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Speaker 1: Now joining me on the line is the Opposition leader,

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Speaker 1: Leah Finocchiaro.

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Speaker 2: Good morning, Leah, Good morning Katie, Good morning listeners.

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Speaker 1: Thanks so much for your time this morning. Now, Leah,

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Speaker 1: I am keen to ask you more about the Treasurer's

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Speaker 1: annual financial Report being tabled in Parliament overnight. But before

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Speaker 1: we get there, we certainly revealed on the show a

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Speaker 1: bit earlier this morning that over eleven million dollars is

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Speaker 1: being invested on these variable message signs. Do you feel

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Speaker 1: as though that's money well spent?

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Speaker 2: Oh, Katie, it's a total way. So I think people

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Speaker 2: have been watching over the last few months wondering what

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Speaker 2: the concrete was for, the wondering what the cabling was for,

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Speaker 2: wondering what the polls were for. And now we've got

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Speaker 2: great big TV screens flagging roads right across the top end,

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Speaker 2: and I don't think people can see the justification for it,

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Speaker 2: particularly when eleven point five million dollars could go into

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Speaker 2: significant road safety upgrades. For example, Kirkland Road and we'll

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Speaker 2: let Boulevard in my electorate needs about one five million

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Speaker 2: for safety upgrade. That would have been a better use

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Speaker 2: of the money. So again we've got to we've got

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Speaker 2: a government with very interesting priorities and a bunch of

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Speaker 2: new TVs.

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Speaker 1: I'm told that you know that the reason that they've

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Speaker 1: had to be spent on this is that there is

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Speaker 1: certainly you know that it was it was money which

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Speaker 1: had been funded from the Commonwealth government around road safety

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Speaker 1: and that there's limits on you know, on what sort

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Speaker 1: of messaging can go on there, and that it is

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Speaker 1: a good thing. I mean, I guess it's it's one

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Speaker 1: of those situations again. It feels leah where I know

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Speaker 1: when the Northern Territory government made the announcement about the

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Speaker 1: grand stand the Turf Club grant for the grandstand, they

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Speaker 1: had said to me at that time, look, they're different

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Speaker 1: buckets of money, because I'd argue, why didn't you invest

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Speaker 1: it into the hospital or something else? And I'm assuming

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Speaker 1: that that's the same case here.

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Speaker 2: Well, even if this money is quarantined to some extent

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Speaker 2: by the federal government through that federal contribution, it would

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Speaker 2: be for road safety upgrade, so the territory government would

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Speaker 2: have absolutely leeway in what it is they spend that

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Speaker 2: money on. And like I said, it could have been

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Speaker 2: used to improve particularly those dangerous intersections that we all,

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Speaker 2: you know, know across the territory Baggett roads. I mean

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Speaker 2: there's examples everywhere, and you know, ultimately, I guess what

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Speaker 2: people are concerned about in the conversations I've been having

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Speaker 2: is one, are these signs exactly going to say? I mean,

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Speaker 2: if it's bucketing down rain, you won't be able to

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Speaker 2: read the sign anyway. If there's a car accident or

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Speaker 2: something happening ahead, which is what's slowing traffic, You've really

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Speaker 2: not got many options in the territory. If you're on

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Speaker 2: the Stewart Highway, you're on the Stuart Highway, if you're

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Speaker 2: on Tiger Brennan. You know, there's very little opportunities to

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Speaker 2: be able to go a different way. So it'll be

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Speaker 2: interesting to see how they use them. But eleven point

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Speaker 2: five million sure is a heck of a lot of money, Katie,

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Speaker 2: And you know, you just question where else that could

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Speaker 2: have gone.

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Speaker 1: It is a lot of money now, I know that.

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Speaker 1: There was further detail in Parliament overnight when the Northern

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Speaker 1: Territory Government Treasurer tabled the twenty twenty one twenty two

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Speaker 1: Treasurer's Annual Financial Report. Leah the final outcome the Northern

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Speaker 1: Territory government say is a fiscal balanced deficit of three

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Speaker 1: hundred and thirty million dollars. The government says this represents

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Speaker 1: an improvement of five hundred and twenty four million dollars

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Speaker 1: since the revised figure in the twenty twenty two to

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Speaker 1: twenty three budget and a massive one billion dollar improvement

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Speaker 1: from the original figure in twenty one twenty two's budget

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Speaker 1: from May last year. However, you look at it, though

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Speaker 1: we are in an enormous amount of debt, was there

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Speaker 1: much else sort of uncovered in that annual financial report

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Speaker 1: of concern from your perspective.

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Speaker 2: Well, I think when the Treasurer produces a report into

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Speaker 2: Parliament at about eleven forty five at night, Katie, there's

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Speaker 2: always reason for concern because it makes me think what

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Speaker 2: are they trying to bury in the middle of the night.

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Speaker 2: But of course we had a lovely speech for from

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Speaker 2: the Treasurer talking it all up. At the end of

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Speaker 2: the day, Katie, what we've got is a seven point

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Speaker 2: six billion dollar debt. That's a billion dollars a year.

