Despite an extraordinary infrastructure underspend of nearly $400 million, the minority Liberal government still has Tasmania on a path to more than $5 billion of debt.
This massive failure to deliver the infrastructure Tasmanians have been promised includes nearly $150 million of road upgrades that weren’t delivered, delays in health infrastructure including the Glenorchy Ambulance Station and upgrades at the Royal Hobart Hospital, and delays to long-overdue TAFE facilities.
Over the last ten years the Liberals have consistently failed to deliver the infrastructure they have promised – and these latest delays join a long list of broken promises including an upgraded Launceston General Hospital, a new Tamar Bridge, light rail in Hobart by 2023 and the underground bus mall.
If they haven’t got their act together with infrastructure by now, they never will.
The budget position also benefitted from a $500 million GST uplift, due to the ongoing resilience of the national economy.
State taxes, on the other hand, have remained entirely flat, dispelling any claims from the Treasurer that increased revenues are due to the state of the Tasmanian economy.
The fact is, after ten years in office, the Liberals have driven Tasmania into record debt, continue to post record budget deficits, and consistently fail to deliver the health, educational and transport infrastructure Tasmanians were promised.
Shane Broad MP
Shadow Treasurer
