Labor warning for new leader
TASMANIA’S next premier will inherit a challenging budget and will need to “change course” to ensure it can sustainably deliver essential services, Labor says.
The race for the top job is a contest in two, with Treasurer Peter Gutwein and State Growth Minister Michael Ferguson yesterday declaring their desire to be Premier.
Labor’s treasury spokesman David O’Byrne said whoever was chosen by the Liberals as their next leader, would walk into a difficult set of circumstances.
“Whoever the new premier is has got a massive task ahead of them,’’ he said.
“We have a budget heading to a billion dollars of net debt, we’ve got half a billion dollars of cuts to frontline services across the state.
“So the message from Tasmanians for the potential new Premier of Tasmania, is that you need to change course.
“You need to get your priorities right, you need to reverse those cuts and ensure that frontline services are protected and that a medium to longterm budget strategy can turn the Tasmanian budget around to ensure that it’s sustainable to provide those services.”
Mr O’Byrne said Will Hodgman’s successor would also have their hands full tackling crises in health and housing.
And he took aim at the Liberals for leaving Tasmanians hanging as the state waits to see who will take the top job.
“This is an extraordinary lack of an appropriate professional transition from one leader to the next,’’ Mr O’Byrne said.
“The Premier has every right to make a decision to retire but there’s also a responsibility for the Liberal Party to govern the state.
“Tasmanians won’t know until next week about who their leader is.
“We’re half way through a bushfire season, we’ve got a hospital system in crisis, we’ve got a housing sector in crisis, and we are hearing crickets and frogs from the Liberal Party.
“This is an extraordinary set of circumstances. The Premier has clearly had a successful political career, but he has left the stage and no one is standing on it.”
Mr O’Byrne would not be drawn on whether Mr Hodgman’s exit from politics would improve winning years.
But he did back Labor Leader Rebecca White to lead the party to the 2022 election.
“Rebecca White is now the most popular leader in Tasmania, she leads a strong and united team, she’s very passionate about the future of Tasmania and she will be the next Labor premier of Tasmania,’’ Mr O’Byrne said.
Labor’s chances of government in two