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Speaker 1: But joining us on the line right now is Senator

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Speaker 1: for the Northern Territory Sam McMahon. Good morning to you.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, good morning Katty.

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Speaker 3: How are you very well? Thank you?

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Speaker 1: Now, Senator, we know the Australian Government has confirmed that

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Speaker 1: eligible workers that live or work in Commonwealth declared pandemic

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Speaker 1: hotspots in the territory are now going to be able

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Speaker 1: to claim the COVID nineteen disaster payment from August twenty five. Senator,

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Speaker 1: can you talk us through who is eligible?

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Speaker 2: Yes, yes, Katie. So the Chief Medical Officer has declared

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Speaker 2: that the hotspots that the areas that are under lockdown

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Speaker 2: being dah and rural areas and Catherine workers in those

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Speaker 2: areas will be eligible for the COVID disaster payments. So

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Speaker 2: that'll mean that if you've lost more than twenty hours

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Speaker 2: of work, you'll get seven hundred and fifty dollars per week.

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Speaker 2: Eight to twenty hours you'll get four hundred and fifty dollars.

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Speaker 2: Or if you've lost more than eight hours and you

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Speaker 2: are receiving some other kind of income support but working

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Speaker 2: as well, then you'll get two hundred dollars.

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Speaker 3: And when does that eligibility kick in? Because I know that.

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Speaker 1: Obviously, the Northern Territory declared us in lockdown Monday at lunchtime,

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Speaker 1: but is that when we were declared a hot spot

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Speaker 1: by the Commonwealth.

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Speaker 2: No, the Chief Medical Officer actually declared us a hot

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Speaker 2: spot from eleven fifty nine pm on Tuesday night, so

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Speaker 2: it doesn't quite align with the Territory government's declaration. But

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Speaker 2: this is the first time. This is unprecedented, Katie. This

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Speaker 2: is the first time that an area has been declared

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Speaker 2: by the Commonwealth for a three day lockdown over one case.

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Speaker 2: Normally we wouldn't be eligible.

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Speaker 3: I suppose.

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Speaker 1: So the reality is there is there going to be

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Speaker 1: that many people who are actually eligible, given then that

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Speaker 1: it's realistically only going to be sort of, you know,

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Speaker 1: a day and a half of work that most people

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Speaker 1: are losing in the Commonwealth size.

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Speaker 2: Well, look, that's assuming that it ends today, which I

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Speaker 2: certainly hope it does. But you know, if it doesn't,

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Speaker 2: and that's a possibility, then that will extend to a

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Speaker 2: whole pile of other people. It also means that whilst

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Speaker 2: not many people might qualify for the twenty plus hours,

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Speaker 2: a lot of people will qualify for the slightly lower

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Speaker 2: payment of the eight to twenty hours.

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Speaker 1: It's a bit, you know, I suppose it's a bit

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Speaker 1: of a kick in the guts to some people that

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Speaker 1: are listening. This morning, though, I was thinking, oh, well,

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Speaker 1: I haven't been able to work since Monday, you know,

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Speaker 1: so why doesn't this kick in from then?

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Speaker 2: Well? Yeah, like I said, Katie, I mean some people

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Speaker 2: might say, you know, would prefer that you know, it

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Speaker 2: kicked in from Monday and we got the we're eligible

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Speaker 2: for the full amount. But I would say to the look,

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Speaker 2: this is unprecedented. You're very, very lucky to be getting

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Speaker 2: at least part of that, because normally that wouldn't have happened.

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Speaker 2: It's the first time that the Chief Medical Officer has

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Speaker 2: declared it as a hot spot for one single air case.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, why wouldn't usually have not happened, Senator, Because it's

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Speaker 1: a very.

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Speaker 2: Short lockdown, it's only three days, and in one case,

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Speaker 2: the chief Medical Officer would normally say, well, you know,

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Speaker 2: we don't want to encourage states and territories to be

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Speaker 2: declaring lockdowns when they don't need to, so mostly they

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Speaker 2: would say no, this was an unnecessary lockdown. So you know,

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Speaker 2: Northern Territory, you can fund the people that you've inconvenienced

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Speaker 2: and that have lost work and lost money over it.

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Speaker 2: But I managed to convince the Minister that the Northern

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Speaker 2: Territory was different and was special and in this case

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Speaker 2: that those payments should apply to territori ins.

