1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:02,600 Speaker 1: Throughout the week, we've been speaking about the changes that 2 00:00:02,640 --> 00:00:05,560 Speaker 1: were introduced in Parliament earlier in the week, which we'll 3 00:00:05,559 --> 00:00:09,080 Speaker 1: see the scrapping of the Scrutiny Committee. Now joining me 4 00:00:09,119 --> 00:00:11,399 Speaker 1: on the line to talk more about this is the 5 00:00:11,480 --> 00:00:15,440 Speaker 1: Law Society of the Northern Territory's President, Maria Savas. 6 00:00:15,480 --> 00:00:18,360 Speaker 2: Good morning, Maria, Good morning Katie. How are you good? 7 00:00:18,400 --> 00:00:20,759 Speaker 2: Thank you now, Maria. 8 00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:25,000 Speaker 1: Obviously these changes were introduced into Parliament earlier in the week. 9 00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:28,400 Speaker 1: There's been a lot of discussion about how exactly they're 10 00:00:28,400 --> 00:00:32,080 Speaker 1: going to impact territorians. I know the Society is calling 11 00:00:32,159 --> 00:00:35,440 Speaker 1: on the Northern Territory government to reconsider its decision and 12 00:00:35,520 --> 00:00:36,920 Speaker 1: reinstate the committee. 13 00:00:37,080 --> 00:00:40,560 Speaker 2: What are your concerns, well. 14 00:00:40,640 --> 00:00:44,040 Speaker 3: I think firstly, the first thing certainly have is that 15 00:00:44,120 --> 00:00:49,040 Speaker 3: this decision was really made without any consultation. The Society 16 00:00:49,080 --> 00:00:53,440 Speaker 3: certainly wasn't aware that the government was making a decision 17 00:00:53,520 --> 00:00:59,720 Speaker 3: to dissolve the Legislative Scrutiny Committee. Honestly, we don't come 18 00:01:00,400 --> 00:01:03,520 Speaker 3: I can't really accept that there's a valid basis for 19 00:01:03,640 --> 00:01:07,360 Speaker 3: its scrapping, so to speak. You know, whilst we understand 20 00:01:07,440 --> 00:01:10,520 Speaker 3: that the government wants to get on with the job, 21 00:01:10,600 --> 00:01:13,600 Speaker 3: there's really no evidence that you know suggests that the 22 00:01:13,720 --> 00:01:18,440 Speaker 3: existence of these committees really hinder the government's ability to 23 00:01:18,480 --> 00:01:21,080 Speaker 3: get on with the job or to act more quickly 24 00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:23,760 Speaker 3: or efficiently. And that said, you know, we're of the 25 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:27,080 Speaker 3: view that efficiency really have to give way to fairness, 26 00:01:27,120 --> 00:01:32,720 Speaker 3: transparency and accountability. So, you know, the society view with 27 00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:35,200 Speaker 3: respect to you know, the work done of the committee 28 00:01:35,240 --> 00:01:37,640 Speaker 3: is that you know, it's really we can set it 29 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:40,720 Speaker 3: to be vital in any parliamentary system. And I think 30 00:01:41,120 --> 00:01:46,679 Speaker 3: at a time where these communities trusting politicians and parliamentary 31 00:01:46,680 --> 00:01:50,720 Speaker 3: politics has you know, significantly declined the screen, the committee 32 00:01:50,760 --> 00:01:55,760 Speaker 3: provides a real opportunity for the rebuilding of that trust 33 00:01:55,840 --> 00:01:59,560 Speaker 3: by showing I think the community and the interested stakeholders 34 00:01:59,560 --> 00:02:03,320 Speaker 3: at Parliament that's willing to listen, I suppose to us, 35 00:02:02,800 --> 00:02:08,480 Speaker 3: and in particular when dealing with new items of legislation. 