‘Tip of the iceberg’: Taxpayer grants fund drag show, anti-racist dentistry and tea towel art exhibit

Grants provided across multiple federal government departments have gone to surprising programs including ‘decolonising breastfeeding’, anti-racism dentistry and drag shows for scientists.

Millions of dollars of taxpayer cash has been spent on federal government grants, including $1m for “decolonising breastfeeding”, $898,000 on creating an anti-racist dentistry curriculum and $18,000 for a drag show for scientists.

Taxpayer dollars were also splashed on promoting a colonial resistance dance and a solo exhibition from an artist who uses souvenir tea towels “to challenge racial stereotypes of First Nations people”.

It can be revealed the Coalition is using the findings to form its plan for a DOGE-style crackdown; earlier this year, US President Donald Trump put his close friend and businessman Elon Musk in charge of a Department of Government Efficiency.

Opposition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume said the funding was “beyond belief” during a cost-of-living crisis, and if elected, the Coalition would “end the rot” in Canberra.

“Anthony Albanese needs to explain how these grants demonstrate value to taxpayers struggling to keep up with rising bills caused by this government,” Senator Hume said.

The Drag Experiment was one of several projects awarded government grants that the Menzies Research Centre have identified as a waste of taxpayer dollars. https://www.instagram.com/thedragexperiment/

The expenses were outlined in research from centre-right think tank the Menzies Research Centre.

The Coalition intends to look at grant funding, as well as the number of federal public servants as part of a new government efficiency portfolio led by Northern Territory Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price.

In total, the centre identified 21 projects that received government funding that they subjectively classified as a waste of taxpayer dollars.

Among them was $1.07m for a decolonising breastfeeding program given to the Sax Institute. The grant awarded by the Health Department explains the project as supporting “the initiation and maintenance of breastfeeding among First Nations women”.

The University of Adelaide received $898,000 to develop an “anti-racism curriculum for dental students, enhance the recruitment and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dentists and create an oral promotion training model for Aboriginal health workers”.

And $18,480 was awarded for a drag show for scientists as part of National Science Week Grants by the Department of Industry, Science and Resources.

Opposition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume said the grants were ‘beyond belief’ during a cost-of-living crisis. Picture: Martin Ollman

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said handing out “specific grants to organisations are the responsibility of the relevant government agency/department”.

“The Albanese government has found $92 billion in responsible savings across government. In their last budget, the opposition found none,” she said.

“Australians will have a clear choice at this election between Peter Dutton’s wasteful plan...or an Albanese Labor government that is focused on cos-of-living relief.”

Australian Taxpayers’ Alliance president Brian Marlow called for a review into the grants process.

“You are seeing this in America through their DOGE … finding all kinds of egregious ways taxpayer money is spent and we are now seeing the same thing here,” he said.

“It’s almost comical what they are spending money on … (TV comedy) Utopia couldn’t come up with something that stupid.”

Originally published as ‘Tip of the iceberg’: Taxpayer grants fund drag show, anti-racist dentistry and tea towel art exhibit