[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":277},["ShallowReactive",2],{"active-categories":3,"blowouts":28,"story-\u002Fstories\u002Fcommonwealth-games-cancelled-589-million":83,"related-\u002Fstories\u002Fcommonwealth-games-cancelled-589-million":239,"surround-\u002Fstories\u002Fcommonwealth-games-cancelled-589-million":272},[4,6,8,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,27],{"category":5},"follow-the-money",{"category":7},"cost-of-living",{"category":9},"government-waste",{"category":9},{"category":9},{"category":7},{"category":7},{"category":9},{"category":9},{"category":5},{"category":9},{"category":9},{"category":7},{"category":9},{"category":9},{"category":9},{"category":7},{"category":5},{"category":7},{"category":9},{"category":9},[29,39,49,58,66,75],{"path":30,"title":31,"category":9,"date":32,"blowout":33},"\u002Fstories\u002Fbom-website-96-million-one-year-on","One year on: the BOM website that cost $96.5 million, not $4 million","2026-10-24",{"project":34,"originalCost":35,"currentCost":36,"announced":37,"note":38},"BOM website",4100000,96500000,"2025","$4.1m was the figure first given to the public.",{"path":40,"title":41,"category":9,"date":42,"blowout":43},"\u002Fstories\u002Fcross-river-rail-cost-blowout-19-billion","Cross River Rail was sold as a $5.4 billion project. The government now says it costs $19 billion","2026-10-25",{"project":44,"originalCost":45,"currentCost":46,"announced":47,"note":48},"Cross River Rail",5400000000,19041000000,"2017","Queensland Government figure (Oct 2025). It includes 25 years of tunnel maintenance and network works; Labor disputes counting them.",{"path":50,"title":51,"category":9,"date":42,"blowout":52},"\u002Fstories\u002Fhunter-class-frigates-27-billion-three-ships","Hunter-class frigates: sold as nine warships for $35 billion. We're now paying $27 billion for three",{"project":53,"originalCost":54,"currentCost":55,"announced":56,"note":57},"Hunter-class frigates",35000000000,45600000000,"2018","2020 Force Structure Plan estimate for nine ships. The program is now six ships; close to $27bn is allocated for the first three, including the Osborne shipyard.",{"path":59,"title":60,"category":9,"date":42,"blowout":61},"\u002Fstories\u002Finland-rail-cost-blowout-45-billion-parkes","Inland Rail was sold as a $10.7 billion project. It now costs $45.6 billion, and stops at Parkes",{"project":62,"originalCost":63,"currentCost":55,"announced":64,"note":65},"Inland Rail",10660000000,"2015","Both P90 estimates for the full Melbourne to Brisbane line. Only Beveridge to Parkes is now being built.",{"path":67,"title":68,"category":9,"date":42,"blowout":69},"\u002Fstories\u002Fnorth-east-link-cost-blowout-26-billion","North East Link was sold as a $10 billion road. It now costs $26 billion",{"project":70,"originalCost":71,"currentCost":72,"announced":73,"note":74},"North East Link",10000000000,26100000000,"2016","Victoria's December 2023 estimate. Includes the Eastern Freeway and M80 upgrades added since.",{"path":76,"title":77,"category":9,"date":42,"blowout":78},"\u002Fstories\u002Fsnowy-2-0-cost-blowout-25-billion","Snowy 2.0 was sold as a $2 billion project. It could now cost $25 billion",{"project":79,"originalCost":80,"currentCost":81,"announced":47,"note":82},"Snowy 2.0",2000000000,22200000000,"Target cost. Up to $25bn with contingency; transmission not included.",{"id":84,"title":85,"author":86,"bigNumber":87,"bigNumberLabel":88,"blowout":89,"body":90,"category":9,"date":207,"description":208,"draft":209,"extension":210,"featured":209,"focusKeywords":211,"image":212,"imageAlt":213,"meta":214,"navigation":215,"path":216,"people":217,"readingTime":200,"refresh":89,"seo":218,"shareImage":89,"sources":219,"stem":232,"tags":233,"updated":89,"__hash__":238},"stories\u002Fstories\u002Fcommonwealth-games-cancelled-589-million.md","$589 million to host nothing: what cancelling the Commonwealth Games cost Victoria","Aussie Outrage","$589m","What Victoria paid to cancel the 2026 Commonwealth Games",null,{"type":91,"value":92,"toc":198},"minimark",[93,106,113,118,123,132,139,143,146,156,159,162,166,169,173,176,185],[94,95,96,97,101,102,105],"p",{},"In