The Health Minister Michael Ferguson says he asked for an urgent briefing on the project shortly after winning office and the latest advice to cabinet shows his government has inherited a terrible mess.
He says half of a $43 million contingency fund has already been spent, even though the project is far from finished and it is running a year late.
Mr Ferguson would not detail the exact cost overrun, but said delays have an actual cost of between $10,000 and $35,000 a day.
He has accused the previous Labor-Green government of deliberately hiding the true picture.
“They went to the last election telling Tasmanians everything was all right,” he said.
“It’s not all right, the project is in a terrible situation and as to what we’ll do about it, I’ll be seeking additional urgent advice from out departments and from Treasury.
“We’ll be taking this matter to cabinet,” he added.
The previous Labor health minister Michelle O’Byrne has denied claims her government handled the redevelopment incompetently.
“The auditor-general in fact did a review that was released in January,” she said.
“In that review, the auditor-general found that there were issues with governance and there were issues with the progress but also found that the department had taken the necessary action to put that back on track.”
Source: ABC