Tasmanian Labor is keeping its options open on how to approve the proposed Macquarie Point stadium, indicating it might not back the Liberals’ enabling legislation, even though it supports the $945 million project itself.
Opposition Leader Dean Winter said Labor is “consulting” with stakeholders about the “right approval process”, after identifying “real challenges” with the government’s original fast-track legislation.
The legislation was introduced before the election was called and has since expired as a result.
It aimed to bypass regular planning laws and fast-track the stadium by avoiding the standard Project of State Significance process.
“We need to make sure that whatever goes to the Legislative Council can actually get approval,” Winter said.
“And that’s going to require a lot of hard work and a parliamentary process that makes sense.”
His comments suggest Labor could explore a different path to approval if it wins the upcoming state election.
With Labor’s support, the Liberals were expected to get the stadium through the lower house. That puts pressure on the upper house, where support will be critical.
“What I’ve been very clear about is that Tasmanian Labor supports building a stadium at Macquarie Point,” Winter said
“We have to get it approved and finding the right approval process to maximise the chances of actually getting it built is the most important priority here.”
Winter again acknowledged that without the stadium, Tasmania would miss out on an AFL team, regardless of what other parties are saying.
“The Greens are pretending to Tasmania that you can get an AFL team without the stadium. It’s not true,” Winter said.
“They should be honest and say that their plan leads to Tasmania not getting the Tasmania Devils and I think that’s the wrong plan for Tasmania.”
Greens Leader Rosalie Woodruff called on Labor to be upfront about where it stands, including whether it is still open to former Labor premier Paul Lennon’s revised ‘Stadium 2.0’ idea.
She said the stadium is the “biggest issue of this election” and accused Labor of deliberately keeping voters in the dark.
“Labor are pretending they are ‘consulting’ about their position. What a load of rubbish. They know exactly what their position is, they’re just trying to hide it from voters,” she said.
“One key question for Labor is their plan for special fast-track legislation, but there are so many others. Are they planning to copy the Liberals’ funding model for the project?”
“Are they still leaving the door open to shifting their support to an alternative project?”
