NT Work Safe investigated St John Ambulance NT for alleged treatment failures following the 2021 death of a patient in its care, but found no breaches of workplace health and safety laws and has closed the matter, saying anyone with additional information that could substantiate a breach should contact the authority.
NT Police are investigating toxic workplace allegations linked to the Acacia IT system, which family members of deceased employee Shaun Joyce said contributed to his death, after the Department of Corporate and Digital Development’s internal investigation found “inappropriate” conduct occurred.
NT Health chief executive officer Chris Hosking, who oversaw the dramatic cost blowout and delayed implementation of the troubled Acacia IT program, which may never be fully rolled out, has been moved at short notice to a new role overseeing the development of an NT Health infrastructure master plan with NT Treasury.
The Finocchiaro CLP Government’s introduction of draft laws that would allow police to detain children for up to 48 hours and, in some cases, interrogate them without a legal guardian or parent present have been labelled as a deliberate expansion of state-inflicted trauma and harm against children, particularly Aboriginal children, critics say.
The Finocchiaro CLP Government says it will implement proposed safeguards to the Heritage Act 2011 recommended by the Legislative Scrutiny Committee at a later date, including restricting a minister’s ability to delegate powers, and will instead apply the recommendations through ‘administrative policy’ after passing the bill, which comes amid criticism the committee was swamped with legislation and the public was only given one week to voice concerns.
Five boys aged 13 to 16 have been arrested after allegedly stealing a car, leading to a police pursuit and the use of tyre spikes to stop it, NT Police said.
A 52-year-old Livingstone man accused of stealing $1.33 million worth of plant, equipment and building materials, including World War II munitions, hand grenades, rocket components and warheads, has been arrested, NT Police said.
A television cameraman says he was doused in the face with capsicum spray by a police officer without warning while covering last week’s riot outside Alice Springs Hospital, where officers also threatened to arrest members of the media, but Police Commissioner Martin Dole has flip-flopped on his stance that it should not have happened, now saying the attack on the cameraman was “appropriate in the circumstances”.
The latest health budget has been labelled “disappointing” by the Australian Medical Association NT, which warned headline funding increases mask cuts to primary care, remote care, mental health and disease prevention, adding the Finocchiaro CLP Government needs to recognise the health system is in crisis.
Darwin-based Shorebarge has been put into voluntary administration after a creditor filed a winding-up application in the Supreme Court of Victoria, according to Australian Securities and Investments Commission documents, while its sister company Shorelands announced it has ceased trading.
Darwin ratepayers will pay 5.5 per cent more next financial year, while $23.5 million will be spent on capital works including $4.5 million for stormwater upgrades and reconstruction and $3.5 million for roads resurfacing and renewal, Darwin Council’s newly released Municipal Plan shows.
The Department of Corporate and Digital Development will not provide an update on its seven-month-old investigation into the death of employee Shaun Joyce, whose family alleged bullying and harassment contributed to his death, which follows the department head not directly answering questions about the workplace culture during a Parliamentary public hearing into the failed $320 million Acacia IT project earlier this year.
