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Speaker 1: Joining me in a weekly spot and it is a

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Speaker 1: very busy week for her. It is Robin Lamley who's

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Speaker 1: the Speaker of the Northern Territories Legislative Assembly, also the

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Speaker 1: Independent member Fararah Luhn. Good morning to you, Robin.

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Speaker 2: Good morning Katie.

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Speaker 1: Robin. Busy, busy week for you. And I tell you what,

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Speaker 1: it was a bit of a juggle for you yesterday

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Speaker 1: throughout question time. I'm hoping you can clear up a

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Speaker 1: bit of discussion for us. You sent a letter to

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Speaker 1: the members of the Legislative Assembly warning them of making

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Speaker 1: disparaging comments about the administrator. Why did you do that?

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Speaker 2: Well, on Monday morning it coincided with the commencement of

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Speaker 2: employment essentially of the new Administrator, the Honorable David Connolly,

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Speaker 2: and this is a complete coincidence. But it did trigger

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Speaker 2: a particular rule in our rule book called the Standing Orders,

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Speaker 2: which pertains to respecting the head of state and in

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Speaker 2: this case in the Northern Territory it's the administrator. So

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Speaker 2: it wasn't warning people, it was just advising them and

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Speaker 2: reminding them that standing Order thirty clocks in as of today,

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Speaker 2: the commencement of the tenure of our new administrator. Despite

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Speaker 2: the fact, he hasn't been sworn in yet and he's

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Speaker 2: not undertaking his executive functions. He became the Honorable David

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Speaker 2: Connolly as of Monday, or actually Sunday. He started to

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Speaker 2: work on Sunday. So just to be aware of that, people,

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Speaker 2: members of Parliament, you have to respect the administrator, Robin.

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Speaker 1: Some people are labeling it as a gag order. Is

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Speaker 1: that how you intended it?

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Speaker 2: Well, I don't write these rules, and every Commonwealth Parliament

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Speaker 2: around the world, and there's many of them, have the

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Speaker 2: same rule. You can't disrespect the King or the Queen,

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Speaker 2: and you can't respect the governor, disrespect the Governor General

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Speaker 2: and in our case the administrator. So it just was

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Speaker 2: a coincidence that he started work on Sunday and that

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Speaker 2: came into effect. Now, if people think that I have

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Speaker 2: deliberately set this up to silence and gag anyone, it

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Speaker 2: is ridiculous and offensive and for members of Parliament to

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Speaker 2: imply that is completely out of order. But it's just

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Speaker 2: the way it is, Katie. We are a part of

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Speaker 2: a Westminster parliamentary system and our new administrator will be

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Speaker 2: respected by members of Parliament.

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Speaker 1: Robin. There definitely seem to be a bit of confusion

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Speaker 1: yesterday through particularly through question time. Are members still allowed

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Speaker 1: to ask questions if they're not disparaging.

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Speaker 2: Look of a particular nature. So anything that personally reflects

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Speaker 2: on our administrator is unacceptable. But if it's of a

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Speaker 2: process nature, which we had a few questions, or there

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Speaker 2: was a motion motions put up in Parliament yesterday of

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Speaker 2: a process nature, and not talking about what may or

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Speaker 2: may not have happened years ago, things that have been

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Speaker 2: said and done by the administrator, but of a process nature,

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Speaker 2: then that's fine. So we've got a motion before Parliament

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Speaker 2: this afternoon looking at the process of appointing future administrators

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Speaker 2: of the Northern Territory and referring that whole notion to

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Speaker 2: the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee for an inquiry and

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Speaker 2: report that's been put up by the Opposition leader. So

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Speaker 2: that's fine. We're not talking about anything personally to do

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Speaker 2: with the current administrator. We're looking at the process of

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Speaker 2: appointing the administrator, which is a great interest to everyone.

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Speaker 2: I think, given strength by over the last month, I

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Speaker 2: think it would be a really useful thing to do.

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Speaker 2: Who appoints them, what's the betting process, who's involved? Everything

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Speaker 2: Just look at the whole thing. So territories know how

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Speaker 2: these decisions are made.

