
Liberal leader vows to find 'rivers of gold in revenue'
A Labor budget has failed to deliver any bold visions or ambitious projects befitting of Australia's economic powerhouse, a state Liberal leader says.
Softly spoken NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman said Treasurer Daniel Mookhey's third budget was based on "dubious assumptions" and projections of a surplus were "phony".
Mr Speakman said housing was an "intergenerational equity issue" and the budget needed to reflect its urgency.
The budget handed down on Tuesday forecasts 240,000 housing completions by 2029, exceeding the previous government's forecast but below the 377,000 new homes targeted under a national housing agreement.
"Their (Labor's) own budget doesn't tackle the biggest problem in the game when it comes to housing supply and that's feasibility to build, to make it profitable for people to build," Mr Speakman said.
Asked how the coalition's policies would differ, Mr Speakman said the focus would be easing taxes and charges on new homes, calling them "some of the highest in the country".
With a state election two years away, he said a budget under his leadership would capitalise on untapped sources.
"There are rivers of gold when it comes to revenue with payroll tax, stamp duty, land tax, motor vehicle tax and even the GST," he said.
The state's $128 billion 2025/26 budget featured increased investment in essential services and lower debt, with a $1 billion housing development fund to finance developers behind low- to mid-rise buildings.
However, Mr Speakman said having the state act as a guarantor would not be enough to attract developers.
"It may make a marginal difference to financing costs but it's not going to be a game-shifter," he said.Echoing newly minted federal Liberal leader Sussan Ley's vow on Wednesday to represent "modern Australia", Mr Speakman said he wanted to lure young voters back to the party by talking to their concerns.
"You focus on the things that matter to the vast majority of citizens in NSW, which are cost of living, housing, good services, good schools for kids, public transport you can rely on," he said.
"You've got to earn it, though. There can't be any sense of entitlement.
"You have to persuade people you are there to represent their best interests and fight for them every day."
A Labor budget has failed to deliver any bold visions or ambitious projects befitting of Australia's economic powerhouse, a state Liberal leader says.
Softly spoken NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman said Treasurer Daniel Mookhey's third budget was based on "dubious assumptions" and projections of a surplus were "phony".
Mr Speakman said housing was an "intergenerational equity issue" and the budget needed to reflect its urgency.
The budget handed down on Tuesday forecasts 240,000 housing completions by 2029, exceeding the previous government's forecast but below the 377,000 new homes targeted under a national housing agreement.
"Their (Labor's) own budget doesn't tackle the biggest problem in the game when it comes to housing supply and that's feasibility to build, to make it profitable for people to build," Mr Speakman said.
Asked how the coalition's policies would differ, Mr Speakman said the focus would be easing taxes and charges on new homes, calling them "some of the highest in the country".
With a state election two years away, he said a budget under his leadership would capitalise on untapped sources.
"There are rivers of gold when it comes to revenue with payroll tax, stamp duty, land tax, motor vehicle tax and even the GST," he said.
The state's $128 billion 2025/26 budget featured increased investment in essential services and lower debt, with a $1 billion housing development fund to finance developers behind low- to mid-rise buildings.
However, Mr Speakman said having the state act as a guarantor would not be enough to attract developers.
"It may make a marginal difference to financing costs but it's not going to be a game-shifter," he said.Echoing newly minted federal Liberal leader Sussan Ley's vow on Wednesday to represent "modern Australia", Mr Speakman said he wanted to lure young voters back to the party by talking to their concerns.
"You focus on the things that matter to the vast majority of citizens in NSW, which are cost of living, housing, good services, good schools for kids, public transport you can rely on," he said.
"You've got to earn it, though. There can't be any sense of entitlement.
"You have to persuade people you are there to represent their best interests and fight for them every day."
A Labor budget has failed to deliver any bold visions or ambitious projects befitting of Australia's economic powerhouse, a state Liberal leader says.
Softly spoken NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman said Treasurer Daniel Mookhey's third budget was based on "dubious assumptions" and projections of a surplus were "phony".
Mr Speakman said housing was an "intergenerational equity issue" and the budget needed to reflect its urgency.
The budget handed down on Tuesday forecasts 240,000 housing completions by 2029, exceeding the previous government's forecast but below the 377,000 new homes targeted under a national housing agreement.
"Their (Labor's) own budget doesn't tackle the biggest problem in the game when it comes to housing supply and that's feasibility to build, to make it profitable for people to build," Mr Speakman said.
