**UNDER STRICT EMBARGO UNTIL 12.01AM MONDAY, JULY 24, 2017**
Tasmania has cemented itself into 4th spot nationally in CommSec’s latest State of the States report.
This is further proof that the Hodgman Government’s long-term Plan is working. Since we were elected, 10,500 jobs have been created and industries like tourism, hospitality, retail, agriculture and building and construction have gone from strength to strength.
Driving Tasmania’s solid performance is nation-leading growth in jobs. The CommSec Report states that:
Tasmania is now ranked third on unemployment as its 5.8 per cent jobless rate is 5.3 per cent below the “normal” (decade-average) of 6.1 per cent. Tasmania also has the strongest annual employment growth at 3.8 per cent – the fastest growth in 2½ years.
Tasmania’s solid performance is also due to the best population growth rate in six years, with the Report saying:
“Tasmania’s annual population growth rose from 0.44 per cent to a near 6-year high of 0.58 per cent in the December quarter and was 3.6 per cent higher than its decade average.”
Overall, the Report says that Tasmania:
“…remains in fourth spot but is joined by Queensland. Tasmania is benefitting from rising population growth (fastest in six years), a solid market for established dwellings and an improving job market (strongest job growth in 2½ years).”
But there is much more to do. That’s why our Budget contains a $25 million employment strategy to create more jobs and to help the economy continue growing.