NT government announces third review into St John Ambulance operations, amid pressure on service
St John Ambulance NT's operations are set to be reviewed. (ABC News: Michael Franchi)
The Northern Territory chief minister says the structure of the NT's ambulance services will be reviewed, as the paramedics union continues to call for the system to be brought under direct government control.
The NT is one of only two jurisdictions in Australia where ambulance services are contracted out to a non-government entity — St John Ambulance — instead of being run by the government.
The review will be the NT Labor government's third into the performance of the ambulance service in recent years, and its recommendations will be handed down after the territory election in August.
Chief Minister Eva Lawler said the earlier reviews had demonstrated a need for a wider investigation into whether the current ambulance service model was appropriate for the territory.
Eva Lawler did not commit to implementing all of the review's recommendations if Labor is re-elected. (ABC News: Peter Garnish)
She flagged that the St John contract was up for renewal in 2026.
"It's important for government to be able to have a good look at what we need for our ambulance services, and how we can actually get the right amount of funding," she said.
"That report, and those recommendations, should inform whoever is in government in 2025-26 to be able to make sound decisions for the Northern Territory."
The prior reviews into St John looked into its clinical and financial performance, with one handed to the government in April — but yet to be publicly released — and the other nearing completion.
Announcing the review, Ms Lawler also said the NT government would provide an extra $7.8 million to St John's existing $45.9 million budget before June 30, to alleviate demand.
"An extra $7 million going in today is not insignificant, so as the treasurer of the Northern Territory, we need to make sure that money is being well-spent," she said.
Ms Lawler said all states had been struggling to cope with demand for ambulance and wider health services.
The paramedics' union has long called for the government to bring the operation of ambulance services in the territory in-house, and it's understood they have been pushing for that move to be an election commitment from Territory Labor.
United Workers Union secretary Erina Early said members had been calling on the NT government to take over responsibility for ambulance services for decades.
"There's no accountability for St John because they're a contractor," she said.
"They do what they need to do to run their business, because it is a business — it's not an ambulance service."
Erina Early says "no emergency service should privatised". (ABC News: Hamish Harty)
Ms Early also said paramedics at St John had reported feeling "burnt out" and frustrated by a lack of career development.
"The morale is so low at St John and it keeps spiralling and spiralling," she said.
St John NT chief executive Andrew Tombs welcomed the extra funding and said the organisation looked forward to the new review.
"We welcome any review outcome the NT government wants to pursue," he said.
"We are a service provider, we'll be held to account for everything that we do, and we don't have any concerns about where the service might end up in the future."
The announcement of the review comes after Ms Lawler, in handing down the NT budget last week, placed management of the territory's health department on notice over a $200 million budget blowout.