Dr WOODRUFF question to PREMIER, Mr ROCKLIFF
Your stadium bill is the most unprecedented approval legislation for Tasmania’s largest ever infrastructure project. You have handballed it to members of parliament to respond to the massive issues raised in submissions to the Tasmanian Planning Commission. We will be deciding whether your stadium permit conditions are adequate. Tasmanians want transparency around this huge decision – the money, the impacts on Hobart, and everything else. It is entirely reasonable that MPs have the opportunity to directly question government agencies and regulatory bodies about the proposed conditions.
We and all Tasmanians deserve to hear this information and no current process in front of us allows this to occur. Will you commit to working with the opposition and crossbench to establish a parliamentary scrutiny committee process similar to Estimates during the week before the stadium legislation is debated?
ANSWER
Honourable Speaker, I thank the member for her question. The draft permit and condition document has been released for public consultation and for transparency. This document contains the conditions of the stadium development. The bill will provide authorisation for the minister to issue additional permits required for infrastructure essential for the operation of the stadium. The clearest example of this is to permit the northern access road. All subsequent permits must relate to the proposed development, which is defined in the bill.
As I said before, the Public Accounts Committee have done a very good job in scrutinising this project and I have no doubt will continue to do so. You have made your mind up. We could have six months of budget Estimates on this issue, and you will still be opposed to this project.
Dr Woodruff – Tasmanians want to know what is going on.
Members interjecting.
The SPEAKER – Member for Clark and members on my right. Premier, if you address your answer through me, we might stop the interjections.
Mr ROCKLIFF – What I do not want to see is a mechanism for you to personally attack public servants.
Members interjecting.
Mr ROCKLIFF – That is what you want.
Dr Woodruff – You are the one that has been doing that. You smeared the planning commission.
The SPEAKER – Leader of the Greens.
Mr ROCKLIFF – You want a forum for personal attacks.
Dr Woodruff – That is garbage, and it is beneath you.
Mr ROCKLIFF – Yes, you do, because you are true to form.
The SPEAKER – Dr Woodruff.
Mr ROCKLIFF – We could scrutinise this legislation for the next three years in budget Estimates style, or whatever the words you used are, and you will never change your mind. All you want to do is to undermine this project and undermine the opportunity before us. Thank you for the question. We will have a very considered response to the question. No doubt, this will be up for parliamentary debate, potentially tomorrow.
The legislation, the permits and conditions are there for everyone to see. No one is hiding anything. Open, transparent, we have been debating this for three years, the Public Accounts Committee have been doing their job as well. The draft permit and conditions document has been released for public consultation. You will, no doubt, digest that, criticise it, but you will never support it. You will never, ever support this project.
We have worked hard to get to the position we have done now. We will never give up, and we will continue with the enabling legislation and look forward to the debate in the parliament.
SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION
Dr WOODRUFF – Honourable Speaker, a supplementary question?
The SPEAKER – I will hear a supplementary question.
Dr WOODRUFF – It is pleasing to hear that the Premier is considering our request. This is not about whether individual members oppose or support the stadium. It is about the job of parliament being able to scrutinise regulatory bodies and agencies, as would have happened under the POSS process, so that we can understand the permit conditions that have been required. Premier, I urge you: will you provide us with that opportunity?
The SPEAKER – I am very unclear what the question is.
Dr WOODRUFF – My question was: will the Premier provide us with that opportunity to scrutinise regulatory agencies?
The SPEAKER – In your opening statement, you said that the Premier was going to actively consider it. I think you have the answer to that.
Dr WOODRUFF – I asked him to confirm that he would allow us to scrutinise the regulatory agencies.
The SPEAKER – That does arise from the question that you asked. Premier, could you confirm that you are going to consider the scrutiny?
Mr ROCKLIFF – I thank the member for the supplementary question. Every bill that goes through this place gets scrutinised. That is what we do. It is our job.
I commend to you the Macquarie Point Multipurpose Stadium Enabling Legislation report, May 2025, Consultation Draft – please read. It is a very comprehensive document that answers a number of the questions outlined in the TPC panel’s report and it takes into account the submissions that were due on 8 May this year, which is informing the legislation.
Dr Woodruff – All work done by your government bodies. We want to be able to ask the questions ourselves.
The SPEAKER – Leader of the Greens. You have got the supplementary up. Please stop interjecting on it.
Mr ROCKLIFF – You will have the opportunity in committee stages of the bill as well. I will point out the opportunities for you: Public Accounts Committee, budget Estimates, committee stages of the bill. There are plenty of opportunities.
The SPEAKER – The Premier’s time for answering the question has expired. I will take this question and advise that we will then be moving to the pausing of the House. The shadow treasurer has the call.
