Doha: Government plans $20 million Australian embassy, costs referred to public inquiry

THE government’s plan to build a $20 million embassy in Qatar to house just four officials and 11 workers has been referred to a public inquiry to justify its extravagant expense.

Web Grab of the Tornado building in Doha, Qatar

• Turnbull Government under fire over $20m Doha embassy plans

• The cost would include $8.91m for fitout and $13m to lease the space

• Once built it would house four officials and 11 local workers

• Julie Bishop claimed the project was started under Tony Abbott

• It has been referred to a public inquiry to justify the expenditure

THE Turnbull government’s plan to build a $20 million embassy in Doha to house just four Australian officials and 11 local workers has been referred to a public inquiry to justify its extravagant expense.

The proposed embassy would take over an entire floor of the Tornado building in Qatar’s capital, at a rent of $18,000 a week, making it twice as expensive as the Commonwealth Parliamentary Offices in Sydney.

The floor space of 895sq m would provide each worker with their own office — each the size of an average Sydney apartment.

The cost amounted to a first year annual rent for the Tornado building of $866,718 for 15 people, which included one Austrade official.

The embassy is included in a $98 million budget for DFAT to expand its diplomatic footprint across the globe.

Having already been rejected once by the Public Works Committee of Parliament, the project has now been referred to a full public inquiry.

In the first submission to the PWC the total cost of fitout was estimated at $8.91 million, and $13 million to lease the space for 10 years. The committee said that was unacceptable as it represents around $9955 per square metre.

The following week DFAT submitted a revised total fitout cost of $7.036 million. The fitout on the revised submission is $7861.45 per square metre.

The cost amounted to a first year annual rent for the Tornado building of $866,718 for 15 people, which included one Austrade official.

The Tornado building in Doha, Qatar

With embassies in neighbouring countries including the United Arab Emirates, the committee questioned why an embassy was needed in Doha.

The first submission by Foreign Minister Julie Bishop’s department included $446,000 in consultant costs. It also included $320,000 in miscellaneous fees.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop said the decision to proceed with the embassy was made during Tony Abbott’s time Prime Minister.

A spokeswoman for Ms Bishop said the decision was made when Tony Abbott was prime minister and had been deemed necessary because Australia had growing ties with Qatar. The government said constructing a new building was too expensive and the Tornado building met security requirements.

“The Abbott government viewed there were strong grounds for an Australian Embassy in Doha,’’ the spokeswoman said.

“Two-way trade between Australia and Qatar was worth $1.75 billion in 2014-15, with Australian exports growing by over 20 per cent. Over 80 Australian companies are present in Qatar and the Football World Cup presents a huge opportunity for Australian businesses.’’

Originally published as Doha: Government plans $20 million Australian embassy, costs referred to public inquiry