Northern Territory Labor Chief Minister Resigns Amid Questions Over Undisclosed Shares

Natasha Fyles, Chief Minister of the Northern Territory, speaks during a press conference in Darwin on August 28, 2023, regarding investigations into an Osprey aircraft crashing on Melville Island on August 27 which killed three US Marines. (Photo by DAVID GRAY / AFP) Photo by DAVID GRAY/AFP via Getty Images

Northern Territory leader Natasha Fyles has resigned as chief minister and health minister following disclosure issues over shares in a mining company.

The Territory’s 13th chief minister faced calls to step down on Dec. 19 after it was revealed she did not disclose details of her shareholding in South32.

South32 is a mining company listed on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) for $3.26, after it spun off from BHP Billiton back in 2015.

Ms. Fyles, from the Labor Party, owned 754 shares in the company, worth less than $2,500 (US$1,680) based on the share price of the company at the time of writing.

In a press conference stepping down from the top job, Ms. Fyles admitted not disclosing the shareholding was an error, but said it was not intentional.

“As you know, I’ve held shares in BHP since I was a child, which were a gift from my late grandmother in 1985. In recent years, BHP has undertaken various mergers and demergers, and as a result, I have been issued small shareholdings in some other companies,” she told reporters in a press conference.

“Whilst I’ve always endeavoured to properly declare these holdings as they occurred, upon further review of my personal interests, it became clear that I did not declare one of these, a small shareholding in a company called South32, which came from a BHP demerger in 2015.

“That was an error. It was an error on my behalf and I don’t have any excuse for it. It was not deliberate, it was not intentional, but it’s unacceptable.”

‘The Honourable Course of Action is to Resign’: Fyles

Ms. Fyles, 45, served as chief minister for 18 months after she took over from Michael Gunner in May 2015.

She will continue to serve and plans to contest the 2024 election, she revealed. The leader returned to the Northern Territory for the press conference after travelling to Sydney for the funeral of her father-in-law.

One possible replacement for Ms. Fyles is Nicole Manison, from the Labor Party’s right faction.

South32 owns a manganese mine located on the island of Groote Eylandt, where there have been calls for years for health testing of the mine’s impact.

Ms. Fyles also faced pressure a month ago over shares in oil and gas giant Woodside, worth about $5,000. She was forced to divest these shares amid cries of potential conflicts of interest.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (C) stands with Indigenous rights activist Noel Pearson (R) and now-former Northern Territory Chief Minister Natasha Fyles at the base of Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock, in the Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park in central Australia on October 11, 2023. Stringer/AFP via Getty Images

Speaking amid her resignation, Ms. Fyles assured the people of the Northern Territory no decisions had been influenced by that shareholding, but “high standards are expected from people holding high office, as there should be.”

“And I also hold myself to a high standard. While I did not intentionally fail to declare this interest, it is clear that I have failed to meet the standards that are set for us, and the standards that I set for myself, and I am not going to make any excuses for that.

“So for this reason, I believe the honourable course of action is to resign as chief minister.”

Ms. Fyles also reflected on her family, and how she told her boys of her decision to resign on Dec. 18.

“Yesterday afternoon, we farewelled my father-in-law. It reminded me that life is well lived when it has ups and downs that can be shared with the ones you love the most,” Ms Fyles said.

“Last night, when I told my boys of my decision, a big smile crept across Henry’s face—he thinks it’s an early Christmas present getting his mum back. So, spending more time with Paul, Ollie, and Henry, life’s greatest gifts, is what’s important to me. It’s been an absolute honour to serve as chief minister of the Northern Territory.”

Opposition Suggest Conflict of Interest

Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro, from the Northern Territory Country Liberal Party, had called for Ms. Fyles to resign on Monday, describing her position as untenable.

This followed the NT Independent newspaper breaking the news of the shareholding owned by Ms. Fyles.

In a statement reported by the Northern Territory News, the Country Liberal Party said it was a “clear failure” to protect the community.

“Natasha Fyles should resign over her connections to gas corporations and potentially harmful mining projects and her clear failure to prioritise the health of communities and a safe climate over profits,” the party said.

“She’s been referred to ICAC for hiring a senior adviser who previously lobbied for Tamboran Resources, the company trying to frack the Beetaloo Basin.

“She held shares in gas corporations, including, until recent criticism, Woodside, and failed to declare these shares as a conflict of interest in her decision making on Middle Arm.”