Despite the most recent budget projecting a large shortfall on that goal by 2027, the treasurer for the Northern Territory is still optimistic about the government’s objective to develop a $40 billion economy by 2030.
The budget, which was announced today, includes large increases in financing for the overburdened jail system as well as significant expenditures on housing and infrastructure for the territory.
In this fiscal year’s budget, infrastructure spending would reach a record $2.11 billion, up from $1.79 billion in the previous fiscal year.
The territory will incur a larger deficit in the upcoming fiscal year as a result of the multibillion-dollar spending plans, while the treasurer anticipates that the budget would balance by 2026–2027.
According to the budget documents, the territory would experience a $200 million net operating deficit in the upcoming fiscal year, which includes expenses for running the government on a day-to-day basis.
The capital works budget will also cause the territory to experience a fiscal balance deficit of $1.13 billion over that time.
The budget papers, according to Treasurer Eva Lawler, illustrate the government’s “strict fiscal measures” despite the large expenditures.
We have a thriving economy because we are diversifying it, and opportunity comes from diversification, according to Ms. Lawler.
The NT government is still committed to its goal of building a $40 billion economy by 2030, but the budget estimates that by 2027, this goal will have been missed by around $13 billion.
The administration reaffirmed its goal of achieving 50% renewable energy by 2030 through a significant upgrade to the region’s biggest power infrastructure.
The government has pledged $12 million for a new renewable energy hub in order to go toward that objective.
By setting a second goal of reaching a $40 billion economy by 2030, she added, “2030 is not far away, and it is a double deadline for us.”
The Barossa gas project in the Timor Sea, which is still somewhat questionable due to ongoing legal challenges by traditional owners, is one of the key projects that the government is still relying on to get off the ground.
The budget does not include any significant increases in the number of frontline police officers on the ground as the territory continues to struggle with a rise in crime.
The rural town of Peppimenarti, which has been dealing with a rise in social unrest, is offered $19 million for a new, permanent police station.
The budget includes $3 million to implement a new police welfare plan and financing for new police aircraft, so the NT Police will also receive more resources.
To help deal with the reality that the jails in Alice Springs and Darwin are at capacity, the operating budget for corrections employees will be increased by $30 million for the upcoming fiscal year.
The Aboriginal court Agreement, a framework intended to lower high rates of Indigenous incarceration, will also get $65 million in funding to support a number of projects that help relieve First Nations peoples’ use of the court system.
Additionally, an increase of $20 million has been designated to combat the territory’s persistently high incidence of domestic and family violence.
The Royal Darwin Hospital, the primary hospital for the NT, continues to experience severe staffing shortages. Over the next three years, hospitals will get an infusion of $100 million.
Ms. Lawler said that this year’s budget would “not add to the pain” for Territorians feeling the pinch at a time when Australians are dealing with rising cost of living problems.
The government’s promise to keep utility pricing caps below inflation was reaffirmed by Ms. Lawler.
“Our government understands the financial stress that families are experiencing,” Ms. Lawler added.
“Due to tight labor markets, forecasts for wage growth in the area have been revised upward.
Meanwhile, inflation is anticipated to decline more quickly in Darwin than in other parts of the country, in particular.
The administration said that the stagnation of residential property rents, which it claimed were not anticipated to increase in the Top End as they were in other states, would be the cause of the anticipated decline in inflation.
The government allocated more than 20% of the new infrastructure budget to help address the issue of overpopulation, making remote community housing one of the budget’s main spending areas.
