TasTAFE’s plan to eliminate courses in visual arts, music, design and media—along with the highly skilled staff who run them—has been slammed as a devastating blow to Tasmania’s creative sector and a betrayal of low-income students. The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance and the Greens are leading the outcry against the Liberal government, which they accuse of undermining essential skills and training, even as Minister Madeleine Ogilvie proudly announced a separate million investment in established arts organisations.
Media release – The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance, 16 October 2025
TasTAFE cuts to hurt students, staff, and the state’s creative sector
The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) strongly condemns plans by TasTAFE to scrap creative and media courses and sack the highly skilled staff who run them, following news of funding cuts.
If the plan goes ahead, Tasmanians will lose the ability to study visual arts, design, music, screen and media, fashion and textiles — among other courses — through TAFE, wiping out an essential pathway into the creative industries.
MEAA Deputy Chief Executive Adam Portelli said the decision would devastate access to education, particularly for low-income students who depended on subsidies.
“TAFE has long been a cornerstone of Tasmania’s training system, giving people from all backgrounds the chance to build skills, find meaningful work and contribute to their communities,” Portelli said.
“Removing these courses effectively locks out the next generation of Tasmanian artists, designers, filmmakers, musicians and other creatives from pursuing their chosen careers.”
“The creative and media industries are not optional extras. They are vital to Tasmania’s culture, economy, identity and community pride.”
“Cutting these programs will have long-term ripple effects that reach far beyond the classroom.”
“The Government’s economic and community focus needs to go beyond football stadiums.”
Members of the Australian Education Union will be protesting the cuts by rallying outside the Government Executive Building, Hobart, on 16 October.
MEAA stands in full solidarity with AEU members, TasTAFE staff and students and the broader education and arts communities in opposing these cuts.
MEAA calls on the Tasmanian Government and TasTAFE management to reverse this damaging decision and protect access to quality public education in the creative and media fields.
Media release – Brian Mitchell MHA, Shadow Minister for TAFE, Skills & Training, 15 October 2025
Lab tech students paying the price for Liberal budget mismanagement
After 11 years of Liberal budget mismanagement, Tasmanians are now paying the price – with savage cuts to vital TAFE courses that support key sectors of our economy.
Skills Minister Felix Ellis’ reckless decision to slash TasTAFE’s laboratory technology courses is yet another example of a government completely out of touch with Tasmania’s workforce needs and economic future.
Laboratory technology graduates work across industries ranging from aquaculture and food production to environmental science, health and manufacturing. These are good, skilled jobs that help underpin our economic growth and innovation.
Instead of supporting these opportunities, the Liberals are slamming the door shut on young Tasmanians who want to pursue this pathway.
Planeloads of young Tasmanians are already leaving for better opportunities interstate. We can’t afford to say no to Tasmanians who want to train and work right here in our state.
Felix Ellis’ refusal to recognise the value of laboratory technicians shows exactly why you can’t trust the Liberals to provide future opportunities for Tasmanians.
These cuts are short-sighted, harmful, and driven by budget mess entirely of their own making. Employers across Tasmania have joined students, teachers and unions in condemning the decision, warning it will make our state’s skills shortages even worse.
Labor is calling on the Premier to reverse the cuts immediately and stop making Tasmanian students pay for his inability to manage money.
Media release – Tabatha Badger MHA, Greens Skills and Training Spokesperson, 16 October 2025
Greens Back TasTAFE Cuts Protestors
The Greens stand with the AEU, TasTAFE teachers and students and members of the community rallying against course cuts. The Liberal Government must ensure these cuts don’t go ahead and confirm no campuses will be shut down.
TasTAFE’s arts and laboratory technology courses provide vital education and training to students. But these courses are going to be axed and valued teachers sacked if the Liberals’ funding cuts go ahead.
TasTAFE should be strengthened, not stripped. It’s simply not good enough that Tasmanians wanting to study in these areas will be forced to go to the mainland.
The Liberals’ funding cuts to these courses will have devastating results for both Tasmania’s creative community and health and education systems. A shortage in laboratory technicians would see important pathology results stalled and a reduction in school pracs.
It’s clear from the number of students rallying and contacting MPs offices that there is substantial demand for these courses moving forward. The Greens understand there has been a wait list for enrolment in some of the cut arts courses – perhaps the low enrolment rate was due to the places being so limited, not due to a lack of interest.
The Liberal Government needs to be honest with Tasmanians – what further cuts are on the table? Will campuses be next, as was identified as a possible ‘efficiency’ in the TasTAFE Act Review?
The Liberals should be investing in Tasmanians’ futures – not cutting funding to courses to pay for their billion-dollar stadium. It’s time they got their priorities straight, and reverse the funding cuts to TasTAFE.
Media release – Tabatha Badger MHA, Greens Skills and Training Spokesperson, 10 October 2025
What TasTAFE Cuts Are Next?
The Minister has spectacularly failed in his task to deliver meaningful TasTAFE reforms, instead cutting courses. What courses and campuses will be next in the Liberals’ stadium fire sale?
The TasTAFE Act Review identifies an ‘opportunity’ to close campuses as an ‘efficiency’ through divestment. The Minister needs to stop the spin and be transparent with Tasmanians. Which campuses will close? Will further courses be cut?
