Minister bungles Tasmania’s ‘greatest renewable energy opportunity’

Tasmanian Labor
  • Barnett has hands off the wheel
  • Tasmania’s biggest economic opportunity at risk
  • CEO departures are a vote of no confidence
  • To lose one CEO on your watch might be regarded as unfortunate but for Energy Minister Guy Barnett to lose two starts to look like incompetence.

    Shadow Energy Minister David O’Byrne said this Minister clearly has no idea what’s going on in his portfolio.

    “At a time when Hydro Tasmania and TasNetworks are dealing with the biggest economic investment project in the state since the creation of the hydro, what we’re seeing from Guy Barnett is utter chaos.

    “The CEOs of both organisations have announced that they’re stepping down within six months of each other.

    “At best this is destabilising, at worst it could be fatal to these key projects and is unmistakably a vote of no-confidence in the Minister’s handling of this crucial portfolio.

    “Making matters worse, the Minister keeps telling us energy prices have never been lower, when we know in reality Tasmanians are facing the shock of unprecedented power bills.

    “Guy Barnett is shockingly out of touch with the financial pain being experienced by Tasmanians.

    “His hands off approach to the portfolio creates a leadership vacuum in energy at a time the state cannot afford to set a foot wrong.”

    David O’Byrne MP

    Shadow Minister for Energy

    /Public Release. View in full here.