Michael Gunner is a gambler.
Not in the Kenny Rogers sense, but rather a careless cowboy playing Russian roulette with Territorian’s money.
This week Michael Gunner offered public servants a $10,000 bonus.
The issue is, Labor can’t afford it.
Private sector workers also deserve a bonus. Sadly, many won’t get one because Territory businesses are grappling with the dire state of our economy courtesy of all talk, no action Michael Gunner.
Michael Gunner’s $9 billion budget black hole means he is racking up public service salaries on the credit card by $4m a day. Such is his contempt for the security of their livelihoods. When he became Chief Minister, debt was $1.8b.
In November 2018, Labor secretly established a panel to assess the debt-damage due to its reckless spending. The Panel was made up of Michael Gunner’s CEO Jodie Ryan, his Under Treasurer Craig Graham, independent expert Helen Silver and former WA Under Treasurer John Langoulant – that cost Territorians $1678 per day.
The Panel delivered its interim report in December 2018, which gave a blunt assessment of the NT’s fiscal outlook – catastrophic. Interest repayments on debt alone were nearly $1m per day, equivalent to a new regional hospital every year.
Michael Gunner cleverly timed the public disclosure of the interim report with his holiday to New Zealand and left Nicole Manison, the Territory’s worst treasurer, to deliver the news that shocked Territorians to their core: debt would balloon to $35.7 billion within the decades end.
The final report, ‘A Plan for Budget Repair’ (Langoulant Report) was released in April 2019.
A key recommendation in ‘A Plan for Budget Repair’ was a new public service wages policy of a $1000 per annum wage increase for public servants and a wage freeze for parliamentarians. The CLP supports this.
In the wake of ‘terminating’ nearly 400 public servants who refuse to get a COVID vaccination, Michael Gunner heralded a $30m ‘saving’. Curious, given that he was borrowing the money to pay them in the first place.
Losing staff = less borrowing, not a saving. But, in all his wisdom, he crudely decided that redistributing their wages to everyone who did get the jab was a bright idea.
Michael Gunner’s fiscal management is like spending lottery winnings when you haven’t bought a ticket. He’s treating the public and private sector like fools.
It has since been revealed the alleged ‘savings’ and ‘bonus’ are bogus. Leaked correspondence revealed departmental chief executives are being forced to make cuts to services to pay for the bogus bonus.
It seemed too good to be true, and it was. The $10,000 bonus is aimed at distracting the public service from the fact they are facing a 4 year pay freeze by another name. Two unions have already labelled it a bribe. Some Christmas present.
CommSec’s latest State of the States report shows we have the worst performing economy in the nation for the 12th consecutive quarter and that cost of living for Territorians has gone through the roof with inflation at 6.1%.
The latest Treasurers Annual Financial Statement said that Labor had made no savings from policy changes, showing there is no commitment to ‘A Plan for Budget Repair’ that Territorians paid heftily for.
If Michael Gunner hadn’t maxed out the credit card on pet projects like the $12 million dodgy grandstand deal, $35 million for teenage criminals, $4 million for the Myilly Point playground, and $3 million for the Cavenagh Street shade structure, he could pay our public servants what they deserve and afford to hire more nurses, teachers and police.
This week Michael Gunner said that following ‘A Plan for Budget Repair’ would “destroy the budget”. It looks like this taxpayer funded report has ended up in Labor’s bottomless bin, just like the ICAC report into the $12m dodgy grandstand deal.
Following ‘A Plan for Budget Repair’ is fiscally responsible and fair. Buying votes with bogus bonuses means everyone loses.
ENDS