Tasmanian politicians of all stripes will be need to be watchful of any deals that emerge in the post-July Australian Senate because of the radical agenda driven by the Senator-elect for NSW David Leyonhjelm.
In an article published in farmweekly.com.au, Senator-elect Leyonhjelm called upon “Tasmania to stop being a leech on the mainland”, “to base GST payments to the states on their population” and to “reduce the State’s minimum wage”.
Senator Whish-Wilson said “It worries me that we have someone in the Australian Senate who wants to take an axe to federal support for this state. If Leyonhjelm were to get his way then Tasmania’s GST transfers from the federal government would be cut by $650 million per year.
“That amount is the equivalent of half of our entire Education expenditure or more than our Housing, Agriculture and Transport expenditure combined.
“The Abbott/Abetz Liberal government is going to need the support of Senator-Elect Leyonhjelm to pass controversial legislation like the carbon and mining tax repeals.
“All Tasmanian politicians, at a state and federal level, need to be watchful to see what the government might trade away from Tasmanians to win this Senator’s support”, Senator Whish-Wilson concluded.
Senator Peter Whish-Wilson