Asked how the coalition's policies would differ, Mr Speakman said the focus would be easing taxes and charges on new homes, calling them "some of the highest in the country".
With a state election two years away, he said a budget under his leadership would capitalise on untapped sources.
"There are rivers of gold when it comes to revenue with payroll tax, stamp duty, land tax, motor vehicle tax and even the GST," he said.
The state's $128 billion 2025/26 budget featured increased investment in essential services and lower debt, with a $1 billion housing development fund to finance developers behind low- to mid-rise buildings.
However, Mr Speakman said having the state act as a guarantor would not be enough to attract developers.
"It may make a marginal difference to financing costs but it's not going to be a game-shifter," he said.Echoing newly minted federal Liberal leader Sussan Ley's vow on Wednesday to represent "modern Australia", Mr Speakman said he wanted to lure young voters back to the party by talking to their concerns.
"You focus on the things that matter to the vast majority of citizens in NSW, which are cost of living, housing, good services, good schools for kids, public transport you can rely on," he said.
"You've got to earn it, though. There can't be any sense of entitlement.
"You have to persuade people you are there to represent their best interests and fight for them every day."
A Labor budget has failed to deliver any bold visions or ambitious projects befitting of Australia's economic powerhouse, a state Liberal leader says.
Softly spoken NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman said Treasurer Daniel Mookhey's third budget was based on "dubious assumptions" and projections of a surplus were "phony".
Mr Speakman said housing was an "intergenerational equity issue" and the budget needed to reflect its urgency.
The budget handed down on Tuesday forecasts 240,000 housing completions by 2029, exceeding the previous government's forecast but below the 377,000 new homes targeted under a national housing agreement.
"Their (Labor's) own budget doesn't tackle the biggest problem in the game when it comes to housing supply and that's feasibility to build, to make it profitable for people to build," Mr Speakman said.
Asked how the coalition's policies would differ, Mr Speakman said the focus would be easing taxes and charges on new homes, calling them "some of the highest in the country".
With a state election two years away, he said a budget under his leadership would capitalise on untapped sources.
"There are rivers of gold when it comes to revenue with payroll tax, stamp duty, land tax, motor vehicle tax and even the GST," he said.
The state's $128 billion 2025/26 budget featured increased investment in essential services and lower debt, with a $1 billion housing development fund to finance developers behind low- to mid-rise buildings.
However, Mr Speakman said having the state act as a guarantor would not be enough to attract developers.
"It may make a marginal difference to financing costs but it's not going to be a game-shifter," he said.Echoing newly minted federal Liberal leader Sussan Ley's vow on Wednesday to represent "modern Australia", Mr Speakman said he wanted to lure young voters back to the party by talking to their concerns.
"You focus on the things that matter to the vast majority of citizens in NSW, which are cost of living, housing, good services, good schools for kids, public transport you can rely on," he said.
"You've got to earn it, though. There can't be any sense of entitlement.
"You have to persuade people you are there to represent their best interests and fight for them every day."

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The Advertiser
2 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Opposition pledges billion-dollar 'budget crisis' fix
Tasmania's alternative government says it will immediately save the state $1 billion if it wins next month's snap election. Having cited poor budget management when driving through a successful no-confidence motion against the government, Opposition Leader Dean Winter unveiled his repair plan on Saturday. The Labor plan is designed to immediately find $1 billion in savings, while it also commits, in government, to put any windfall tax revenue gains towards debt reduction. Figures released by treasury on Wednesday forecast a worse financial position than estimated in the May 2025/26 state budget. Treasury predicted net debt would reach $13 billion in 2027/28, above the budget forecast of $10.2 billion. Mr Winter said the "crippling" debt had put Tasmania into a budget crisis and required a change of leadership to fix. "Tasmania has gone from having the strongest balance sheet of any state or territory when the Liberals were first elected in 2014 (and have) taken Tasmania to be almost bankrupt," he said. "The size and scope of the problem is enormous. The Liberals and Jeremy Rockliff have been warned about this by treasury for at least four years, and they've done nothing about it." Labor plans to establish a debt reduction fund, audit the capital investment program and ensure public assets are not privatised to ensure revenue streams among other ideas. They also would establish an internal jobs market in the public service, designed to stop the growth of the workforce. "If we create more mobility in the public service, we'll get a public service that's more agile, it's about reorganising and re-prioritising and stopping the jobs growth, which is unsustainable," Shadow Treasurer Josh