In an unbelievable response, Premier Rockliff said in Parliament he was unaware of the Stony Rise developer’s donation to the Liberal Party until Wednesday this week. In a Legislative Council briefing the same day, the developer Tipalea Partners admitted they had donated to the Liberal Party.
The Liberals have created special legislation and rushed it through Parliament to support this donor’s development. It was an extraordinary step that overrides Tasmania’s planning system and its checks and balances.
With Tipalea’s donation to the Liberals now revealed, does the Premier really expect Tasmanians to believe there was no quid pro quo?
The Premier refused to answer whether the Stony Rise developer had donated to the Liberal Party under Greens’ questions in Parliament last week. It’s astonishing a developer is more honest with the Tasmanian people about their political donations than the Premier.
The Liberal Party has earned a reputation of making dodgy deals with its corporate donors, but this is a new low. The Liberal Government is signalling it’s up for sale to any big business with cash to splash.
Which developer will the Liberals make a dodgy deal with next?
