Ms BURNET question to PREMIER, Mr ROCKLIFF
The evidence is clear. Cuts to any part of the public service will impact services Tasmanians rely on and undermine our institutions. We are already seeing problems in the health system thanks to your hiring freeze: delays in recruiting staff and increases in workload for nurses, doctors, paramedics and allied health workers. Now, you want to make sweeping cuts across the board. Yesterday, you announced that you would be looking at every government program and that if you think something is not a priority, you will take the chainsaw to it. Today, you revealed your ludicrous plan to copycat DOGE.
Just to be crystal clear: are you saying no program or worker in any government department or agency is out of the firing line? Are there any you can immediately rule out for consideration by Rockliff’s razor gang, or should we start calling you Elon?
Members interjecting.
The SPEAKER – Order, I did not hear the last part of your question. Could you please say it again? Members on my right on the backbench were being a little bit loud. Last part of the question, please.
Ms BURNET – Are there any you can immediately rule out for consideration by Rockliff’s razor gang, or should we start calling you Elon?
The SPEAKER – I probably did not need that bit to be re-read into the Hansard. I would have known that had members of the Liberal Party not been interjecting.
I will call the Premier to the question. You bring this on yourselves, people.
ANSWER
Honourable Speaker, the Greens are coming up with the zingers, are they not? The last couple of days – they have worked very hard over the last few months – we have a few zingers in. Congratulations. It is a different sort of modus operandi in terms of Question Time, but well done. Also, well done on changing your position quite a lot, really, within 24 hours. We had ‘premium economist Saul’ yesterday. Now it appears that you are rejecting recommendations 3 and 11 of Mr Eslake’s report, which highlights your inconsistency and hypocrisy.
Ms BURNET – Point of order, Speaker, I draw the Premier’s attention to the original question.
The SPEAKER – Standing Order 45, relevance, was your point. The Premier is addressing the more flippant second part of your question perhaps, but I will draw him to the more serious first part of your question.
Mr Bayley – Are any public servants safe?
The SPEAKER – I can ask him to do that without your assistance, Mr Bayley.
Mr ROCKLIFF – That was a long question –
The SPEAKER – It was a long preamble, I think.
Mr ROCKLIFF – Which has been repeated twice towards the end. The first part of the question, as I recall it, was about health service delivery. That could have been the question that I would have asked in 2011 when you were sacking nurses and putting hospital beds in storage. Now, for those interested observers –
The SPEAKER – Such as myself, Premier.
Mr ROCKLIFF – that is not what I am going to do. I am not going to constrict the economy with massive cuts to the public service and impact on services that you genuinely care about. I understand that. We have employed 2500 more frontline professionals in a relatively short amount of time to support the growth in health demand, as an example. We have worked really hard to recruit frontline professionals. It is really hard in an environment where every other state is competing for those health professionals. That is why we have been so successful in recruiting people from the UK and other places from around the world to come, to live, to work, to invest and to raise their families in Tasmania, which is fantastic. I am not going to impact on that because what the –
Dr BROAD – That is the 2500 that you have to get rid of.
Mr ROCKLIFF – Please engage in sensible conversation, Dr Broad.
Dr Broad – Well, that is what you said.
The SPEAKER – Premier, it is not a conversation. You are required to answer the question that was asked by the member for Clark, who I believe is now jumping for her supplementary.
SUPPLEMENTARY QUESTION
Ms BURNET – A supplementary question, Speaker.
The SPEAKER – I will hear the supplementary question.
Ms BURNET – The Premier came nowhere near my question. I will say it again: are there any positions you can immediately rule out for consideration by the Rockliff razor gang?
The SPEAKER – The Premier addressed a long preamble and the second part of your question, but that was the first part of your actual question. I call the Premier to that now.
Mr ROCKLIFF – We are looking at all programs – programs that deliver for Tasmanians. This is all about priorities. We want to ensure that all government programs are prioritised towards service delivery for Tasmanians. Why would we not embark on a really prudent look at those programs to ensure that Tasmanians are getting the best value for money, not only for their taxpayer dollar, but ensuring that we are applying those resources in the most effective way in terms of delivering those quality services? This is what we are embarking on. This is what we will do, as per recommendation 3 of ‘premium economist’ Saul Eslake’s report.
The SPEAKER – Premier, I know you are always asked all the questions, but resuming your seat might be prudent.
