Federal government should pay if Port of Darwin lease is broken: NT minister

A Northern Territory minister says the federal government should pay for the Port of Darwin lease deal if they decide to scrap it over national security concerns. Consideration is being given to breaking the port’s lease to Chinese company Landbridge in the wake of Foreign Minister Marise Payne’s decision to axe Victoria’s involvement in the controversial Belt and Road deal. NT Infrastructure Minister Eva Lawler, however, pointed out it was a commercial deal and the federal government should make financial restitution in the case they break the lease. “I’m on the record as saying that that was a commercial deal, $500 million commercial deal so you know if the federal government is going to tear up that agreement that was a commercial agreement then they need to pay the Northern Territory government the commercial interest for that,” she said. The deal was struck in 2015 under the Country Liberal Party-Giles government but has since been backed by the current Labor government – which is presently $10 billion in debt. The lease to Landbridge has helped relieve some of the debt, having repaired the port’s condition which the NT government was told would cost $700 million.

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