FUTURE PROJECT: An Opposition spokesman says redevelopment of the Hobart railyards and the state's rail network must result in contracts for as many local firms as possible.
THE Opposition will this week challenge the Labor-Green State Government to back new legislation it says will shore up local construction firms and tradesmen and prevent tens of millions of contract dollars flowing out of the state.
In a move to give local business priority over interstate firms, the Liberals will on Wednesday bring on debate of proposed their Local Benefits Test Bill, under which contracts will need to meet a range of regulations that will favour local tenderers.
This could include a 10-15 per cent buffer in cases where it is considered it would be of more value to give the job to locals than interstate firms and a need to split large contracts into smaller parcels to give local firms a better opportunity to tender.
Opposition Leader Will Hodgman said there was an urgent need for more government tenders to go to local firms to stimulate the state's struggling economy by keeping people in jobs and ensuring the money was circulated locally, especially in regional areas.
Mr Hodgman believed a local benefits test would also create hundreds of local jobs.
The Bill, which has already been tabled, proposes that a local benefits test be applied to all government tenders, with consideration given to the benefits that would flow if a tender was awarded to a Tasmanian firm rather than a business from outside the state.
Mr Hodgman said Tasmanian businesses were missing out on tens of millions worth of government contracts each year.
"Tasmania needs a local benefits test to make sure we're not just getting value for money but value for the community from government contracts,'' he said.
"The Government is the biggest purchaser in dhTasmania and we need a local benefits test to harness that power to grow the economy and create jobs.''
It is understood that the Liberals would apply a discount to the overall tender for a Tasmanian business that applied, meaning a local company could still win a contract in the event that an interstate business was offering to do the work at a slightly lower cost.
The Bill also defines "local business'' as a company that is substantially based in Tasmania and has most of its workers based in Tasmania.
"[The Government] counts companies like Telstra and Corporate Express and even multi-nationals like KPMG as Tasmanian businesses simply because they have a presence in Tasmania,'' Mr Hodgman said.
"Other states already have local benefits tests. It won't restrict the Government from getting the best deal possible.
"A local benefits test will ensure that the Government will take into account the cost of sending business offshore.''
A spokesman for the Opposition said projects such as the redevelopment of the Hobart railyards and the state's rail network must result in contracts for as many local firms as possible.
blair.richards@news.com.au
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