Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro says Darwin council has the money to undertake this year’s pre-cyclone clean-up collection service and has “failed its constituency” by cancelling it, adding councillors should be made to answer to voters for their “questionable decision”, while the City of Palmerston is moving ahead with its clean-up.

Ms Finocchiaro made the comments while in her electorate in Palmerston Wednesday morning to announce $6.8 million in budgeted funding for sport and community infrastructure upgrades undertaken by the city and a further $3.2 million for clubs.

She used the event to commend Palmerston Mayor Athena Pascoe-Bell for holding Palmerston’s pre-cyclone clean-up collection service while Darwin has cancelled it, citing “operational impacts of Cyclone Fina” which hit the region last November.

“The City of Darwin is certainly making interesting and questionable decisions of late, particularly around cyclones, and I think the community are speaking for themselves on this one,” Ms Finocchiaro said when asked if Darwin council should rethink their decision to scrap the clean-up service.

“I’d like to acknowledge the [Palmerston] Mayor Athena Pascoe-Bell and the City of Palmerston for standing by their obligations, standing by their community and standing by their commitments to ensure that there is a cyclone clean-up in advance of cyclone season.”

Ms Finocchiaro added her CLP MLAs in the Darwin area have been inundated with complaints from residents about the city’s decision to scrap the annual roadside rubbish pick up service ahead of this year’s cyclone season.

“What we know is that the City of Darwin has failed its constituency and they can answer their ratepayers on that,” she said.

“I think the City of Darwin needs to take a good hard look at itself around what its role is in a community. I think it’s lost sight of the fact that they’re there to deliver for the people on the ground when people need it most.”

Ms Finocchiaro said Darwin’s decision to cancel the clean-up service was not about funding.

“We heard the Mayor [Peter Styles] on radio confirm that City of Darwin have the budget to do the pre-cyclone clean-up, they’re just choosing not to do it pre-cyclone,” she said.

“I’ll leave Territorians to draw their own judgments around whether it’s a good decision or not and hold those aldermen and those elected members accountable for their decisions.”

Darwin Mayor Peter Styles announced the cancellation on Monday, telling residents to hire trailers or “find a mate with a ute” to take their hard waste to the tip themselves this year ahead of cyclone season.

Council had said its “restoration works” following Cyclone Fina has affected their ability to deliver services, necessitating the cancellation of this year’s pre-cyclone clean-up service.

But Mr Styles said the decision was not a “cost-cutting exercise” and was also made because of the “less fortunate” in the community who could use items such as mattresses being recycled at the tip shop rather than thrown away or damaged by rain while on the verge awaiting pick up. But he did not explain how mattresses and other items would get wet in August.

Mr Styles said the pick-up service would occur next May after cyclone season, adding that council would decide later whether the August pre-cyclone season pick-ups would be scrapped in the future.

He was contacted for a response about Ms Finocchiaro’s comments.

Ms Finocchiaro said the $6.8 million to the City of Palmerston announced on Wednesday would support seven community infrastructure projects including $2 million for a new Zuccoli Community Hub; $2.5 million for a new Driver Community Centre; $600,000 for the “first stage of the Mitchell Creek concept plan”; and $1.7 million for playgrounds, upgrading footpaths and to establish “a mobile toy and library outreach service”.

The other $3.2 million was divided between different Palmerston sporting clubs for oval upgrades around the city.