Debates Day 2 - Wednesday 19 October 2016
Parliamentary Record 1
Debates for 13th Assembly 2016 - 2018; ParliamentNT; Parliamentary Record; 13th Assembly 2016 - 2020
2016-10-19
pp 65 to 124
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Debates
Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory
Darwin
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DEBATES Wednesday 19 October 2016 99 attending the ceremony. I will work hard with the Brennan electorate to continue to improve our schools and education systems to support our children of the future. Sport and recreation is dear to my heart. I have been involved in sport all of my life as a player, coach and president of some very successful clubs in Alice Springs and Darwin. The late and great AFL coach, Allan Jeans, played an enormous part in my family and in my playing and coaching career in Aussie Rules. Allan had a special gift. When he spoke, people listened. Allan could turn a game on his words in the locker room, as he did in the 1989 AFL grand final between Hawthorn and Geelong. His words were inspirational. He kept asking, Will you pay the price? Everyone in this room has paid the price and is willing to pay the price.Those words are embedded in my mind and in the AFL Hall of Fame. I am a passionate advocate of many sport and recreation programs and I understand the benefits to our children, families and the community. Territorians love this lifestyle and it is important to ensure it continues. The natural environment, local parks, communication towers, parking areas, traffic management, public safety, pedestrian pathways, bus shelters and roads are concerns in the Brennan community and Palmerston as a whole. All are instrumental in our communitys daily life and it is important to me that the Brennan community continues to be consulted and get a say on these issues. We can get it right for the lifestyle and get the best possible outcome in our environment. I am a local and I always listen, consult and advocate for our community and families to ensure we can achieve the best possible result and have a good working relationship with government and our local councils. To our wonderful seniors and veterans who live in Brennan, I thank them for giving me so much of their time over the last 12 months and sharing so many important stories with me. They have brought many fond memories of my grandparents back to me and reinforced my values of respecting our elders and ensuring they are listened to and cared for in our community. Supporting and growing local businesses, tourism and local jobs for our families is fundamental to sustaining and building our local economy. I am a strong believer in keeping Territorians here and giving a fair platform to local business to gain local work contracts and develop our own. As a father of five it is essential to me to ensure all our children have jobs, a future and opportunities in the Northern Territory. The cost of living is a concern to the families of Brennan. Many I visited were leaving the Territory. Many others were pleased to hear that the first home buyers scheme for pre-owned housing was being reinstated with incentives, giving people opportunities to stay in the Territory. Many local businesses were also very happy, saying it would help their organisations to grow again and give them stability and confidence to employ more local people in their services. There is more to do in this space, and I will be working further with my electorate to ensure Territorians have a light at the end of the tunnel, and local businesses are an integral part of that future. Health and police services are critical to everyone in Palmerston and the Brennan community. With the development of the Palmerston hospital now under way, and a new resourced police station planned, it is very refreshing to Eva Lawler and me to know Palmerston is now being considered, developed and resourced as its own city. I also take this time to pay tribute to Hon Luke Gosling, our federal Member for Solomon, who has not only advocated and supported Palmerston in his initiatives, he has also pushed hard for our Territorys PET scanner. He also promoted tourism and the NT in a positive way, by recently holding up a barramundi in Canberra. Luke, great work, mate. I thank the members of the Australian and Territory Labor Party for all their support, It is a party that believes in a fair go for everyone, no matter where you come from. I acknowledge and thank so many people who helped me along the way. They are the true believers of Tony Sievers. There were so many who did so much and more, supporting me through the process. These people include our Chief Minister, Michael Gunner; the federal Opposition Labor Leader, Hon Bill Shorten, who gave me some good words at the start of my campaign; the Member for Lingiari, Warren Snowdon; Alf Leonardi; Ryan Neve; Luke Gosling; Mano; Tash; Mossy; Hendo; Syd, Lynne; Vim; Cameron; Kerry; Sharon; Gino; Helen; Kieran; Jamiebear with me, there are a fewDennis; Josh; Matt; Damian; Maria; Kent; Anna;