Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

This weekend, Tasmanians will head to the polls to decide the next state parliament, and, as is the case with all election, the community is being bombarded with promises from the parties about how they will make our lives better. But this is what I'm hearing from my community about what they expect from the next Tasmanian government.

For a start, they expect a health system that works and not one constantly on the brink of collapse. For instance, our emergency department waiting times are above the national average, with only 52 per cent of patients seen on time compared with 65 per cent nationally. Moreover, 44 per cent of category 1 elective surgery patients weren't admitted within the clinically recommended time frame. All that is simply outrageous. Clearly, more funding is needed—though, to be clear, it isn't the only answer. For example, despite revenue and staff numbers increasing for the ambulance service over recent years, response times are up. In fact, Tasmanians are now waiting longer than at any other time in the last decade, in a clear sign that what's actually needed is substantial structural reform.

Tasmanians also expect a safe and affordable place to live, but this has been out of reach for many, and it's getting worse. Indeed, we've seen a 45 per cent increase in homelessness in Tasmania since the last census, there are a record 4,700 people languishing on the housing waiting list, and more than half of mortgage holders in Clark are at risk of mortgage stress. Moreover, Hobart is the second least affordable capital city for renters, with rents ballooning by 60 per cent since 2016. Clearly, these figures are appalling, which is why the next government must significantly increase investment in social housing and crisis accommodation, streamline development approvals and strengthen renters' rights.

It must also pay far more attention to education, because, shamefully, Tasmania ranks well behind the mainland states when it comes to education outcomes. For example, the latest report on government services shows that a mere 53 per cent of Tasmanians leave school with a year 12 or equivalent qualification, compared to 76 per cent nationally. No wonder around half of all Tasmanian adults are functionally illiterate.

Speaking of young people, the next government must implement all the recommendations of the Commission of Inquiry into the Tasmanian Government's Responses to Child Sexual Abuse in Institutional Settings, including closing Ashley Youth Detention Centre urgently. As many in the community would recall, the commission's findings detailed horrific evidence of physical and sexual abuse, inhumane isolation practices, and strip and cavity searches of children. Yet the Liberals have pushed back their commitment to close the centre from 2024 to 2026, and Labor has also confirmed that it will not close the centre immediately. All of that is unconscionable, especially considering that the commission has flagged that there remains a live and current risk of sexual abuse of children in Ashley.

I also implore the next state government to swiftly implement the cashless gaming card, not least because Tasmanians lost almost $190 million on poker machines in the 2022-23 financial year, a 10½ per cent increase over a four-year period. While the Liberals supported the Tasmanian Liquor and Gaming Commission's recommendation to implement a statewide player card gaming system with precommitment and cashless gaming in 2022, we have seen no practical action, and shamefully, although unsurprisingly, we've heard nothing from Labor. Indeed, if Liberal and Labor are serious about addressing gambling harm, they must commit to implementing mandatory card play immediately.

Last, but certainly not least, the next government needs to get serious about protecting our environment. Yet all we've heard so far is a cynical attempt to reignite the forest wars, despite more than 680 Tasmanian plant and animal species being listed as threatened, including the swift parrot and the maugean skate.

Surely the next Tasmanian government needs to start taking its responsibility as custodian of our state seriously, including by growing a backbone and standing up to the forestry and salmon industries, whose businesses are trashing Tasmania's clean, green reputation and undermining what Tasmanians and tourists value most about our state. If the last 10 years are anything to go by, the next government needs to actually start governing for a change. The community is sick and tired of politicians promising one thing and doing another. Until the political parties start listening to the community, their promises in Tasmania are nothing but empty words.