We have a shortage of doctors, nurses and other staff, under which bush will they find all the staff needed, not to mention the money needed to cover this increase.

The Liberals don't deserve another term.

TO start with I am an AFL fan, however, to those leaders of our great state there are more important things to consider before having a Tassie AFL team.

We have (thanks to the bipartisan efforts of politicians in the main) come through the worldwide pandemic.

The cost has been high in dollars, therefore please don't chase any Tassie team until the state debt has started to be put behind us. Every decision made by you needs to be for the benefit of all Tasmanians.

IN OTHER NEWS:

SCENARIO one: Australia for almost the first time has a population in decline.

Such is the effect of COVID-19.

We are desperately short of workers to harvest bumper farm crops.

Scenario two: Thousands are gathering on the Mexican border, fleeing the corrupt, dangerous regimes of central American countries. These, for the most part, are true refugees, fleeing for their lives.

All they seek is shelter, opportunity to work and educate their children in a safe environment.

Solution: A surplus in one location and a desperate shortage in another.

Surely we can put the two together, have immigration officials from Australia visit Mexico to seek volunteers. Australia's multicultural, humane record would attract many. We would end up with several thousand temporary visa holders, who, I am sure would prove to be future worthy citizens.

We would have earned the gratitude of Americans. All it needs is decisive action similar to that exercised by Malcolm Fraser back in the seventies when thousands of Vietnamese were desperate for safe homes.

But action must be immediate.

THE result of the state election is a foregone conclusion. Sadly, the Liberal Party's determination to privatise TAFE will greatly damage this institution.

A building block of Australia's now lost egalitarian spirit, TAFE provided cheap, quality vocational training for generations.

In times past, one could enrol in an inexpensive night class and learn skills, whether for work or interest. We know from other states what privatisation and for-profit means: extremely expensive classes, delivered as cheaply as possible.

As a near-monopoly provider, competition is irrelevant. Market forces simply don't apply, but the march of a far-right ideology can't be stopped. The new TAFE will be a mere gatekeeper to employment, a toll working people have to pay to get even a menial job.

But at least for the Liberals, it will mean one more Labor-built institution killed off.

A key part of our plan is helping to ensure young Tasmanians can get the training, apprenticeships and jobs for their future in Tasmania.

To help deliver this, we will establish a new $5 million training facility for the North, which will deliver mental health, youth and alcohol and drugs training and provide more support for our most vulnerable.

Based at TasTAFE's Alanvale campus, the facility will complement the new health hub for nursing, aged care and disability, bringing together a wide range of health and allied health training opportunities.

Our investment in Launceston is part of our commitment to invest an additional $98.5m into TasTAFE which will deliver 100 more teachers, new infrastructure and increased access for regional students.

TasTAFE will always remain the public training provider in public ownership.

We want TAFE to deliver more choice for learners, better pay for skilled teachers and flexible hours aligned to business and industry vocational needs. With nearly $100 million in commitments for TasTAFE, it is clear we are not talking about privatisation - any suggestion otherwise is malicious.

Along with our new $5m mental health, youth and alcohol and drugs facility, we will invest a further $5m for other upgrades to the Alanvale campus, including expansion and significant equipment upgrades in key trades areas. It will allow students to train on up-to-date equipment in manufacturing industries such as metals and fabrication and support our new electrician tradies with industry-standard resources. Increasing rural and regional access to TAFE training is integral and we have already extended high schools to year 12 as making it easier to access vocational training will address a significant barrier for young Tasmanians.

That's why we will invest an additional $10m to deliver a TasTAFE virtual campus.

An additional $4m will be invested for TasTAFE and Libraries Tasmania to offer access to TAFE training and equipment at rural and regional sites. We will also expand the Skill Up! program, which will include more options for IT and digital skills training, with an extra $2m over four years.

These initiatives will bring Tasmania up to the standards delivered by modern and contemporary TAFEs as we help ensure youth can be trained to quickly meet the needs of industry and business.

It took Liberals to rebuild TasTAFE after Labor started it with $5 million of debt and a workforce exhausted from disastrous reforms. During our time, we have delivered 80 per cent of all state training funds to TasTAFE. Now time for the next evolution.