The Tasmanian Liberal Government is hell bent on building a stadium that Tasmanians don’t want and we can’t afford.
They say the social and economic benefits of having an AFL team will outweigh any negative effects from building the stadium.
But this isn’t just a case of ‘support the stadium’ or ‘don’t support the stadium’.
Building the proposed Macquarie Point stadium will have catastrophic effects on the Tasmanian economy. It’ll start a domino effect that snowballs into a landslide, creating many more problems than it solves and costing Tasmanian taxpayers in the process.
And it’s already started.
Debt
In November last year, Tasmania’s credit rating was downgraded, making it the worst-rated of any Australian state.
This downgrade means the state will now likely pay a higher interest rate on any borrowings.
The credit rating downgrade was a real slap in the face to the Tasmanian Liberal Government. It occurred because of a “sharp rise in the state’s debt burden and growing interest costs.”
It’s evidence of the financial mismanagement by the Tasmanian Liberal Government that’s leading the state to an economic downfall.
Now let’s bring in the proposed stadium.
In Dr Gruen’s June 2026 updated Macquarie Point stadium report, he says the stadium will add a staggering $2.3 billion to Tasmania’s state debt.
So we’ve got a government that’s already struggling to handle money, the lowest credit rating of any state in Australia, and they think it’s a good idea to go and add $2.3 billion of debt to that?
These numbers make it clear, more than ever, that Tasmania simply cannot afford the stadium. No matter how much lipstick they put on the pig of a project, the Tasmanian Liberal Government can’t hide the fact the numbers don’t stack up.
And they can’t hide that the proposed stadium puts Tasmania’s economic future at risk.
The stadium itself & Macquarie Point
The stadium design is filled with inherent risks that are likely to blow out costs.
Dr Gruen has pointed out that the stadium’s roof must be built substantially from wood. It’ll be the largest structure of that kind ever built.
… Anyone else hearing alarm bells?
Whenever you’re attempting something for the first time, on that kind of scale, there’s bound to be trial and error. And errors cost money.
The site itself also poses several risks. Macquarie Point is an old site where industrial runoff from factories in Hobart accumulated. You can imagine the kind of chemicals that have polluted the site over150 years.
Arsenic and cadmium has already been found in the soil at Macquarie Point. How this soil is treated and disposed of means significant extra costs.
And this is just the beginning. Given its history, if construction begins, it’s likely even more issues will be found at Macquarie Point. We have no idea of the extent of geotechnical and contamination risks that exist at this site. The potential for cost overruns relating to these kinds of issues is enormous.
Red flag for Tasmania’s economic future
The arguments against building the proposed Macquarie Point stadium go far beyond an AFL team.
With Tasmania’s credit rating already downgraded, pushing on with the stadium is effectively taking taxpayer money and burning it. The Tasmanian Liberal Government is adding an enormous $2.3 billion of debt to an already flailing economy, with no light at the end of the tunnel.
The proposed Macquarie Point stadium isn’t a smart investment. It’s just sheer arrogance from a State Government who refuses to listen to experts and cannot admit they’re wrong.