question around leave and people on longer term
6:42
Speaker 4: leave that perhaps is there ways in which we can
6:44
Speaker 4: work with them to get them back on the beat
6:46
Speaker 4: And it might not be that they get back on
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Speaker 4: the beat walking around, but they can help their colleagues
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Speaker 4: who are doing that.
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Speaker 3: So that is a focus.
6:52
Speaker 1: So I'll ask you that question again, how those numbers
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Speaker 1: looking now, Katie.
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Speaker 3: I don't have them in front of me.
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Speaker 4: It's something that the acting Commissioner would, I'm sure be
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Speaker 4: able to provide you with some more information.
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Speaker 2: Are people coming back from leif certainly.
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Speaker 4: Our aim is to work with people to support them
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Speaker 4: to return to work, Katie, not to just leave them
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Speaker 4: on leave indefinitely. It's complex and it's not straightforward. Every
7:14
Speaker 4: individual circumstance is different.
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Speaker 1: Is this part of the concern and reason behind losing
7:18
Speaker 1: confidence in the commissioner, Katie?
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Speaker 4: As I said, I can't comment on any of the
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Speaker 4: matters around Commissioner Chalker.
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Speaker 1: Okay, there was more crime on the weekend, the same
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Speaker 1: weekend that Territorians gather to pay their respects to Decklan
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Speaker 1: Lavity at a service.
7:34
Speaker 2: At the Convention Center.
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Speaker 1: Now we know at least that a home was invaded
7:37
Speaker 1: in Rapid Creek, a car stolen, bottle shops targeted again,
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Speaker 1: and most sickeningly, a disabled woman was sexually assaulted in
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Speaker 1: Alice Springs.
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Speaker 2: When you hear of incidents like.
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Speaker 1: This continuing on and seemingly endless, is how the community
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Speaker 1: feels right now? Do you question if the way that
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Speaker 1: you're approaching this as the Chief Minister is working, Katie.
7:59
Speaker 4: Just incident in Alla Springs and it is under investigation,
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Speaker 4: but is disgusting. It's apparent when someone picks on someone
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Speaker 4: that is the most vulnerable in our community, and that
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Speaker 4: makes me feel really angry and sick that our community
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Speaker 4: somehow feel that someone in our community feels this behavior
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Speaker 4: is acceptable. For me as Chief Minister, I am not
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Speaker 4: ruling things out. I am very much focused on these issues.
8:21
Speaker 4: We've seen a change in the territory of change in
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Speaker 4: Australia and a change around the world post COVID. We're
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Speaker 4: seeing more violent crime around the world and so we
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Speaker 4: absolutely are putting everything we can to tackle that.
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Speaker 1: I don't think you can blame COVID though on the
8:33
Speaker 1: situation that we're in in the Northern Territory at the moment.
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Speaker 2: It's been on the cards for a long time.
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Speaker 4: Not blaming COVID, Katie, but what I'm saying is if
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Speaker 4: you look around the world post COVID, people's behaviors have changed.
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Speaker 1: We're see so we're like that what we're seeing in
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Speaker 1: the Northern Territory right now is a phenomenon that's being
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Speaker 1: seen all around the world.
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Speaker 3: Katie.
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Speaker 4: That is what evidence is showing us. But for me,
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Speaker 4: it's about tackling me, You're.
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Speaker 1: Going to be honest, I think that that's a really
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Speaker 1: embarrassing thing for the government to say that, you know,
9:00
Speaker 1: the behavior that we're experiencing in the Northern Territory right
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Speaker 1: now is in any way acceptable because there's an increase anywhere.
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Speaker 2: Else around the world. That's not what I said, but
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Speaker 2: it is what you're saying.
9:10
Speaker 1: You're saying that you're saying across the world that there's
9:12
Speaker 1: an increase in different incidents of crime. So is that
9:16
Speaker 1: justifying what's happening on the streets here in the Northern
9:18
Speaker 1: Territory right now.
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Speaker 4: No, that's not what I said. What I said is
9:21
Speaker 4: around the world we're seeing more violent crime.
9:23
Speaker 1: And so do you think what we're saying around the
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Speaker 1: streets of the Northern Territory right now is okay? No?
9:28
Speaker 2: So what are you doing to fix it?
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Speaker 4: So we're working incredibly hard giving police resources, Katie. We're
9:34
Speaker 4: also making sure that we've got the resources to back
9:38
Speaker 4: up not only police, but territory families, the ngngos that
9:41
Speaker 4: we work in partnership with. But we're also putting in
9:44
Speaker 4: place some really innovative resources. So in Alae Springs Lyritippa Corporation,
9:50
Speaker 4: which is the traditional owners. They've started doing community and
9:52
Speaker 4: night patrols with local leaders to help engage with young
9:56
Speaker 4: people and show that strong cultural authority.
