CLP will get the economy moving and NT thriving
We’ve heard it all before. Territorians could be forgiven for feeling a sense of deja vu over the past few weeks as the Labor government rolled out its budget announcements.
We’ve heard it all before.
Promises of millions and millions of dollars that are never delivered.
We had another announcement on the Darwin Ship Lift, the 40th media release on the project, yet not a single shovel in the ground.
For eight years we’ve had nothing but talk and our economy has suffered greatly from every single delay.
For the ship lift the cost has blown out from $100m to over $515m, and what do we have to show for it?
The hollow promises under Eva Lawler will continue as the election looms closer but with a track record of failure, Territorians will not be taken for fools.
It’s plain to see our economy is failing. While every other jurisdiction is surging ahead, the Territory’s economy has declined again. Construction is down, housing approvals are down, and retail spending is flat.
As Treasurer, the Chief Minister is squarely to blame for this economic mess. The buck stops with her.
But there is hope for our future, and I am full of optimism. The CLP will get our economy moving forwards again.
Our economic plan of action focuses on making the Territory a great place to live, work and invest. We will do this by making the Territory a place where it is easier to do business.
The CLP’s announcement this week that we will raise the payroll tax-free threshold for the first time in 13 years from the current rate of $1.5m to $2.5m, makes us highly competitive. The Territory will lead the nation with the most generous payroll tax-free threshold in the country.
We will also make apprentice and trainee wages exempt from payroll tax as part of the new $2.5m threshold. This will encourage more businesses to invest and grow our own Territory talent and put on more apprentice and trainee positions. Under our payroll tax reforms, more than 1300 Territory businesses will save up to $55,000 per year. This will enable businesses to grow, pass on savings and employ more staff.
We will totally overhaul our regulatory framework to provide businesses certainty in decision making. When a project gets the green light, it will go ahead. The CLP won’t let activists and economic vandals manipulate their way into stopping projects. Unlike Labor, we won’t spend your taxpayer money on organisations like the Environmental Defenders Office, who seek only to stop significant projects and limit the opportunities for all of us.
We need to go full throttle on our economy and ensure every Territorian benefits.
That’s why we have an ambitious and aggressive target of achieving a 50 per cent reduction in all approval time frames across government.
This will facilitate investment right across the Territory and give us a competitive edge.
My CLP team is focused on playing to our natural strengths and getting back to basics.
We will unashamedly pursue mining, gas, defence, tourism and agriculture.
It is in these industries that our inherent wealth sits and our future depends. We’re the only party that has always been supportive of the gas industry, and understands that the gas industry keeps the lights on, secures long term jobs for Territorians, means less people will leave, and our population will grow.
The waste and mismanagement of taxpayer funds has got to stop.
The CLP will conduct audits of organisations receiving taxpayer funds to ensure your taxpayer money is being spent appropriately and delivering outcomes for the community.
As the saying goes:
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
The Territory can’t afford to keep going down the same path.
Our economy is depending on it.
e“While very other jurisdiction is surging ahead, the Territory’s economy has declined again