The Tasmanian Labor Party has backflipped on its resistance against a new stadium for the island state, giving the AFL's expansion hopes a much-needed boost.
The Labor Party had been opposed to the AFL-backed project before the recent state election loss, however, under the new leadership of party leader Dean Winter, the stadium is gaining more support.
Amid concerns about limited pending major infrastructure projects, Winter has backed the development of a new stadium in a push to secure more jobs for locals.
While the Labor Party's new stance is a welcomed change, Winter is still questioning the feasibility of the Macquarie Point project and may instead prefer an alternative one.
"Tasmania's economy has slowed. 5,000 jobs have been lost since Jeremy Rockliff lost majority government. Building companies are going bust. There are no major infrastructure projects scheduled to come online once the Bridgewater Bridge is finished," A Labor Party media release read, viaย WIN News Tasmania.ย
"A stadium will mean thousands of jobs in construction, including hundreds of apprenticeships.
"That's why Labor will be backing a new stadium.
"Labor's support doesn't mean the Premier will be let off the hook for promises he has made - far from it. He needs to deliver his sapped spend of $375m, with private investors to cover any shortfall.
"While we will not be standing in the way of the current Macquarie Point stadium proposal, we still hold concerns around the deliverability of the project. The Premier should not rule out the Stadium 2.0 project.
"Labor has changed. Under my leadership, the Labor Party stands for safe, secure, well-paid jobs. That means we will support projects with the potential to create thousands of new jobs - including the new stadium."
The AFL's planned expansion for a 19th club out of Tasmania relies on a new roofed stadium to be built in Hobart, with the state government supplying a majority of the $715m funding.
The estimated completion date for the Macquarie Point project was set for a year after the team joins the competition in 2028.
The Tasmanian AFL team will play under the 'Devils' moniker, with the club's logo, colours and guernsey also revealed in March.