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Speaker 1: Absolutely, you know, they deserve to be able to have

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Speaker 1: those questions answered. Robin, what about you know that? So

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Speaker 1: you know, no members allowed to sort of you know,

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Speaker 1: quote anything that he said in the public before or

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Speaker 1: anything like that.

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Speaker 2: No, I'm not going to allow that. And there's precedence

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Speaker 2: right across the Commonwealth for how these things are managed.

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Speaker 2: I mean that discussion within Parliament will not be accepted.

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Speaker 2: It's time for us to just accept the fact that

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Speaker 2: this the Honorable David Connolly has been appointed and we

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Speaker 2: move on. But look, in terms of public debate about this,

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Speaker 2: that's a separate issue. But my role is to uphold

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Speaker 2: the rules of the Parliament and rule standing on a thirty.

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Speaker 2: Rule number thirty says that we will not disrespect the

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Speaker 2: Minister Trada in any way and raising things around what

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Speaker 2: he has or hasn't done in the past is deemed

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Speaker 2: as disrespectful. And I've done a lot of research, I'm Katie.

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Speaker 2: We've dug around through the records of the House of

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Speaker 2: Representatives in Australia. There's all sorts of examples of members

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Speaker 2: of Parliament in other jurisdictions raising questions about the integrity

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Speaker 2: and thing the history of the Governor General of Australia

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Speaker 2: in the past, and these things have to be managed

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Speaker 2: particularly carefully because you know, as I said, whether we

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Speaker 2: like it or not, we are a part of the

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Speaker 2: Westminster system and we will respect the heads of state.

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Speaker 1: And Robin, does that really only though, apply while they're

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Speaker 1: in the chamber or if when those members are outside

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Speaker 1: the chamber, if I'm asking them questions about it, are

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Speaker 1: they still allowed to answer them?

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Speaker 2: Well, my jurisdiction does and go beyond the chamber really,

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Speaker 2: But if it was reported back to me that members

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Speaker 2: have been making disrespectful and disparaging remarks of a personal

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Speaker 2: nature about the administrator, if it's reported to me, I

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Speaker 2: certainly don't go policing as I would the same thing

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Speaker 2: would apply. They just can't do it.

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Speaker 1: I mean, Robin, getting were getting back into the you know,

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Speaker 1: back into the days of people being offended, you know,

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Speaker 1: by different words.

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Speaker 2: Look, Katie, I think it's it's a different it's a

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Speaker 2: different notion here. It's the way our parliament works. If

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Speaker 2: people want to change our system of government and our

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Speaker 2: parliamentary system, then you know, join the Republican Group or something.

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Speaker 2: But the way the way we the way we operate

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Speaker 2: is around respecting the head of state and you know,

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Speaker 2: the King and Queen. The same as as if someone

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Speaker 2: decided to speak a member of Parliament spoke disparagingly about

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Speaker 2: our current king, they would be disciplined by the Speaker

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Speaker 2: and how to account and maybe censured in some way.

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Speaker 2: So look, I'm not going to pre empt any of that.

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Speaker 2: My advice is based on the words written in our

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Speaker 2: rule book and that is we won't do that. We

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Speaker 2: will not disrespect the administrator. If people want to go

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Speaker 2: outside the chamber and make comments, then that is disorderly too,

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Speaker 2: But it's not my job to police all that. If

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Speaker 2: it's reported back to me, if someone complains that this

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Speaker 2: has happened, then I will take that up. But I'm

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Speaker 2: certainly not going to be tuning into every media outlet

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Speaker 2: and reading everything just to make sure that people aren't

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Speaker 2: doing that. That's not technically my job.

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Speaker 1: Well, Robin Lanley, the Speaker of the Northern Terre Legislative Assembly,

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Speaker 1: we'll catch up with you again next week. Always appreciate

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Speaker 1: your time. I'll let you go and get into Parliament.

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Speaker 2: Thank you, Katie, thank you, thanks so much,