Failed former Premier, Lara Giddings, scored a spectacular own goal today in Parliament when she interjected “look at our record”.
So I have, and here it is.
Ms Giddings became Premier on 24 January 2011 and was resoundingly given the boot by Tasmanians on 15 March in the worst defeat for Labor in 100 years.
• Between February 2011 and February 2014, 6,600 jobs disappeared. On average, Tasmania lost five jobs each and every day that Ms Giddings was Premier. As Premier, Ms Giddings has the dubious honour of not overseeing the creation of a single job.
• The State was officially in recession. State Final Demand shrank for nearly two full years, the longest continual decline on record, while Gross State Product declined in 2012-13, the first annual decline in Tasmania since 2001. These two key economic indicators prove conclusively that under Labor and the Greens, with Ms Giddings at the helm, Tasmania was well and truly in recession.
• Under Ms Giddings’ stewardship, Labor sold out the forestry and mining industries to the Greens, casting thousands of Tasmanians onto the unemployment scrap heap. Between August 2008 and November 2013, 4,300 jobs were lost in forestry.
• And of course they racked up $1.1 billion in accumulated deficits, with net debt approaching $400 million, and 1,000 hidden job cuts embedded in the budget and forward estimates.
• They sacked 289 nurses and tried to forcibly close 20 schools.
And that’s just a snapshot.
In contrast, under the Hodgman Liberal Government, 4,200 jobs have been created, retail trade is at record highs, the building and construction sector is going from strength to strength, our tourism and hospitality sectors are booming and we have put the budget on a sustainable footing so we can invest in better results in health, education, and public safety.
Sarah Courtney, Liberal Member for Bass
