[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":236},["ShallowReactive",2],{"active-categories":3,"blowouts":28,"story-\u002Fstories\u002Fmetro-tunnel-plaques-70000-replaced":83,"related-\u002Fstories\u002Fmetro-tunnel-plaques-70000-replaced":195,"surround-\u002Fstories\u002Fmetro-tunnel-plaques-70000-replaced":228},[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":170,"description":171,"draft":172,"extension":173,"featured":172,"focusKeywords":174,"image":175,"imageAlt":176,"meta":177,"navigation":178,"path":179,"people":180,"readingTime":165,"refresh":89,"seo":181,"shareImage":89,"sources":182,"stem":189,"tags":190,"updated":89,"__hash__":194},"stories\u002Fstories\u002Fmetro-tunnel-plaques-70000-replaced.md","$70,000 to fix the wording on Metro Tunnel plaques","Aussie Outrage","$70k","Reported cost of replacing Metro Tunnel plaques after a wording error",null,{"type":91,"value":92,"toc":163},"minimark",[93,102,107,112,115,134,137,141,144],[94,95,96,97,101],"p",{},"Commemorative plaques for the Metro Tunnel were taken down and replaced after errors were found in their wording, at a reported cost of about ",[98,99,100],"strong",{},"$70,000",".",[103,104],"big-stat",{"label":105,"source":106,"value":87},"Reported cost of replacing the Metro Tunnel plaques","Parliament of Victoria petition 792, citing public reports",[108,109,111],"h2",{"id":110},"the-questions-nobody-has-answered","The questions nobody has answered",[94,113,114],{},"A petition to Victoria's Legislative Council asked for an independent investigation into:",[116,117,118,122,125,128,131],"ul",{},[119,120,121],"li",{},"who approved the wrong wording",[119,123,124],{},"whether the mistake was the contractor's, a department's or someone else's",[119,126,127],{},"whether the contract made the contractor fix it at their own cost",[119,129,130],{},"why about $70,000 was spent replacing them",[119,132,133],{},"whether any public money can be recovered",[94,135,136],{},"The petition said the circumstances, approval process and contract responsibilities \"have not been fully explained\". It closed without a government response.",[108,138,140],{"id":139},"why-it-matters","Why it matters",[94,142,143],{},"A plaque is a small job. When a government gets one wrong, the fix should come out of the contractor's pocket or a proofreader's pride, not the public purse.",[94,145,146],{},[147,148,149,150,157,158,101],"em",{},"Top photo: the platform at Town Hall, one of the Metro Tunnel's new stations, on opening day in November 2025. Photo: The Kora Person, ",[151,152,156],"a",{"href":153,"rel":154},"https:\u002F\u002Fcreativecommons.org\u002Flicenses\u002Fby-sa\u002F4.0",[155],"nofollow","CC BY-SA 4.0",", via ",[151,159,162],{"href":160,"rel":161},"https:\u002F\u002Fcommons.wikimedia.org\u002Fwiki\u002FFile:Town_Hall_platform_November_2025.jpg",[155],"Wikimedia Commons",{"title":164,"searchDepth":165,"depth":166,"links":167},"",2,3,[168,169],{"id":110,"depth":165,"text":111},{"id":139,"depth":165,"text":140},"2026-10-26","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.",false,"md",[],"\u002Fimages\u002Fmetro-tunnel-town-hall-platform.jpg","Orange arches above the crowded platform at Town Hall station in Melbourne's Metro Tunnel",{},true,"\u002Fstories\u002Fmetro-tunnel-plaques-70000-replaced",[],{"title":85,"description":171},[183,186],{"title":184,"url":185},"Parliament of Victoria: Petition 792, Investigation into the Metro Tunnel plaque replacement","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.parliament.vic.gov.au\u002Fget-involved\u002Fpetitions\u002Finvestigation-into-the-metro-tunnel-plaque-replacement\u002F",{"title":187,"url":188},"Cockatoo: Victorian Government criticised after spending $70,000 replacing plaques","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.cockatoo.com\u002Fcontent\u002Fvictorian-government-criticised-after-spending-70000-replacing-plaques-news","stories\u002Fmetro-tunnel-plaques-70000-replaced",[191,192,193],"metro-tunnel","big-build","victoria","XkQriB7Xm4-3fFvHmDCRETq2zhzWK-eqbtdfuL2KgXU",[196,204,212,220],{"path":197,"title":198,"description":199,"date":200,"category":9,"author":86,"image":89,"imageAlt":89,"bigNumber":201,"bigNumberLabel":202,"readingTime":203,"featured":172},"\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":205,"title":206,"description":207,"date":170,"category":9,"author":86,"image":208,"imageAlt":209,"bigNumber":210,"bigNumberLabel":211,"readingTime":165,"featured":172},"\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":213,"title":214,"description":215,"date":170,"category":9,"author":86,"image":216,"imageAlt":217,"bigNumber":218,"bigNumberLabel":219,"readingTime":165,"featured":172},"\u002Fstories\u002Fcommonwealth-games-cancelled-589-million","$589 million to host nothing: what cancelling the Commonwealth Games cost Victoria","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.","\u002Fimages\u002Feureka-stadium-ballarat.jpg","An aerial view of Eureka Stadium in Ballarat, with a blue athletics track behind it","$589m","What Victoria paid to cancel the 2026 Commonwealth Games",{"path":221,"title":222,"description":223,"date":170,"category":9,"author":86,"image":224,"imageAlt":225,"bigNumber":226,"bigNumberLabel":227,"readingTime":165,"featured":172},"\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",[229,231],{"title":222,"path":221,"stem":230,"description":223,"children":-1},"stories\u002Fmachete-ban-13-million-bins",{"title":232,"path":233,"stem":234,"description":235,"children":-1},"1,149 of Australia's biggest companies paid no income tax last year","\u002Fstories\u002Fato-tax-transparency-2024-25-companies-paid-no-tax","stories\u002Fato-tax-transparency-2024-25-companies-paid-no-tax","The ATO's latest tax transparency report covers every company earning more than $100 million. More than one in four paid nothing. Here's what the numbers show, and why the tax office says it's not always a scandal.",1793703844211]