Brumby rejects FOI request on BER costs

THE Brumby government has again refused to divulge the costs of implementing the Building the Education Revolution program in Victoria.

THE Brumby government has again refused to divulge the costs of implementing the Building the Education Revolution program in Victoria, rejecting a Freedom of Information request on individual school project costs.

As principals and teachers become increasingly vocal over the lack of transparency in the state, the Victorian Auditor-General has also knocked back a request from the opposition to immediately investigate the Education Department's handling of the program.

It comes as Education Minister Bronwyn Pike was forced to defend her department yesterday, after it refused to be questioned by a Senate committee, saying its written submission to the BER inquiry was an "appropriate response".

The department has been criticised by schools who say its heavy-handed approach to the BER -- where it takes federal funding, pools it and redistributes it -- means schools are losing projects they were originally entitled to.

Parents told the Senate inquiry on Monday the department had "bullied" them into signing away part of their funds, while others say the department has refused to give them project costs and progress and tender information.

Opposition education spokesman Martin Dixon put an FOI request to the department in March, asking for the specific amount of BER funds allocated to each school, and the name and cost of the successful tenderer.

The department knocked back his request, saying given the tender process for all BER projects had not been completed, it would "seriously disadvantage" the department financially if tender costs were released now.

"It would not be in the public interest to disclose tender prices as this would compromise the tender process," the department's rejection letter states.

Mr Dixon said there was a "wall of secrecy" around the implementation of the BER in Victoria.

"Schools are entitled to know how their entitled money is being allocation and how it is being spent," he said. "Principals cannot operate in the dark."