April 2022, the Victorian government agreed to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games across regional Victoria, at an estimated cost of ",[98,99,100],"strong",{},"$2.6 billion",". In July 2023 it pulled out, saying the cost had blown out to ",[98,103,104],{},"$6.9 billion",".",[94,107,108,109,112],{},"Pulling out wasn't free. Victoria's Auditor-General found it cost ",[98,110,111],{},"$589 million",", \"with no discernible benefit\".",[114,115],"big-stat",{"label":116,"source":117,"value":87},"Cost to Victoria of bidding for, planning and then cancelling the 2026 Games","Victorian Auditor-General's Office, March 2024",[119,120,122],"h2",{"id":121},"where-the-money-went","Where the money went",[124,125],"bar-chart",{":data":126,":decimals":127,"prefix":128,"source":117,"subtitle":129,"suffix":130,"title":131},"[{\"label\":\"Compensation to Games organisers\",\"value\":380,\"highlight\":true},{\"label\":\"Staff and planning across departments and committees\",\"value\":192},{\"label\":\"Other costs\",\"value\":17}]","0","$","Millions of dollars","m","What Victoria paid for Games it never held",[94,133,134,135,138],{},"Most of it, ",[98,136,137],{},"$380 million",", was compensation paid to the Games organisers to settle the cancelled contract.",[119,140,142],{"id":141},"the-69-billion-figure","The $6.9 billion figure",[94,144,145],{},"The government's case for walking away rested on the $6.9 billion estimate it published in August 2023. The Auditor-General, Andrew Greaves, found that figure was \"overstated and not transparent\".",[94,147,148,149,152,153,105],{},"The estimate added large amounts for industrial relations and cost escalation risks, but didn't say the budget already included ",[98,150,151],{},"$1 billion"," in contingency to cover those risks. Presented fairly, the Auditor-General said, the gross estimate would have been about ",[98,154,155],{},"$5.9 billion",[94,157,158],{},"The audit was just as critical of the original budget, which it called unrealistically low. It found the business case wasn't good enough for the government to make an informed decision on costs, and that departments failed to give \"frank, full and timely advice\".",[94,160,161],{},"The heads of the Premier's and Treasury departments disputed that, saying their advice was \"comprehensive, frank, timely and impartial\".",[119,163,165],{"id":164},"what-the-government-said","What the government said",[94,167,168],{},"Premier Jacinta Allan, who was the minister for the Games when they were cancelled, stood by the decision: \"We made the right decision.\" Commonwealth Games Australia's chief executive, Craig Phillips, called it \"a missed opportunity\".",[119,170,172],{"id":171},"why-it-matters","Why it matters",[94,174,175],{},"The Games were sold to regional Victoria as a once-in-a-generation boost. Instead the state paid more than half a billion dollars, mostly to settle a contract, and the cost estimate used to justify cancelling was itself found to be inflated.",[94,177,178,181,182,105],{},[98,179,180],{},"Your share:"," $589 million works out to about ",[98,183,184],{},"$85 for every Victorian",[94,186,187],{},[188,189,190,191,105],"em",{},"Top photo: Eureka Stadium in Ballarat, one of the regional centres in Victoria's Games plans, in 2026. Photo: CKraut, CC0, via ",[192,193,197],"a",{"href":194,"rel":195},"https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fwiki\u002FFile:Eureka_Stadium_September_2026.jpg",[196],"nofollow","Wikimedia Commons",{"title":199,"searchDepth":200,"depth":201,"links":202},"",2,3,[203,204,205,206],{"id":121,"depth":200,"text":122},{"id":141,"depth":200,"text":142},{"id":164,"depth":200,"text":165},{"id":171,"depth":200,"text":172},"2026-10-26","Victoria pulled out of the 2026 Commonwealth Games to save money. The Auditor-General found walking away cost $589 million with no discernible benefit, and the $6.9 billion figure used to justify it was overstated.",false,"md",[],"\u002Fimages\u002Feureka-stadium-ballarat.jpg","An aerial view of Eureka Stadium in Ballarat, with a blue athletics track behind