- yesterday
Jeremy Rockliff presser
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00:00Alright, well thanks very much for being here today, the last full day of the campaign of course and can I thank Mark Cable from Harvest Moon for hosting us here today and can I thank Harvest Moon for the over 400 people that they employ, many of them of course Tasmanians, we're in a facility of course that 20,000 tonnes of onions go through for
00:30export and domestic consumption which is fantastic and it's a great partnership between all in agriculture, whether it be farmers, processors, packers, agronomists and agriculture of course is a key strength of our economy and that's why we're very proud to always back our farmers, always back our miners, always back our salmon farmers, our foresters and those of course employed in our tourism industry.
00:58As I've travelled across Tasmania over the course of the last five or six weeks of this campaign, can I thank Tasmanians for their engagement, their willingness to speak, have a chat and of course engage as we go around Tasmania and can I say I'm just so proud of what Tasmanians have achieved over the course of the last 10 years.
01:23All working together and just yesterday to again have confirmed Tasmania the lowest unemployment rate in the nation is fantastic, better than every other state, the lowest on record, strong economy, highest business competence in the nation and that's a testament to the hard working people of Tasmania.
01:46A number of them of course I met in rural and regional Tasmania over the course of the last five weeks.
01:53We have built on our existing very strong plan for Tasmania's future.
02:00We were elected to do a job back in March 2024, we were elected with a clear plan, we have a united team and we've got the leadership to get on with the job and over the course of the last five weeks the campaign we have added and strengthened that plan for Tasmania's future.
02:18I must say though that this is an election campaign that Tasmanians did not want.
02:25It was forced upon us by Dean Winter and the Labor Party in unity with the Tasmanian Greens.
02:32That being said we have been out and about delivering for Tasmanians and really reinforcing the strong commitment we have to Tasmania, strengthen our economy, strengthen the essential services that Tasmanians care deeply about.
02:49We are also a government that wants to be held accountable to our commitments and since the last election, the 2030 strong plan for Tasmania's future, we have implemented 1100 key actions over successive four 100 day plans and delivered on those commitments.
03:13In fact, we were through our fifth 100 day plan when Dean Winter decided through his inexperience the rush of blood to the head to force Tasmania to an election.
03:24Today, I outline our first 100 days of a new elected Liberal government, a very clear plan and set of actions that we will deliver in our first 100 days of our new government.
03:40Plans and actions that will include, of course, setting up TAS Ensure, ensuring that our breakfast clubs roll out across Tasmania, that we move forward with our strategic agriculture plan as well and including a new Minister for Ageing to ensure that the people that have contributed so much to Tasmania as what it is today, that we can support them in their retirement,
04:09their retirement and of course, and in later stages of their life.
04:13So there is a lot to do, there is a lot that has been done, but I couldn't be prouder of what Tasmania has achieved.
04:20And once again, lowest unemployment on record, we cannot risk going back to the dark old days of a Labor-Green government.
04:29And what you will find is right now, Rosalie Woodruff and the Greens have a plan for Dean Winter.
04:38They have a plan for Dean Winter.
04:40And they will squeeze the life out of Dean Winter and in doing so, squeeze the life out of our economy, squeeze the life out of health services and squeeze the life out of job creation here in Tasmania.
04:52So we cannot afford for the Greens to squeeze Dean Winter and the Labor Party at all.
04:58We must continue the final push towards the majority Liberal government so we can get on with the job and finish the job that we're elected to do for Tasmania back in March 2024.
05:10And with those few words, I would like to ask a few questions.
05:14Yes, what are you feeling about tomorrow?
05:16What do you think the chances are of getting government and what would you do if you don't, like you personally, what would you do if you don't get in?
05:23Well, I am very pleased with the way that our campaign has gone.
05:29I'm very pleased with the investments that we're making in key areas of health, education, of course, community safety.
05:37I'm very pleased with the initiatives that we're taking in terms of strengthening already a strong economy.