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Speaker 1: Senator, just reading between the lines there, it sounds as

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Speaker 1: though you don't really agree that the Chief Minister sent

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Speaker 1: us into a lockdown over one case.

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Speaker 2: Well, normally no, but you know, the special consideration that

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Speaker 2: I put forward to the Minister was the fact that

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Speaker 2: we have a huge number of very vulnerable Indigenous communities

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Speaker 2: out there where vaccination rates are extremely low, and in

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Speaker 2: this case, this person was in Catherine, where a lot

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Speaker 2: of those people come in to shop and to do business,

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Speaker 2: and therefore there was a very high risk that you know,

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Speaker 2: this guy was in Woollies and there'd be lots of

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Speaker 2: people in there at that time, and a lot of

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Speaker 2: them could be from surrounding indigenous communities, and that dictated

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Speaker 2: the fact that a lockdown was in fact necessary. Whereas

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Speaker 2: normally one case you wouldn't say that you would lockdown,

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Speaker 2: you'd say that would be an overreaction, but in these

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Speaker 2: unique circumstances it probably was justified and necessary.

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Speaker 1: Sort of sounds like a bit of a backhand it, does,

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Speaker 1: you know, backhanded compliment their I spose, Senator, Well.

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Speaker 2: Yes, yes, I guess. I mean, you know, you would

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Speaker 2: normally say that that was a massive overreaction and that

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Speaker 2: we should never have shut down for one case. But

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Speaker 2: the fact is that the Territory Labor government has not

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Speaker 2: been very good or very proactive at rolling out vaccinations

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Speaker 2: to indigenous communities. We know the rates are extremely low,

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Speaker 2: so you know, it's basically because of their own incompetence

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Speaker 2: that they were forced into doing this. So yes, in

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Speaker 2: that case, I guess it is. It is kind of

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Speaker 2: a backhanded compliment. You know, it's because they were incompetent

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Speaker 2: that they had to take this step.

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Speaker 1: Well, look, I suppose some out there listening would argue

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Speaker 1: that the government's done a fairly good job in terms

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Speaker 1: of rolling out the vaccine, and that in some cases

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Speaker 1: it's been the responsibility of the government to ensure that

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Speaker 1: we've got enough vaccine to roll out.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, Katie, look, we've got plenty of vaccine. The waiting

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Speaker 2: times in the territory to book an appointment are pretty

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Speaker 2: much nonexistent, I know, for quite a long while in

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Speaker 2: Tenant Creek, people were just rocking up without an appointment,

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Speaker 2: getting straight in and everyone irrespective of their age, was

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Speaker 2: getting a dose of Fizer. So you know that there's

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Speaker 2: plenty of vaccine out there and the government overall has

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Speaker 2: been good at rolling it out to Territorians, but not

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Speaker 2: in Indigenous communities. The vaccination rates in Indigenous communities are

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Speaker 2: extremely low.

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Speaker 1: Senator, I know that there's going to be people listening

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Speaker 1: this morning who are really concerned that they are going

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Speaker 1: to slip through the cracks when it comes to eligibility

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Speaker 1: of this payment. You know, what would you say to

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Speaker 1: those listening who are thinking, you know, I'm missing out

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Speaker 1: here despite the fact that I've missed three days of work.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, look, definitely definitely jump on the website and have

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Speaker 2: a look. And even if you're unsure put in a claim,

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Speaker 2: you need to sign They need to sign up to

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Speaker 2: the mic of website now and then come the twenty

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Speaker 2: fifth of August, they're eligible to put in a claim

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Speaker 2: for this period of lockdown. Even if it ends as

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Speaker 2: we hope at midday today, they're still able to put

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Speaker 2: in a claim. Even if you're unsure. If you're eligible,

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Speaker 2: go online check it out or call Services Australia Hopeline

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Speaker 2: YEP and see and check if you're eligible.

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Speaker 3: Now, Senator, can I just ask quickly.

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Speaker 1: I know it is looking as though Howard Springs Quarantine

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Speaker 1: Facility we'll play a key role in the emergency repatriation

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Speaker 1: of people from Afghanistan, as I understand that some of

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Speaker 1: those preparations are underway to start taking people evacuated on

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Speaker 1: those Australian Defense Force.

