The regulation changes that forced the closure of the helipad of Tasmania's second-largest hospital were made public more than four years ago, the federal aviation authority says, amid growing questions over the state government's level of transparency around the issue.
Assistant State Secretary of the Health and Community Services Union Lucas Digney said it was unclear if the information would have been publicly released otherwise."If they're not being transparent about an issue like the closure of the helipad, then what else is there that the community doesn't know about?"
The government has previously promised helipad upgrades in the $580 million Launceston General Hospital master plan — the guiding infrastructure strategy for the hospital over the next two decades — which is currently in its second stage and is set to be completed entirely by 2034. "It's delayed, it's late, it may not ever happen — that's a story Tasmanians are becoming quite used to."