NT on hunt for women

THE Northern Territory government will use its budget spending to attract young women to the region to offset population worries.

Financial incentives will be allocated to attract and retain women aged 20 to 39 who can have families and help balance male to female numbers.

As well, employers that hire local workers will avoid payroll tax for two years.

But the NT budget is in poor shape, with the deficit tipped to climb to a record $1.2 billion and net debt to its highest ever level at $4.5 billion.