Under the Hodgman Liberal Government’s long-term plan, Tasmania’s population is growing at its fastest rate in nearly a decade.
The ABS has today confirmed Tasmania’s population hit 528,097 people in the June quarter 2018 which represents an increase of 5,687 compared to a year earlier – this is the largest annual growth in nearly a decade.
Importantly, over the year to the June quarter 2018, interstate migration reached its highest level in nearly 15 years, with a net inflow of 2,382 people from interstate as more people choose to live in our great State.
The latest figures are in stark contrast to the last year of the Labor-Green Government, during which we saw a net total of 551 people leaving Tasmania to seek opportunities elsewhere.
The Government supports sustainable population growth and our population target for the State of 650,000 by 2050 reflects that. We must ensure our growth is sustainable for the long term and we welcome recent commitments from the Commonwealth to strengthened coordination of population planning and management across all levels of Government.
An increasing population will underpin growth in our economy, and help strengthen our finances, enabling greater investment in essential infrastructure. With growth comes opportunities for Tasmanians, our children and will make our State an even better place to live.
To support Tasmania’s growth, we have established a 10 year $13.9 billion Tasmanian infrastructure pipeline and already we are rolling out a $2.6 billion infrastructure program in the Budget to literally build Tasmania’s future and support growth in our economy.
The Government has outlined very clear plans to grow the economy, and to invest more into the services and infrastructure our growing State needs.
Next year we will increase our efforts to include the ideas of community and industry leaders in developing strategies to unlock the full potential of our communities and ensure economic growth is spread across our State.
By working together we can ensure all Tasmanians share in the benefits of a thriving economy and can look forward to a brighter future.