www.tas.greens.org.au
The Tasmanian Greens today said that the Premier’s refusal to detail when he was first made aware of concerns over the Pulp Mill Permit expiry, and when Gunns Ltd were informed of the concerns and the government’s intention to legislate for an extension, was straight out of the Paul Lennon Handbook.
Greens Leader Nick McKim MP said that David Bartlett’s refusal to provide factual answers to straight forward questions regarding this latest government favour for Gunns Ltd raises concerns that yet more secret deals have been done to get this mill up and running.
“In true ‘Paul Lennon Pulp Mill Handbook’ form, the Premier ducked and weaved to avoid providing straight answers as to when he was first informed about pulp mill permit validity concerns, and when Gunns Ltd were told both of the concerns and also of the government’s intention to legislate those concerns away,” Mr McKim said.
“The Premier has stated that he took the matter to Cabinet and it is a fair expectation to know when the Premier was told that there was any uncertainty surrounding the validity of the Pulp Mill permit, and when the decision was made to bring in legislation to extend the timeframe.”
“Once again we are looking at the likely scenario of the Parliament being the last to know.”
“The community is now owed some straight forward answers as to who knew what when.”
“The proponent has described the Bartlett government’s legislation to extend the Pulp Mill permits as ‘government support’, which just goes to show that David Bartlett’s ‘line in the sand’ promise to the public has been broken beyond repair,” Mr McKim said.
Nick McKim MP Greens Leader
