MEDIA RELEASE | From hope to momentum: DMBG Report is a ‘call to arms’

“Welcome to the 3rd annual economic event hosted by the Darwin Major Business Group.

Collectively, our 20 members see it as one of the major contributions that we can make to the Territory each year, which is why it is so pleasing to see so many of you here today.

Darwin Major Business Group wants to support a big conversation around our economy, not just for business, even though that is important, but for all Territorians. 

It is the economic opportunities that we create that drive our living standards today, tomorrow, and into the future.

Whether we are successful or not depends on many things, and we can discuss those today.

But at a practical level, it simply means, do Territorians have access to great jobs that are pay well?

Can our families pay their bills with enough left over to enjoy life in the Territory?

And together - can we fund the government services we expect, build the infrastructure that we need, and do Territorians have hope in their hearts, or are they thinking about opportunities elsewhere?

Conversations need a conversation kick-starter.

So, this is the third year we have released our annual economic snapshot, prepared for the Darwin Major Business Group by the AEC Group.

It is a gun-barrel straight assessment of where we are today, where we are doing well, and where we aren’t.

These reports are 100% funded by the private sector, Territory businesses putting their hands in their pocket because we care about the Territory’s future. 

Our first report in 2024 gave us an honest appraisal of the Territory’s performance over the previous decade.

The next, in 2025, highlighted our challenges and the anchor that is our public debt.

Today’s report is our ‘Call to Arms’.

When Ashley Page from AEC Group gets up a little later to brief you on his report, he will tell you many things, some good and some not so good.

But what gave me and the DMBG Board cause for concern is the data identifying the struggle to maintain the private sector’s share of activity in the Territory economy.

That is never sustainable, and it is an alarm we must acknowledge and respond to.

Yes, we could say the same thing is happening to varying degrees across the country, but to be honest, I don’t care so much about that.

It matters more here because this is our home.

We all know that every successful community has a successful private sector.

So, the message is clear, we currently stand at a fork in the road, 2026 must be the year when everyone leans in and gets involved.

No arms crossed, sitting back in indulgence, no finger pointing.

We have to move from ‘hope’ to momentum.

Where real things get done – and get done at pace. 

This is not a one-person job, it's everyone’s.

TURNING POTENTIAL INTO OPPORTUNITY

Since self-Government we have long talked about turning potential into opportunity, you can see the past successes everywhere.

We have 130% more people since then.

An LNG export industry has been built from scratch.

Roads, bridges, schools, hospitals, towers, ports, airports, railway and much more have been built.

We have a strong Defence eco-system in the Top End.

Tourists from every corner of the world visit and marvel.

I could spend all day listing our achievements, someday we should, but today is not that day.

As I said, today’s message is a ‘call to arms’.

To you as business people in this room, to families in suburbs spread right across our great Territory, to our Indigenous leadership and land councils, our politicians, our bureaucrats, and our media.

Because I believe we have made some mistakes in recent times.

We have imported from elsewhere the destructive reflex to throw stones at every idea and every advocate; we have somehow imported an LNG-sized tanker of negativity.

But worse, I fear that we might have forgotten how Territorians got things done.

It was a difference we prided ourselves on, it was our competitive advantage in an ever more competitive world, it was our ability to work together like no-one else to solve challenges together, to back vision together, to join the dots – and to see how good ideas created opportunity for everyone.

Some people tell me, ‘Steve, those times have gone, it is everyone for themselves today, that we just need to accept that the Australian system for everything is primarily adversarial.’

I don’t, and won’t accept that.

I know born and bred Territorians want to see the Territory go forward, and those that chose the Territory, like me, came here for that reason too.

As I said, look around us, the waterfront development and this convention centre delivered under a PPP 20 years ago is a great example of what can be done.

264,000 people now strive to carve out a modern economy across 1.3m square kilometres.

REDISCOVER THE TERRITORY WAY

Our view, that is DMBG, is we need to stop for a moment, we need to each stand tall, shake hands, reconnect and recommit to what has made us successful up to now.

We need to rediscover our mojo - the Territory Way - on Beetaloo, on Middle Arm, on our Marine Industry Park, on Australia and US Defence Infrastructure and Sustainment, on our Tourism Infrastructure, across our resource projects, our relations in Canberra, and so much more.

I’ve already mentioned that today’s report has some sobering messages, but there are positives too.

DMBG sponsors this work so that we all have the conversations we need to have.

Our goal isn’t to point fingers or lay blame, or give space for everyone to step back and leave the challenge to someone else.

Our goal is to do our part to support Territorians in making good decisions.

Decisions that provide work for our next generation, great incomes for our families so they never look interstate for opportunity and proof that 264,000 people in the North can carve out a place that others envy.

Journeys start with the first step - there are many who are doing this today. But success depends on everyone joining the party.

It’s when hope is supplanted by momentum – its real things making the difference we all would like to see.

And it’s our hope that you leave here today with the energy and drive to do just that.

I just want to pause for a moment of reflection. This is for my company, Sitzler, and 2026 marks our fiftieth year here in business in the Territory.

I've been part of that journey for 42 years, and I look back and think of the number of times we have had to pivot, reinvent, refocus that business over those 42 years I've been involved.

It invariably comes down to about every five years. Why that's relevant to what we're talking about today is that the pace of change in industry and the opportunities that sit before us are quite varied. 

They don't stay static. Competition for capital is quite intensive, so our ability to respond in a timely manner, at pace and with conviction, is absolutely critical. 

If we cannot do that, we just become part of the numbers. We are a small enough jurisdiction with dynamic enough businesses to be able to respond differently.

The businesses that exist in the Northern Territory today are all well-proven.

They're hardworking.

And in my estimation, and I see quite a bit of this around the country with the various roles I have, the standard of Territory businesses compares very favourably to what you see elsewhere in the country.

I don't believe we fully appreciate that. We don't fully appreciate the significance of what we can do off the back of that skill. 

The key is for us to be able to look out and understand where the opportunity is coming from and then choose how we respond to it. 

Our hope is that business and investors will respond with conviction to the Territory opportunities. And I must say, I firmly believe this.

To me, there has never been a more interesting time in the Territory, and there's never been a time when we've had such significant opportunity on our doorstep, and some of that is materialising at a pace most people perhaps won't appreciate, but it is significant for us. 

Our point about leaning into the challenge is critical.

It can take a number of years to be ready to actually leverage an opportunity that is before us. That opportunity will not sit still. 

So, the challenge for us is we either be ready, or other capability will take our place. 

I don't believe we should aspire to that. 

We should be absolutely participating.

Enjoy the luncheon, thank you. 

— Steve Margetic

Chair, Darwin Major Business Group