Taxpayers may have to compensate Supercars for cancelled Adelaide 500
Taxpayers may have to fork out to compensate Supercars after the State Government scrapped the 2021 Adelaide 500.
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Taxpayers may be forced to compensate Supercars after the State Government axed the 2021 Adelaide 500.
Premier Steven Marshall confirmed on Tuesday that negotiations were under way to settle the canned contract with Supercars.
Mr Marshall said he could not outline how much the Government may have to reimburse Supercars because “that’s subject to a negotiation”.
“I think there are some negotiations going on with regards to the fulfilment of the obligations under that contract but I don’t have anything to report today,” he said.
Mr Marshall also confirmed that any Government-owned assets associated with the Adelaide 500 that could not be used for other events would be sold off.
“Some of the specialist facilities that we have with regards to the construction and the deconstruction of the track each year may be specialist and can’t be repurposed and if that’s the case we’ll look to sell those at the best return for the taxpayers,” he said.
It comes as Opposition Leader Peter Malinauskas said South Australians had a “right to know” exactly how much the decision to scrap the Adelaide 500 would cost taxpayers.
“I think South Australians are horrified that Steven Marshall has made a decision that has a $45 million impact on the economy but they’ll be even more alarmed at the prospect that there may be costs to the taxpayer that Steven Marshall has not yet outlined,” he said.
Mr Malinauskas also said he hoped the Government wasn’t undermining Labor’s pledge to return V8 Supercar racing to Adelaide if it wins the next State Election.
“I hope that Steven Marshall isn’t actively sabotaging the prospect of getting the V8s back by selling off the infrastructure,” he said.
Mr Malinauskas and Supercars CEO Sean Seamer signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday which would see Labor bring V8 Supercars back to Adelaide if the party wins the 2022 election.
SA Best MLC and Sport and Recreation spokesman Frank Pangallo urged the Government not to hold a “fire sale” of the equipment used to run the Adelaide 500 until after the election.
Mr Pangallo also revealed he was in discussions with numerous car clubs about holding a protect car rally, starting at Victoria Park, in the coming weeks.
“Thousands of people – and not only revheads – are very angry at the government for its short-sighted decision, and rightly so,” he said.
“They should be given an opportunity to voice their frustration – and put pressure on the State Government to overturn its illogical decision.”
The State Government announced on Thursday it had scrapped the event in response to a recommendation from the South Australian Tourism Commission.
Rising costs, falling crowds, declining commercial interest and the coronavirus pandemic were blamed for the event’s demise.
As The Advertiser reported on Saturday, new figures revealed this year’s event generated $38 million in economic benefit, compared to 45.9 million in 2019.
The number of interstate and international visitors decreased during the same period from 15,200 to 11,906.
SATC has been contacted for comment.