Northern Territory Chief Minister, Natasha Fyles, has announced her resignation only eight months before election day, after coming under scrutiny for not declaring a share parcel which came about after a BHP demerger – the minister’s second share-related scandal in recent months.
Ms Fyles held a snap press conference on 19 December where she confirmed her intention to step down as Chief Minister and Minister for Health.
The resignation came less than 24 hours after it was revealed that Ms Fyles holds undisclosed shares in South32, which owns the GEMCO manganese mine in the remote community of Groote Eylandt.
Earlier in 2023, Ms Fyles said that the government would not investigate air pollution levels or health impacts after residents raised concerns over manganese dust in the community from the mine.
Ms Fyles has faced growing pressure in the past few months, with the GEMCO revelations the latest in a string of shares scandals.
Ms Fyles was forced to divest shares in Woodside after media and federal politicians called into question potential conflicts of interest, in particular the government’s large-scale expansion of the Northern Territory gas industry.
Ms Fyles said that failing to declare the South32 shares was an oversight on her part and that there was no excuse for the error.
“It was not deliberate, it was not intentional but it’s unacceptable. For this reason I feel the honourable action is to resign as chief minister,” Ms Fyles said.
“I can assure Territorians that no decision I’ve ever made has been influenced by that small shareholding but high standards are expected from people holding high office.”
Ms Fyles is a former schoolteacher, who took over from the previous Chief Minister, Michael Gunner, who resigned in 2022.
The party is deliberating over Ms Fyles’ replacement, with Deputy Chief Minister, Nicole Manison, confirming she would throw her hat in the ring.
Ms Manison said that she is proud of Ms Fyles for putting Territorians first at this difficult time.
“Over the next few days, I will be asking my colleagues for their support to be Chief Minister so that I can serve you,” Ms Manison said.