36 00:02:08,680 --> 00:02:14,200 Speaker 3: You know, it's the stakeholder's opportunity to really constructively engage 37 00:02:14,400 --> 00:02:18,240 Speaker 3: in the legislative reform process. And you know, we feel 38 00:02:18,280 --> 00:02:21,720 Speaker 3: that taking that opportunity away is really only going to 39 00:02:21,760 --> 00:02:25,760 Speaker 3: be detrimental in terms of you know, is selling trust 40 00:02:26,880 --> 00:02:28,799 Speaker 3: in the current government of the day. 41 00:02:29,520 --> 00:02:32,400 Speaker 1: Maria, I guess the thing that I've sort of found 42 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:34,680 Speaker 1: throughout the course of the week is is when we've 43 00:02:34,720 --> 00:02:37,079 Speaker 1: spoken about this, there's been a lot of people listening 44 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:39,880 Speaker 1: that probably don't really know if it's going to have 45 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:43,360 Speaker 1: much much of an impact on them and their day 46 00:02:43,360 --> 00:02:47,880 Speaker 1: to day lives. How is it going to impact territorians? 47 00:02:48,720 --> 00:02:51,480 Speaker 3: Well, well, I think it's the biggest impact is going 48 00:02:51,520 --> 00:02:55,640 Speaker 3: to be on you know, the legislation itself, in the 49 00:02:55,720 --> 00:03:02,520 Speaker 3: sense that the community, the non government organization, the legal profession, 50 00:03:02,960 --> 00:03:07,560 Speaker 3: you know, we don't get to have any input on 51 00:03:08,040 --> 00:03:12,280 Speaker 3: the proposed new legislation. And I would have thought that 52 00:03:12,760 --> 00:03:16,000 Speaker 3: when with government introducing laws that are going to impact 53 00:03:16,080 --> 00:03:19,400 Speaker 3: on the community, surely the community should be given an 54 00:03:19,400 --> 00:03:25,000 Speaker 3: opportunity to consider that, putting submission to the Scrutiny Committee. 55 00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:27,840 Speaker 3: Has this scrutiny Committee, you know, in accordance with their 56 00:03:27,919 --> 00:03:32,200 Speaker 3: terms of reference, prepare a fairly detailed report and then 57 00:03:32,240 --> 00:03:36,280 Speaker 3: everyone's position is on the record for consideration by the government. 58 00:03:36,960 --> 00:03:39,520 Speaker 2: Maria, is it really going to have a big impact? 59 00:03:39,600 --> 00:03:41,640 Speaker 1: I mean, the government said yesterday on the show that 60 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:45,200 Speaker 1: ninety percent of the legislation passed throughout the last term 61 00:03:45,240 --> 00:03:49,320 Speaker 1: of government without changes. After going through the scrutiny committee. 62 00:03:49,480 --> 00:03:52,080 Speaker 1: Does that demonstrate that there's no need for it. 63 00:03:53,400 --> 00:03:55,680 Speaker 3: No, I don't think it demonstrates that at all. You know, 64 00:03:55,760 --> 00:03:59,880 Speaker 3: I think that it's about the constructive engagement in the 65 00:04:00,560 --> 00:04:03,640 Speaker 3: in the process itself that is really important. People want 66 00:04:03,680 --> 00:04:06,280 Speaker 3: the opportunity to have a say, and they want to 67 00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:09,040 Speaker 3: feel that they're being heard and that you know, often 68 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:15,920 Speaker 3: there are unintended consequences in proposed bills, and often it's 69 00:04:15,920 --> 00:04:18,279 Speaker 3: the stakeholders that bring that to the attention of the 70 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:21,599 Speaker 3: scrutiny committee. So you know, whilst temper cent might not 71 00:04:21,720 --> 00:04:25,320 Speaker 3: seem like mark, that ten percent could impact on the 72 00:04:25,320 --> 00:04:26,880 Speaker 3: community in a significant way. 73 00:04:27,520 --> 00:04:27,960 Speaker 2: Yeah. 74 00:04:28,120 --> 00:04:30,479 Speaker 1: Look, I find myself even here on this show that 75 00:04:30,600 --> 00:04:33,080 Speaker 1: sometimes you can have a really strong opinion on something 76 00:04:33,120 --> 00:04:36,000 Speaker 1: and then somebody else brings to the for some information 77 00:04:36,120 --> 00:04:38,080 Speaker 1: that you may not have thought about before, and it 78 00:04:38,120 --> 00:04:41,000 Speaker 1: does make you think a little bit more broadly about 79 00:04:41,040 --> 00:04:43,200 Speaker 1: a topic. So I would imagine that it's a very 80 00:04:43,320 --> 00:04:45,480 Speaker 1: you know, it's very much the case when you're talking 81 00:04:45,480 --> 00:04:47,280 Speaker 1: about a scrutiny committee. 