When the Albanese government unveiled a list projects from which it would rip funding last year, Treasurer Daniel Mookhey declared that he was “disappointed with a capital ‘D’”.
As New South Wales prepares for the opening of the new Western Sydney Airport and the development of the surrounding high-tech city, significant concerns have emerged regarding the adequacy of local infrastructure.
The projects on the chopping block included $116m for an interchange linking the M7 and the M12, and seven “priority” roads which would be crucial for moving freight around the future Western Sydney Airport.
Mookhey’s disappointment turned to despair when the Commonwealth Grants Commission decided to gut NSW’s share of GST revenue, which is now forecast to blow a hole in the state budget bigger than that caused by Covid-19.
DNSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey. Picture: Justin Lloyd
Following the CGC decision – which Prime Minister Anthony Albanese insists was made independent of his government – it is even more crucial that the feds come to the table in funding infrastructure in Sydney’s west.
Instead, vital projects have been defunded, and the Commonwealth wants to make it even harder for NSW to invest in transformational infrastructure.
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Last year, King declared that the commonwealth wanted states to cough up 50 per cent of new road and rail projects.
She said the traditional “80:20” split, where Canberra paid 80 per cent of jointly-funded projects, “is no longer the default”. It caused a revolt among state governments, including in NSW.
Flights are set to take off from Western Sydney Airport in 2025.
As Premier Chris Minns argues, it is unfair for NSW to be dudded on funding by Canberra – be it the GST share, or money for health, schools and infrastructure – since we do the heavy lifting when it comes to housing new migrants.
In other words, if the Commonwealth wants to prop up its coffers with record migration, it should be on the hook for the infrastructure needed to support booming population growth.
Nowhere is this more important than at the new airport.
Albanese has been happy to take the credit for the successes of Sydney’s second airport, but when the rubber hits the road, Canberra does not want to fund the roads which are needed to make it work.
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