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Speaker 1: Now a bushfire into volunteer bushfires. Int volunteers had their

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Speaker 1: car stolen while they are out battling bushfires near Epinara.

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Speaker 1: Member for Barkley, Steve Edgington, had posted on social media

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Speaker 1: that the stolen car is a white Master single ut cab.

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Speaker 1: Additionally that two other volunteers had been ransacked and damaged

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Speaker 1: their cars as well. Now he reckons it's been over

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Speaker 1: two years since two public meetings were held in Tenant

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Speaker 1: Creek to try and tackle the ongoing crime issues, and

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Speaker 1: that the information that has been passed on to the

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Speaker 1: Chief Minister to develop a new community safety action plan

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Speaker 1: has been passed on, but there's been no developments. Now

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Speaker 1: joining me on the line to talk more about the

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Speaker 1: situation is the Member for Barkley, Steve Edgington. Good morning

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Speaker 1: to you, Steve.

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Speaker 2: Good morning Katy, and good morning to all the listeners.

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Speaker 1: Stevie, you're coming to us this morning from sunny Tenant Creek.

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Speaker 1: How's the weather now?

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Speaker 2: I'm up in Elliott this morning, Cody. I've just driven

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Speaker 2: from Tenant Creek to Elliott to catch up with constituents

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Speaker 2: here and atten day local authority meeting here in Elliott.

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Speaker 2: So that'll be kicking off in about twenty five minutes.

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Speaker 1: Well, we won't keep it for too long. Then it

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Speaker 1: sounds like you're busy, busy, Steve, Now tell me, I

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Speaker 1: mean we had this situation where obviously one of these vehicles,

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Speaker 1: the Bushfires into volunteers vehicle was stolen while they were

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Speaker 1: fighting a fire. What exactly has gone on here?

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Speaker 2: Oh, look, it's absolutely devastating, Katie. At the moment, there's

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Speaker 2: a very large bushfire going on just near the Berkley

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Speaker 2: homestead and it's sort of southeast from there around near

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Speaker 2: the Appinari area. But it's about a four thousand square

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Speaker 2: kilometer bushfire. It's absolutely massive at the moment. So there's

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Speaker 2: a lot of station workers, volunteers, and about five volunteers

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Speaker 2: from the local bushfires unit went out there on it

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Speaker 2: must have been Tuesday, So they went out there and

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Speaker 2: they did a lot of work out there at Epinara.

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Speaker 2: And while they're out there overnight, the bushfires unit in

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Speaker 2: Tenant Creek was broken into and one of the volunteers

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Speaker 2: lost their personal vehicles, so that was stolen from the

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Speaker 2: Bushfires unit in Tenant Creek, but there was also damage

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Speaker 2: caused to two other vehicles as well, which belonged to volunteers.

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Speaker 2: So you know, this is absolutely devastating for the volunteers.

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Speaker 2: They're out there volunteering their time to protect life and property,

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Speaker 2: only to return to the loss of their own property

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Speaker 2: and damage to vehicles. So look, it's very frustrating. And

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Speaker 2: when I went out there yesterday morning and I spoke

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Speaker 2: to the captain of the volunteer unit, I could see

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Speaker 2: it in his eyes. He was absolutely devastated and really

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Speaker 2: angry that this had happened.

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Speaker 1: Well wouldn't you be, I mean, what a kick in

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Speaker 1: the guts out there trying to fight a fire and

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Speaker 1: keep the community safe and then for that to happen

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Speaker 1: is appalling.

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Speaker 2: Oh. Absolutely, And you know these are the sort of

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Speaker 2: things that really impact on people that are out there

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Speaker 2: volunteering their time. And you know, when these things happen volunteers,

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Speaker 2: I believe that and talking to them, they have second

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Speaker 2: thoughts about whether they really want to continue volunteering. When

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Speaker 2: they basically get a kick in the guts for going

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Speaker 2: out and volunteering their time. It's really bad.

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Speaker 1: So, Steve, where are things that in terms of this

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Speaker 1: vehicle and the damage, has it been found or has

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Speaker 1: it been seen anywhere.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, look, the vehicle has been found, Katie. And you know,

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Speaker 2: this is even worse news because the vehicle was found

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Speaker 2: on the northern side of the Tenet Creek Airport. It's

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Speaker 2: crashed through a fence, and the early early assessment is

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Speaker 2: basically indicating that this vehicle is a right off. So look,

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Speaker 2: it's you know, the guy that's lost his vehicle. I

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Speaker 2: know him personally, well known around town, and he's essentially

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Speaker 2: lost his vehicle, and you know what's he going to do?

