Tomorrow’s Budget reply presents Labor an opportunity to finally break their track record of laziness by actually delivering an alternative Budget so Tasmanians know where they stand.
There will be nowhere to hide for Rebecca White who, after ditching all her election policies, stands for nothing but relentless negativity.
Since the delivery of the State Budget, Labor has claimed that the Hodgman Liberal Government’s record investments in health, education and infrastructure are the ‘wrong priorities’.
Labor has already opposed the modest efficiency dividend in the budget, and committed to a 3 per cent per year public service pay rise. Based on those two positions alone, Rebecca White would take the budget into deficit immediately and add more than $700 million to net debt– that’s before even outlining how they’d pay for any additional policies or promises.
What are the rest of Labor’s policies? What do they cost? Which of our significant job-creating infrastructure projects will go to pay for their promises? Which services would they cut? Or will there be deficits as far as the eye can see?
Tasmanians deserve to know what Labor would raid from health, education and infrastructure.
As a former member of Labor’s Budget razor gang, Rebecca White has form on cutting services and frontline staff when she was last in government.
It’s time Labor were honest with Tasmanians, come clean on where they stand and deliver an alternative Budget on Tuesday.