As West Coast Loses Another Childcare Operator
Paul ‘Basil’ O’Halloran MP
Greens Member for Braddon
The Tasmanian Greens today continued to raise a range of service and infrastructure issues on the West Coast, and continued their call on Premier David Bartlett to introduce a Royalties for Regions scheme to assist the West Coast with issues such as attracting and retaining teachers and medical professionals, infrastructure maintenance, and the provision of reliable childcare.
Greens Member for Braddon, Paul ‘Basil’ O’Halloran MP, said the lack of services on the West Coast is a serious disincentive for teaching and medical professionals, and makes the retention of these professionals all but impossible, and that a Royalties for Regions scheme would return a proportion of royalties earned in the regions for use in providing much-needed infrastructure and services.
Mr O’Halloran also said that the Greens took a Royalties for Regions policy to this year’s State election and will continue to work towards its implementation.
“Queenstown has just lost another childcare operator, compounding the region’s struggle to attract and retain professionals. The lack of services on the West Coast is a serious disincentive and I believe that the Greens’ Royalties for Regions policy would provide much-needed infrastructure and service provision for the whole region.”
“The Greens are calling on the Premier to acknowledge the need to improve services and infrastructure on the West Coast, and to drop his opposition to our Royalties for Regions policy which provide tangible benefits for the entire West Coast,” said Mr O’Halloran.

Reference: Royalties for Regions: Returning Wealth to Mining Communities, launched November 2009, available at http://mps.tas.greens.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/Royalties-ForRegions_McKim_Nov09.pdf