14 May 2024
Tasmanians should rightly feel disappointed and deflated after the Budget revealed no new infrastructure measures, the Tasmanian Liberal Senate Team says.
In these uncertain economic times, we needed a Budget that got back to basics and created opportunity, but this budget has failed every economic test. What Tasmania got was more of the same from the Albanese Labor Government, who showed disregard for the important role Tasmania plays in the national economy.
Tasmanians will not be fooled by the Prime Minister’s fly-in, fly-out visit to Tasmania last weekend, with the devil in the detail for this token gesture revealed in the Budget papers. Most of the $219m roads package will be spent on only three road upgrade projects.
And critical infrastructure projects like the Tamar Bridge, the Southeast Irrigation Scheme, and funding to support the relocation of the Family Court in Burnie are missing entirely.
Infrastructure helps support jobs, creates better services, and increases productivity, but once again the Albanese Labor Government has shunned infrastructure in favour of measures that will not support Tasmania’s economy in the long run.
This budget was supposed to be focused on cost-of-living but instead of addressing the causes of Labor’s homegrown inflation, they’ve delivered a typical Labor higher-taxing, higher-spending Budget.
Under Labor, Tasmanians are poorer.