9:59
Speaker 3: That's just one example. In Alice Springs.
10:02
Speaker 4: In Tenet Creek, we're working with the mob running youth
10:04
Speaker 4: diversion programs with some really promising results. We've also got
10:08
Speaker 4: in Man and Greta we're doing a law and justice group.
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Speaker 3: So Katie, these are the examples behind just relying on
10:15
Speaker 3: the police to tackle these issues.
10:16
Speaker 1: So I'll ask you once more, are you questioning right
10:20
Speaker 1: now as the Chief Minister if the way that you're
10:23
Speaker 1: approaching this very serious issue is working. I know you've
10:27
Speaker 1: pointed out a few different examples of what you're doing
10:30
Speaker 1: in different locations, But for people listening in their cars
10:33
Speaker 1: this morning in Darwin, for people listening in their offices,
10:36
Speaker 1: for people who have been victims of crime on the
10:39
Speaker 1: weekend and are continuously seeing the various issues that we're
10:44
Speaker 1: all facing around the Northern Territory, do you feel that
10:48
Speaker 1: you are.
10:49
Speaker 2: Getting this right as the Chief Minister? Katie?
10:51
Speaker 4: What else say is that we won't give up. We
10:53
Speaker 4: are part of the community and we have to keep
10:56
Speaker 4: trying different things. It's clearly not just about dollars to police.
11:00
Speaker 4: It's much more than that. And so what I'm saying
11:01
Speaker 4: to your listeners is we're looking at every way in
11:05
Speaker 4: which we can tackle these issues. We need to stop
11:08
Speaker 4: that knife crime and that edge weapon crime before it
11:11
Speaker 4: takes a hold. The incidents we've seen are awful, and
11:14
Speaker 4: our heart goes out to those community members.
11:16
Speaker 3: But Katie, it's multifaceted.
11:18
Speaker 4: There's not one individual solution that will simply make all
11:21
Speaker 4: this go away, but it absolutely is being acknowledged and
11:24
Speaker 4: dealt with.
11:25
Speaker 1: When do you think that we're going to start to
11:27
Speaker 1: see some change, because you know, you and I have
11:30
Speaker 1: had so many discussions about this.
11:32
Speaker 2: It's becoming increasingly frustrating.
11:34
Speaker 1: I'm sure it's frustrating for you hearing me ask the
11:37
Speaker 1: same questions. It's getting bloody frustrating from me hearing the
11:40
Speaker 1: same answers. So when do you anticipate that you are
11:44
Speaker 1: going to start to see things turn around?
11:47
Speaker 4: So, Katie, we've just got to keep working on this,
11:50
Speaker 4: and it's frustrating because we will have a good patch.
11:53
Speaker 4: We will see a period of time where there's some
11:55
Speaker 4: positive results, and I can give you isolated examples of
11:58
Speaker 4: that and then we'll have incidents that completely unacceptable to
12:01
Speaker 4: the community that ruin all that good work on that
12:04
Speaker 4: slight bit of confidence.
12:05
Speaker 1: It's hard for people at the moment to see that
12:07
Speaker 1: good work when we've gone from weekends where we've had
12:09
Speaker 1: the death of a young man who was taken far
12:13
Speaker 1: too soon, that memorial service obviously happening over the weekend.
12:17
Speaker 1: We had a bloke in Rapid Creek who was obviously
12:21
Speaker 1: the victim of more senseless violence and lost his life.
12:26
Speaker 1: We had a situation last weekend where a woman was
12:29
Speaker 1: allegedly stabbed at the hands of her partner and her
12:33
Speaker 1: life was lost. We had two people stabbed last weekend
12:37
Speaker 1: at Casuarina in the car park there. We have also then,
12:41
Speaker 1: you know, that is just talking about fatalities. That's not
12:45
Speaker 1: talking about all of the other senseless and terrible crime
12:49
Speaker 1: that we're seeing. So I think, you know, I get
12:52
Speaker 1: what you're saying, that you're working very hard, but from
12:55
Speaker 1: the community, what they're wanting right now is some real
12:58
Speaker 1: and tangible respects, results, i should say, and some real
13:03
Speaker 1: and tangible change so that we stop seeing what is
13:07
Speaker 1: absolutely terrible violence on the streets of the Northern territory
13:12
Speaker 1: where we want to raise our kids.
