Opposition Leader Brad Battin wants Suburban Rail Loop cancelled as Albo backs it in
Opposition Leader Brad Battin has doubled down on his calls for the Suburban Rail Loop to be immediately scrapped, saying if the project fails to win funding in Tuesday’s federal budget it should be “dead and buried”.
Victoria
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Opposition Leader Brad Battin has doubled down on his calls for the Suburban Rail Loop to be immediately scrapped, saying Tuesday’s federal budget is a “do or die” moment for the contentious project.
But the Allan government is refusing to back down on the project that it has taken to two state elections, instead calling on Mr Battin to outline whether he plans to rip up the rail loop if he is elected to power next year.
Mr Battin, who this week launched a public petition demanding that works on the project come to an immediate halt, said he couldn’t commit to cancelling it if he became Premier because the government had been “so secretive” about the build.
“We can’t go right now and say we’re going to cancel on the first day that we’re in (government) if there’s two holes in the ground that are halfway between Box Hill and Cheltenham,” he said.
“If the (tunnel) boring machines are underway then we have to analyse where it is at that stage. You can’t leave two holes in the middle of the ground with no more work to be done. That would be irresponsible.
“Those holes shouldn’t be dug. Victoria can’t afford it, the federal government has walked away, Infrastructure Australia hate the project, no other organisation actually thinks this project is worthwhile, except the Allan Labor government.”
Mr Battin said the Allan government should use Tuesday’s federal budget as a lever to put an end to the project.
“If they don’t get funding tonight, this project should be dead and buried,” he said.
“This is the time to make the change, not wait until an election in 613 days.”
But senior government Minister Mary-Anne Thomas said the project would proceed regardless of extra funding, and said Mr Battin needed to be upfront about his plans if he wins the 2026 election.
“These are weasel words from a weak leader,” she said.
“Victorians know the leader of the opposition is loose with the truth. He has to come clean and let Victorians know - is he going to cancel SRL? Is he going to be the one that’s going to see 4000 workers lose their jobs? Is he going to be the one that is going to stop the development of 70,000 new homes?
“The real question is for Brad Battin. What is he going to do?
“Our government is committed to delivering the SRL.”
Ms Thomas didn’t answer whether the government would consider exit strategies but said the state couldn’t afford to not build the Suburban Rail Loop.
“This is a much needed, multi generational project that will ensure that Victoria has the transport infrastructure it needs for the future, as well as houses where people want to live,” she said.
Battin calls for Allan government to scrap SRL
Opposition Leader Brad Battin has called on the Allan government to urgently cancel the Suburban Rail Loop.
The comments on Monday afternoon are a major shift in the Victorian Coalition’s stance on the contentious $34bn project, which would connect Cheltenham to Box Hill with 26km of track as the first stage of a 90km rail loop.
The opposition has previously only called for the SRL to be “paused” due to the parlous state of Victoria’s budget.
Mr Battin would not commit to tearing up the Suburban Rail Loop contracts if he wins the 2026 election, saying that the project must be immediately canned or future governments could end up lumped with its ballooning debt and no choice but to push ahead.
He said the onus was on Premier Jacinta Allan to cancel the project.
“The reality is we can’t wait 614 days for a change of government to review what happens with the Suburban Rail Loop,” he said on Monday.
“We’re calling on Jacinta Allan to cancel the Suburban Rail Loop contract as soon as possible because Victoria simply can’t afford it.
“We need to make sure it gets stopped immediately.”
It comes after a scathing assessment from Infrastructure Australia, released last week, found the $34.5bn SRL East is likely to soar above its mammoth price tag, and that benefits in the project business case were “overstated”.
Infrastructure Australia recommended the Victorian government develop “exit strategies” in case the risky project goes off the rails and needs to be abandoned.
The government has already signed multiple contracts for the project, which is already under construction and is scheduled to begin major tunnelling works next year.
Anthony Albanese has backed the Suburban Rail Loop project, after the damning report.
The Prime Minister did not rule out giving more federal funding to the works, despite revelations the costs are likely to soar above $34.5bn and recommendations that an exit strategy be created.
Asked if the Suburban Rail Loop was a viable project given Infrastructure Australia’s assessment, Mr Albanese said: “I think it certainly is”.
“It’s a long-term project,” he told 3AW.
“Clearly, we need to fix both rail and road, and when you have an infrastructure project, quite often in the early stages, there’s some criticism of it.”
Mr Albanese rejected the assertion the federal government was being asked to bail out the state government because it can no longer afford to commit to major projects.
“What we’re doing is contributing to give Victoria its fair share of funding,” he said.
The Albanese government in February released $2.2bn in funding it promised for the SRL at the last federal election.
On Monday afternoon, Mr Albanese announced $125m to transform the roundabout at Donnybrook Rd and Mitchell St at Donnybrook in the marginal Labor-held electorate of McEwen.
The work will be funded as part of Labor’s $1.2bn roads package, unveiled at the Herald Sun’s Future Victoria event last month.
Former premier Daniel Andrews announced the SRL plan in 2018, and later produced a business case that put the likely cost of the first stage at $30-34.5bn.
The state government is banking on the Commonwealth stumping up one third of that price tag. Anthony Albanese has so far only committed $2.2bn.
Transport Infrastructure Minister Gabrielle Williams on Monday conceded the government needed to be more transparent about the mega rail loop, but defended the importance of proceeding with the project.
“Clearly it also outlines that there’s more work for us to do in partnership with Infrastructure Australia to get that level of detail that they’re asking for, to build their confidence in the project,” she said.
“These projects are a really important part of our agenda in making sure that we’re not just catering for growth, but that we’re delivering quality of life, we’re delivering the infrastructure that means that people can get to where they need to go.”
The opposition had previously only called on the government to pause the Suburban Rail Loop.
But on Monday, Mr Battin said cancelling it was in the “best interests of all Victorians”.
“We have seen for too long too many organisations including Infrastructure Australia that are saying the government needs to plan an exit strategy,” he said.
“That exit strategy is simple – cancel the contracts as soon as possible and save Victorians from going broke from your pet project.”
Originally published as Opposition Leader Brad Battin wants Suburban Rail Loop cancelled as Albo backs it in
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