When the Liberals came to office in 2014, Tasmania had $208 million in net cash and investments. Now, after 11 years of Liberal budget mismanagement, Tasmania is on track to have the worst finances in the country and rack up nearly $10 billion worth of net debt.
This year's budget is a huge test for the government, and for the new Treasurer who is already facing serious doubts over his credibility - and for good reason.
The key questions facing the Treasurer include:
- When will the net debt stop growing? Premier Rockliff and former Treasurer Ferguson famously froze up when asked that question by The Australian last year. Can Treasurer Barnett stop the debt?
- Is there a cash surplus? - the only way to stop net debt from growing is for the Treasurer to deliver a cash surplus. Any attempt by the government to claim a "pathway to surplus" will be disingenuous unless a cash surplus is contained in the budget papers. A net operating surplus won't necessarily help the Liberals' debt problem.
- Is the forecasting honest? - in last year's budget, former Treasurer Ferguson outrageously projected that government expenditure would reduce for the first time in 20 years - despite the fact expenses grew by an average of 11.7 per cent over the last three years. I'll be looking to see whether Treasurer Barnett risks repeating the same failures as his predecessor, setting up future blowouts and supplementary appropriation bills.
- Is the Government accounting for asset sales in the budget? Which items are on the chopping block? And how much funding will be ripped from schools and hospitals?
- Will TT-Line receive a bailout? - a bailout is more likely than not according to TasCorp, and the Premier should come clean about how much more the Spirits fiasco is going to cost Tasmanians.
The results of having the Liberals in charge for 11 years speak for themselves. Tasmania's finances have never been worse, and they've shredded any budget management credibility they once had.
Labor has changed, we've shown we're serious about addressing the state's budget crisis by introducing a bill to cap deficits, introducing legislation to bring forward the next Fiscal Sustainability Report, and outlining the critical first steps toward reining in wasteful spending in out ten-point-plan for budget repair.
Premier Rockliff and the Liberals have given up on governing and given up on fixing the budget. Tomorrow is a chance for them to demonstrate that isn't the case, will they pass or fail?
Josh Willie MP
Shadow Treasurer