Willie said. Liberal Treasurer Guy Barnett said the budget plan was "one giant con" because $171.5 million worth of cuts to capital works did not specify which projects. The government accused Labor of wanting to sell the state's stake in the Marinus Link that would allow Tasmania and its hydropower to become the nation's battery. "Dean Winter wants to sell a stake in Marinus (but) we are not going to … give effectively more control and more power of our power to the Victorian premier," Mr Rockliff said. The Liberals have pledged measures to cut spending in the public service but abandoned potential state asset sales as a means of paying down debt. The Liberals (14 seats) and Labor (10) face an uphill battle to reach the 18-seat mark required to govern in majority. Tasmania heads to the polls on July 19. Tasmania's alternative government says it will immediately save the state $1 billion if it wins next month's snap election. Having cited poor budget management when driving through a successful no-confidence motion against the government, Opposition Leader Dean Winter unveiled his repair plan on Saturday. The Labor plan is designed to immediately find $1 billion in savings, while it also commits, in government, to put any windfall tax revenue gains towards debt reduction. Figures released by treasury on Wednesday forecast a worse financial position than estimated in the May 2025/26 state budget. Treasury predicted net debt would reach $13 billion in 2027/28, above the budget forecast of $10.2 billion. Mr Winter said the "crippling" debt had put Tasmania into a budget crisis and required a change of leadership to fix. "Tasmania has gone from having the strongest balance sheet of any state or territory when the Liberals were first elected in 2014 (and have) taken Tasmania to be almost bankrupt," he said. "The size and scope of the problem is enormous. The Liberals and Jeremy Rockliff have been warned about this by treasury for at least four years, and they've done nothing about it." Labor plans to establish a debt reduction fund, audit the capital investment program and ensure public assets are not privatised to ensure revenue streams among other ideas. They also would establish an internal jobs market in the public service, designed to stop the growth of the workforce. "If we create more mobility in the public service, we'll get a public service that's more agile, it's about reorganising and re-prioritising and stopping the jobs growth, which is unsustainable," Shadow Treasurer Josh Willie said. Liberal Treasurer Guy Barnett said the budget plan was "one giant con" because $171.5 million worth of cuts to capital works did not specify which projects. The government accused Labor of wanting to sell the state's stake in the Marinus Link that would allow Tasmania and its hydropower to become the nation's battery. "Dean Winter wants to sell a stake in Marinus (but) we are not going to … give effectively more control and more power of our power to the Victorian premier," Mr Rockliff said. The Liberals have pledged measures to cut spending in the public service but abandoned potential state asset sales as a means of paying down debt. The Liberals (14 seats) and Labor (10) face an uphill battle to reach the 18-seat mark required to govern in majority. Tasmania heads to the polls on July 19. Tasmania's alternative government says it will immediately save the state $1 billion if it wins next month's snap election. Having cited poor budget management when driving through a successful no-confidence motion against the government, Opposition Leader Dean Winter unveiled his repair plan on Saturday. The Labor plan is designed to immediately find $1 billion in savings, while it also commits, in government, to put any windfall tax revenue gains towards debt reduction. Figures released by treasury on Wednesday forecast a worse financial position than estimated in the May 2025/26 state budget. Treasury predicted net debt would reach $13 billion in 2027/28, above the budget forecast of $10.2 billion. Mr Winter said the "crippling" debt had put Tasmania into a budget crisis and required a change of leadership to fix. "Tasmania has gone from having the strongest balance sheet of any state or territory when the Liberals were first elected in 2014 (and have) taken Tasmania to be almost bankrupt," he said. "The size and scope of the problem is enormous. The Liberals and Jeremy Rockliff have been warned about this by treasury for at least four years, and they've done nothing about it." Labor plans to establish a debt reduction fund, audit the capital investment program and ensure public assets are not privatised to ensure revenue streams among other ideas. They also would establish an internal jobs market in the public service, designed to stop the growth of the workforce. "If we create more mobility in the public service, we'll get a public service that's more agile, it's about reorganising and re-prioritising and stopping the jobs growth, which is unsustainable," Shadow Treasurer Josh Willie said. Liberal Treasurer Guy Barnett said the budget plan was "one giant con" because $171.5 million worth of cuts to capital works did not specify which projects. The government accused Labor of wanting to sell the state's stake in the Marinus Link that would allow Tasmania and its hydropower to become the nation's battery. "Dean Winter wants to sell a stake in Marinus (but) we are not going to … give effectively more control and more power of our power to the Victorian premier," Mr Rockliff said. The Liberals have pledged