Michael Daley’s plan to cut major infrastructure could cost 24,000 jobs
More than 20,000 jobs would be ripped from Sydney under new Labor leader Michael Daley’s plans to cut major infrastructure projects, The Daily Telegraph can reveal. Exclusive polling today also shows voters believe Gladys Berejiklian will more likely invest in infrastructure.
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More than 20,000 jobs would be ripped from Sydney under new Labor leader Michael Daley’s plans to cut major infrastructure projects.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal the scale of the job cuts as exclusive new polling today shows voters believe Gladys Berejiklian and the coalition are more likely to invest in infrastructure than Mr Daley and Labor.
The exclusive YouGov/Galaxy poll of 903 voters showed 45 per cent believed Ms Berejiklian was more likely to invest in infrastructure, with just 29 per cent nominating Mr Daley.
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The State Government — which is trailing Labor on two party preferred polling 48 to 52 — will seize on the economic impact of project cuts under Mr Daley in the run up to the election, and will try to mount the case that Mr Daley’s willingness to walk away from major infrastructure projects marks a return to old Labor.
Government analysis across major Sydney infrastructure projects Mr Daley plans to abandon puts the number of jobs lost at 24,000.
Transport Minister Andrew Constance, who will lead the attack against Labor’s cuts to infrastructure, said cancelling the projects meant “not just the death of jobs but also the death of congestion busting infrastructure”.
Mr Constance said the figures estimated did not include possible cuts to country infrastructure.
“What Daley’s approach to stadiums shows is that he is a bloke willing to see projects falter. That should send a shiver down the spine of anyone in the construction industry.
“He is killing the key stimulus that drives our economy and that means people lose jobs.”
Mr Daley says his number one focus is the Western Metro, and he makes no apologies for cancelling other infrastructure projects in a bid to deliver the crucial link to Parramatta “faster”.
Mr Daley revealed last week he would not use taxpayer money to build a new Allianz stadium or dramatically upgrade ANZ stadium at Olympic Park.
Mr Daley has said he will assist the stadium operators in finding loans for their refurbishments, but it is possible this approach will alter and even risk the redevelopments.
Government estimates say the Allianz rebuild is worth 1246 jobs — 600 temporary jobs during construction, 300 full time direct jobs and another 346 indirect jobs from suppliers.
It is too soon to say how many jobs would be created by the ANZ redevelopment, but the government pointed to the new Western Sydney Stadium which created 1200 jobs in the construction phase.
In addition, Labor does not support the full Sydney Metro South West, the Western Harbour Tunnel or the F6 extension.
Sydney Metro South West will create 1500 jobs, with 500 apprenticeships also tied to the overall metro project.
The Western Harbour Tunnel creates 15,000 jobs on government estimates.
The F6 extension is worth 3000 jobs and 2000 indirect jobs.
Asked about this, Mr Daley said he made no apologies for saying those projects were not immediate priorities for a Labor government.
He said he believed the underground Western Metro to Parramatta was the “single most important project for Sydney”.
“We make no apologies or excuses for the fact that this is our number one priority,” Mr Daley told The Daily Telegraph.
“Western Metro is our number one priority.”
He argued that by redirecting money from cancelled projects, he could deliver the western metro faster.
Mr Daley has budgeted $5 billion more than the state government for the Western Metro. —
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