NT budget estimates: Taxpayers pay $16k in government legal fees in Jamie Chalker dispute

The government has revealed how much money was spent when it engaged external, taxpayer-funded legal counsel in a dispute with former Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker.

The bill to taxpayers for the botched sacking of Jamie Chalker came to $16,873 in legal fees alone, the Territory government has confirmed.

The sum of the confidential payout to the former Police Commissioner remains unknown.

It comes after questions surrounding Mr Chalker were handballed between government members over six days of estimates, with each minister citing confidentiality agreements.

During Monday’s estimates sittings Chief Minister Natasha Fyles – despite refusing to comment on almost all questions relating to the former Police Commissioner – agreed to take a question on notice about where the legal fees were drawn from.

On Tuesday Attorney-General Chansey Paech confirmed it was sourced from the Department of Chief Minister and Cabinet’s budget.

Mr Paech and his staff revealed the Chief Minister’s department had engaged external legal representation from HWL Ebsworth along with advice from the Solicitor for the Northern Territory.

He indicated Ms Fyles would reveal how much the outside counsel cost.

Attorney-General Chansey Paech said the government’s legal fees in the Chalker dispute was sourced from the Chief Minister and Cabinet budget, just one day after Natasha Fyles could not answer that question. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Ellen Ransley

“The Chief Minister, I note taking that question on notice (Monday), will be required to provide those figures back to the estimates committee as it’s that agency that’s responsible for those costs,” Mr Paech said.

“I will highlight that the SFNT directly liaised and communicated with the agency during that work.

“It was a combination of SFNT and an external legal team to work through that matter – the figures that will be provided will incorporate those figures.”

When asked what advice the SFNT gave to the Chief Minister’s department, Mr Paech said it was “confidential”.

“There are clauses of those negotiations and those contracts that are confidential in nature,” he said.

Police Minister Kate Worden revealed during estimates last week she was not involved in the decision to sack Jamie Chalker. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Opposition justice spokesman Steve Edgington labelled the saga another day of “smoke and mirrors”.

“Despite questions on Jamie Chalker’s legal fees being handballed by the Police Minister last week and in Monday’s session with the Chief Minster to the Attorney-General, today he kicked it back to the Chief Minister,” he said in a statement.

“This is an absolute farce and shows that wasting Territorians’ money, to this Labor government, is all a game.

“Territorians have had a gutful of paying for Labor’s mistakes and being deceived time after time.”

Sky News first revealed the Territory government had asked Mr Chalker to resign in early April, six months before his contract expired, indicating they had lost confidence in him.

Mr Chalker then launched legal action against Ms Fyles and Police Minister Kate Worden over the attempted dismissal before a settlement was reached.

The government has remained tight-lipped on the figure paid out to Mr Chalker, citing confidentiality agreements between the parties.

However Ms Worden revealed during estimates last week the payout would be drawn from the police budget.

Ms Worden also said on Thursday she was not involved in the decision to dismiss Mr Chalker.