CLP leader Lia Finocchiaro dodges whether ‘surplus’ vaccines should be sent to Sydney
Having previously called for ‘surplus’ vaccine doses to be sent to Sydney, CLP leader Lia Finocchiaro has dodged questions over whether she still backs the move.
Northern Territory
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UPDATE: OPPOSITION leader Lia Finocchiaro has stormed out of Question Time claiming she was “gagged” by the government, after trying to censure the Chief Minister.
Ms Finocchiaro attempted to move the motion over Michael Gunner’s handling of the $12m Darwin Turf Club grandstand.
The motion was defeated by the government majority, prompting Ms Finocchiaro to claim she was being gagged.
Ms Finocchiaro claimed Leader of Opposition Business Natasha Fyles was “destroying the very democracy” they were a part of.
She later said the censure debate was shut down.
“You are dictators by another name,” Ms Finocchiaro said.
“You shut us down in a censure and a censure is an important part of the democratic process.”
EARLIER: OPPOSITION leader Lia Finocchiaro has refused to say whether she still supports sending some of the NT’s vaccine doses to Sydney, while accusing the Chief Minister of “politicising Covid-19” through Facebook.
Government ministers have repeatedly attacked Ms Finocchiaro’s previous comments on donating “surplus supplies” of the vaccine to Sydney in the lead up to a by-election in Daly.
When asked on Tuesday whether she still believed surplus doses should be sent to New South Wales, the Opposition Leader dodged the question.
“I have answered this question so many times,” Ms Finocchiaro said.
“What I know is that Michael Gunner and his team are politicising Covid.”
She said Mr Gunner had notified the public of declaring Cairns a hotspot via Facebook over the weekend well before updating the NT Health website.
“This Chief Minister will stop at nothing to dominate the headlines around Covid because it’s the only thing he’s got.”
When asked whether her comments on Sydney were endangering the CLP’s chances at the looming Daly by-election, Ms Finocchiaro said the issue was a “desperate attempt” by the government to distract from the furore around the $12m grandstand at the Darwin Turf Club.
Ms Finocchiaro had previously raised the idea of diverting “surplus supplies” of the Covid-19 vaccine from the Northern Territory to Sydney, as that city deals with a second wave of infections.
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Government ministers have repeatedly brought up Ms Finocchiaro’s comments since Daly CLP MLA Ian Sloan indicated he would resign at the end of sittings.
Deputy Chief Minister Nicole Manison brought up her comments the day of Mr Sloan’s resignation, while Mr Gunner mentioned it as recently as Tuesday.
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