Is the Budget blowing out again, Treasurer?

Last year, in the midst of the Global Financial Crisis, the State Government managed to spend $311 million more than it budgeted.

This was despite Tasmania losing nearly $220 million in revenue in 2008-09 and being forecast to lose more than $1.4 billion in revenue over the next three years.

As we are now nearly a quarter of the way through the 2009-10 financial year and given the Treasurer has a history of blowing the budget he must explain whether he has been able to make the savings he identified in this year’s Budget.

The Treasurer said that this year he would cut expenses by more than $116.5 million, with the majority of the savings to come from efficiency dividends ($61.4 million) and employment management strategies ($34.7 million).

This means that the Treasurer has committed to saving, on average, $10 million per month, which adds up to a saving of $25 million for the financial year to date.

Are these savings being made?

How much has each government department saved?

How many redundancies have been taken up, given that government agency cuts equate to 800 jobs?

Which SES positions have been made redundant or not filled?

The Treasurer, who preached prudence last year, but then demonstrated with a $311 million overspend that he was unable to match his rhetoric with actions, needs to explain whether the savings are being made and in what areas.

Tasmanians finances are too important to be kept secret by a Treasurer who has demonstrated that he cannot be trusted to keep spending in check. We need financial leadership and vision, not spin and poor management.
Peter Gutwein MP, Shadow Treasurer