Northern Territory chief minister Michael Gunner resigns, saying ‘head and heart’ no longer in job

The Northern Territory’s chief minister, Michael Gunner, has announced his resignation, saying: “My head and my heart are no longer in the job.”

“There is never a perfect time to step back, walk away, and give others a go,” Gunner said in a social media post on Tuesday. “But for me and my family, this feels like the right time.

“The birth our second child a few weeks ago confirmed something for me. My head and my heart are no longer in the job. They are at home.

“I have grappled with this decision for some weeks. But welcoming little Nash into the world sealed the deal.”

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Gunner’s announcement came almost immediately after he delivered the NT’s budget for 2022-23.

He said the foundations for the territory’s future were set: “They are solid. An economy that is strong and getting stronger. A budget that is heading back to surplus. And a government that is in safe hands.”

The deputy chief minister, Nicole Manison, will serve as acting chief minister with a new parliamentary Labor leader to be determined in coming days.

Manison is strongly favoured to take the position.

Gunner was first elected to the NT parliament in 2008 and became opposition leader in 2015.

He led Labor to a landslide victory in 2016, becoming the first chief minister to be born in the Territory.

His government was returned easily in 2020, partly on the back of its handling of the Covid-19 pandemic which included tough travel restrictions and widespread vaccine mandates.

Gunner said he loved the Territory because it was a place of potential and possibility.

“It doesn’t matter who you are you can have a crack and make something of yourself,” he said.

“And I like to think my own story shows that. A kid who grew up in public housing, who stacked shelves to get himself through uni, can serve the Territory as its chief minister.”