Mr BAYLEY (Clark) – Deputy Speaker, I rise to talk about dysfunctional government, and I welcome this MPI. Leader of government business, you have a record of achievement when it comes to dysfunction in government. I want to touch on a number of different things ‑ the record of achievement when it comes to a complete lack of accountability, transparency and trust. I want to talk about the incredible achievement of profound disdain for the principles of this House, of delay, obfuscation and deception.
Kicking off, there is no greater saga of a lack of accountability and transparency than we have seen on the Spirits of Tasmania. I acknowledge the questioning of the opposition in finally being able to tyre lever information out of this government that not only have they bungled the contracting and accountability for the contract for the Spirits, but they have also completely failed to build a home facility for those vessels to dock into.
The Premier talked this morning about bureaucratic inertia, and I do not think we have seen a bigger case than that with this saga. It is a function of the GBEs and how this government for 10 years has failed to do any level of oversight, review, adjustment and reform of the GBEs. It is clear that there has been a fundamental failure of ministerial oversight, and that has profoundly highlighted the lack of accountability and transparency when it comes to this government.
Who can trust the government when they do not follow through on their commitments? Again, today and yesterday’s questioning has revealed there is no greater backflip, it seems, when it comes to trust, than the pokies pre-commitment card. The election commitment that the Premier has been talking about is for the gaming card, but it was clear by the government’s response to the Tasmanian Liquor and Gaming Commission’s report that it absolutely supported all elements of the recommendations, including a registered card system that has prescribed maximum concurrent default loss limits. What we have been seeing from the government and from the Premier is clearly crab-walking backwards away from that commitment, thanks to and at the behest of the might and the power of the pokies lobby.
One of the trust things that is most evident here and is probably saddest is watching minister Street. I questioned minister Street in Estimates about this issue and he genuinely put on the record in Estimates his belief and his commitment that the government’s policy had not changed, and that it was still pursuing these pre-commitment cards. It is very clear now that it has been taken over by the minister for Tourism, the Premier. It has all been couched in some surreal context that we are going to have some economic‑led recovery based on pokies tourism, and it is very clear that this government is doing the set up needed to walk away from those maximum concurrent default loss limits, which is a true shame.
We know that the card would prevent harm and save vulnerable Tasmanians from the pain that comes with addiction to poker machines, which are designed to addict. Let us be clear, they are designed to addict and they strip hundreds of thousands of dollars from Tasmanians. The government’s position around that is completely abominable.
We saw on the weekend the Leader of Government Business describe a no‑confidence motion in the minister as nothing more than ‘a political stunt of no consequence’. He said, ‘Even if a no‑confidence motion were to be passed in him, there will be no need for Mr Ferguson to resign, and I would encourage him not to resign’. That is fundamental disdain for the processes and the principles of this House, and the principles of the Westminster system. It is inexcusable.
When it comes to delay, we saw a 14‑year delay on the State of the Environment report. We saw the government quite willingly ignore their own statutory requirements to commission a State of the Environment report. It came 10 years too late and it has painted a very sorry picture of a lack of care, a lack of oversight and a lack of commitment to protecting our environment – an environment we all and our economy100 per cent rely on for the future.
When it comes to deception, there is no greater issue than the fudged figures in Housing to make up the 10,000 homes. Of course, the stadium will be writ large as deception into the future.
Time expired.
