As Comatose Minister Finally Wakes Up to the Problem
www.tas.greens.org.au
The Tasmanian Greens today called on the Bartlett Government to act now rather than waiting another 18 months to deal with the Flinders Island shipping debacle, after Minister Sturges finally acknowledged, following more than a year of furious denial, that the problem is so serious that the government may have to take over the service, however that it curiously also intends to readvertise the service when the contract expires in 18 months.
Minister Sturges is also reported as saying that the government has a contingency plan in place with LD Shipping to step in on short notice.
Greens Member for Bass, Kim Booth MP, said that Minister Sturges’ rapid enlightenment was a good omen but that his contingency plan seemed more like a desperate thought-bubble than a strategy to deal with what may well be a looming disaster for the Island economy.
“Saying what the government might do, rather than what it will do, and describing an existing operator as the contingency plan, when only days ago the same operator said the government had not even spoken with him, just will not wash with the Island communities,” said Mr Booth.
“Farmers will shortly be facing a critical time getting stock off the island and if the only suitable stock-transporting vessel, the Matthew Flinders, is unavailable through survey problems or possibly commercial seizure, then no amount of wishful thinking will get stock off the Island.”
“The contingency vessel, the Statesman, is not capable nor suitable for carrying the large stock numbers that must come off the Island over the next few months.”
“The farming community alone has suffered losses in the order of $1.6 million dollars over the last year or so and the economy of the Island is suffering as a result.”
“The Government needs to pro-actively engage with the community and offer them a range of options to provide a service that meets the needs of the Islands, rather than the government’s belated face-saving weasel words.”
“After 18 months of ignoring the problem you would have thought that decisive action to put in place a permanent solution would have been forthcoming, so this is very disappointing.”
“It is no wonder that locals are saying that even a Cape Barren Goose could do a better job than this bloke. While they regard the Ministers’ sudden enlightenment as a modern miracle, the Islanders’ know that it will take more than his so-called solution to resolve this long-running fiasco.”
“The Greens are calling on Minister Sturges to listen to the Island communities and accept their wisdom on the most appropriate type of service and ownership arrangement for their needs, instead of imposing an ill-thought out temporary stopgap,” said Mr Booth.
Kim Booth MP Greens Member for Bass
