House of Assembly Tuesday 23 March 2021
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PARLIAMENT OF TASMANIA HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY REPORT OF DEBATES Tuesday 23 March 2021 REVISED EDITION Tuesday 23 March 2021 The Speaker, Ms Hickey, took the Chair at 10 a.m., acknowledged the Traditional People and read Prayers. QUESTIONS Liberal Party - Comments made by Ms Hickey Ms WHITE to PREMIER, Mr GUTWEIN [10.04 a.m.] The former Liberal member for Clark has said, after she was sacked yesterday, that,'she felt like a giant boil had been lanced and the poison and pus and toxicity of your government for her is over'. You know that you have utterly failed and betrayed Tasmanians in relation to health, to housing, to the delivery of important infrastructure and now with your plan to wreck TAFE. You know that for the past year since you assumed this position you have been too busy for papering over the cracks of division, disfunction and disarray that is at the core of your Government and your Cabinet to deliver for Tasmanians. You have lost control and plunged Tasmania into minority government. The former Liberal member for Clark said at the weekend that this is a challenging time for the Liberal Party and its supporters: It appears that the men in dark suits are firmly in control and there is no place for small 'L' Liberal women who refuse to kowtow or be subservient to the dominant males. Is this a reflection of your party's clear attitude that women should be relegated to the background and certainly should not be permitted to take on leadership roles in our community? ANSWER Madam Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for that question. The first point I make is that this is not about gender, it is about teamwork. I lead a strong government. It has strong women in it. I am not going to pass any comment whatsoever on any matters the member for Clark might have raised over the weekend. In regard to the past year, what we have been focused on on this side of the House, is keeping Tasmanians safe and ensuring in keeping Tasmanians safe, that we rebuild confidence, that we rebuild our economy and rebuild jobs and that is exactly what we have been delivering. I said yesterday that we are in new territory; I accept that. I am certain that on that side of the House they will do their very best to damage confidence, to ensure they put people out of work. On this side of the House we are going to focus on our clear plan to secure Tasmania's future. That is what Tasmanians want us to do. That is what we were elected to do. That is exactly what we have done every single day since I became Premier with my Cabinet colleagues and this Government to ensure that Tasmanians were safe, that we could rebuild the economy, and that our clear plan delivered for Tasmania. 1 Tuesday 23 March 2021 I am very proud that at the moment Tasmania leads the country on a number of economic indicators: one of the lowest unemployment rates, and one of the strongest-growing economies. Who would have thought that after the middle of last year, when the forecast pointed to 12.25 per cent unemployment, to an economy going backwards, that because of the steps we took to keep people safe, to rebuild confidence, that we would be in a position that is now the envy of the nation? One of the safest places in this country, one of the safest places on this planet. On this side of the House we are simply going to keep getting on with that job. TasTAFE - Restructure Ms WHITE to PREMIER, Mr GUTWEIN [10.07 a.m.] The deep divisions in your toxic minority Government have been exposed for all to see. They are a distraction from the very real issues facing Tasmania. It is becoming increasingly clear that you are desperate to go to an election, to avoid taking responsibility for the crisis in housing and hospitals that you have created. You need to mask your complete failure to deliver major infrastructure projects and you want to avoid scrutiny of your hidden privatisation agenda. You might be distracted by the utter chaos unfolding in the party, but we will not allow Tasmania to lose sight of the real issues. Just a week after it was announced, your poisonous move to blow up TAFE is already deeply unpopular. For seven years your Government has undermined and under-invested in TAFE. Under your watch, enrolments at TAFE have declined by more than 30 per cent since 2014. Your plan to privatise TAFE will mean fewer courses and higher fees. Will you admit that you have got this plan terribly wrong and today abandon your plans to privatise TAFE? ANSWER Madam Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for that question and, for the first time, some real clarity in terms of PESRAC and its recommendations. We know that they do not support turning TAFE into a more nimble organisation, one that is more able to provide skills and training for young Tasmanians and regional Tasmanians, to ensure that they can get one of the jobs that are on offer in our economy at the moment. Talking about distractions, the circumstances that we find ourselves in now are a construct of both the Leader of the Opposition and the Leader of the Greens, regarding their focus on political matters shortly after the government was first elected. Let us not forget that point, Madam Speaker. We will not be distracted by those on the other side. We are in new territory. I have made that perfectly clear. I am certain that on that side of the House they will make governing a day-by-day proposition. We will not be distracted. As part of our clear plan to secure Tasmania's future, we want to see TasTAFE more nimble and able to operate more like the businesses it is there to serve. At the end of the day, this side of the House wants more Tasmanians - more young Tasmanians, more regional Tasmanians - to get the skills and training they need and deserve to take on the jobs that are there in our 2 Tuesday 23 March 2021 strong and growing economy. On that side of the House they will, on ideological grounds, oppose TAFE being more nimble. The one point that was made very clear on this side of the House last week is that we are not privatising TasTAFE. That is a ridiculous proposition and one where those opposite again mislead the House. We want TasTAFE to be a government business that is more nimble and more able to serve the businesses it needs to serve. In securing Tasmania's future, we see this as a very important factor. One of the single largest challenges we face is ensuring that young Tasmanians and regional Tasmanians can get the skills and training they need to grasp the jobs that are available in our economy. On this side of the House we make no apologies for getting on the front foot and doing everything we possibly can to secure Tasmania's future. Electoral Reform Legislation Ms O'CONNOR to PREMIER, Mr GUTWEIN [10.12 a.m.] We know an early election is on the cards. We also know your last election was bankrolled by the gambling industry. What we do not know is the source of 92 per cent of Liberal Party donations received in the year 2019-20. In fact, the Australian Electoral Commission figures released since the last election show your party has refused to release the source of about $7.5 million in donations. Of course, the money will really start to pour in as we get closer to an election. Will parliament see electoral reform legislation before you call an early election so that this election is a genuine contest of values and policies uncontaminated by the influence of secret donors? ANSWER Madam Speaker, I thank the Leader of the Tasmanian Greens for that question. Regarding an election, I have said that I have an open mind and Tasmania will have an election when it needs an election. That is what I have said. Ms O'Connor - And you decide what we need. Mr GUTWEIN - It sounds like the Leader of the Opposition has already made up her mind that she wants an election. Ms O'Connor - Did you just call me the Leader of the Opposition? Mr GUTWEIN - No - sorry. Ms O'Connor - Thank you. Mr GUTWEIN - Madam Speaker, that was a slip of the tongue but there is some truth to that, I think. I make the point that on that side of the House it is only the Greens that bring out a fully-costed alternative budget and have the courage of their convictions to announce their policies and explain how they will fund them, unlike Labor. Mind you, as I have said on many occasions, many of those policies are kooky. 3 Tuesday 23 March 2021 What the Leader of the Greens wants me to do is to speculate on when there might be an election date and - Ms O'CONNOR - Point of order, Madam Speaker. For the Premier's clarification, perhaps he misunderstood the question. We are not asking when the election date will be. We are asking whether electoral reform legislation will come before the House because, as we know, based on figures from the last election year, the Liberal Party is likely to receive another $3 million in secret donations before the next campaign.