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Speaker 3: Flights out of Kabul.

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Speaker 1: Do you have any idea at this stage how many

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Speaker 1: people are going to be coming to Darwin.

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Speaker 2: No, Look, we don't know. I think there was twenty

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Speaker 2: six on the first flight. That's an extremely low number.

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Speaker 2: Conditions over there are very very dangerous and very very difficult,

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Speaker 2: and we are trying to get as many people out

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Speaker 2: as quickly as we can. But you know, we need

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Speaker 2: to we need to make sure that the people operating

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Speaker 2: those flights and getting people out are safe as well.

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Speaker 2: And it's a rapidly changing situation, so I wouldn't even

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Speaker 2: like to speculate what's going to happen in the next

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Speaker 2: twenty four hours, let alone in the coming days or weeks,

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Speaker 2: So you know, we could be getting quite a lot

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Speaker 2: of people, but we just don't know.

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Speaker 3: I mean, I agree with you.

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Speaker 1: I think that it's such a difficult situation at this point,

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Speaker 1: and you know, no one wants to speculate exactly what

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Speaker 1: is going to go on. But do you think that,

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Speaker 1: you know, realistically, we should be playing a key part

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Speaker 1: here in terms of bringing some of those those people

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Speaker 1: here to the territory and to Darwin to be at

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Speaker 1: the Howard Springs quarantine facility.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. Absolutely, you know, if we've got the capacity, which

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Speaker 2: I believe we do, we should be bringing some of

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Speaker 2: those people. We've also got the other facility which I

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Speaker 2: keep talking about at Bladen Village hasn't been touched by

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Speaker 2: the territory government yet. It has been used for the

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Speaker 2: Marine Rotational Forces, so that is sitting there and that

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Speaker 2: can be used for extra capacity for a whole range

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Speaker 2: of things from ad workers to international students to people

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Speaker 2: coming back from Afghanistan. So we've got a lot of

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Speaker 2: capacity there. The main thing that limits us, Katie is

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Speaker 2: we only have twelve ICU beds in Darwin, only twelve

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Speaker 2: intensive care beds in the whole of Darwin. So if

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Speaker 2: we do get a flood of people coming in that

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Speaker 2: do have COVID and are going to need intensive care.

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Speaker 2: That is what's going to limit us.

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Speaker 1: Senator, where do those figures come from about the twelve

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Speaker 1: ICU beds, Because lots of people who are listening would

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Speaker 1: be fairly concerned to hear that, I would suggest, yeah.

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Speaker 2: I would think so too. I mean, look, that's a

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Speaker 2: figure that I've known for quite some time. It was

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Speaker 2: one of the reasons we had to suspend repatriation flights

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Speaker 2: from India. And I actually confirmed that figure just two

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Speaker 2: days ago with the federal Health Minister and that yes,

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Speaker 2: it is a fact we only have twelve ICU beds.

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Speaker 2: So if we get more than twelve people needing intensive

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Speaker 2: care at any one time, we're in trouble.

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Speaker 1: Well, I mean, it does really make a sort of

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Speaker 1: question our capability and capacity when it comes to those

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Speaker 1: international repatriation flights.

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Speaker 3: And if we wound up in a situation.

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Speaker 1: For example, like is happening in New South Wales at

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Speaker 1: the moment, obviously on a smaller scale, it would still

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Speaker 1: be a real worry for us.

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Speaker 2: I would think, oh, that's right, I haven't got the

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Speaker 2: latest figures on the number of people that are in

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Speaker 2: the intensive care and on ventilators in New South Wales,

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Speaker 2: but it's way over what our capacity would be. So

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Speaker 2: if we have a New South Wales style outbreak, yes

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Speaker 2: we would be in desperate trouble.

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Speaker 1: Senator, we are going to have to leave it there.

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Speaker 1: I really appreciate your time this morning. Thanks very much

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Speaker 1: for having a chat with us, and also thanks for

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Speaker 1: chatting to us a bit earlier than anticipated because we

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Speaker 1: were due to catch up with the Health Minister but

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Speaker 1: unfortunately that got canceled.

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Speaker 2: No worries, Katie, always a pleasure.

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Speaker 3: Thank you.

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Speaker 1: That is the Senator for the Northern Territory. There the

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Speaker 1: COLPS Senator Sam mcmaht