Leaders still split despite PM’s ideas
TASMANIAN Premier Jeremy Rockliff has been buoyed by the attitude of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his views on the proposed $710m Macquarie Point stadium.
Mr Albanese expressed his vision of what the stadium precinct should entail on Saturday morning radio as a guest on the Waterboys 500th show.
Mr Albanese seemed open about the project and the $210m in funding asked of the federal government to make the Mac Point Stadium a reality.
But he did have a number of things he would like to see built at Mac Point to complement the stadium and make the precinct economically viable all year-round.
The list included transport hubs with ferry terminals and utilisation of the old rail corridor to the northern suburbs.
It also included housing and commercial ventures like restaurants and bars to activate the site.
He said the key to the concept was to use the development as a chance for urban renewal and make sure the prime real estate became a vibrant hub for the city.
Mr Rockliff said after the interview he was really pleased the Prime Minister continued to understand and encourage their vision for Mac Point.
“It’s refreshing to have the PM show leadership on this huge opportunity to create thousands of jobs and massive economic benefit for the entire state,” Mr Rockliff said.
“Hopefully, his state colleagues will be inspired to put the state’s future ahead of short-term political pointscoring and get on board.”
That hope seems dashed with state Labor leader Rebecca White doubling down on her opposition to the project.
“Our position hasn’t changed around the stadium, I think the majority of Tasmanias agree it’s not the right priority for our state,” Ms White said.
She said she had listened to the conversation on radio, and to her it seemed clear that the state government hadn’t done the work necessary for the federal government to consider “funding anything right now”.
In the interview, Mr Albanese hinted Tasmanians might have to wait until the May federal budget for a decision on the funding.