Media release – Jeremy Rockliff, Premier; Nic Street, Minister for Sport and Recreation, 21 May 2023
Signed agreement with the AFL released
The Tasmanian Government is today releasing the signed agreement with the AFL, in line with our commitment to be open and transparent through this process.
We fully understand the strong community interest in this issue and with the cooling-off period now ended, we are able to release the agreement, as we said we would.
The agreement clearly stipulates that a Tasmanian AFL licence is conditional on building a new stadium that is fit for purpose and will ensure a Tasmanian team is viable.
The document confirms the Tasmanian Government’s financial commitment of:
- $60 million to assist in the establishment of the team’s operations and to construct a high-performance centre for use by the team;
- Operational funding of $12 million a year for 12 years (with CPI capped at 2.5% or CPI, whichever is lesser) from the team’s entry into the AFL and AFLW competitions.
The AFL will also invest $358 million into Tasmanian football as part of the deal, which will flow throughout communities and clubs with:
- $15 million into the stadium;
- $10 million into the club’s training and administration;
- $90 million in game development;
- $33 million into development of young male and female talent; and,
- $210 million in distributions to the new club over the first 10 years.
The agreement has been largely released in full, including all elements that relate to the Tasmanian Government.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff said:
“We committed to releasing the agreement with as much detail as possible, and that’s exactly what we’ve done.
“The agreement confirms our targeted investment that will not only deliver us our own AFL and AFLW sides, but will create over 4000 jobs and deliver massive returns to our economy – allowing us to reinvest the dividends into the areas that matter to Tasmanians.”
Minister for Sport and Recreation, Nic Street, said the agreement was a massive win for Tasmania.
“Our Government is delivering for Tasmanians and this agreement finally gives us our own licence, along with jobs, economic growth, and significant investment into grassroots footy here in Tasmania,” the Minister said.
The agreement can be found here: https://www.stategrowth.tas.gov.au/news/tasmanian_club_funding_and_development_agreement
Media release – Cassy O’Connor MP, Greens Leader, 21 May 2023
AFL Deal is a Dud for Tasmania
The contract between the Tasmanian Government and the AFL confirms Jeremy Rockliff was a pushover for Gill McLachlan.
Tasmanians will fork out a minimum of $460 million and carry all the inevitable cost over runs for a new stadium at Macquarie Point.
This on top of the $144 million we’re paying for the licence we’d already earned on merit, and $60 million for the new high performance centre.
Regrettably, the new training centre originally marked for Hobart’s northern suburbs will now be in the city, meaning the benefits aren’t shared.
Tasmanians will also be on the hook if the stadium isn’t ready by 2027 and again the following year.
No other team in the AFL has come at such a cost to the public purse.
We’ve been signed up to the largest state sponsorship and blank-cheque project costs for a sporting team, by the smallest and poorest state, in Australian history.
Meanwhile, a growing number of Tasmanians have no place to call home, and the publicly funded Bellerive stadium looks set to become a stranded asset.
The stadium development is already on the nose with people across the island.
The release of Gill McLachlan’s sweet deal for the AFL will only harden opposition to the Macquarie Point stadium, across the island and across political boundaries.
The Greens believe most Tasmanians want our own AFL and AFLW teams without billion dollar strings attached.
The campaign to stop the stadium, and renegotiate the deal with the AFL, will only gain momentum.
Media release – Cassy O’Connor MP, Greens Leader, 22 May 2023
Rockliff Must Come Clean on PoSS Assurance
Premier Jeremy Rockliff needs to come clean on exactly what he told independent MPs John Tucker and Lara Alexander in order to gain their support in Parliament.
Speaking on ABC Radio this morning, John Tucker said the Premier had assured him the Project of State Significance process would mean “there will be a vote at the start, public consultation, and then a vote and scrutiny at the end” for the Macquarie Point stadium.
Under current laws, this isn’t necessarily true. A second Parliamentary vote is only required if the Premier decides to vary the recommendation made to him by the Planning Commission.
What exactly did Jeremy Rockliff tell these new independents? Did he deliberately mislead them just to secure his short-term political survival?
We wouldn’t put it past him, given how shady he was with us last year to secure our support for the state’s AFL bid.
It seems the Premier offered his former colleagues pretty clear assurances about Parliament’s role, but if John Tucker has misunderstood the situation, it doesn’t change the shadow now hanging over the deal he’s signed.
Is the independent Member for Lyons satisfied with a situation where Parliament doesn’t have the final say? And if not, what’s he going to do about it?
This whole situation demonstrates the deep flaws in the Project of State Significance legislation. At minimum, amendments must be made to this process to ensure the Parliament always has the final say.
Media release – Shane Broad MP, Shadow Treasurer, 21 May 2023
AFL deal reveals Tasmania takes on all the risks
Jeremy Rockliff has signed a deal with the AFL where the Tasmania taxpayer takes on all the risks.
The vast majority of the costs are paid by the Tasmanian taxpayer, yet we do not have control of the team, and we only have a 12-year guarantee for the team.
To put it even more bluntly, we pay at least $1 billion for a stadium and team, and we only get a 12-year license.
Tasmania is also responsible for all cost blowouts in the building and financing of the stadium.
It is no wonder Jeremy Rockliff kept this deal secret for so long, and make no mistake, the only reason he did release it was because his hand was forced.
It took the defection of two of his backbenchers and his government to be plunged into minority for him to release the details of the secret AFL deal.
The AFL own the license, appoint the chair, control board appointments, and the AFL also hold a majority of board positions.
This deal means Tasmania takes on all the risks, and the AFL reaps the rewards.
How could Jeremy Rockliff sign us up to such a dud deal?
Shane Broad MP, Shadow Treasurer, 22 May 2023
It’s clear Rockliff’s AFL deal hasn’t gone through State Cabinet
Jeremy Rockliff’s train wreck interview with Leon Compton this morning confirmed that the Premier’s AFL Deal has not been approved by State Cabinet and was not sighted by the Treasurer prior to it being signed.
The Premier was asked on multiple occasions this morning whether the AFL deal had been approved by Cabinet and seen by the Treasurer prior to being signed and on multiple occasions he refused to answer.
If the answer to both questions was ‘yes’ the Premier would surely have said so. Instead he was his usual evasive self.
This morning we also had the RSL confirm that it will not support the stadium.
Jeremy Rockliff has signed us up to a deal where the AFL can single-handedly terminate our licence after 12 years and we’re left with a billion-dollar taxpayer funded stadium sitting at Macquarie point with no footy played in it.
It’s a bad deal for Tasmania and one that hasn’t been approved by State Cabinet or sighted by the Treasurer prior to being signed by the Premier.