05:44And again, the strongest business confidence in the nation of which I'm very proud of and the lowest unemployment rate of any state across this wonderful country of Australia.
05:54And so I am looking forward, of course, to implementing our key objectives, the 100-day plan that I have here.
06:05But it's going to be close.
06:07And, you know, Labor's vote could go backwards and they could still retain their seats or even get another seat,
06:16which will ensure a Labor Green government in Tasmania, a government that sent us to recession the last time they were in power,
06:26a government that put 10,000 Tasmanians on the dole cube, a government that closed hospital wards, put beds in storage and sacked a nurse a day for nine months.
06:37We cannot afford to go back there.
06:39We must always put Tasmania first and continue the progress that we've made.
06:45When I say we've made, I mean Tasmanians have made in partnership with their government over the course of the last 10 years.
06:52Thanks, Laura.
06:53I don't want to leave the question there.
06:55If the Liberals do not need the elected officials to stay in the government of the country?
07:00This is about our team, a united team, a clear plan and the leadership to get on with the job.
07:07We will accept the will of the people and the outcome and, of course, we will always, as we did last time, accept the will of the people.
07:16We stood up, showed the leadership to govern, had a clear plan, a key set of priorities and we're delivering on those priorities and we want to get back on the job on Monday and, of course, keep delivering for Tasmania.
07:29I was appointed to another minority parliament.
07:30If you were the head of that one, what would you do to ensure that it works better than the last parliament and the last two parliaments?
07:39Well, by every measure, the last parliament was working well because we were getting our pay agenda through, of course.
07:48That's why we've got a very strong economy.
07:51The last parliament was working too well for Dean Winter and that's why he forced an election in unity with the Tasmanian Greens and that's why Tasmanians have the election they did not need and they did not want.
08:05We're here now, we're here now at Sandy and looking forward to achieving majority Liberal government and looking forward to delivering on our 100-day plan.
08:15With respect, parliament lost confidence in you. What will you do differently this time to ensure that that doesn't happen again?
08:21With respect, the parliament was forced to an election by Dean Winter.
08:28There was also a couple of crossbenchers that supported that motion as well. So potentially you're going to have to deal with people like that again. How will you do that?
08:35Well, thanks very much for your question, Elise. It highlights the point that what will take Tasmania backwards is a Labor-Green government
08:44government with single issue radical independence that put themselves and their pet projects before everyone else in Tasmania.
08:54What we need is a parliament that works for the Tasmanian people and is not led by an inexperienced Labor leader that's forced everyone to an election.
09:06Given the results of the last two elections, you may need to work directly with these single issue radical independence to Greens and Labor.
09:14How will you do that differently to ensure that the parliament does work better for Tasmanians?
09:19Well, what I'm ensuring is that, and I'm asking Tasmanians to vote for a majority Liberal government so we can continue to move forward,
09:29continue the great progress that Tasmanians have achieved together.
09:34There was a couple of ads in the ACM newspapers today that a vote for Labor would be a vote for putting ice on our streets. Can you explain how that's true?
09:43Because it's Greens policy.
09:45There's a Greens policy to put ice on our streets?
09:47Decriminalise drugs, hard drugs. Yes, so we speak the truth.
09:52We're 15 minutes from Devon Court, and my promotion apologised if he's following the sign of our spirits.
09:59You said the other day the fun stops with you. Do you dare to apologise?
10:03And I have done. And I should not have had to intervene and get the project back on track.
10:10But as Premier, I intervened. Spirit 4 is coming to Tasmania for the first time.
10:16Spirit 5 is now in Tasmanian people's hands and ownership, and there's been great progress on the war.
10:24I shouldn't have had to intervene, I did intervene, and now we're making great progress thanks to a local company such as Bridgepro,
10:32which is going gangbusters there and building the war.
10:35Has unions wanted you to clarify your position on privatisation?
