The Northern Territory’s Chief Minister Michael Gunner will hit the hustings on Tuesday to spruik his plan to save jobs amid the coronavirus crisis.

August 18, 2020

The Northern Territory’s ailing economy looks set to become the focus of the final week of campaigning in the Top End.

Chief Minister Michael Gunner will hit the hustings on Tuesday to spruik his plan to save worker’s jobs amid the coronavirus crisis.

It comes a day after Territory Alliance leader Terry Mills told voters the NT was in the grips of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.

Mr Mills said he would invest more than $600 million into the territory economy to help businesses and grow jobs.

This included funding for tourism infrastructure, a water security project, public housing upgrades, and support to establish the medicinal cannabis industry.

“Under Labor we’ve been plunged into a prolonged economic crisis with job losses, no new mines, agricultural production decline and construction decimated,” Mr Mills said.

“We need a paradigm shift.”

It’s not the first time Labor has been slammed for its handling of the NT economy, which was rated as the nation’s worst performer by CommSec for the June quarter

A budget update the same month showed debt and deficit had soared to record levels.

The coronavirus crisis is expected to result in the Territory’s deficit jumping by $1.28 billion from the previous forecast to more than $2.28 billion, with net debt predicted to hit $8.25 billion.

Meanwhile, more than 30 per cent of eligible Top End voters have cast their ballot with four days to go until official polling day on Saturday.

It equates to 45,240 votes out of the 141,225 people on the electoral roll, the electoral commission says.

Country Liberal Party leader Lia Finocchiaro is set to join the early voters and cast her ballot on Tuesday in her electorate of Spillett in Darwin.