Media Release

Peter Gutwein MP
Shadow Treasurer

Thursday 27th January 2011

Access confirms Tassie’s economy has crashed

Access Economics’ Business Outlook report confirms that Tasmania’s economy has crashed.

While the Labor-Green Government predicted economic growth of 2.25 per cent in 2010-11, Access Economics is predicting just 0.9 per cent growth.

Access say that “until something lights Tasmania’s fire, the short term outlook may be relatively modest”. I guess that’s a polite way of saying we’re in deep trouble.

They also confirm that, as we have been saying, private investment will remain low and the stimulus funding is about to run out, which will make the crash in business investment even worse.

Access say that the fall in retail spending is also starting to bite. According to Access, all of this adds up to “little room for short term growth in the economy to make much by way of gains”.

What this shows is that the Labor-Green Government’s lack of direction and failure to deliver is strangling the economy.

Tasmanian jobs are disappearing, businesses are closing down and the budget is in a mess with job cuts and rises in the cost of living on the way. The Labor-Green Government has absolutely no plans, no vision, no strategy and no answers.

Labor and the Greens have cast our economy adrift on a sea of indecision and inaction and all Tasmanians will pay the price.