A Tasmanian government minister has rejected Labor claims that caretaker conventions were breached after a briefing on the multibillion-dollar Marinus Link project was scheduled and then cancelled.
MLC Jo Palmer confirmed today that briefings on the project’s business case would be offered tomorrow to Labor, the Greens and incumbent crossbench members.
“And shortly after that, the business case will be released. But those briefings will be based on the business case,” she said.
The dispute centres on accusations that the Liberals broke caretaker protocols during the election period by progressing the high-stakes energy project linking Tasmania to Victoria.
Under caretaker conventions, ministers are expected to consult with the opposition before making major policy moves while election results are being finalised.
“Marinus is a pretty massive moment in our history here in Tasmania,” Palmer said.
“We have been working as a government on that deal with the Victorian Government and the Federal Government for some years now.”
Palmer strongly denied any breach of protocol, instead blaming Labor leader Dean Winter for “muddying the waters” by triggering the election through his no-confidence motion.
She said the premier’s office had consulted extensively and confirmed there were no issues with caretaker arrangements.
“If we hadn’t had this election, we would be having a very different conversation,” Palmer said.
“We’ve had to do what we can in an election period with Marinus, but there certainly hasn’t been any issue with the protocols around caretaker convention.”