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Speaker 2: Labor have added two hours situation since they've been in power.

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Speaker 2: What this TAFA showed is a sixty three million dollar

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Speaker 2: improvement on what they were predicting, But two thirds of

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Speaker 2: that is actually attributed to timing changes, so they've just

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Speaker 2: essentially moved projects from one financial year to the other

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Speaker 2: so that we pay for them later, so that it's

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Speaker 2: not captured in last year's data. And a third of

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Speaker 2: that was also improvements in stamp duty and royalty. So

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Speaker 2: not a lot of good news on the horizon. I mean,

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Speaker 2: I'm pleased it's not nine billion like they thought it

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Speaker 2: would be, but seven point six sure is hefty, and

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Speaker 2: as we're seeing, you know, your listeners will know if

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Speaker 2: you're a frontline public servant, a police, a nurse, a

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Speaker 2: corrections officer, a teacher, you're still out there negotiating a

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Speaker 2: pay rise after what has been a pay freeze position.

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Speaker 2: So certainly next year we're expecting that number to be

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Speaker 2: much higher, given the government will be importantly providing pay

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Speaker 2: rises to frontline workers. But also interest rates are going

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Speaker 2: up and that hits government as much as it hits

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Speaker 2: you know, people out there with their home loans.

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Speaker 1: Leah, was there much further detail provided? I thought that

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Speaker 1: there was some further info that came out as well

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Speaker 1: about the health budget. Do you have much further detail

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Speaker 1: on that, I.

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Speaker 2: Haven't k but they were way over budget, which, of course,

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Speaker 2: you know, I guess to some extent is understandable. But ultimately,

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Speaker 2: you know, if all of our expenses keep going up

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Speaker 2: and this government is not going to unleash the economy

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Speaker 2: like we need so that we grow the size of

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Speaker 2: the pie, then what is the future of the Northern Territory.

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Speaker 2: I think all this path around a forty billion dollar

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Speaker 2: economy by twenty thirty is lovely, but it's taken us

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Speaker 2: nearly fifty years to get a six twenty six billion

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Speaker 2: dollar economy, so the chances of reaching forty in a

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Speaker 2: couple of years time under this government is pretty slim.

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Speaker 2: I'd have to stay, but we need to make massive

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Speaker 2: reform on an economic front to be able to keep

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Speaker 2: up to pace with this government spending and of course

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Speaker 2: all of our liabilities. You know, we have to have

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Speaker 2: a strong frontline service, There's no question about it. We

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Speaker 2: have to deliver good health care, and all of those

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Speaker 2: things cost money, and territories deserve to have the best.

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Speaker 1: Leah, before I let you go, we also know overnight, unfortunately,

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Speaker 1: another rampage through the Alice Springs CBD Police once again

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Speaker 1: urging residents to evacuate the CBD in Alice two land

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Speaker 1: cruisers allegedly stolen and driven dangerously through the town. We've

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Speaker 1: spoken to Senator for the Northern Territory, just Enter Price

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Speaker 1: a bit earlier this morning, and she has said that

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Speaker 1: you know that these problems, these youth crime problems, are

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Speaker 1: a direct result of the failure to protect kids from abuse,

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Speaker 1: and it may take the AFP or the ADF to

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Speaker 1: solve the problem. Do you think we need to go

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Speaker 1: that far?

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Speaker 2: Well, I think Alice Springs is absolutely in crisis and

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Speaker 2: the rest of the territory is not far behind. We've

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Speaker 2: now got dolen vehicles driven by US used as missiles

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Speaker 2: directed at our police. And we asked questions in Parliament

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Speaker 2: about this yesterday, Katie, around what are they is a

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Speaker 2: government doing to protect our police? Like does a police

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Speaker 2: officer have to get killed or another innocent person have

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Speaker 2: to get killed before this government takes different action? Of course,

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Speaker 2: all of our questions were just met with absolute garbage

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Speaker 2: and rhetoric. And Katie, I literally I'm in Parliament right now,

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Speaker 2: I'm sitting in my office. I literally just came out

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Speaker 2: of the chamber. I tried to move my fifth police

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Speaker 2: inquiry into the police crisis. I think I said three

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Speaker 2: lines yep, and Nicole Manison, the former police minister, shut

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Speaker 2: me down, gaged the debate, didn't even let me get

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Speaker 2: through my speech, let alone try and establish an inquiry

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Speaker 2: into our police crisis. So this government is just out

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Speaker 2: of control and I honestly don't know what the answer

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Speaker 2: is because as long as they're in control, we'll have

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Speaker 2: weaker laws, not enough support for our police, and rampant

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Speaker 2: crime across the community.

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Speaker 1: Well, I'll tell you what you's got to change. There

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Speaker 1: is no doubt about that. Lea Finocchiaro, the Opposition leader,

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Speaker 1: we appreciate your time this morning. Thank you for stepping

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Speaker 1: out of Parliament to speak with us.

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Speaker 2: Thank you. Take care everyone,