From Thursday, the financial assistance available to mainland Australians wanting to take their car to Tasmania for a driving holiday will be increased for the third year in a row.

From 1 July 2010, the maximum rebates under the Bass Strait Passenger Vehicle Equalisation Scheme will be set at:

 The rebate paid is limited to the ferry operator's vehicle fare for that particular type of passenger vehicle.

The Scheme has become critical to the Tasmanian economy, most notably the Island’s tourism industry. That’s why in our first Budget we lifted the rebate from $168 to $180 and instituted annual indexations.

In fact since coming to office we’ve paid out more than $80 million in rebates, real money which has helped make a Tasmanian holiday more affordable for hundreds of thousands of Australian families.

The Scheme was introduced to reduce the cost of transporting eligible passenger vehicles across Bass Strait, in either direction. The rebate is delivered as a reduction in the fees charged by ferry operators.