Ms ROSOL (Bass) – Thank you, Honourable Speaker. I rise about a couple of things this evening. The first, briefly yesterday, the minister for Arts stated that she appreciated the spirit with which the briefings had been taken up for the Historical Cultural Heritage Amendment Act. She said,
I am always happy to offer these. I realise sometimes aligning diaries can be difficult, we have done our best with that.
That was a quote from yesterday. As a new member of parliament, I have quickly learned the value of briefings, but I was surprised and disappointed not to be offered a briefing on the amendment bill and would have taken it up if I had been offered one, which we will follow up on that.
I rise this evening to speak about the ongoing mistreatment and lack of legislative protections for the long stay residents of Beauty Point Tourist Park and indeed other long‑stay residents across our state.
In Beauty Point Tourist Park, approximately 65 permanent residents aged between 55 and 94, many of whom are vulnerable and grappling with significant mental or physical health issues, find themselves in a situation that is impacting significantly on their safety and well-being. These home owning residents live under a constant fear of eviction without cause. New park rules implemented on 13 July were developed and enforced without consultation or agreement from residents, despite some residents having lived at the park for over 10 years. The rules are unfair and unreasonable, and they empower management to terminate without reason a resident’s right to live at the park with just 28 days notice.
This arbitrary power strips residents of security in their own homes and causes stress and anxiety about potential homelessness during our winter months. The recent notice of planned evictions for three residents has sent shock waves through the community, with many others now fearful as they have nowhere else to go.
For these residents, their homes in the park are their sanctuary, a place where they have built lives and found a sense of community, and the threat of eviction disrupts their stability and causes immense psychological distress. Residents have spoken openly about how uncertainty and fear of losing their homes has led to heightened levels of anxiety, depression and even physical illness. Residents are trapped between a housing crisis and a seemingly uncaring park management. The harsh park rules continue. There are restrictions on guests and visitors, limiting the social interactions of elderly residents. We know that social isolation is a known contributor to mental health deterioration, and the inability to have family and friends freely visit can exacerbate a sense of loneliness and abandonment. Some residents require regular care and monitoring for serious health concerns which these rules prevent.
It is imperative that we take immediate and decisive action to address these issues. The current lack of legislative protections for long‑stay residents in residential parks is unacceptable. The Tasmanian government must fast track legislation to safeguard the rights and well-being of these residents. We need robust laws that prevent arbitrary evictions, ensure fair treatment and hold park management accountable for their actions.
The Beauty Point Residents Association has set up a Go Fund Me campaign to support residents but with a potential 65 vulnerable and elderly residents now at risk of homelessness, far more support is needed.
The Greens have written to the minister, Ms Ogilvy, about the plight of Beauty Point residents. In her response, the minister admitted to being aware of this issue. She advised that residents should immediately seek their own advice about issues surrounding eviction or enforcement of the park rules.
We are in the middle of a housing crisis. If there are no protections for residents who can be evicted without cause from their own home in the middle of a Tasmanian winter, what advice can possibly help them? It is not good enough to merely suggest that they seek their own advice. Residents are seeking the government’s assistance and they are seeking it urgently.
What is the government doing? There is a discussion paper to be released in August after this sitting but it seems there is no urgency from the government to help residents who are already impacted by these new rules. Earlier today, my fellow Bass MP, Janie Finlay, spoke of interim protective measures that the government has the power to move. Will the government do this? The Greens call on the government to do so. Other states have protective legislation in place, in some instances for close to two decades. Why is Tasmania so far behind in guaranteeing protection to residents against such unfair treatment? The government has the resources to move legislation urgently, and they need to.
This issue is not just impacting Beauty Point Park residents. We are now hearing stories of similar treatment, or fear of similar treatment, from park residents in Kelso, Ulverstone, Tomahawk, St Helens, Penguin, Devonport and Smithton. This is impacting the lives of people across the state. People are living in homes they own with no security, no certainty and no leadership or compassion from this government on this key issue.
The Greens are committed to fighting for the rights and dignity of all residents. The residents of Beauty Point Tourist Park deserve to live in peace and security without the constant fear of losing their homes. It is time for compassion, action and justice on their behalf.
