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PRIME MINISTER Kevin Rudd has just made probably his last visit to Northern Tasmania before Saturday's federal election to confirm Labor spending on a new university hub and announce his Tasmania Plan.
Labor's decision to provide $28 million over four years towards an $83.5 million University of Tasmania health training and research facility at Launceston had already been revealed by the local media before Mr Rudd arrived for today's brief North and North-West visit.
Mr Rudd said that the new northern hub would create hundreds of jobs in the region, stimulate investment and improve the health of residents.
University vice chancellor Peter Rathjen, who was not at this morning's federal announcement, has said previously that the proposed health and sports hub would also shore up the university's future presence in the North.
He said that the university would probably not go ahead with the proposed project if it did not receive government assistance.
But the university is still to brief the federal Liberals about it.
Mr Rudd said that the new hub would train nearly 700 more health students every year, create 345 jobs during construction and 70 ongoing jobs.
Kevin Rudd's plan for Tasmania was also released this morning.
The 15-page, coloured booklet contained no new spending for the state but repeated pledges made already during the election campaign and even back to the $325 million health rescue package announced by Tanya Plibersek in June last year.
Mr Rudd is now heading to the Simplot factory, at Devonport, where he will talk about a $15 million Labor reform program to secure the future of vegetable farmers who supply the processing plant.