Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's $3.25 billion North East Link bailout is a telling sign that the Federal Labor Government has no confidence in the $216 billion Suburban Rail Loop (SRL).
With the latest North East Link cost escalation taking the total project cost to $26.2 billion - a blowout of more than $21.2 billion - a cash-strapped Allan Labor Government has been forced to turn to the Federal Government to fund the shortfall.
Today's announcement also highlights the conspicuous absence of funding for the Suburban Rail Loop, despite the Allan Labor Government still actively seeking a further $10 billion in federal funds.
It appears this will be the second consecutive Federal Budget with no additional money for the SRL, following Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King'sdecision to withhold funding until independent analysis from Infrastructure Australia deemed the project worthwhile.
With further uncertainty over its "value-capture" funding mechanism, the SRL has now been left with a funding black hole of over $20 billion on its first stage alone.
This is the latest hurdle for the SRL, after Tuesday's State Budget indicated a nine-month delay in early works, and a November 2023Victorian Auditor-General's report showed a possible $6.9 billion pre-construction blowout.
Shadow Minister for Transport Infrastructure, David Southwick, said: "The Allan Labor Government has lost control of the North East Link's price tag and had to go cap in hand to the Federal Government for a bailout.
"When funding a project blowout is a more attractive prospect than contributing to the Suburban Rail Loop, it's clear the Albanese Labor Government has no confidence in Jacinta Allan's $216 billion pet project.
"Labor cannot manage money, cannot manage projects and Victorians are paying the price."
