NT: Hendo signed a deal for the car, office and no power: oppn

AAP General News (Australia)
08-17-2009
NT: Hendo signed a deal for the car, office and no power: oppn

By Tara Ravens

DARWIN, Aug 17 AAP - Paul Henderson stands accused of signing a deal that makes him
the Northern Territory's chief minister in name only, in a desperate bid to hold on to
power.

In an 11th hour deal, Mr Henderson convinced independent MP Gerry Wood to back Labor
in a no-confidence vote on Friday.

In exchange, Mr Wood bagged almost 50 concessions from the government, including a
new body that will operate much like a Senate.

The Council of Territory Cooperation will be empowered to conduct inquiries and make
recommendations on matters of public importance and major developments.

Mr Wood said he was putting Labor on notice and giving the government a second chance,
and threatened to rip up the deal if its conditions were not met.

As parliament resumed under the new arrangements on Monday, Deputy Opposition Leader
Kezia Purick said Mr Henderson had made a "desperate deal".

"The chief minister has sold the authority of the office to hang on to the trappings
of the job," she said in a statement.

"The chief minister will still have the same office overlooking the harbour, he'll
still draw the same wage, and he'll still have a limousine at his beck and call, but he
no longer has the right to determine government policy."

Ms Purick said the real authority of the office of chief minister now rested with Mr
Wood, a former chicken farmer from Darwin's rural area.

"That is a recipe for ongoing instability in this faction-riven government," she said.

"The deal Paul Henderson signed doesn't make Gerry Wood the king-maker, it makes him the king."

Ms Purick said Mr Henderson would need to go to Mr Wood "cap in hand" on every single
piece of legislation presented to parliament.

"If Gerry doesn't like the look of it, then it will be scrapped or altered until Gerry
gives it his tick of approval."

But Mr Henderson cited the current ACT Labor government and previous Bracks, Rann and
Greiner governments in Victoria, SA and NSW respectively as places where similar deals
had been struck with independents.

"This is nothing unusual," he told ABC Radio in Darwin.

"Minority governments have agreements with independents to produce stable government."

Mr Henderson said both sides of parliament were consulted on most legislation.

"This is not a remarkable situation here in the Northern Territory," he said.

"About 90 per cent of all legislation goes through the parliament in a unanimous manner anyway."

AAP tr/sn/apm

KEYWORD: LABOR NT

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