Tomorrow each and every Labor member of Parliament will be forced to put on the record whether or not they support the job-destroying forest deal.

Each and every Labor member went to the 2010 election campaign promising to extend the Regional Forest Agreement, not rip it up, as Labor have now done – simply because the Greens have demanded it.

Labor members will be judged by their actions tomorrow, and we will be ensuring that they are forced to answer to the voters of their electorates for the way they vote.

The text of the motion is below:-
NOTICE OF MOTION
Hon. Will Hodgman MP
Mr Speaker,

I give notice that on tomorrow I shall move that this House directs the Premier to terminate the Intergovernmental Agreement on Forestry, in accordance with clause 52 of the Agreement, on account of:

1. The Premier has relinquished responsibility for the future management of Tasmania’s public native forests to an unelected group of big business, big union, and big environment – and has excluded the Tasmanian people from having their say;
2. According to modelling undertaken by the so-called Independent Verification Group, the Agreement will cost up to 1,600 direct and indirect Tasmanian jobs;
3. The vital Triabunna woodchip mill has not re-opened, as required in clause 32 of the Agreement;
4. The Agreement has failed to deliver the pulp mill, with the Greens and ENGOs continuing to campaign against the project and to warn off investors;
5. The verification work undertaken as part of the Agreement was skewed in favour of a Green outcome, with minimal analysis on the impact on job impacts, compared with the extensive examination of environmental values;
6. The Agreement has delivered almost exactly the same disastrous economic outcome as that proposed by former Federal Labor Leader Mark Latham in 2004, but for only a third as much compensation he offered;
7. The Government has no mandate to deliver this change, by not taking this policy to the Tasmanian people at the last state election, and indeed having promised to do the exact opposite;
8. this deal has not, and will not deliver the “peace” that has been promised.

Will Hodgman is Leader of the Opposition

By sabotaging investment in Tasmania (such as the $150 million that has been withdrawn by the Chandler Group) the Minister for Education Nick McKim is personally playing a role in killing off the economy.

Economic growth is desperately needed to generate the revenue to better fund essential services such as education, which is currently being subjected to savage cuts.

By putting his Green interests before his ministerial responsibilities Mr McKim is undermining the Government’s ability to meet future funding needs in his own portfolio.

In contrast a majority Hodgman Liberal Government will support and strengthen the Five Pillars of Tasmania’s Future Economy* in order to grow the economy and generate the wealth and prosperity needed to properly fund education, health and public safety.

*The five pillars of Tasmania’s Future Economy are Energy, Education and Technology, Resources, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Tourism.

Parliament resumes today – and there is much to concern Tasmania’s political representatives because of the pain and anxiety being felt by many families and communities vulnerable to government policies formed out of political expediency.

With the impending 3 month temporary shutdown of TEMCO and speculative fears for the future of Pacific Aluminium (aka Comalco) our community needs to fully appreciate and value these 1000 direct jobs and 400 suppliers. It’s all part of our economic base, availability of income for our society, substantial share of the electricity network charges and major users of the Bell Bay port. Without these industries, frankly we are all poorer.

Blueberries are no substitute, and the mere suggestion is an appalling insult to the intelligence of our Northern community.

While the high dollar and lower commodity prices are certainly at issue, the Labor Party’s new carbon and mining taxes are substantial factors too. We should have nothing to do with political ideologies which are willing to pick employment winners and losers from the distant heights of political power – far from the families and communities which will be affected.

People get hurt.

I have been lucky enough to represent the people of Bass at both a state and federal level. As the Federal Member for Bass I fought for increased funding for roads in Bass and in particular the East Tamar Highway.

I was particularly pleased to secure $60 million of funding for the East Tamar Highway upgrade in 2006 on behalf of the community and I welcome the completion of the works and the opening of the Highway today.

For many years, the East Tamar Highway was the poor cousin of the state’s highway network and I hope that the area and the community can now benefit from improvements this infrastructure upgrade will bring.

Mr Speaker, on the adjournment tonight I just wish to rev up the Government to get behind the V8 supercars.

The issue of supporting this very important Tasmanian event should not be lost on the Government. It has actually been the matter of a lot of public discussion particularly in the north but I know that there are motor sport lovers from all over the State and indeed business people in the tourism and hospitality sector who really value the event and want to see it continued into the future. We are now seeing the quite unusual step of the Launceston City Council, which has overnight written to the Premier urging her to get behind the event, stop the platitudes and get on and secure the contract.

Tonight I want to draw the attention of the House to two different dates, the first of which is 17 November last year when the former Minister for Tourism, Ms O’Byrne, put a motion on the Notice Paper stating that:

“the new three-year, $1.7 million funding agreement between the State Government and the Australia V8 Supercar Company guarantees a round of V8 Supercar championships at Symmons Plains in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

The language plainly says that it has guaranteed the rounds. After a response in the local media it emerged that 2011 could in fact be the last time the event is staged in Tasmania if the deal is not satisfactorily closed.

It was on 12 April that the Premier came into the House very upset about what she described as an ‘alarmist beat-up in that terrible rag, the Examiner’ where the headline was, ‘V8 Supercars Axed’. She said that was wrong.  She said a new deal was announced in November last year to bring the V8 Supercars to Symmons Plains for three years. Then she admitted that a contract is currently with the company to stage the 2011 event, with agreement to ‘discuss arrangements for the subsequent two years’.

I say to the Premier and the minister at the Table, who is a local northern member, and to the Government, lose this event at your peril. The Northern community must have this event into the future, seeing 55,000 and more locals and interstate people patronise the event and enjoying the sport. More importantly for the Tasmanian economy, which has stalled and needs life support, the Government needs to make sure that it closes the deal, gets a good deal for taxpayers and, very importantly, gets a good deal for the people of Tasmania.