Treasurer Guy Barnett’s blanket freeze on “non-essential staff” within the state service is an admission that the Liberals have broken Tasmania’s budget.

After more than 10 years of the Liberals, Tasmania’s finances have never been in worse shape – but despite this, until today the Treasurer had maintained that he had everything under control.

While the Treasurer’s honesty in finally admitting the Liberals have broken the budget is a welcome relief from his standard deflection, his proposal does not solve the problem they have created.

Instead of sitting down with unions and businesses and making strategic decisions on how to responsibly improve the budget position, the Treasurer has taken the lazy and inefficient approach of a blanket freeze and handed the problem to unelected bureaucrats. 

Make no mistake, a blanket freeze will create inefficiencies and impact on government service delivery, with Tasmanians set to pay a heavy price for a decade of Liberal financial mismanagement.

With Parliament returning this week, Labor looks forward to getting answers for Tasmanians about which jobs will be on the chopping block, and how this decision will impact their lives.

Josh Willie MP
Shadow Treasurer