Estimates - Sport - Grassroots funding
Ms BURNET - Minister, I'm interested in how it appears to me that your government is really very much focused on the big end of town and providing high-performance centres delivering for the AFL and elite sports over more grassroot sports. According to Football Tasmania CEO Tony Pignata, in February of this year, I think, he said the Tasmanian government invests around $540 into every Tasmanian who plays Aussie rules and around $138 into every basketballer, yet only $19 in a football player. So, I'm interested to know, minister, what is the spend for AFL versus other sporting codes, and I'd like to know the breakdown for the regions and from 2026-27 to 2029-30, please.
Mr DUIGAN - Thank you, I appreciate your question and, you know, I was with Tony Pignata the other day and we were announcing support for a business case around advancing the home of football at Wentworth Park and, you know, that would be a very substantial investment into football and, you know, really welcome the work that they are doing. I would make the point and I take your point around the big end of town and spending on high-performance centres. It's important to recognise that these are, you know, point-in-time investments being made as Tasmania emerges onto the national stage, you know. We haven't been necessarily represented at the highest level in some of these sports. So, these are point-in-time investments that we'll make and then they won't be needed to be made in future. So, I take your point, but it needs to be considered in that context. We're also investing very heavily, I must say, in community sporting infrastructure around the state. In every corner of Tasmania there are large-scale community sporting infrastructure projects going ahead. Brett, to the other detail of the question, perhaps you might be able to provide some breakdown.
Mr STEWART - Thanks minister, and through you: the investment in grassroots and community football in Tasmania is made through our funding arrangement with AFL Tasmania. That's a total of $500,000 per year. That's a similar level to other larger sports, in terms of the total investment. Those figures you mentioned around per player, we don't have those figures. We basically invest in sport at a total level. For example, it's a very similar level of investment to our grassroots investment in basketball, netball, et cetera.
In terms of the regional breakdown, we don't have those numbers available because it's up to those sporting bodies as to how they distribute their funds across the regions. We would have to talk to those sporting bodies, if they were to have those breakdowns available.
Ms BURNET - So you don't have any idea of how much you're spending on facilities in each of the regions?
Ms BURNET - So you don't have any idea of how much you're spending on facilities in each of the regions?
Mr STEWART - Oh, if we're talking facilities, sorry.
Ms BURNET - Yes.
Mr STEWART - Yes we certainly would have that breakdown. I am not sure I have that one available, we might have to take that one on notice.
Mr DUIGAN - Oh, look, I can spool through it if you'd like?
Ms BURNET - I'm sure everybody else wouldn't.
Mr DUIGAN - I've got it, it's a good story.
Ms BURNET - No, it's okay. If you're happy to take it on notice, minister?
Mr DUIGAN - Yes, it's easily available, but you know, I would make the point that we are spending on community sporting infrastructure in a very major way, and unlike governments of the past.