82 00:04:48,320 --> 00:04:51,840 Speaker 3: Exactly, that's exactly the point, you know, and often, you know, 83 00:04:51,880 --> 00:04:54,920 Speaker 3: it gives us the opportunity and it gives us society 84 00:04:55,000 --> 00:04:57,560 Speaker 3: and the legal profession, and you know, as I said, 85 00:04:57,560 --> 00:05:00,560 Speaker 3: the NGOs and members of the community, Eddie. 86 00:05:00,400 --> 00:05:03,240 Speaker 4: To actually carefully. 87 00:05:02,839 --> 00:05:07,400 Speaker 3: Consider what's being proposed, and it may be that maybe 88 00:05:07,480 --> 00:05:10,760 Speaker 3: that there are parts of Leed's proposed legislation that we support, 89 00:05:10,800 --> 00:05:12,720 Speaker 3: and then there may be other parts where we are 90 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:17,760 Speaker 3: able to identify inadequacies or deficiencies which are negatively going 91 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:19,920 Speaker 3: to impact on members of the community. 92 00:05:20,640 --> 00:05:23,520 Speaker 1: Maria, did you guys realize that this was going to 93 00:05:23,520 --> 00:05:24,120 Speaker 1: be happening. 94 00:05:25,640 --> 00:05:28,400 Speaker 3: No, certainly, the first we became aware of it was 95 00:05:28,520 --> 00:05:30,560 Speaker 3: when we read it in the newspaper. Well, that's when 96 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:31,560 Speaker 3: I became aware of it. 97 00:05:32,080 --> 00:05:35,359 Speaker 1: Were the Law Society part of the consultation when it 98 00:05:35,440 --> 00:05:38,200 Speaker 1: was initially being set up back in twenty sixteen. 99 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:44,560 Speaker 4: Honestly, I don't know, Katie, that's all right, And I 100 00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:46,320 Speaker 4: can't say that I know, And I mean I was 101 00:05:46,360 --> 00:05:48,920 Speaker 4: certainly a member of council at the time, and to 102 00:05:49,040 --> 00:05:51,160 Speaker 4: the best of my recollection, I. 103 00:05:51,360 --> 00:05:55,640 Speaker 3: Don't recall that, but I do recall the fact that 104 00:05:57,520 --> 00:06:02,440 Speaker 3: the Society certainly supported the setup of the of the committee, 105 00:06:02,440 --> 00:06:05,279 Speaker 3: and I you know, I'm not aware of any criticism 106 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:09,039 Speaker 3: of the committee and its work, and in fact we 107 00:06:09,040 --> 00:06:11,960 Speaker 3: worked quite constructively at times. 108 00:06:12,440 --> 00:06:14,839 Speaker 1: So Maria, what's your message here, I mean, what do 109 00:06:14,920 --> 00:06:16,880 Speaker 1: you feel as though needs to happen. 110 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:22,039 Speaker 3: Well, you know, as you said earlier, really where urging 111 00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:25,760 Speaker 3: the government to reconsider this decision with a view to 112 00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:31,680 Speaker 3: reinstating the committee process. It has an important role to 113 00:06:31,720 --> 00:06:35,320 Speaker 3: play in the ongoing good governance of the territory, and 114 00:06:35,400 --> 00:06:40,839 Speaker 3: given our current economic times and the difficulties which the 115 00:06:40,880 --> 00:06:46,000 Speaker 3: community are currently facing, I would have thought transparency, trust 116 00:06:46,560 --> 00:06:53,359 Speaker 3: accountability really should be prioritized over and above efficiencies. 117 00:06:54,120 --> 00:06:58,160 Speaker 1: Well, Maria Savas the Law Society of the Northern Territories President, 118 00:06:58,240 --> 00:07:00,720 Speaker 1: we really appreciate your time this morning. Thanks so much 119 00:07:00,720 --> 00:07:03,000 Speaker 1: for having a chat with us and really talking us 120 00:07:03,040 --> 00:07:05,080 Speaker 1: through the Society's perspective on this. 121 00:07:05,440 --> 00:07:06,919 Speaker 3: Thanks Katie, thank you.