measures to cut spending in the public service but abandoned potential state asset sales as a means of paying down debt. The Liberals (14 seats) and Labor (10) face an uphill battle to reach the 18-seat mark required to govern in majority. Tasmania heads to the polls on July 19. Tasmania's alternative government says it will immediately save the state $1 billion if it wins next month's snap election. Having cited poor budget management when driving through a successful no-confidence motion against the government, Opposition Leader Dean Winter unveiled his repair plan on Saturday. The Labor plan is designed to immediately find $1 billion in savings, while it also commits, in government, to put any windfall tax revenue gains towards debt reduction. Figures released by treasury on Wednesday forecast a worse financial position than estimated in the May 2025/26 state budget. Treasury predicted net debt would reach $13 billion in 2027/28, above the budget forecast of $10.2 billion. Mr Winter said the "crippling" debt had put Tasmania into a budget crisis and required a change of leadership to fix. "Tasmania has gone from having the strongest balance sheet of any state or territory when the Liberals were first elected in 2014 (and have) taken Tasmania to be almost bankrupt," he said. "The size and scope of the problem is enormous. The Liberals and Jeremy Rockliff have been warned about this by treasury for at least four years, and they've done nothing about it." Labor plans to establish a debt reduction fund, audit the capital investment program and ensure public assets are not privatised to ensure revenue streams among other ideas. They also would establish an internal jobs market in the public service, designed to stop the growth of the workforce. "If we create more mobility in the public service, we'll get a public service that's more agile, it's about reorganising and re-prioritising and stopping the jobs growth, which is unsustainable," Shadow Treasurer Josh Willie said. Liberal Treasurer Guy Barnett said the budget plan was "one giant con" because $171.5 million worth of cuts to capital works did not specify which projects. The government accused Labor of wanting to sell the state's stake in the Marinus Link that would allow Tasmania and its hydropower to become the nation's battery. "Dean Winter wants to sell a stake in Marinus (but) we are not going to … give effectively more control and more power of our power to the Victorian premier," Mr Rockliff said. The Liberals have pledged measures to cut spending in the public service but abandoned potential state asset sales as a means of paying down debt. The Liberals (14 seats) and Labor (10) face an uphill battle to reach the 18-seat mark required to govern in majority. Tasmania heads to the polls on July 19.


Perth Now
4 hours ago
- Perth Now
Opposition pledges billion-dollar 'budget crisis' fix
Tasmania's alternative government says it will immediately save the state $1 billion if it wins next month's snap election. Having cited poor budget management when driving through a successful no-confidence motion against the government, Opposition Leader Dean Winter unveiled his repair plan on Saturday. The Labor plan is designed to immediately find $1 billion in savings, while it also commits, in government, to put any windfall tax revenue gains towards debt reduction. Figures released by treasury on Wednesday forecast a worse financial position than estimated in the May 2025/26 state budget. Treasury predicted net debt would reach $13 billion in 2027/28, above the budget forecast of $10.2 billion. Mr Winter said the "crippling" debt had put Tasmania into a budget crisis and required a change of leadership to fix. "Tasmania has gone from having the strongest balance sheet of any state or territory when the Liberals were first elected in 2014 (and have) taken Tasmania to be almost bankrupt," he said. "The size and scope of the problem is enormous. The Liberals and Jeremy Rockliff have been warned about this by treasury for at least four years, and they've done nothing about it." Labor plans to establish a debt reduction fund, audit the capital investment program and ensure public assets are not privatised to ensure revenue streams among other ideas. They also would establish an internal jobs market in the public service, designed to stop the growth of the workforce. "If we create more mobility in the public service, we'll get a public service that's more agile, it's about reorganising and re-prioritising and stopping the jobs growth, which is unsustainable," Shadow Treasurer Josh Willie said. Liberal Treasurer Guy Barnett said the budget plan was "one giant con" because $171.5 million worth of cuts to capital works did not specify which projects. The government accused Labor of wanting to sell the state's stake in the Marinus Link that would allow Tasmania and its hydropower to become the nation's battery. "Dean Winter wants to sell a stake in Marinus (but) we are not going to … give effectively more control and more power of our power to the Victorian premier," Mr Rockliff said. The Liberals have pledged measures to cut spending in the public service but abandoned potential state asset sales as a means of paying down debt. The Liberals (14 seats) and Labor (10) face an uphill battle to reach the 18-seat mark required to govern in majority. Tasmania heads to the polls on July 19.

Sydney Morning Herald
6 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Former Queensland minister Rod Welford dies
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