ANALYSIS: While some argue a federal election result should not be used to criticise the Territory Chief Minister, the Country Liberal Party itself made it a referendum on Lia in Solomon and the results were damning, raising serious concerns for the party and its elected members’ political futures.
Federal Labor MP Luke Gosling has won another term as the Member for Solomon following Labor’s Saturday night trouncing of the Coalition, with CLP candidate Lisa Bayliss finally conceding defeat on Sunday afternoon, while the CLP is now faced with explaining how it could not convert last August’s landslide Territory election victory into winning a single federal Lower House seat in the Territory.
Territory Coordinator Stuart Knowles’s history of cruelty to animals is of no concern to the Chief Minister or some of the biggest private companies that deal with the NT Government, with Lia Finocchiaro ruling out any action being taken against Mr Knowles over revelations his dogs were seized by animal welfare officers after suffering severe tick infestations and other health issues, while concerns over his suitability for the role have been raised.
Several undisclosed conflicts of interest have been raised over an NT News article about a purported incident at a Darwin restaurant last year involving independent candidate for Solomon Phil Scott and Tamboran Resources CEO Joel Riddle, including the political connections of the journalist who wrote the article and the witnesses quoted.
EXCLUSIVE: Animal welfare officers seized four dogs registered to Territory Coordinator Stuart Knowles from his rural Darwin property in late 2015 after they were discovered suffering from severe tick infestations and other health problems, a government animal abuse investigation report obtained by the NT Independent shows.
The Finocchiaro CLP Government has passed new laws through Parliament on Wednesday aimed at requiring the courts to prioritise community safety ahead of other factors when determining bail, which the government said are the “strongest bail laws in the country” but which many believed had already been implemented with the passing of Declan’s Law last year.
Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro has ordered Parliament be recalled next week so she can introduce legislation aimed at strengthening the Bail Act following the stabbing death of a Nightcliff supermarket owner, which comes seven months after she was warned her government’s so-called ‘Declan’s Law’ would not keep the community safe.
Tourism Minister and Attorney-General Marie-Clare Boothby has rejected calls for a public inquiry into the possible misuse of public resources at the Darwin Waterfront Corporation involving the Chief Minister’s husband and other senior public servants, stating she “is the Minister” and has received a secret internal “briefing” that exonerated everyone of any wrongdoing. However, the briefing was completed before revelations the Chief Minister’s husband benefitted from questionable hiring practices.
The Labor Opposition has acknowledged some of the potential misconduct exposed by an NT Independent investigation into the Darwin Waterfront Corporation occurred while Labor was in government, but has joined growing calls for an independent inquiry to get to the bottom of the potential malfeasance and misuse of public resources at the taxpayer-funded corporation.
Long-serving government executive Andrew Kirkman suddenly departed his role in the public service Thursday afternoon after 26 years, amid the growing scandal at the Darwin Waterfront Corporation that has led to calls for an independent public inquiry.
Chief Minister Lia Finnochiaro fled a press conference Thursday morning, refusing to comment or answer questions about her husband’s involvement in the growing Darwin Waterfront Corporation scandal, that saw him collect more than $400,000 in “higher duties allowance” on top of his large salary for unadvertised jobs that were created by his mates, as well as a massive $300,000 contract that did not appear to go through proper recruitment processes.
EXCLUSIVE: Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro’s husband Sam Burke was given a made-up, part-time government job while general manager of the Darwin Waterfront Corporation, internal government documents show, that boosted his already substantial salary by $60,000 a year through a ‘higher duties allowance’ that continued for years after he left the department role, the NT Independent can reveal.
