We welcome today’s Bell Bay Port announcement from the Government but honestly, we should have been at this stage 12 months ago.

Labor have been calling on the Rockliff Liberal Government to get their act together and make sure Bell Bay Port has the infrastructure required to grab this enormous renewable energy opportunity with both hands.

After a year of industry pushing this government to prioritise this project, in October Labor announced a policy to immediately complete plans and a business case for upgrading the Port of Bell Bay so that a funding proposal can be put to the Federal Government before the election.

Based on the Government’s track record of failing to deliver major infrastructure projects and the timeline announced today, they can’t afford to have any delays with the project. If we aren’t ready, Tasmania will miss this once in a generation opportunity to secure thousands of jobs for Tasmanian workers and billions in economic activity.

Once the preferred project outline is agreed, first stage bids should be made to secure project funding commitments prior to the Federal election.

Labor is determined to get moving on the big projects that will set our economy up for decades to come, and create thousands of safe, secure, well-paid jobs.

Janie Finlay MP
Shadow Minister for Energy & Renewables