With an early election on the way, Tasmania’s Labor leader has reaffirmed her party’s position on the state’s AFL team and the proposed Macquarie Point stadium.
Rebecca White, appearing on ABC Radio on Wednesday morning, said Labor “support Tassie having an AFL team” and guaranteed she will “fight incredibly hard” to make that dream come true.
“[The AFL team] won’t be put in jeopardy under a Labor government. But I’ve also been really clear that we feel that the deal the Premier signed with the AFL is a very bad deal,” she said.
“He gave them everything they wanted on a platter. He didn’t stand up for Tasmania. I will be doing that.”
The deal signed by Premier Jeremy Rockliff with the AFL in May 2023 outlines that, in order for Tasmania to be granted an AFL licence, a roofed 23,000-seat fit-for-purpose stadium and training facilities must be built in Hobart.
The state government has previously said the stadium would cost just $715 million and would be finished in 2028-29, a timeline and budget that White said made it an “impossible project”.
“You can’t build a stadium on Mac Point for the price or in the timeframe that the Premier has outlined and I think everyone can see that,” she said.
“Their cost per square metre to build that stadium are $10,000 per square metre, judging by the government’s cost estimates. The last four stadiums built in Australia and New Zealand cost $20,000 per square metre.”
“So either the government has severely underfunded and under-costed their stadium project or they’re only building half the stadium.”
White said, if elected, Labor would seek to renegotiate the deal with the AFL.
“I want to make it clear that we as a Labor government would deliver on the team but we’d be making sure in our conversations with the AFL that we were getting a better outcome for Tasmanian taxpayers and making sure that we weren’t signing ourselves up to a blank cheque, white elephant down at Macquarie Point.”
Rockliff says entire AFL dream at risk under Labor
Shortly after announcing that Tasmania was heading for an early election on Tuesday evening, Premier Jeremy Rockliff rallied ‘Yes AFL Team, Yes Stadium’ supporters to reinforce his stance.
“We have too much to do, and I won’t allow our great State to be held to ransom for any longer. Tasmanians deserve certainty and stability,” he said.
“Better hospitals, action on cost of living pressures and once in a generation infrastructure projects.”
“And the AFL team that we have all fought so hard for. A team that’s at risk if we allow Labor and the Greens to take Tasmania to the dark days of a decade ago.”
“We can’t give them that chance. Over the days to come, I’ll provide some more information for anyone who wishes to lend a hand in securing our dream once and for all.”
“We’ve come a long way on this fight together, and it would mean the world to me if I had your support.”
