The Northern Territory is increasing its spending on prisons but cutting funding to Aboriginal rangers.
CLP Treasurer Bill Yan handed down his first budget on Tuesday, announcing a $60 million increase to Corrections, saying the Budget "prioritises law and order".
Mr Yan said the NT has a budget deficit of $10.55 billion, which is expected to rise to $14 billion by 2028-29.
The total budget for Corrections is now a record $495 million.
That includes $176 million for operational costs and $70 million to implement its infrastructure masterplan, which sees all children in detention imprisoned in the new Holtze centre in Darwin, and the Alice Springs youth detention centre repurposed to house women.
But while the Government found money for Corrections' coffers, it broke a pre-election promise on funding for Aboriginal rangers.
Mr Yan, who was Shadow Minister for Parks and Rangers at the time, said in August 2024 that “if elected, [the CLP] will fully fund the program with $12 million over four years.”
The Northern Land Council and Central Land Council said they were "deeply disappointed" at the Territory Government’s backflip.
NLC chair Matthew Ryan called on the Government to honour their election promise.
“After eight years of a program that has contributed to successful land and sea management, this government has revealed its plans to leave Aboriginal rangers behind," he said.
“Our Aboriginal rangers are outraged at this broken promise, that puts both jobs and our ability to manage Country at risk.
"This puts at risk the work of all those who rely on our lands and seas, including Territorians and visitors who are here to enjoy the Territory lifestyle."
In a statement to NITV, a CLP Government spokesperson blamed the former Labor government for leaving a 'broken budget' and $11 billion of debt.
"As a result, the CLP has made tough but necessary decisions to repair the budget and refocus spending on frontline priorities such as law and order, and economic recovery," they said.
"The Commonwealth is now the primary funder of Aboriginal ranger programs."
CLC chair Warren Williams said the promised funding would have supported critical training, equipment upgrades and job security for their 15 ranger groups across Central Australia, which employ more than 90 Aboriginal rangers.
“The CLP has betrayed our trust and puts jobs, cultural knowledge and land management at risk,” he said.
“This is a slap in the face to the rangers who are out there managing Country on the smell of an oily rag, protecting sacred sites and fighting fires in some of the most remote areas of the Territory.
“Aboriginal ranger programs benefit all Territorians – from tackling feral pests to reducing carbon emissions – and the government’s broken promise puts this work and these jobs in jeopardy.”
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The Point - Justice
More funds needed for crime prevention
Justice Reform Initiative NT coordinator Kirsten Wilson told NITV that such a significant increase towards the "punitive and incarceration end of the justice system" should be met with similar investment into early intervention and preventative services, as well as into aspects that are addressing the root causes.
"So looking at health outcomes for people, looking at housing," she said.
"Overcrowding [has] a huge impact on the drivers of crime and what happens when we're living in inappropriate and overcrowded housing."
A spokesperson said the government was investing in crime prevention, pointing to $6.6 million per year for a safe accommodation and supervision service for at-risk youth, school attendance reforms, and an expansion of school-based police officers to support early intervention in middle schools.
But despite the increased spending in Corrections, the Government has cut rehabilitation programs in jails.
"While it may appear to place less emphasis on rehabilitation, it is a necessary step within a broader, long-term strategy to reduce crime and improve community safety," the spokesperson said.
In March, following changes to bail laws, prisoner numbers in the NT reached a record high of more than 2700 people, giving the Territory one of the highest imprisonment rates in the world.
In 2024, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that 88 per cent of prisoners in the NT were Aboriginal.
Ms Wilson said without effective rehabilitation programs in jails people would likely come out in worse situations than when they entered, making it likely that recidivism rates would increase further.
"Currently, six out of 10 people that leave adult incarceration reoffend within a two year period," she said.
"We would predict that when we have prisons that are so overcrowded and you're not able to provide them any sort of rehabilitation ... that we're not going to see any form of behaviour change."
Labor Gwoja MP Chansey Paech told NITV that the Finocchiaro Government was focusing on the wrong places.
"It's at the end after the anti-social behaviour and the crime have already happened," he said.
"Building more prisons to house people in is only addressing the immediate pressure concerns.
"There is not a lot of money in this Budget for diversion.
"We don't want detention, we want diversion programs, we want therapeutic models of care, we want intensive family supports."
Mr Paech said blaming the previous government for the financial position of the NT was "nonsense" and that more emphasis on social determinants, like health, education, housing, childcare and access to healthy food was necessary.
"When it comes to crime and anti-social behaviour ... it's largely driven because people continue to live in abject poverty," he said.
"It's extremely disappointing that it appears that this is a government who only has one answer to the social issues we face in the Northern Territory, and that is just to continue to lock people up."
'Absence of investment in Aboriginal-led economic development'
First Nations businesses, too, were disappointed with the budget.
The NT Indigenous business network (NTIBN) called on the Government to commit to an Aboriginal Economic Development Strategy led by Aboriginal people.
The NTIBN said there was a "notable absence" of commitment to growing the Aboriginal economy in the budget.
"Aboriginal businesses in the Territory are not charity or social programs – we are employers, service providers, manufacturers, exporters, and investors.
"We generate real jobs, contribute to economic growth, and reinvest in our communities.
"Yet, the structural barriers to Aboriginal economic participation remain, including limited access to capital [and] government procurement practices."
Mr Paech said many people were "shaken" by the Budget.
"This is the exact stuff that causes people's distrust in political processes and in politics," he said.
"People went out chasing people for their votes, making commitments to do certain things when they win. Suddenly these things are no longer feasible or plausible.
"This is where people become so disengaged in politics that next election cycle, why would you believe anything that anyone says?"
Mr Williams, too, said community members were reeling.
“This broken promise hits especially hard in communities where ranger jobs are among the few opportunities for meaningful, culturally appropriate work,” he said.
“It undermines decades of investment in local efforts to look after Country.
“Your fine words before the election about supporting the bush ring hollow when you turn your backs on one of the proven success stories in remote community development as soon as the election is over.
“Our rangers and the Country they care for, deserve better.
"They will remember your backflip, as will voters."
