Tasmanian Networks Government Business Enterprise Committee hearings (GBEs) today finally exposed the fact that the GBE will be providing financial injections of $20 million to TasRail, and $30 million to Forestry Tasmania for the 2015-16 financial year.
“This government has deliberately kept Tasmanians in the dark over plans to keep pouring public subsidies into failing businesses such as Forestry Tasmania,” Greens Leader Kim Booth MP said today.“We have asked numerous questions over months in Parliament asking where the money to keep propping up Forestry Tasmania was going to come from which the Liberals refused to answer. Now we find that, as predicted, money is going to be dragged out of one GBE into propping up another.”
“Any Tasmanian Networks’ financial savings generated from the merger of Transend and Aurora Energy’s distribution arm should be reinvested into providing affordable energy to Tasmanian mum and dad consumers.”
“Instead $30 million of taxpayers’ money is going into propping up Forestry Tasmania, in a clear breach of the Liberals’ election promise to end public subsidies to Forestry.”
“The total $50 million being siphoned out of Tas Networks equates the savings the government claims was needed under the public sector wage freeze,” Mr Booth said.