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Speaker 2: And these are the unknown things at the moment. I

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Speaker 2: haven't had a chance to speak with him as yet

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Speaker 2: to find out about insurance. But the inconvenience now of

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Speaker 2: not having a vehicle, the inconvenience of having to try

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Speaker 2: and get it towed away get it. I don't think

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Speaker 2: it can be fixed from what I've seen. I did

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Speaker 2: see a photo of it, and it's in extremely a

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Speaker 2: poor condition. It's been damaged completely, so I don't think

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Speaker 2: it'll drive again.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, that is so incredibly frustrating. And again I go

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Speaker 1: back to the fact that you're talking about a volunteer

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Speaker 1: here who is trying to help people to stay safe

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Speaker 1: with that fire fighting. That fire and then for this

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Speaker 1: to happen is appalling, Steve. You know, we've had many

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Speaker 1: issues Intendant Creek and around the area when it comes

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Speaker 1: to crime. As I understand that there were public meetings

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Speaker 1: that were held in Tenant. How long ago were they

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Speaker 1: and have you got any information on, you know, where

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Speaker 1: things are at with some of the concerns that were

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Speaker 1: raised and passed on to the Chief Minister's office. Yeah.

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Speaker 2: Look, I've constantly raised these issues and the escalating crime

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Speaker 2: rates that we see here. And look, Katie, just over

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Speaker 2: the last seven years, house breakings are up two hundred

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Speaker 2: and ninety two percent. Now, this is that these statistics

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Speaker 2: are absolutely incredible. Commercial break ins that we saw, you know,

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Speaker 2: just the other night, and it wasn't just the bushfires, Counsel,

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Speaker 2: there was other businesses on that road that were broken

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Speaker 2: into and have suffered loss as well. But commercial breakings

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Speaker 2: over the last seven years are up for nearly forty

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Speaker 2: eight percent. But when it comes to motor vehicles being

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Speaker 2: stolen and other offenses that relate to interfering with motor vehicles,

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Speaker 2: that's up another one hundred and thirty eight percent. So

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Speaker 2: these statistics that we're seeing are just shows that the

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Speaker 2: level of crime has just been escalating year on year out.

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Speaker 2: And it was two years ago in March April of

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Speaker 2: twenty twenty one that there was two public meetings because

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Speaker 2: many of the community they're saying enough enough. And two

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Speaker 2: years ago there was two public meetings and a whole

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Speaker 2: range of feedback was collated and given to the Chief

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Speaker 2: Minister's Office who assured everybody that they would be developing

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Speaker 2: a new community safety plan for Tenant Creek. And you know,

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Speaker 2: when I talk about community safety plans, I talk about

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Speaker 2: a whole of government, whole of community plan where all

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Speaker 2: of the government non government sector can be involved in

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Speaker 2: implementing that plan. So it's a matter of sitting down

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Speaker 2: working at what's best to drive down crime, having everybody

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Speaker 2: working together, more coordination, variation, stronger partnerships to drive down crime.

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Speaker 2: But we're still waiting now were I think it was

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Speaker 2: July twenty twenty one, all of the feedback was given

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Speaker 2: to the government and there's still no whole of government,

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Speaker 2: whole of community community safety plan. It's just it's just

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Speaker 2: not good enough.

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Speaker 1: No, it's not.

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Speaker 2: Something needs to be done about the crime intenant creepure.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, and look you know, we talk often up here

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Speaker 1: in the top end about the issues that we've got

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Speaker 1: with crime. You know, we've spoken at different times about

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Speaker 1: what goes on in Alla Springs, but very often we

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Speaker 1: don't hear, you know, here in Darwin exactly what is

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Speaker 1: going on in Tenant. And that's not through you know,

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Speaker 1: that's that is realistically just through the tyranny of distance

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Speaker 1: and the fact that we you know, we don't broadcast

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Speaker 1: all the way out there. I know there are people

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Speaker 1: in Tennant that listen, but it's you know, it is

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Speaker 1: it's not okay. It's not okay to still be waiting

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Speaker 1: two years later for that Community Action Plan and for

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Speaker 1: you know, all community safety action plan, and like you said,

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Speaker 1: it's something that everybody wants to be involved in. It's

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Speaker 1: not just a reliance on the Northern Territory government. This

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Speaker 1: is about getting everybody together and trying to sort through

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Speaker 1: this issue.