Tasmanians can have no confidence that the sale of public building assets and course subsidies will be reinvested into TAFE and not redirected to pay a stadium-sized debt.
When the TasTAFE reforms were underway, Tasmanians were promised that no student or teacher would be worse off. But since then, we’ve seen redundancies in the Automotive sector.
Now teachers will be forced to leave as price hikes in courses make them unattainable for students to enrol in. The Greens understand education managers have been asked to cut 20% from their already tight operating budgets.
The fact that not a single TasTAFE teacher was interviewed for the review is shameful and undermines the integrity of the report’s recommendations. How did the Review conclude teachers were satisfied with the changes despite not interviewing any teachers?
The Minister evidently has no grasp on the real-world outcomes of his decision to scrap funding subsidies for these courses. His statement about his new direction for TAFE focusing on health is more spin when over 50% of the students in the now unattainable Lab Tech course go on to be employed in the Tasmanian health system.
The Minister has failed to deliver genuine reform. If the Liberals do not step up to prevent further erosion of skills and training in the state now, the damage done will take years to repair. TasTAFE should be strengthened, not stripped.
The Greens call on the Liberals to reverse their cuts to the arts and design course. Minister Ellis must come clean and tell Tasmanians which campuses he plans to flog off, which courses will be cut and the extent of cuts to internal budgets.
Media release – Tabatha Badger MHA, Greens Skills and Training Spokesperson, 2 October 2025
TasTAFE Funding Cuts Unacceptable
It is disappointing to see investment in TasTAFE Arts courses has dropped at a crucial time of diminishing opportunities for Tasmanian students. With UTAS scaling back its course offerings, the Liberals should be filling a training gap through TasTAFE, not closing the door on this socially important sector.
The Minister waxes lyrical about TasTAFEs’ role in meeting the needs of society, while at the same time slashing Arts courses funding. The arts is the foundation of community and cultural identity and a large economic contributor, especially in a creative hive like Tasmania.
TasTAFE students are effectively being priced out of enrolling in a swath of Arts and Design training to cull the courses – some of which will see a price hike of tens of thousands of dollars, equating to over 5000%.
These funding cuts are not good for the future of Tasmania. Forcing students out of the arts doesn’t redirect them into the Ministers’ priority areas of carpentry or plumbing, it forces students to seek training in their desired field elsewhere, now likely outside of our state.
When enrolments inevitability drop, what will this mean for jobs at TasTAFE?
The Liberals should be investing TasTAFE so it’s genuinely free for all Tasmanians – not building a billion-dollar stadium. It’s time the Liberal Government got its budget priorities straight.
The Greens call on Minister Ellis to lift his game and support equitable, diverse skills and training opportunities for Tasmania.
Media release – Madeleine Ogilvie, Minister for Arts and Heritage, 9 October 2025
More support for Tasmania’s cultural and creative industries
Eight Tasmanian arts organisations will receive support from the Tasmanian Government to deliver events that will strengthen the State’s thriving arts scene.
Minister for Arts and Heritage, Madeleine Ogilive, said the latest round of Arts Tasmania’s Arts organisations – annual programs would enable organisations to deliver a broad range of activities across Tasmania in 2026.
“These events have far-reaching benefits for the cultural and creative industries,” Ogilvie said.
“Through this funding round, we are investing over $1 million into the arts to support eight organisations to deliver diverse and exciting programs in 2026. Excitingly, the funds are being used to deliver programs in every corner of the State.
“From dance and theatre to music and multi-disciplinary initiatives, the works delivered by these organisations represent the strengths of Tasmania’s thriving cultural and creative industries.
“This investment will provide important employment opportunities for Tasmanian artists and artworkers and ensure ongoing access to world-class artistic experiences for Tasmania audiences.”
Among the successful recipients is DRILL Performance Company, based in Hobart, which has secured funding to deliver youth-focused activities that will develop artistic skill and provide unique experiences for audiences.
On the West Coast, The Unconformity has been supported for ‘Explorations’ – a program of artist residencies and other community focused activities.
Also included is Mudlark Theatre, in Launceston, which will deliver a program of activities that upskills local actors and amplifies Tasmanian voices.
“There is something for everyone in this program, so I encourage all Tasmanians to go and check out our home grown talent,” Ogilvie said.
Applications to Arts organisations – annual programs were independently assessed by expert peers drawn from Arts Tasmania’s Cultural and Creative Industries Register and the broader sector.
Media release – TasTAFE Tasmania, 9 October 2025
DEED OF PURCHASING ARRANGEMENT – UPDATE
TasTAFE has commenced the consultation and review process with impacted staff and has not made any decision about staffing levels, or course offerings in 2026 as a result of changes under the Deed of Purchasing Arrangement with Skills Tasmania.
TasTAFE will continue to work with affected staff in Arts and Design and Laboratory Technology through the remainder of this week.
“Our focus is on engaging with staff through the formal consultation process that is underway. Our consultation process is undertaken with care, transparency, and respect, ” said Will McShane, Interim CEO TasTAFE
• There is no impact on the delivery of meat processing qualifications.
• Certificate III in Meat Processing (Meat Safety) has been removed from the list of subsidised courses as it is an outdated qualification.
• All other meat processing qualifications will continue to be subsidised in 2026.
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