Michael Ferguson,Minister for Infrastructure and Transport
Nothing new has been said today about the Spirit of Tasmania replacement vessels.
The fact remains that the Government is taking prudent action in the replacement of the Spirit of Tasmania vessels.
The world has changed significantly since the previous shipbuilders were shortlisted. With an estimated 1500 jobs to be created, it would be negligent of us not to explore opportunities for at least some of those jobs to go to Tasmanians and Australians.
It is shocking to see David O'Byrne, Shane Broad and Labor continuing to aggressively campaign against Australian industry capability – especially given the significant interest from both Tasmanian and Australian companies we've seen already.
We will always back Tasmanian and Australian jobs, and we look forward to the recommendations of the Taskforce.
