‘Alarm Bells’: Labor Seats Favoured in Grants Scheme

A general view of a playground is seen in Sydney, Australia, on May 17, 2020. Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

A majority of federal grants handed out as part of an invitation-only scheme to upgrade community infrastructure was directed to Labor seats, a report has found.

A report by the Centre for Public Integrity into the $560 million (US$403 million) Major and Local Community Infrastructure Program found that more than 73 percent of the funding was allocated to Labor-held seats.

That was compared with 23 percent of funding going to coalition seats and 4 percent going to others.

Of the funding, $493 million went to seats where Labor was competitive, compared to $66 million where it was not.

The centre’s chair Anthony Whealy said if the amount was distributed fairly, Labor should have received $66 million less, while non-Labor seats should have received $116 million more.

“These figures ring alarm bells. When approximately three-quarters of a $560 million community grants program goes to the government’s own electorates, serious questions have to be asked,” he said.

“The problem is that the process makes it impossible for the public to have confidence that merit, rather than political advantage, determined who got access to the money.”

Assistant Treasurer Daniel Mulino rejected claims the scheme was pork barrelling.

“This is long-standing practice, consistent with long-standing practice, where grants programs will be stood up in order to deliver election commitments,” he told ABC Radio on Sept. 8.

“This is about making sure that governments, when they make commitments during an election, have a process after the election for delivering those commitments in a timely way.”

Independent MP Helen Haines called for an overhaul of federal grants programs, labelling the scheme as another attempt at pork barrelling.

“Political parties should not be able to use taxpayers’ money to buy votes,” she said.

“Community need should come before political need.”

When in opposition, Labor heavily criticised the coalition government’s community sport infrastructure scheme, accusing it favouring Liberal and National seats.

That controversy, which became known as sports rorts, led to the resignation from cabinet of then-sports minister Bridget McKenzie, after she failed to disclose membership of a gun club that received funding.

Independent MP Kate Chaney said the centre’s report showed the infrastructure grant scheme was similar.

“This is pork barrelling, and we’ve seen it before. The coalition had sports rorts, and now Labor is park barrelling – money for parks and playgrounds, pools and sports ovals all promised during the election campaign,” she said in a statement.

By Andrew Brown in Canberra