Guardian Australia analysis adds to concerns over the federal scheme, which is to be the subject of a Senate inquiry
Federal Labor seats have received over 90% of funds already awarded in the first five months of a controversial multi-million dollar grants program, adding to concerns over the scheme’s selection process.
The $568m community grants scheme will be the subject of a Senate inquiry after a report by the Centre for Public Integrity last week revealed the scheme favoured projects in notionally Labor-held electorates, including a $6m grant for a golf club in Anthony Albanese’s electorate.
The report dealt with the allocation of the funds. Now Guardian Australia analysis shows the money so far distributed by the scheme has been even more heavily skewed toward Labor seats, which have received 92% of approved funding.
In a sign the federal government is delivering funding to Victoria faster than other states, Victoria’s share of approvals exceeded its share of the overall allocations. The opposition has accused the government of propping up its state Labor counterparts in an attempt to save “political furniture”.
Labor invited councils to formally apply for the Major and Local Community Infrastructure program late last year, with the infrastructure department approving $248m of projects since March.
The figures show Victoria and New South Wales were the biggest state recipients of the non-competitive grants program, receiving $189.7m.
Councils in Victoria – where a state election is fast approaching – have so far received $99m, with $92m worth of projects located in seats held by state Labor MPs, including a number at risk of defeat at the polls in November.
The single biggest grant delivered by the Albanese government’s program was $25m for the new Bacchus Marsh aquatic centre in the respective federal and state Labor seats of Hawke and Eureka. Eureka is under threat from One Nation, as is Bendigo West, which has been approved for nearly $7m from the same scheme.
Another $106m was promised to Victoria ahead of the 2025 federal election but is yet to be formally approved.
NSW’s Lake Macquarie council was allocated the most individual grants, with 13 upgrades to sports fields and lighting worth a combined $8.8m, all of which have been approved.
The council covers NSW state Labor seats and an independent seat. NSW Labor is up for re-election in March 2027.
Western Australia, Tasmania and Queensland have been been approved for less than $25m, $15m and $8m respectively to date. Each has been promised close to $50m.
Helen Haines, the independent MP for the federal seat of Indi in rural Victoria, said governments should invest in local communities but “election should not be the selection”.
“Public money should go where there is genuine community need and demonstrated merit – not where it delivers political advantage,” she said.
The Albanese government has described the structure of the grants program as “sound” and claimed there were no conflicts of interest given final decisions were made by the infrastructure minister, not local MPs or proponents.
But the minister, Catherine King, did not directly answer when asked how projects were selected or approved, or whether their location in state or federal Labor seats was considered.
“The Major and Local Community Infrastructure program (MLCIP) delivers the election commitments made by the Australian Labor Party through a one-off, closed, non-competitive grant program, in line with longstanding practice,” King said.
“The guidelines explicitly state that applications which do not meet [specific] benchmarks will not be considered value for money and will not be awarded funding.”
The Senate will hold an inquiry into the scheme over the next two months, proposed by the Greens with Coalition with crossbench support. Labor voted against the inquiry on Monday.
The Greens spokesperson for democracy, senator Steph Hodgins-May, said it would investigate how projects were selected, who was locked out and whether conflicts of interest were properly declared.
“The public deserves to know how their money was allocated, who made the decisions and whether everyone got a fair go,” Hodgins-May said. “I expect Labor to stop hiding behind their talking points and front up to this inquiry.”
Victorian wishlists
The Victorian state Labor government is approaching the poll with less cash to spend than in previous campaigns.
Before the May budget, Labor MPs were told to identify smaller local projects they would like to see funded by the state in their electorate. In the previous budget, they were given a spending cap and asked to limit their list to five items.
Victorian Labor sources have confirmed that MPs were told to be “realistic” with their campaign wishlists and to include price points.
“Each MP has a wishlist, will they get everything on it? Probably not,” one
Another said: “It’s not going to be a spendathon.”
Some MPs have also banded together to jointly bid for state funding for projects that span electorates.
The Victorian premier’s office was approached for comment but did not respond.
The sources stressed the shift was due to the tightening fiscal environment and the leadership of the new premier, Ben Carroll, who has pledged to “respect” taxpayer funds.
With state debt forecast to soar to $199bn in 2029/2030 and AI-generated ads from the political lobby group Fix Victoria depicting a “debt tsunami,” sources said voters commonly raised the issue during door knocking.
Onein the grants being distributed at a federal level
The federal Victorian senator James Paterson said taxpayer money was being used to prop up Albanese’s “mate”, Carroll.
“It was bad enough already that federal Labor was prepared to use public money in such a nakedly partisan way for their own electoral benefit,” Paterson said.
“Federal grants shouldn’t be used to try to save Victorian Labor’s political furniture.”
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Source: www.theguardian.com
