The Northern Territory chief minister says conversations have been held with Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker about his employment future, but she has again refused to confirm if she asked him to resign, as reported in the media last week.

Instead, Natasha Fyles has reasserted her confidence in Deputy Commissioner Michael Murphy, who is acting in the top role after Commissioner Chalker went on pre-approved leave on Friday.

“I have full confidence in the Northern Territory police force and the leadership under Michael Murphy,” she told reporters after being asked if Commissioner Chalker still had her support.

Commissioner Chalker took on the top job in November 2019, and his tenure has included significant challenges, including escalating crime, morale issues within the force and a police shooting in Yuendumu several days after he was appointed.

At a press conference outside Parliament House on Wednesday, Ms Fyles confirmed she had met with Commissioner Chalker last Friday.

She said “good faith conversations” had been taking place about his employment contract, which is scheduled to expire later this year.

However, she provided no further details about the talks due to confidentiality requirements.

“I won’t be making comments publicly whilst there [are] private, confidential conversations around Commissioner Chalker’s [role], heading towards the end of the tenure, towards the end of the year and that contract,” she said.

Ms Fyles would also not say whether the commissioner would return to work when his leave was scheduled to end on April 19.

“I’m not going to get into hypotheticals or comment into the future,” she said.

“But I can absolutely assure Territorians that there is a strong acting commissioner, someone that has done that role previously, and I will update them if that changes.”

Last week, Commissioner Chalker rejected suggestions that he was about to step down, telling ABC Radio Alice Springs there was “absolutely no truth whatsoever” to rumours he would shortly take up a new position.

At the time, he said he intended to remain in the role.

‘Who is the police commissioner?’

The CLP Opposition Leader Lia Finocchiaro today said the chief minister needed to clarify Commissioner Chalker’s employment status.

“It is a very simple question to ask the chief minister: who is the police commissioner?” she said.

“And the fact that she can’t answer that spells volumes about this situation that Territorians now find themselves in, it has been handled incredibly badly.”

Ms Finocchiaro added: “It just beggars belief that we can have a police commissioner on an … undescribed period of leave [and] a chief minister pretending that there’s nothing to see here, with her head in the sand.”

Ms Fyles rejected the opposition leader’s assertion that the lack of clarity reflected poorly on her leadership.

“I think the CLP are playing politics with a very serious issue,” Ms Fyles said.

“You know that I’m not afraid to have the difficult conversations, particularly when it’s in the best interest of the Northern Territory. And that is exactly what we’re doing.”

She also rejected Ms Finocchiaro’s view that Police Minister Kate Worden should no longer remain in her role.

“I absolutely have faith in not only Kate Worden but all of my ministers,” she said.

Earlier today, Deputy Chief Minister Nicole Manison was asked if she thought  Commissioner Chalker had been doing a good job as police commissioner.

She said he was “an incredibly hard-working Territorian”.

“[He is] a very hard working, very committed Territorian to the police force and to the job that he does,” she said.

Chalker’s tenure marked by challenges

Commissioner Chalker officially began his role on November 11, 2019 — two days after Constable Zachary Rolfe fatally shot Kumanjayi Walker during an attempted arrest in the remote community of Yuendumu.