Premier Jeremy Rockliff has failed to hose down fears that Tasmania’s credit rating will be downgraded following last week’s horror budget.

When asked about the very serious prospect of a downgrade happening following S&P confirming it is actively considering one, the Premier treated it as a joke.

The Premier’s response was further evidence that he has given up trying to manage the budget responsibly.

When the Liberals came to office in 2014, Tasmania had $208 million in the bank. Now, after 11 years of Liberal budget mismanagement, Tasmania is staring down the barrel of almost $11 billion worth of net debt.

The interest payments on the Liberal legacy debt will reach $650 million per year, more than $2 billion across the forward estimates – and that won’t even start to pay it down.

A credit rating downgrade will push the interest bill on the Premier’s record debt even higher.

If the Premier can’t manage the budget, he can’t govern Tasmania.

Josh Willie MP
Shadow Treasurer