Mr Howard said a referendum on statehood would be held in the NT in conjunction with the federal election.

He said the step would help revitalise and reinvigorate the Australian federation at its centenary.

The NT Premier, Mr Shane Stone, said the new state would probably be known as the State of the Northern Territory.

That, he said, would be no more contradictory than the name New South Wales.

Mr Howard said the new state would probably have three senators to start with and the number could increase with the population.

As a territory, the NT now has two senators while the six original states have 12 each.

Well need to talk about that, Mr Howard said.

Obviously you cant have 12 and I think that has been understood from the word go.

Mr Stone said he expected the adjustments could be made until the NTs population reached that of the least populous state, Tasmania.

That could take 30 years, he said.

Shane Stone, Chief Minister of the Northern Territory in 1998.Credit:Craig Golding

The NT is one of Australias fastest growing areas, with recent Australian Bureau of Statistics projections indicating that its population will more than double from 187,000 last year to between 344,000 and 476,000 in 2015.

The ABS also suggested Tasmanias population peaked at 473,500 and was like to fall to between 196,000 and 381,000 in 2051.

Mr Howard was dismissive of suggestion that the granting of statehood to the NT would invite the reintroduction of the active euthanasia law that was overridden by the Federal Parliament when it passed the Andrews bill.

I think its also fair to say that the composition of the Parliament of the NT has probably changed and attitudes on that issue may well have changed since it was last before the territory Parliament.

That is something that will come up.

Youve got to remember that once you go down the path of statehood, the ideal is that the territory should have essentially the same powers as the other states, otherwise theres no point in doing it.

You dont sort of give a state half the authority of the other states.

Mr Stone said the NT had been funded as a state for the past eight years, so the advent of statehood would cost the Australian taxpayer nothing.

The Federal Opposition said it supported the NT move to statehood but it should have involved much greater consultation.

On October 3, 1998, a referendum was held in the Northern Territory to decide whether the Territory would become a State of the Commonwealth of Australia. The referendum was narrowly defeated, 51.90% no to 48.10% yes.

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From the Archives, 1998: Northern Territory to get referendum on statehood - The Age