13:14
Speaker 4: And Katie, two out of those incidents that you just
13:16
Speaker 4: mentioned in passing with domestic and family violence, and we
13:20
Speaker 4: have put an enormous amount of work into this space
13:23
Speaker 4: because we know that high levels of disadvantage, poverty, vast
13:26
Speaker 4: remoteness impacts that service delivery. That it's grinding, hard work
13:29
Speaker 4: to tackle those issues. We've been facing them for decades,
13:32
Speaker 4: but we certainly are focused around tackling that because it
13:37
Speaker 4: is senseless. When someone that's meant to love someone kills them,
13:41
Speaker 4: it's allegedly kills them. It's absolutely awful and so it's disgusting.
13:45
Speaker 4: You'll get no argument from me, that is for sure.
13:47
Speaker 4: So that's when I point out the complexities. There's youth,
13:50
Speaker 4: there's domestic and family violence. Alcohols are part of this, Katie,
13:54
Speaker 4: but you know we work really closely with industry around alcohol.
13:57
Speaker 4: But Katie, I just want your listeners to understand I
13:59
Speaker 4: can't give you an individualized quick response on the radio
14:02
Speaker 4: that highlights all the work that's happening, but it is happening,
14:05
Speaker 4: but most importantly we acknowledge.
14:08
Speaker 1: So soon do you think we're going to see some
14:11
Speaker 1: tangible change?
14:13
Speaker 4: So Katie, we start to see some of the statistics change.
14:16
Speaker 3: So now you Springs me.
14:17
Speaker 1: Saying to people delivering programs, delivering services, funding that you
14:22
Speaker 1: are providing as the Chief Minister to these different services,
14:25
Speaker 1: that we need to see results. There's got to be
14:28
Speaker 1: KPIs that you've got to mate. So when do you
14:31
Speaker 1: hope that you're going to start to see some change?
14:33
Speaker 4: So we have seen off the back of measures in
14:35
Speaker 4: Alice Springs some change in those statistics. We need to
14:39
Speaker 4: make sure that the measures we've put in place will
14:42
Speaker 4: work into the longer term, but there is certainly been
14:45
Speaker 4: an impact from those measures that have been put in place.
14:48
Speaker 4: All Right, there's a few things I really want to
14:50
Speaker 4: power through and I know that we're very much running
14:52
Speaker 4: out of time. The extension of the Alice Springs alcohol
14:55
Speaker 4: restrictions and out's last week.
14:57
Speaker 2: When's the community of.
14:58
Speaker 1: Alice going to have an idea where and when that
15:01
Speaker 1: two hundred and fifty million dollars is going to be invested.
15:03
Speaker 4: So, Katie, my understanding is that detail which Darrell Anderson's
15:07
Speaker 4: been working through, will be in the Commonwealth budget.
15:09
Speaker 1: Okay, so it's going to be in the Commonwealth budget.
15:11
Speaker 1: They're going to be saying which programs and that kind
15:13
Speaker 1: of thing it will go towards.
15:15
Speaker 4: My understanding is the dollars. So the forty eight million
15:17
Speaker 4: started to roll out already, that was announced first. The
15:19
Speaker 4: two fifty millions the funding from July first. But there
15:22
Speaker 4: will certainly be evidence of that in the federal budget.
15:25
Speaker 2: Chief Minister.
15:25
Speaker 1: An article in the Australian newspaper over the weekend about
15:29
Speaker 1: foster care case in the Northern Territory, which well, I
15:34
Speaker 1: guess the question is are Aboriginal children being removed from
15:38
Speaker 1: their non Indigenous foster parents. That is certainly the insinuation
15:43
Speaker 1: that is made through this article. Well, it's what's been
15:47
Speaker 1: reported in this really very troubling story.
15:50
Speaker 2: I've got to tell you in the Australian over the weekend.
15:52
Speaker 4: So, Katie, when it comes to fostering children, the care
15:56
Speaker 4: and the safety of that child is the absolute paramount
15:58
Speaker 4: importance and cultural connection is important and it's a preference,
16:03
Speaker 4: but it's not everything. But I'm not aware of those
16:05
Speaker 4: specifics around it. But that lets your listeners understand the
16:08
Speaker 4: framework more broadly that child protection works under how is
16:11
Speaker 4: it in.
16:11
Speaker 2: The best interests of a child?
16:12
Speaker 1: Though in this particular case where they're then taken from
16:14
Speaker 1: a non indigenous family where they are happy, where they
16:18
Speaker 1: are safe, and put back in somewhere else because of
16:21
Speaker 1: that kinship, you know, because of that ruling or that
16:25
Speaker 1: sort of rule that is.
16:26
Speaker 2: I guess in place. So one of the priorities.
