Media release – Tasmanian Liberals, 12 April 2021

Supporting Our Multicultural Communities

A multicultural hub will be established in northern Tasmania for newly arrived and established migrants as part of our plan to support our multicultural communities.

Tasmania is home to people born in more than 170 countries and our community is stronger because of their contribution.

As part of our plan to secure Tasmania’s future we’ll build on this by investing $250,000 towards the redevelopment of the Migrant Resource Centre’s Mowbray site to transform it into the North’s centrepiece for multiculturalism.

It will be a space for events, gatherings, traditional craftsmanship and training and be supported by a further commitment of $50,000 each year for two years for its operation.

A majority Gutwein Liberal Government will also;

  • Provide $100,000 for a trial over two years for interest free loans of up to $5,000 to help highly skilled migrants realise their dream of setting up their own business;
  • Deliver funding of $60,000 over two years for Harmony Week and small festivals to help Tasmanians come together to celebrate diversity; and
  • Provide $40,000 over two years for the Interpreting Scholarship Program to help increase the number of certified translators and interpreters in Tasmania.

These initiatives are in addition to our $190,000 commitment to support the Migrant Resource Centres in the South and North to extend their migrant and multicultural employment job readiness programs, as well as our ongoing commitment to fund the Multicultural Council of Tasmania.

A majority Gutwein Liberal Government is committed to building an inclusive and respectful island, where Tasmanians of all cultures have equal opportunity to contribute and succeed.

To read more on our policy to support multicultural communities, visit http://lbr.al/h546

Media release – Rebecca White MP, Labor Leader & Dr Bastian Seidel MLC, Shadow Health Minister, 13 March 2021

Labor will bring back essential health services including maternity and permanent medical staff to the Mersey Community Hospital

The Mersey Community Hospital will be transformed into a National Centre for Rural Health and Integrated Maternity Care under a Majority Labor Government.

Labor Leader Rebecca White said Labor’s vision would see the Mersey Hospital take advantage of its unique position as a national leader in high-quality clinical care, build on its regional and rural health workforce and deliver additional funding for building upgrades.

“The Mersey Community Hospital provides critical health care to the community,” Ms White said.

“Across the north-west the importance of the Mersey and North-West Regional Hospital cannot be underestimated and Labor has a plan to ensure they continue to meet the needs of Tasmanians for decades to come.

“Labor will invest $2.5 million towards establishing the National Centre for Rural Health and Integrated Maternity Care and an additional $5 million for capital works at the Mersey.

“It’s critical that maternity services are delivered at the Mersey. It’s critical that this hospital delivers for the north west community after the Gutwein Government disgracefully abandoned both staff and patients with its cruel cuts to resources and their neglect.”

Shadow Minister for Health Dr Bastian Seidel said these investments would compliment Labor’s plan to employ an additional five full-time and permanent specialist medical doctors in specialties such as General Medicine, General Surgery and Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

Additionally, the emergency department will be staffed by two additional Emergency Medicine Specialists. Labor is also funding an additional 15 permanent positions for nurses and midwives at the Mersey Community Hospital.

As a National Centre for Rural Health and Integrated Maternity Care, the Mersey will also become the statewide training hub for Rural Generalist Doctors with specialist skills in Obstetrics, Anesthesiology, Emergency Care, Mental Health and Palliative Care, as well as Nurse Practitioners and Nurse Endoscopists.

Labor also announced an additional 10 permanent medical specialist positions at the North West Regional Hospital in Burnie as well as two additional FTE permanent emergency medicine positions.

Labor is also committed to provide $7.5 million to integrate maternity care with all other publicly available medical services at the North West Regional Hospital in Burnie. This will ensure the return of highly accessible, publicly funded and comprehensive and continuous care which will improve outcomes for mothers and children in the North West.

“The Latrobe community is one of the fastest growing local government areas in Tasmania and it is only right that health services are in place to match this population growth,” Dr Seidel said.

“The future of our north-west public hospitals is now.

“The awful truth is the Liberal Government – with Peter Gutwein as Treasurer before he was gifted the Premiership – not only failed to fund the Mersey Hospital, but in fact ripped funding away making it near impossible for dedicated frontline staff to do their jobs.

“Healthcare needs are ever evolving and planning and consultation with the community needs to be genuine and meaningful.

“For seven years the Liberals have watched over a health system in crisis and Tasmanians cannot afford another four years of this government that is prepared to do nothing while more than 50,000 Tasmanians wait for an appointment to see a specialist and more than 12,000 wait in pain and often impossible circumstances for necessary surgery.

“Only Labor is working for Tasmanians to ensure better health outcomes for everyone, no matter where they live.”

Media release – Cassy O’Connor MP, 12 April 2021

Greens Release Plan to Strengthen Tasmania’s Democracy

In a healthy democracy, all people, regardless of race, religion, gender, identity, wealth or sexual orientation have an equal voice and vote. They play a critical part of shaping law and policy.

In lutruwita/Tasmania, as in many democratic societies, constant vigilance is needed to ensure the foundations of our democracy are strong.

Our ‘Strengthening Democracy’ plan includes a clean-up of Tasmania’s electoral donations, sets rules for truth in political advertising, new Right to Information and transparency laws, captures non-government organisations that receive government funding within these laws, and establishes an offence of misconduct in public office.

You only have to look at the State election campaign over the last few weeks to know these reforms are desperately needed to strengthen the foundations of Tasmania’s democracy.

The campaign began under a cloud of secrecy, with the Liberals refusing to tell Tasmanians about their secret deal with Federal Hotels over the casino tax rate for poker machines, and Labor signing a secret MOU with the pokies lobby. Both parties have said they will declare their donations over $5,000 in real time, but have declared nothing.

Tasmania has a long, sorry history of dodgy deals and corporate cronyism. This State needs change and our plan is the robust, strategic reform needed.

It puts the right of Tasmanians to live in a healthy, vibrant democracy before party politics and vested interests. Strengthening our democracy will help Tasmanian to build back greener and fairer from COVID.

You can read our plan here – https://tasmps.greens.org.au/green-new-deal/strengthening-democracy