The state government is facing harsh criticism for withdrawing the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Trust’s license to fundraise.
After raising an estimated $10 million through various community and corporate sponsorship packages since it was established in 2000, the trust believe the decision will hurt their back pocket.
Labor’s Luke Edmunds has called for the government to reverse its decision, but Premier Jeremy Rockliff is adamant the move will not affect aeromedical services across the state.
“The real missed opportunity here is the fact that Westpac was ready to step up its fundraising efforts to the tune of about $2 million a year,” Edmunds said.
“That will have to come from somewhere else. This breathtakingly bad decision will see Tasmanian taxpayers forced to pick up the tab.”
Rockliff says the government fully funds aeromedical services and is “wanting to ensure that we get the best deal for Tasmania and Tasmanians and that requires some fine tuning”.