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Speaker 2: Oh look exactly. And you know some of the retric

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Speaker 2: that I hear in Parliament from the government so that

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Speaker 2: they constantly say, you know, colp the opposition doesn't come

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Speaker 2: up with solutions that all they do is want to complain.

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Speaker 2: But this is a call from the public, public feedback

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Speaker 2: around what needs to be done to reduce crime, and

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Speaker 2: the government just isn't listening to the people in Tenant Creek.

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Speaker 2: I've raised issues in Parliament, not only about a community

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Speaker 2: safety plan, I've raised issues about CCTV and Tenant Creek.

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Speaker 2: There's probably been close to a million dollars invested in CCTV,

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Speaker 2: but the sad thing about having CCTV is that it's

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Speaker 2: not monitored constantly, and all it's doing is picking up

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Speaker 2: people committing crimes after the damage is done, after property

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Speaker 2: sole and after people are inconvenienced. These are the things

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Speaker 2: that need to be used to prevent crime. It's all

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Speaker 2: about crime prevention and dealing with the offenders in a

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Speaker 2: way that can bring justice and bring closure to victims

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Speaker 2: in Chanet Creek. But this seems to be going on

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Speaker 2: and on and on without any commitment from the government.

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Speaker 1: Steve, we are going to have to wrap up. But

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Speaker 1: I do want to ask you. We just spoke to

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Speaker 1: Vince Kelly, the man charged with who's obviously he is

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Speaker 1: going to be conducting that review into the Northern Territory

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Speaker 1: Police and it is going to be extensive. What are

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Speaker 1: you hoping that this review really determines and outlines.

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Speaker 2: Well, I think there's a whole range of things. And

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Speaker 2: you know clearly the police are short staffed at the moment,

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Speaker 2: So a proper resource review, in my view, we'll look

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Speaker 2: at some of the technology that police is using, things

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Speaker 2: like CCTV, how can it be better used to prevent crime?

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Speaker 2: What resources are needed to monitor things like cameras. But

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Speaker 2: when I look at my area four hundred and forty

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Speaker 2: eight thousand square kilometers, I've got many areas in the

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Speaker 2: remote areas that really need better community safety measures in place.

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Speaker 2: Look at the our parule and police station was closed

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Speaker 2: down by the Labor government back in February twenty eighteen,

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Speaker 2: so they've been without a police service for over five

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Speaker 2: and a half years now. These are the things that

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Speaker 2: need to be looked at as part of the review.

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Speaker 2: What structures, what resources, what infrastructure is needed in the

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Speaker 2: Bush to bring better community safety measures right around the territory. So, look,

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Speaker 2: the Bush is hurting. We know right across the board

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Speaker 2: the lack of policing. But I'll tell you what, there

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Speaker 2: needs to be a greater focus in the Bush to

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Speaker 2: see what's needed and not only short term, medium term,

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Speaker 2: but over the longer term, what's going to be best

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Speaker 2: for the people of the Northern Territory.

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Speaker 1: Well, Steve Edgington, the Member four Berkley, we really appreciate

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Speaker 1: your time this morning. Thanks very much for having a

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Speaker 1: chat to us, and no doubt we'll talk to you

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Speaker 1: again very soon.

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Speaker 2: Thank you, Katie, and thanks for the opportunity to discuss

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Speaker 2: some of these issues. And good morning to all the listeners.

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Speaker 1: Thanks Steve. That's Steve Edgington there, indeed the member for Berkley.

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Speaker 1: And you know how appalling isn't it that you've got

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Speaker 1: a situation where those volunteers have gone out to be

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Speaker 1: able to help to stop that bush fire, to be

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Speaker 1: able to keep people safe, and to then have your

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Speaker 1: vehicle stolen and others damaged. I just think it's appalling

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Speaker 1: and a real kick in the guts for those people

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Speaker 1: that were out there working