At its meeting last week, councillors unanimously passed a motion seeking answers to a range of questions before a formal position on TasWater’s future was decided.

The motion was put forward by Mayor Mick Tucker who said there had been no information received from the state government of what TasWater would look like after a takeover.

“We have no other detail from the Treasurer to back up his claims that he can reduce the 10-year plan to five or six years, or at what cost,” he said.

The council is seeking copies of the financial projections which have been prepared detailing the government’s proposed financing plan and dividend projections beyond 2025.

Councillors also wish to know what excess dividends beyond 2025 would be put towards, if not recieved by local government authorities, and if the government can borrow funds at a lower interest rate than TasWater.

Cr Tucker’s motion also sought an assessment of the capability of the Tasmanian construction community to undertake the works in the identified period.

Treasurer Peter Gutwein said the takeover was a fair deal for councils, a fair deal for customers and a better outcome for water and sewerage infrastructure.

“As we have already said, under our plan, once we assume control next year we will complete the remainder of Taswater's 10-year infrastructure strategy in five years,” he said.

“TasWater has the capacity to do more and we will utilise the state's strong financial position to ensure the job gets done.”