With Labor’s State Conference just days away, Rebecca White has yet to rule out capitulating to the demands of her union masters which will smash Tasmania’s finances.
On the weekend Labor members will vote to make it official Labor policy to hand unions a blank cheque on public sector wages with unfettered wage increases across the board.
What needs to be understood is that a one per cent wage increase would cost the budget $28 million each, and every year. Over four years this will cost Tasmanian taxpayers around $280 million.
Labor members will also vote on increasing the size of the public sector by at least 10 per cent.
A 10 per cent increase in public servants would cost the budget at least a $1.2 billion blow out across the forward estimates.
At the end of the day it will be Tasmanian families who pay for Rebecca White’s capitulation to public sector unions through fewer services and higher taxes.
Since coming to office, the Hodgman Liberal Government has employed nearly 400 more staff in schools including teachers, support staff and teacher assistants as well as an additional 108 police, and we are increasing police numbers by a further 125 officers.
Furthermore we have employed an extra 370 nurses, almost 90 doctors, 65 allied health professionals, 95 frontline operational staff and seven radiation therapists. And we have plans to employ even more nurses, doctors and more allied health professionals at hospitals across the State under the health plan we announced earlier this year as part of our election campaign.
We are investing record amounts into the health, education and infrastructure Tasmanians need and kept the budget in surplus.
All this will be put at risk if Rebecca White capitulates on the weekend to her union masters.
Rebecca White must rule out these proposals before they even get to the conference floor or be honest with Tasmanians on what police stations, schools and services she is going to close to fund them.