Luke Hartsuyker (Cowper, National Party, Assistant Minister for Employment) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Bass for his question. Yes, I am aware that the unemployment rate in Tasmania is the highest in the country and I would say to Her Majesty's opposition that this is a national tragedy. It is not only that the unemployment rate is the highest in the country, but that the participation rate is also the lowest. You might think this is a joke, but I do not think that the people of Tasmania believe unemployment is a joke, I am assured of that. I think that it comes as no surprise that the unemployment rate is so high because the great state of Tasmania has been subject to the twin evils of a Labor-Green alliance at a federal level and a Labor-Green alliance at a state level. It is no wonder that the Tasmanian economy was stagnating under that regime.

But the coalition does have a plan. We have a plan to create a million jobs over five years and two million jobs over 10 years. Our plan starts with scrapping the job-destroying carbon tax and scrapping the job-destroying mining tax. And if the members of Her Majesty's opposition were serious about creating jobs they would get on side with the government—they would get on side with the government and support the repeal of those two job-destroying taxes.

Specifically in relation to the issue of employment in Tasmania: we have a jobs plan for Tasmania to assist businesses to employ people—a plan to provide $3,250 to assist Tasmanian businesses to employ unemployed Tasmanians and unemployed eligible job seekers.

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