Legislative Council, Wednesday 31 May 2023

Ms FORREST question to LEADER of the GOVERNMENT in the LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL, Mrs HISCUTT

With regard to the Agreement between the AFL and Tasmanian Government regarding a Tasmanian AFL team and stadium and Macquarie Point:

1. Who was the chief negotiator for the Tasmanian Government with regard to this contract; and

2. If more than one person was considered the lead negotiator, please list all those who participated in the negotiations.

ANSWER:

There was no single chief negotiator regarding the agreement between the Tasmanian Government and the AFL, the approach was as follows:

The development of the business case for an AFL team and licence by the AFL Task Force occurred in December 2019 followed by the AFL commissioned independent review of the business case by Colin Carter.

Initial high-level engagement then occurred between the Premier and the AFL to agree to the broad terms. These terms informed subsequent detailed discussions to develop the Funding and Development Agreement.

These discussions were conducted over hundreds of hours, coordinated by the State Growth Strategy and Policy team to ensure a coordinated approach. The detailed discussions involved relevant senior officers as appropriate from across the department including the Culture, Arts and Sports Group, Transport and Infrastructure Group and the Resources, Strategy and Policy Group.

The broader team, supported by the Crown Solicitor and technical experts as needed, interacted with the Secretary of State Growth, Mr Kim Evans, and the Premier’s office at all times to ensure an integrated and consistent approach to the discussions.