23 May 2019

Peter Gutwein MP

2019-20 Budget: Keeping the Budget strong and delivering record investments in infrastructure and services

The 2019-20 State Budget maintains the momentum established in Tasmania over the past five years by delivering record investments in the areas that matter to Tasmanians – health, education and infrastructure.

It will also support employment growth of around 10,000 jobs over the Budget and Forward Estimates period.

The Hodgman Liberal Government has worked hard to get the budget back into a sustainable position after the mess left by the previous Labor-Green Government, and in the current 2018-19 financial year we will deliver our fourth surplus in a row.

For the 2018-19 financial year, despite revenue downgrades due to decreased distributions from the national GST pool, decreased stamp duty receipts, unprecedented demand pressures in our health system and the devastating summer bushfires, the forecast surplus will be $41 million.

Likewise, the 2019-20 State Budget continues to deliver on the Hodgman Liberal Government’s commitment to keep our State’s finances strong, with a forecast $57 million surplus.

And our strong financial management is paying dividends for Tasmanians.

The 2019-20 State Budget delivers record investments in infrastructure and services, including;

• A record $8.1 billion investment in health over the next four years – a $544 million increase from last year’s Budget;
• A record $7.1 billion investment in education over the next four years – a $349 million increase from last year’s Budget; and
• A record $3.6 billion investment in job creating, intergenerational infrastructure over four years, including $2.8 billion for roads, bridges, hospitals, schools and housing, as well as $792 million in equity investments to our Government businesses and TasWater to deliver essential economic infrastructure.

The 2019-20 State Budget delivers a balanced set of books, record investments into health, education and protecting the most disadvantaged, whilst underpinning our economy by investing today to deliver the infrastructure we need now and for tomorrow.