it",{},true,"\u002Fstories\u002Fcommonwealth-games-cancelled-589-million",[],{"title":85,"description":208},[220,223,226,229],{"title":221,"url":222},"Victorian Auditor-General's Office: Withdrawal from 2026 Commonwealth Games (20 Mar 2024)","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.audit.vic.gov.au\u002Fnode\u002F34606",{"title":224,"url":225},"AAP: 'Waste of money': Victoria's $589m Games bill revealed","https:\u002F\u002Faapnews.aap.com.au\u002Fnews\u002Fcancelling-comm-games-cost-victoria-more-than-589m",{"title":227,"url":228},"The Mandarin: Victorian auditor-general blames public service failures for Commonwealth Games debacle","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.themandarin.com.au\u002F242281-victorian-auditor-general-blames-public-service-failures-for-commonwealth-games-debacle",{"title":230,"url":231},"Parliament of Victoria: Hansard, 20 March 2024","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.parliament.vic.gov.au\u002Fparliamentary-activity\u002Fhansard\u002Fhansard-details\u002FHANSARD-2145855009-25230","stories\u002Fcommonwealth-games-cancelled-589-million",[234,235,236,237],"commonwealth-games","victoria","auditor-general","regional-victoria","GxqLSpzLkhuCvtJkVEY_bMOIdWkHS108Ik1mzevpi5U",[240,248,256,264],{"path":241,"title":242,"description":243,"date":244,"category":9,"author":86,"image":89,"imageAlt":89,"bigNumber":245,"bigNumberLabel":246,"readingTime":247,"featured":209},"\u002Fstories\u002Fsuburban-rail-loop-cost-96-billion","Suburban Rail Loop cost: $50bn promised, $96.4bn forecast","How much will the Suburban Rail Loop cost? $33.3bn for stage one, says the government, but the Auditor-General says it could top $36bn. Two stages: $96.4bn.","2026-11-01","$96.4bn","What Victoria's Parliamentary Budget Office estimated in 2024 it would cost to build two sections of the loop. All of it was promised for $50bn.",12,{"path":249,"title":250,"description":251,"date":207,"category":9,"author":86,"image":252,"imageAlt":253,"bigNumber":254,"bigNumberLabel":255,"readingTime":200,"featured":209},"\u002Fstories\u002Fbig-build-office-pot-plants-1-6-million","$1.6 million on pot plants for Big Build offices","Rail Projects Victoria spent an estimated $1.64 million on plant hire and maintenance, and the Suburban Rail Loop Authority almost $200,000 more, according to the state opposition.","\u002Fimages\u002Foffice-plants-desk.jpg","Small potted succulents on a timber office desk","$1.6m","Estimated spend on plant hire and maintenance at Rail Projects Victoria",{"path":257,"title":258,"description":259,"date":207,"category":9,"author":86,"image":260,"imageAlt":261,"bigNumber":262,"bigNumberLabel":263,"readingTime":200,"featured":209},"\u002Fstories\u002Fmachete-ban-13-million-bins","The $13 million machete ban: what the money actually pays for","Victoria set aside $13 million for its machete ban and amnesty bins. The bins cost about $2,400 each. The government still hasn't said where the rest of the money goes.","\u002Fimages\u002Fmachete-amnesty-bin-echuca.jpg","A navy steel bin labelled Machete Amnesty Safe Disposal Bin outside Echuca police station","$13m","Budgeted for Victoria's machete ban, including about 45 disposal bins",{"path":265,"title":266,"description":267,"date":207,"category":9,"author":86,"image":268,"imageAlt":269,"bigNumber":270,"bigNumberLabel":271,"readingTime":200,"featured":209},"\u002Fstories\u002Fmetro-tunnel-plaques-70000-replaced","$70,000 to fix the wording on Metro Tunnel plaques","Commemorative plaques for the Metro Tunnel were replaced after errors were found in their wording, at a reported cost of about $70,000. Nobody has said who got it wrong or who paid.","\u002Fimages\u002Fmetro-tunnel-town-hall-platform.jpg","Orange arches above the crowded platform at Town Hall station in Melbourne's Metro Tunnel","$70k","Reported cost of replacing Metro Tunnel plaques after a wording error",[273,275],{"title":250,"path":249,"stem":274,"description":251,"children":-1},"stories\u002Fbig-build-office-pot-plants-1-6-million",{"title":258,"path":257,"stem":276,"description":259,"children":-1},"stories\u002Fmachete-ban-13-million-bins",1793586230218]