Lambie urges Tasmanians to join cause in her Christmas message

A senator from Tasmania’s North West has urged others to join her campaign against building a $750m AFL stadium in Hobart in the face of pressing housing, health and cost of living issues.

A local senator has urged Tasmanians in her Christmas message to sign a petition against the funding of a new Hobart AFL stadium in the face of urgent housing and health care issues.

Senator Jacqui Lambie’s petition has already attracted 1884 signatures,

The Burnie-based Senator is not against the campaign for Tasmania to get its own AFL team.

“We’d love a Tassie AFL team. And at the right time, we’d love a new stadium,” Senator Lambie said.

“But we can’t afford it right now. Not with the health and housing issues we’re dealing with.”

The petition tells Tasmania’s Premier Jeremy Rockliff that he needs to walk away from the idea of a $750m stadium at Hobart’s Macquarie Point at “any price.”

The Tasmanian Government has already said it was willing to stump up half of the cost of building it.

“If you had $375m to fix the problems Tasmania is facing, would you really spend it on a stadium,” she asked.

“We’d all love a stadium. But not at any price.”

On Friday, the AFL announced it would invest $15m to the Macquarie Point Stadium.

The cash injection by league headquarters was the first financial boost toward the roofed, multi-purpose stadium outside that committed by the state government.

Senator Lambie said people sleeping in their cars did not want free AFL tickets, they wanted secure accommodation.

She said pensioners who were freezing in their homes because they could not afford their power bills did not want some AFL-branded socks.

“People are dying waiting for a hospital bed. They’re not dying waiting for a footy team,” she said.

“People are living in tents. Our priority has to be putting a roof over their heads; not putting a roof over a stadium.

“Stand up to the AFL and reject their demand that we spend $375m on a new stadium in order to receive an AFL team. That money could be much better spent on health, housing and education than on a stadium with no business case.”

Mr Rockliff is a big fan of the push to build a stadium as a way of locking in support for a Tasmanian footy team.to pitch to Anthony Albanese for vital federal funding.