Labor is poison for major project

Will Hodgman Libs MR
“The pulp mill is just one of many regrettable examples of this government being a poor manager and if anything, since David Bartlett became Premier, this incompetence has only worsened. Mr Bartlett has flip-flopped all over the place on the pulp mill, and tried to use it as a pawn to make himself politically popular.”

The State Labor Government has poisoned almost every major project it has touched in the ten long years that it has been in office.

Its mismanagement of major projects – during strong economic times – has meant that opportunities for this State have been squandered. The pulp mill, the biggest private investment ever proposed for this State, is just one example.

Others include natural gas, broadband infrastructure, water development, Spirit III, the Hobart waterfront, and the new Royal Hobart Hospital – bungled before the government has even started building it.

Former Premier, Paul Lennon, is today reported as having admitted to mistakes so far as politicisation of the pulp mill taskforce is concerned. It was this that led to Julian Green quitting the RPDC, triggering the series of events that caused such a massive loss of confidence in the project generally.

The State Opposition repeatedly warned the government against politicising the taskforce. Mr Green claimed his warnings to the government about the need to rein in the activities of the taskforce had not been heeded, in his letter of resignation to Mr Lennon.

Leader of the State Opposition, Will Hodgman, said there was not one major project that this government had been able to manage well during ten long years in office – times of economic prosperity when significant opportunities were there to be grasped.

“The Labor government has been a poor manager in good economic times and Tasmania’s potential has not been realised,” Mr Hodgman said.

“The pulp mill is just one of many regrettable examples of this government being a poor manager and if anything, since David Bartlett became Premier, this incompetence has only worsened. Mr Bartlett has flip-flopped all over the place on the pulp mill, and tried to use it as a pawn to make himself politically popular.”

A few other examples of Labor’s major project incompetence include:

New Royal Hobart Hospital

In a media release on February 28, 2006, David Llewellyn said:

“We are building a new hospital. The Labor Government is already building a new Royal Hobart Hospital from the inside out at the current site. “It is a massive waste of money to propose a new site – at least $500 million worth – almost half the entire health budget.”

The State Government has since taken a complete turnaround and decided to build a new hospital on the wrong site, and still doesn’t know how much it will cost or even how many beds it will have whilst continuing to upgrade the existing site.

Waterfront

When announcing the creation of a Sullivans Cove Waterfront Authority to oversee development of the waterfront on 6 September 2006, then Premier, Paul Lennon, said:

“The new arrangements put in place a strong, cohesive, independent and transparent regulatory framework which delivers everything the community has told us it wants.”

On 19 July, 2008, the new Premier, David Bartlett, said he had asked for a report within six weeks on improving structures that deal with development, consultation and planning processes around the waterfront.” Almost 12 weeks later Mr Bartlett said the SCWA would be shut down within three or four years. It was only ever intended to have a life of ten years anyway.

Princes Wharf

On September 1, 1999, the former Premier, Jim Bacon, said:

“I want to see this (development at Princes Wharf) finalised and a project under way as soon as possible because we have had a delay on the site and certainly I would be hoping by Christmas we would have a firm proposal in place and ready to proceed. We want to make sure this time that we clearly set out for developers what is possible on the site and what is the preferred use of the site. That’s the way we get a development that actually happens, rather than one that is only a pipe dream”

Today, Princes Wharf is still an empty shed and the State Government has not even

developed a master plan for the redevelopment of the Hobart waterfront but the government is promising consultation on Princes Wharf this Christmas!

Spirit III

The then Premier, Jim Bacon, said on June 24, 2004:

“The business case points to a third ship being a self-funded opportunity for Tasmania to pierce the heart of Australia’s fastest growing and most lucrative market, Sydney. The business case for the service is cash-positive and sustainable. The business case points to the new service creating 1 126 jobs made up of 695 direct jobs and 431 indirect jobs and of course that does not allow for the flow-on effect of some 50 000-plus extra visitors coming to Tasmania. I would like to reiterate, Mr Speaker, that a new service would present a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to further grow the Tasmanian tourism industry and economy.”

After conning the Tasmanian public that Spirit III was safe, and bleeding taxpayers with its losses, Spirit III was axed soon after the 2006 State election.

Natural gas

In 2002, Paul Lennon, said that:

“The Government is committed to seeing the roll-out of the gas distribution network that will Pgrow over time to encompass the type of roll-out that formed the basis of the tender, that is a roll-out to commercial and industrial customers in our major towns and a domestic roll-out in the order of100,000 premises.”

As at 2008, the pipeline has past approximately 43,000 premises, with only about 5000

customers having signed on.

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