Union unmoved by government denials over Metro privatisation plan claims

Government assurances there are no plans to privatise bus operator Metro have failed to reassure a union.

Australian Manufacturing Workers Union state organiser Jacob Batt at the Elizabeth Street bus mall, Hobart. Picture: Chris Kidd

Government denials of plans to privatise public transport operator Metro have failed to persuade the union representing the company’s mechanics.

Opposition MPs have raised concerns that the government is deliberately running down Metro services as part of a plan to hand over some or all of its routes to private operators.

Canadian bus operator Kinetic is frequently mentioned as a potential beneficiary of privatisation.

Ministerial diaries released by the government reveal Infrastructure and Transport Minister Michael Ferguson met with the company on April 14 for an “update on activities”.

On Tuesday he told parliament: ‘I reaffirm that this Government will retain Metro as state-owned”.

Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union State Organiser Jacob Batt said the union was not convinced.

Talks over a new enterprise bargaining agreement are currently underway.

“The privatisation strategy of Liberal Governments is always the same — underfund a public service to cut those services, in order to try to hoodwink the community it should be sold,” he said.

“Minister Michael Ferguson’s comments ruling out privatising Metro are hollow when he fails to properly fund our public bus network.

“The only way Premier Rockliff and Minister Ferguson can rule out privatising Metro is to increase wages so workers can be hired and retained and routes can be restored.

“A privatised Metro would mean taxpayers would subsidise private profits, and we have seen the history of privatisation leads to service cuts for the public.

“Multinational private bus company Kinetic is run by former bankers and is open to any opportunities for growth in Tasmania that arise in the future, including buying Metro.

‘Since 2021, Kinetic has bought former family-operated bus companies Redline, MerseyLink, Sainty’s, East Tamar Bus Lines and O’Driscoll Coaches with State-Government contracts. This now puts Kinetic as Tasmania’s largest government-contracted private bus company.

Mr Ferguson responded to a question from member for Franklin David O’Byrne with a denial privatisation was on the cards.

“By the way, I reaffirm that this Government will retain Metro as state-owned, despite the Leader of the Opposition’s false claims without any evidence, running around the community telling them that we are going to somehow privatise Metro.

Mr O’Byrne said he was convinced the government was preparing to privatise Metro.

“This Liberal Government have driven Metro into the ground. It’s been a death by a thousand cuts,” he said.

“Despite this Government’s rhetoric around supporting public transport, they’ve willingly abandoned Metro in its time of need and refused to intervene to fix this crisis.

“History shows that governments who strategically drive a collapse of critical public services will turn to privatisation. History also shows that this leads to worse outcomes for those who rely on these services and Governments eventually have to step back in to pick up the pieces.

“Whether it’s route by route or region by region, this government appears more than ready to hive off Metro’s services to private bus operators and companies.”