Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro is on her way to Japan today to discuss the Territory’s “strategic and economic partnerships with Japan”, which it appears will focus on gas and mining with private companies, while details of who in the Japanese Government she is meeting with to directly discuss increasing the presence of Japanese forces in the NT was not disclosed.
A 13-year-old boy has been arrested after two vehicles were stolen in Alice Springs overnight, the NT Police said.
A 49-year-old man has been arrested after allegedly striking another man in the head with an unspecified blunt object, directly across from the Tennant Creek Police Station, NT Police said.
The Finocchiaro CLP Government’s rush to merge the NT’s anti-corruption watchdog into a new ‘super’ Integrity and Ethics Commission with other statutory bodies – following a secretive review with no public consultation – has raised concerns from national integrity experts and crossbench MLAs, who are all questioning the government’s motives for restructuring its integrity systems now.
The ambulance that was sent to treat a 10-year-old child who ended up dying in an Alice Springs home last month was downgraded from a priority one response to a less urgent one by St John Ambulance NT, the union representing paramedics has said, but the ambulance service rejected that the call was downgraded and said the response was appropriate.
The Finocchiaro CLP Government says it will permanently tear out the vines at the Cavanagh Street shade structure, but will not replace them, stating the structure will remain with new lights installed to create a “modern, ambient streetscape”, while not providing any costs for the new project.
The Finocchiaro Government has released expressions of interest for a company to operate the barge service from Darwin to Wadeye after barge owner Auriga’s decision to move out of regional logistics in the Northern Territory.
The Finocchiaro CLP Government has pulled its controversial reforms to the Anti-Discrimination Act two days before they were set to be passed in Parliament, with the Opposition accusing the CLP of “incompetence” over the bungle and the Attorney-General claiming the bill was pulled because the government is too busy with other things.
Santos’ Darwin LNG facility has been leaking methane since 2006, but the public was never notified of the leak, raising allegations of gas industry cover-ups and regulatory failures, documents obtained by the Environment Centre NT show, with two NT politicians calling for immediate action to address the failures.
A 40-year-old woman who collapsed and died at a Katherine business Monday afternoon is suspected to have suffered a snake bite to her ankle, NT Police said.
More than 30 Darwin food and hospitality businesses were blitzed by inspectors from the ATO and the Fair Work Ombudsman this week, after the businesses were reported for underpaying staff, underreporting income and evading liquor taxes.
The long, drawn-out process to finalise Saturday’s Territory local elections is continuing, with the final results – including for close contests such as Lord Mayor of Darwin – not expected to be any clearer until Friday, September 5, when preferences will be distributed, the NT Electoral Commission said.
