UPDATED: Opposition Leader Selena Uibo last night referred “potential fraud and gross conflicts of interest” at the Darwin Waterfront Corporation involving the Chief Minister’s husband to Parliament’s public accounts committee, citing “serious allegations involving significant sums of public money”.
EXCLUSIVE: Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro has defended hiring former low-level bureaucrat and one-time gas lobbyist Stuart Knowles as the Territory Coordinator, claiming on radio that he was hand-selected for the role without going through a public recruitment process because of his “vast experience” in the government and private industry and for his record of delivering “major projects”, but his work background suggests neither claim is accurate, the NT Independent can reveal.
The Finocchiaro CLP Government has passed reforms to the NT Sacred Sites Act, with Opposition and crossbench MLAs accusing the government of amending the legislation to help their “mates build a hotel at the Darwin Waterfront”, while others have criticised the lack of consultation with traditional owners.
Interim Territory Coordinator Stuart Knowles was awarded a high-paying, four-year contract by Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro on Thursday that was not publicly recruited, and comes amid unresolved concerns over how animal abuse charges against him were dropped by another public servant he currently works with, after Mr Knowles expressed fears about losing his government job in late 2015 over the charges.
EXCLUSIVE: Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro’s claims that she was unaware of criminal animal abuse charges against Territory Coordinator Stuart Knowles before she appointed him have been seemingly contradicted by a May 2023 email sent to her from a whistleblower, detailing the animal abuse investigation cover-up and other alleged misconduct concerning current Mining and Energy CEO Alister Trier, who ordered the charges against Mr Knowles be dropped.
Michael Riches has resigned as the Territory’s anti-corruption commissioner, nearly a year after he was suspended pending an investigation into allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards female staff members in his office.
UPDATED: Treasurer Bill Yan has handed down the Finocchiaro CLP Government’s first budget this morning that will see more big spending and increased debt, with next year’s deficit alone estimated to be $1.31 billion and the Territory’s net debt projected to blow out from its current $10.5 billion figure to $14 billion within three years.
EXCLUSIVE: The animal abuse investigation into Territory Coordinator Stuart Knowles was suddenly terminated by current Mining and Energy CEO Alister Trier while he was CEO of Primary Industries, the NT Independent can reveal, raising concerns about the perceived favour and the potential for coercion of the most powerful public servant in the Northern Territory.
The nearly year-long investigation into allegations of improper conduct by anti-corruption commissioner Michael Riches involving female employees in the workplace has finally been completed and referred to ICAC Inspector Bruce McClintock, but the findings of the report will not be released publicly yet, Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said.
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.