16:29
Speaker 4: I can't speak to that individual case, but what I
16:31
Speaker 4: can say is the safety of the child and their
16:34
Speaker 4: care is the most important factor when it comes to
16:36
Speaker 4: child protection, remembering a lot of the incidents in the
16:39
Speaker 4: Northern Churchy our child neglect. But kinship and culture is
16:43
Speaker 4: important and it is part of the process.
16:46
Speaker 1: I mean, it's obvious based on this story. I know
16:48
Speaker 1: you've obviously not read it, but based on this story,
16:53
Speaker 1: it's a very real concern. It's something that is happening
16:56
Speaker 1: by the look of what I've read. So why there
16:59
Speaker 1: was just I sort of mocked when she'd raised.
17:01
Speaker 2: This last week.
17:03
Speaker 4: So when Jacinta made her comments, she was talking around
17:07
Speaker 4: the fact that agencies aren't doing anything, which there's a
17:10
Speaker 4: mandatory reporting. Herself and Peter Dutton should have managed to.
17:13
Speaker 3: Report what they heard.
17:14
Speaker 4: But there absolutely is a strong child protection system in
17:17
Speaker 4: the Northern Territory. We had the Bath inquiry where we
17:20
Speaker 4: had a number of the recommendations implemented. That work did stall,
17:23
Speaker 4: but it has certainly been a focus around that Department
17:26
Speaker 4: of Territory Families, those child protection recommendations.
17:29
Speaker 1: Will you go and have a look at that article, Yeah, Katie,
17:31
Speaker 1: I'm happy to read it. I think it's definitely stepping
17:34
Speaker 1: away from that.
17:35
Speaker 4: It's not the first time that someone's written an article
17:37
Speaker 4: or asked a question around that. And so I guess
17:39
Speaker 4: for your listeners, the care and safety of the child
17:41
Speaker 4: is paramount, but kinship and culture is a part of that.
17:45
Speaker 4: But the care and safety be to the detriment of
17:48
Speaker 4: the child, Katie, what they try, it's incredibly offense.
17:51
Speaker 1: You know, like if they're in a really safe environment,
17:54
Speaker 1: should that then should they be taken out of that environment?
17:57
Speaker 2: Because that's a priority.
17:59
Speaker 4: There's a lot of fact that are taken into account,
18:01
Speaker 4: particularly if for child's put in terms to a longer
18:03
Speaker 4: term placement. And I know some placements where children have
18:06
Speaker 4: remained with the care as the foster care as they've got.
18:09
Speaker 4: But there's been incredibly hard work by those foster families
18:12
Speaker 4: to ensure that they have that connection to culture and
18:15
Speaker 4: perhaps extended family because it's even though it's not safe
18:18
Speaker 4: for them to live with their direct family.
18:20
Speaker 1: All right, Chief Minister, A few things that I want
18:22
Speaker 1: to ask, just very quickly about last time you and
18:25
Speaker 1: I spoke about the situation out of Howard Springs, in
18:28
Speaker 1: the damage out there, you'd told me that there had just.
18:31
Speaker 2: Been general wear and tear.
18:33
Speaker 1: That is, despite the fact that we've been receiving messages
18:36
Speaker 1: and calls about how much more serious damage there is
18:38
Speaker 1: out there. Then the Deputy Chief Minister had told nine
18:41
Speaker 1: News that there was more damage than just general wear
18:46
Speaker 1: and tear.
18:47
Speaker 2: Were you deliberately misleading territorials.
18:50
Speaker 4: No, Katie, I was acting upon the advice that I've got.
18:52
Speaker 4: But I asked Minister lawd, so did you get the
18:54
Speaker 4: wrong advice? Well, Katie, I was acting on the advice
18:56
Speaker 4: that I had at the time that it was wear
18:58
Speaker 4: and tear. And I think part of it is those
18:59
Speaker 4: rooms would designed for individual five fax workers and when
19:02
Speaker 4: you've got families trying to sleep with young kids, you know,
19:05
Speaker 4: they items were moved around. But I asked Minister Lawla
19:07
Speaker 4: Infrastructure Minister if she could go out to the vacility.
19:09
Speaker 4: She went out thanked to the front line staff out there,
19:12
Speaker 4: and was able to tour the facility for herself. Mid
19:15
Speaker 4: to late last week, there was an incident of domestic
19:17
Speaker 4: violence which did see some windows broken, around a dozen
19:20
Speaker 4: slightly less, and that's incredibly frustrating.
19:22
Speaker 3: But police are involved in that.
19:23
Speaker 4: But Katie, we've hopefully getting everyone back to community and
19:27
Speaker 4: closing that facility this week and there'll be full assessments made.
