Canberra
Prime Minister Julia Gillard today congratulated Terry Mills and the Country Liberal Party on their win in the Northern Territory election.
The Prime Minister also congratulated Paul Henderson, who has been an outstanding Chief Minister for the people of the Northern Territory since 2007.
Paul has been a dynamic and courageous leader at a time of enormous expansion and change.
He leaves the position of Chief Minister with an outstanding record of achievements in health and education, including a huge boost for education for remote Indigenous communities.
Importantly, he leaves an economy in superb condition, with an unemployment rate of just 4 per cent, down from 7.4 per cent, the envy of the developed world.
Above all, Paul worked so hard to secure the $34 billion INPEX Total Ichthys Project, the second biggest commercial investment in Australian history.
This project will deliver jobs and prosperity for Territorians for years and decades to come, and that's a fitting legacy for Paul Henderson to be remembered by.
It's been an honour to work with Paul during my time as Deputy Prime Minister and Prime Minister. He has been a complete professional who always put the needs of Northern Territory families first.
The Gillard Government has a big reform agenda in areas such as health, education, infrastructure and stronger futures for Indigenous Australians and we will continue to build on these reforms with the new Mills Government.