Premier resists calls to clean out GBE boards after Spirit of Tasmania fiasco

Premier Jeremy Rockliff says he has no plans to clean out the boards of the government business enterprises responsible for the Spirit of Tasmania ferries fiasco.

Premier Jeremy Rockliff speaks to the media at Mac01 on Monday, October 28, 2024.

Premier Jeremy Rockliff says he has no plans to clean out the boards of the government business enterprises responsible for the Spirit of Tasmania ferries fiasco, but says he is committed to meaningful reforms.

Independent MP David O’Byrne on Saturday called for the government to remove the remaining members of the boards and senior executives at TT-Line and TasPorts.

Mr Rockliff said he wanted to move forward, not look back.

“I’m not going to sack boards. I’m going to reform GBEs. That’s what Tasmanians expect.

“There is significant reform needed, clearly, but also the GBS, as I said, need to have a Team Tasmania approach and put the people of Tasmania at the top of their organisational chart.

“So there’s always a reminder that they work for Tasmanians first and foremost and what I expect of our GBEs … is that they work together, they collaborate, and they have a Team Tasmania approach.”

The state government owns seven Government Business Enterprises — Sustainable Timber Tasmania, Hydro Tasmania, the Motor Accidents Insurance Board, the Port Arthur Historic Site Management Authority, the Tasmanian Public Finance Corporation, TasTAFE and the Public Trustee.

It has nine state-owned companies: Aurora Energy, Metro Tasmania, Tasmanian Irrigation. TasNetworks. TasPorts, TasRail, Tasracing, Homes Tasmania and TT-Line.

JLN member for Lyons Andrew Jenner said deciding to lease out the brand-new ships until their Devonport berth was ready in 2027 was “unacceptable”.

“Tasmanians have been waiting years for these brand new $880m ships and to hear that the government is now planning on leasing them out for the first two years is beyond belief and so disappointing, I imagine I am not alone in thinking that,” he said.

“We are in this position because, unlike the Victorian government, our government has failed to get a berth ready in the seven years since the project was first announced.

“Each year those new spirits aren’t in the water, doing what they built to do, is costing the state an estimated $330m in lost revenue.

“Tasmanians are angry. This is one of the largest, most important infrastructure projects this State has ever embarked on, and it’s been monumentally cocked up.

“This could end up costing the state again in time and money, if the ferries are damaged whilst leased out.

“The government talks about making money by leasing the ferries out – it’s a false economy. The wear and tear alone on the ferries with two years of hard service will probably end up costing us more than we earn.”

Labor’s Josh Willie said there were no good options among those canvassed so far.

“That’s how big a stuff up this is,” he said. “Leasing the ships is not a good option. Storing the ships is not a good option.

“But we don’t have any other options because of the size of the stuff up.

“It’s going to be very interesting to see whether the government can actually find someone that wants to lease these ships on such a short term.”

Originally published as Premier resists calls to clean out GBE boards after Spirit of Tasmania fiasco