19:31
Speaker 4: And they've been cleaning rooms as people have been leaving.
19:33
Speaker 4: There's hundreds already who have returned.
19:34
Speaker 1: So this point in time, do you have any idea
19:38
Speaker 1: how much it's going to.
19:39
Speaker 4: Cost to fix that damage, Katie, It's not significant, like,
19:44
Speaker 4: not millions of dollars.
19:45
Speaker 3: They are also preparing the facility.
19:48
Speaker 4: We've got a contract, not that I think it'll be
19:49
Speaker 4: opened for COVID anytime soon, by the way, till June
19:52
Speaker 4: thirtieth with the federal government. I promise people that those
19:55
Speaker 4: restrictions I think are well and truly done. But Katie,
19:58
Speaker 4: they're cleaning rooms as people are moving out, that mattresses
20:01
Speaker 4: have been moved from room to room.
20:02
Speaker 3: They're being practical about it.
20:04
Speaker 4: We have to have that facility ready to stand up
20:06
Speaker 4: as a center for resilience, but also you know, what's
20:08
Speaker 4: its next goat purpose? But it's not ideal for family
20:11
Speaker 4: type situations, that's for sure.
20:13
Speaker 1: Now an issue which was raised with this last week
20:15
Speaker 1: by the Lord Mayor of Darwin an application for the
20:18
Speaker 1: Esplanade to be heritage listed.
20:20
Speaker 2: Why is the government going down this path?
20:23
Speaker 3: Don't worry. The Lord Mayor has been on the phone
20:25
Speaker 3: to me, Katie.
20:26
Speaker 4: A member of My understanding is a member of the
20:28
Speaker 4: public has referred this application and so that is the process.
20:32
Speaker 4: There's a provisional listing, but it will go to consultation.
20:35
Speaker 4: I think the best way to preserve heritage is to
20:38
Speaker 4: have activation.
20:39
Speaker 3: You see around the world.
20:40
Speaker 2: It's body hard.
20:41
Speaker 1: To do though if it's heritage listed, so you cantie,
20:44
Speaker 1: you're get to struggle to change a light bulb. So
20:46
Speaker 1: a lot of people are really wondering why this has
20:48
Speaker 1: gone forward.
20:49
Speaker 4: So the process is there's a provisional listing and it
20:51
Speaker 4: will go through the process and we that does go
20:54
Speaker 4: open to community consultation. I've heard directly from the Lord
20:57
Speaker 4: Mayor his thoughts around this. He's pretty weld and I
21:00
Speaker 4: take on board the feedback that you said they're about
21:02
Speaker 4: difficult to even change a light bulb. So I think
21:05
Speaker 4: it's something you know, there is a process there. It's
21:07
Speaker 4: the right thing to do to go through that process.
21:10
Speaker 2: Hey, a very quick one.
21:11
Speaker 1: This funding announcement for the shade structure in the city. Sorry,
21:15
Speaker 1: not for the shade structure. It's the city greening. We're
21:19
Speaker 1: not what are we doing with this three million dollars
21:22
Speaker 1: because a lot of people are feeling luck, you know,
21:25
Speaker 1: they're looking at the shade structure and seeing it as.
21:29
Speaker 2: You know, something that.
21:30
Speaker 4: To try and explain it to me, I see what
21:32
Speaker 4: the general publics see about that shade structure. Yes, the
21:34
Speaker 4: weeds in my yard have grown quicker this wet season.
21:37
Speaker 4: The three million dollars is for upgrading infrastructure such as footpaths,
21:40
Speaker 4: and it is about tree planting and making that CBD
21:43
Speaker 4: greener and cooler. But I can absolutely assure you there's
21:46
Speaker 4: not another shade structure going in place.
21:49
Speaker 1: Well, and another announcement I understand is set to be
21:52
Speaker 1: made is that there is going to be some money
21:55
Speaker 1: invested into health, which I know that a lot of
21:57
Speaker 1: people will be pleased to hear. What a significant amount
22:01
Speaker 1: of money is my understanding.
22:02
Speaker 4: Yeah, Katie, your head out later today to Royal Daleen Hospital.
22:05
Speaker 4: Really important health. Our frontline health workers and those that
22:09
Speaker 4: work in our hospitals and our health system have done
22:11
Speaker 4: an amazing job over the last three years, and we
22:14
Speaker 4: are really focused around planning and delivering services for territories
22:18
Speaker 4: into the future.
22:19
Speaker 1: Chief Minison Natasha Files, we better leave it there. Thanks
22:21
Speaker 1: so much for your time this morning.
22:22
Speaker 3: Take care,