Angus Taylor and Josh Frydenberg s offices chose sites for commuter car parks | Coalition theguardian.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theguardian.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Executive director of the ANAO Brian Boyd speaking this morning (Image: Lukas Coch/AAP)
It started with a list of the top 20 marginal seats, cooked up in former infrastructure minister Alan Tudge s office. It ended with the Coalition funnelling millions meant to fund commuter car parks towards projects in Coalition-held electorates or target seats in the run-up to the 2019 election.
At a spillover estimates hearing of the Senate s Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Legislation Committee this morning, officials from the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) revealed the startling lack of transparency and effective administration, as well as bad design that plagued the $660 million commuter car park fund, and its parent program the $4 billion Urban Congestion Fund (UCF).
Brian Boyd from the ANAO told the senate hearing that Treasury had pushed for an open and competitive tender but the infrastructure department rejected this approach.
He confirmed that the office of the then urban infrastructure minister, Alan Tudge, had begun the process with a âTop 20 marginalsâ list, with the sitting MPs, candidates and duty senators asked for input.
Boyd said the canvassing process was run through Tudgeâs office in conjunction with the prime ministerâs office.
âMinisters and two ministerial officers handled the canvassing process,â Boyd said.
âIt started as initially being Top 20 marginals, the key thing was to touch base with the Top 20 marginals.â
To some extent, it appeared there was almost like there was a menu, Mr Boyd said. In quite a number of cases they would have here s the electorate, here s the project, here s the dollars but in some cases they didn t yet have the project identified.
One of the electorates canvassed for a car park didn t have a railway station in it. But all of the projects ultimately chosen had a railway station or line within their boundaries.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg suggested four sites in his electorate, while fellow frontbencher and Hume MP Angus Taylor proposed two sites that were in neighbouring electorates.
NSW News: Multi-million dollar commuter car park fund scandal revealed 9news.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from 9news.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.