Double population pitch to boost state

ONE of Australia’s most distinguished economists says Hobart should aggressively target a doubling of its population to 400,000 people by 2025 — a strategy he says would inevitably boost jobs and development.

Melbourne Business School dean Ian Harper has challenged the state to think differently about change and called for council amalgamations and an examination of planning and zoning laws to allow for population development through the Midlands.

Employment opportunities would follow the people, and improvements to transport infrastructure would allow for a commute to jobs in the capital, Professor Harper said.

“If Tassie wants to be able to deliver the types of living standards, high-value jobs, meaningful jobs, in a community with high levels of technological sophistication and inclusive governance, if it wants to do that, then it has to start with the driver of productivity growth, and that’s people,” Professor Harper said.

“Nobody likes change, but to put it frankly if you don’t change you die.”

Tasmania has traditionally suffered sluggish population growth, although recent Australian Bureau of Statistics data suggests it is on the up.

The jobless rate has also held firm at 6 per cent — in trend terms — and private capital investment grew at 12 per cent last financial year, which was about three times the national average.

Professor Harper encouraged the University of Tasmania and all levels of government to actively entice migrants from interstate and overseas.

He has pointed to Victoria’s extensive infrastructure program as evidence population growth helps the economy, with Melbourne the nation’s fastest-growing capital city and Victoria the fastest-growing state.

“You’ve got to think about how you can use this population-driven driver of growth in a way which delivers a broader set of benefits to the Tasmanian people, clearly without destroying liveability,” Professor Harper said.

“The way you can afford to do that is to continue to grow your living standards of productivity and the way you do that is where the population driver comes in.”

The state’s population is about 520,000, with Hobart contributing about 220,000 people. The State Government has set a target of 600,000 people in Tasmania by 2050.