10:39They've got a position, and Liberals are the only ones that haven't signed it.
10:43They want to clarify, would signing a 99-year lease to someone, is that privatisation in their eyes?
10:49Look, we've made our position very clear on privatisation.
10:53Not only that, of course, we've listened to Tasmanians when it comes to the high insurance costs.
11:00Our mums and dads, our families, our small businesses, our community groups,
11:05who are all being crippled by the high cost of insurance.
11:09And that's why we're setting up our own state-owned insurance company, Tasinsure,
11:14to insure cheaper, fairer, affordable insurance for Tasmanians, but Tasmanian-owned.
11:22That's our clear position when it comes to those particular matters.
11:26Not only that, of course, introducing legislation into the Tasmanian Parliament,
11:31that nothing can be sold, no government business can be sold,
11:36without a two-thirds clear majority of the Tasmanian Parliament.
11:40Now, remember this, of course.
11:42The only person that has said that we need to offload and sell our energy assets in Tasmania
11:47is Dean Winter himself.
11:50The Greens are coming out making their final pitch going hard against the stadium.
11:54How big of a role do you think that issue will play in this election?
11:58Look, I know that Tasmanians would appreciate how far we've come as a state.
12:04And I know full well that Tasmanians understand the importance of working together
12:11and having a stable government with stability, with certainty,
12:17with a clear plan for the United team and the leadership to get on with the job.
12:22This is about growing our economy.
12:24And I know many, many Tasmanians will never forget,
12:29particularly those Tasmanians that were sacked in our hospitals,
12:33that those Tasmanians, 10,000 of them,
12:36that were sent to the dole queues as a result of shutting down a forest industry
12:41between a Labor-Green deal and, of course, the recession that we had
12:46during those Labor-Green years.
12:48It was only a few weeks ago that you threw all of Tasmania's public servants,
12:53like, you know, they were confused about where they stood on their jobs
12:56because of your privatisation.
12:58But do you think it's confusing for voters that you're now talking about
13:02starting another GDE?
13:03Like, how do we afford that when you were going to sell them before?
13:06Well, no, I wasn't. I wasn't. That's what Dean Winter says.
13:09The only person that was going to sell and has said
13:13we need to sell energy assets is Dean Winter.
13:16He said it very clearly.
13:18Your government did have Saul Leslie looking into how to sell it
13:21or what's GDL's in here.
13:23It's good result, though. That's on the report, is it not?
13:26He's saying that wasn't a derrick?
13:27No, what we were saying is that we were asking Saul Leslie, of course,
13:32to deliver a report and recommendations on how we can ensure
13:37that our government businesses are dealing the best for Tasmania
13:43and, you know, ensuring that our government businesses
13:46are delivering the best services for Tasmania.
13:49That's what we were wanting, to ensure that our government-owned businesses
13:54are doing their best and delivering for Tasmanians
13:57and delivering the best possible service for Tasmanians.
14:00It just so happens that the Motor Accident Insurance Board, the MAIB,
14:05is delivering for Tasmanians.
14:08Their insurance premiums have increased by just 5%
14:11and the average insurance premiums have increased by 35%.
14:15And that's why we're setting up Tasmsure with the MAIB
14:19to lower the cost of insurance, cheaper, fairer, Tasmanian-owned,
14:24and to support our small businesses, our families and our community groups.
14:28You're standing here with Bridget Archer and Gavin Pears.
14:30Do you see that as your only chance to increase seats in the north of the state?
14:34I'm so proud of all our candidates right across Tasmania.
14:39I am enormously proud that we have two very experienced Federal Members of Parliament,
14:47great representatives and advocates for their community in Bridget and Gavin,
14:53who, of course, have a great part of our very strong team right across Tasmania.
15:0035 candidates that are passionate about Tasmania,
15:04passionate about making a very positive difference.
15:07We are out of the blocks, you know, despite the fact that Dean Winter blew up the Parliament,
15:12blew up the budget, forced an election alongside the Greens.
