Report says $1m project threshold saw opposition-held electorates excluded from 2020 funding round
The $541.8m Bushfire Local Economic Recovery program was jointly funded by the state and federal governments and administered by NSW to pay for projects in bushfire-ravaged communities to help create jobs and protect against future disasters.
The report described the fast-tracked first round of the economic recovery program as having “significant gaps”. “The administration process lacked integrity, given it did not have sufficiently detailed guidelines, and the assessment process for projects lacked transparency and consistency,” said the report tabled in state parliament on Thursday.
The report noted that most of the heavily impacted regions were held by Coalition MPs, but badly ravaged regions including the Blue Mountains and Tenterfield were among those excluded from the urgent funding. The department told the auditor general’s office that projects in some of those rejected regions were funded either in later rounds of the economic recovery program or by the commonwealth.Our Australian morning briefing email breaks down the key national and international stories of the day and why they matterNewsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties.
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