Bottleshop workers are already bracing for an onslaught of unhappy customers when Jeremy Rockliff’s beer tax kicks in next week.

From 1 May, when a Tasmanian buys a 30 can block of beer, cider or soft drink they’ll pay an extra $6.50 in Rocky’s beer tax.

To help protect workers, signs are being placed in bottleshops to educate customers as to why they are about to see such a spike to prices. It’s not fair that they are already anticipating abuse and its important Tasmanians know that its Jeremy Rockliff’s fault beers are going up by so much, not the workers’.

Labor is not against a container deposit scheme, but we are against having the most expensive scheme in the country.

The Rockliff Minority Government is unapologetically slapping on red tape for beverage producers and retailers at a time when they claim to be doing the opposite.

The Premier’s silence on the impact his beer tax will have on everyday Tasmanians and on industry and jobs has been deafening. Tasmanians have waited seven years for the Liberals to introduce this scheme, and the least they could do is have done it well.

He needs to explain why he thinks its ok to make Tasmanians pay more than anywhere else in the country for a container deposit scheme.

Luke Edmunds MLC
Shadow Minister for Finance