15:16We're out of the blocks with Gav, with Bridget and 35 candidates
15:22ready to make a positive difference for Tasmania.
15:26Will they certainly be part of your cabinet if you were elected this weekend?
15:29Well, again, we'll accept the will of the people and the make-up of our team, I am sure.
15:37Like we have now, we'll be very committed and talented individuals
15:43that want to continue with delivering our clear plan for Tasmania,
15:47continue being a united team and continue finishing the job that we were elected to do back in March 2024.
15:55I'll ask the same question again. How will you ensure that we won't go to another election in the next four years?
16:01Because the Parliament needs maturity. The Parliament needs the leadership of a Government with a clear plan,
16:13a united team and the leadership to get on with the job.
16:17I am confident that we have that plan. We do have that united team.
16:23We're committed to making a positive difference for the Tasmanian people.
16:27We're elected to do a job back in March 2024 and we need to finish that job for Tasmania.
16:33You mentioned the passenger a couple of times now. How negotiations have gone for four minutes?
16:39Have you done that yet?
16:41Matt, that's a cheeky question.
16:43What's in people in Tasmania?
16:45Well, that was a complete and utter Labor stunt by a former Labor Premier who is pulling the strings of Dean Winter.
16:55You know, you imagine a Tasmania where you have a weak leader in Dean Winter, a weak party of the Labor Party,
17:04being pulled by Paul Lennon and indeed the Greens as well.
17:10It would spell disaster for Tasmania.
17:12I'll tell you about Tasmsure, Matt, very clearly.
17:15It is as a result of listening to mums and dads, to families, to small businesses, to community groups,
17:23who have been crippled by the insurance industry that's reaping $6 billion of profit right across the country.
17:32What we are doing is providing cheaper, fairer insurance, Tasmanian-owned,
17:37to support our families, to support our small businesses and to back our community organisations.
17:43Is it not fair to think of those same families that you say deserve a company like David Cure?
17:48Why think it's a cheaper stunt if you haven't even got the business name signs for your country?
17:52This is Tasmanian-owned. It's not the Labor Parties, Tasinsure, or the Liberal Parties.
17:58This will be owned by Tasmania and Tasmanians for the benefit of Tasmanians.
18:04I think I got most of that question there, of course.
18:25Look, Tasinsure is about cheaper and fairer insurance.
18:31We are saving Tasmanians from the insurance barons that have reaped $6 billion of profit.
18:39We're not going to reveal a business case that gives a competitive advantage away from the Tasmanian-owned insurance company.
18:48Have you signed the Mariner's final investment decision?
19:00Look, thanks very much for the question, Anthony.
19:04What we have demonstrated over the course of the last number of years, and that a range of wage negotiations as Premier,
19:13it's all about good faith negotiations, sitting down very sensibly, in a very measured way,
19:19with our hard-working employees, whether that be our firefighters, our nurses, our teachers.
19:27It's all about ensuring that we are sensible in our discussions in a measured way,
19:32and good faith negotiations.
19:34We've always taken that principle to wage negotiations, and that will continue under my leadership.
19:40Look, we're always willing to sit down and in good faith negotiations with our employees,
19:58and in this case, of course, the unions, and will continue to do so.
20:03So, importantly, we recognise all our frontline personnel,
20:07whether they be our paramedics, our doctors, our nurses, our teachers, of course,
20:12or our firefighters, our police officers.
20:14They all do such a fantastic job for our Tasmanian community,
20:18often in very arduous circumstances.
20:21And that's why we should always, and will always, when it comes to wage negotiations,
20:26work sensibly through good faith negotiations to get the best possible outcome for the Tasmanian people.
20:37Have you had a taste of an onion this morning?
20:40That's been done before, Sandy, and will not be done again.
20:45The onions that I eat have the skin relatively off them.
20:51I can tell you that right now.
20:53Thanks, everyone.
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