A stimulus package to deal with the impact of coronavirus on Tasmanian businesses and workers is welcome, but swift action and additional measures targeted to regional areas are needed.
Shadow Treasurer David O’Byrne said Tasmania’s economy is in dangerous territory with coronavirus and, combined with other pre-existing conditions, the need for positive measures is clear.
“The fact is that there were worrying signs with Tasmania’s economy before coronavirus hit,” Mr O’Byrne said.
“Final demand for the quarter ending December 2019 showed negative growth for the first time in three years, building approvals and trade are sharply down, and business investment has fallen by 31 percent to be the worst in Australia.
“As well, 1,300 jobs were lost in the North West in the past 12 months, underemployment is the highest it’s ever been in any state or territory and job ads are down 14.5 per cent.
“With the state’s debt at $1.4 billion and getting worse, and huge delays to numerous major infrastructure projects, Tasmania’s economy is looking shaky.
“We want to work with the Liberals to keep damage to a minimum and provide as much support as possible to Tasmania’s workers and businesses.
“There doesn’t appear to be anything specific to regional Tasmania in the Federal stimulus package and if that is the case, additional measures from the state government will be needed to address this.
“But we need to move quickly or any steps taken may be too late.
“The Queensland Government announced a range of initiatives almost two weeks ago in an attempt to get ahead of the coronavirus impact.
“We have no further time to waste here. Economic stimulus measures need to be activated as soon as possible to ensure the best results for Tasmania.”
David O’Byrne MP
Shadow Treasurer
