I’ll call it now. The tap on the shoulder has finally come for Prime Minister Julia Gillard. She will be out of the job by Wednesday next and second-time-around Prime Minister Kevin Rudd will face one day of parliamentary sittings as leader before the long spring break. Roll on September 14 2013.

It took a little longer than originally planned but Adam Giles has taken power in the NT. So how did Australia’s first Aboriginal political leader make it to the top? It wasn’t easy.

What odds on a counter-coup?

We are both humbled and looking forward to serving shoulder-to-shoulder with Territorians to make the Northern Territory even better.

“The next challenge will be to reach the White River. A route will have to be scouted through the briars, snake-infested woods and alligator swamps. The explorers will then manually portage all of their gear and canoes from the Arkansas River to the White River, a process that might require one long dirty day.”

It brings me no joy to record that while Vikki was lying in the hospital fighting for what little life she had left there were people willing to traduce the memory of a woman who at her worst would always be better than them at their pathetic best.

Robyn Lambley is seen as a safe – and perhaps the only choice – for the CLP deputy. With strong representation outside of Darwin it was only logical that the deputy should come from the bush. Problem is that the CLP member for Braitling, Adam Giles, seen by many as in no small way responsible for the CLP’s recent success in the bush and thus best deserving of the deputy’s job, is a key ally of MLA for the Darwin seat of Fong Lim, Dave Tollner