On his first attempt, Treasurer Guy Barnett has managed to deliver the worst budget Tasmania has ever seen.

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.

Today’s numbers confirm what’s been clear for years now – Premier Rockliff can’t manage money.

If you can’t manage the budget, you can’t govern Tasmania.

There’s no evidence of net debt stopping anywhere in the forward estimates – in fact, it’s spiralling further and further out of control.

We’re going to be spending more on interest payments than on ambulances and emergency departments combined.

Every Tasmanian household has inherited a $47,000 mortgage from this government. Tasmanians will be paying down Premier Rockliff’s credit card bill for generations to come, and something needs to be done about it.

Labor has changed, we’ve shown we’re serious about addressing the state’s budget crisis by introducing a bill to cap deficits, introducing legislation to bring forward the next Fiscal Sustainability Report, and outlining the critical first steps toward reining in wasteful spending in our ten-point-plan for budget repair.

It’s clear that Premier Rockliff and the Liberals have given up on trying to fix the budget, and they’ve given up on governing.

The results of having the Liberals in charge for 11 years speak for themselves. Tasmania’s finances have never been worse, and they’ve shredded any budget management credibility they once had.

Dean Winter MP
Labor Leader