Victoria hotel quarantine blowout: Hotels share in $4.3m despite doing no work
They had no-one staying there and no work done to rooms, but these Melbourne hotels were still paid millions by the state government.
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The state government has admitted paying millions of dollars to hotel quarantine operators who never hosted a single guest.
One third of the 28 hotels contracted to act as quarantine hubs during the government’s first failed attempt at hotel quarantine were never required.
While five of the nine that were not needed were repurposed, four hotels shared in $4.3 million in contract payments despite doing no work.
The Victoria Hotel received a $1.5 million payment, the Rendezvous Hotel Melbourne was paid $1.3 million, the Novotel Melbourne Glen Waverley $1.1 million and Zagame’s House $400,000.
Victoria’s first hotel quarantine program ran for three months from March 29 to June 30 last year.
In that time a total of 21,821 returned travellers went through the program, with a total of 236 of those returned travellers testing positive for COVID-19 while in quarantine.
However breaches in the system led to the state’s deadly second wave.
The payouts to the ghost hotels were confirmed in questions on notice to the parliament’s public accounts and estimates committee.
It was also confirmed that the government’s $61.9 million spend on private hotel security was marginally larger than the $61.7 million spent on actual accommodation.
The largest single accommodation payment, of $12.5 million, was made to Crown Resorts.
It is estimated the program is currently costing Victorian taxpayers $1 million a day.
Shadow Minister for Police & Crime Prevention, David Southwick, said the wasted spending came on top of millions of dollars spent to keep the currently grounded program on standby.
“Victorians are simply fed-up with the waste and incompetence of Daniel Andrews hotel quarantine program,” he said.
“Whether its millions paid for facilities never used, spending more on security than hotels or sweetheart deals for Crown, Victorians are yet again picking up the tab of Daniel Andrews botched hotel quarantine program.
“It seems the only businesses benefiting from COVID are the one that have sweetheart deals with the Andrews Labor Government.”
But a government spokesperson defended the cost of the program.
“At the start of last year, the government secured hotel rooms across Victoria as part of the emergency response to coronavirus,” she said.
“Many of these rooms were also used throughout the pandemic for emergency accommodation, including for Victorians fleeing family violence and those experiencing homelessness.”
“Contracts for hotels were regularly reviewed and either renewed or cancelled based on current and forecast demand.
“It’s essential that we have well-trained staff and fit for purpose hotels available on standby to ensure we can safely quarantine those who need it, to keep the community safe.”
The hotel quarantine program will restart on Thursday when international flights resume flying into Victoria.
Originally published as Victoria hotel quarantine blowout: Hotels share in $4.3m despite doing no work
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