Anne Webster (Mallee, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Regional Health) Share this | Hansard source

I rise as a proud Victorian member of this federal parliament to speak on the Victorian government's body blow to the reputation of my great state. I am of course talking about the Andrews Labor government's decision to withdraw from hosting the 2026 Commonwealth Games. Not only was it a wrecking ball to the state's reputation but it also hurts regional Victorian towns. This was to be a showcase of regional Victoria—though, sadly, not for any town in my electorate of Mallee. My constituents have grown accustomed to being ignored by this state government. Premier Andrews has lowered Victoria's standing on a number of levels.

Victoria has always had a great reputation as a sporting mecca. The AFL Grand Final, the Boxing Day cricket test, Formula 1's Australian Grand Prix and even the recent NRL State of Origin games have proven Victoria's ability to play host to events that the eyes of the nation and the world focus on. The Commonwealth Games would have been yet another example but with a wider lens. The events I just listed have centred around Melbourne, but the games were to broaden to regional Victoria. It was going to be a celebration of what the great state of Victoria has to offer beyond the city limits of Melbourne, and there is plenty, I can assure you. But now Victoria has been left humiliated—a state that cannot be relied on to complete what it starts. Yes, the Andrews government has failed the people of Victoria and tainted the Victorian brand. Who says yes to a major global event but then walks away due to their own planning failure?

Premier Andrews has not ruled out bidding for the 2034 FIFA men's World Cup matches. I laughed when I read that. You can bet there will be trepidation the next time an international sporting body looks to Victoria under the Andrews Labor government to host an event. Premier Andrews's stated reason for the cancellation of the games was a $67 billion cost blowout. This startling figure demonstrates the incompetence of the Victorian government and its key decision-makers. Either they made a serious miscalculation years earlier in their original decision to host the games or they are incapable of managing major projects. You have to ask the question. Now taxpayers are footing the $380 million bill for Victoria to pull out of hosting these games.

The fallout from 'Disastrous' Dan Andrews pulling the plug on Victoria hosting the Commonwealth Games has shown just how little regard the Victorian government has for its regions, even those that are traditionally strong Labor voting areas. Regional groups have told a Senate inquiry that they were ignored by the Victorian government as they sounded the alarm on decisions about facilities and the housing of Commonwealth Games participants. In Ballarat, requests to improve housing around the inner city fell on deaf ears as the state pushed ahead with plans for an athlete's village in an industrial area instead. In Bendigo, another Labor stronghold, the local table tennis association only learnt that their city would be hosting the sport when it was announced. The Andrews government clearly didn't feel the need to give them the respect of a heads up. In Gippsland, Morwell was chosen to host rugby sevens despite having no local union or league teams, with both the NRL and Rugby Australia raising questions about the event's value to the town.

Regional communities simply were not consulted, a trend with the Andrews government. They might have actually been able to solve some of the problems that caused the government's costing blowout. When you consult, you learn and negotiate, and the Andrews Labor government has done neither. What Victorians have been left with is a state that has failed to pull off what should have been a significant event. In the eyes of the world, we have been embarrassed by the Victorian Labor government and by Premier Daniel Andrews. I stand with my fellow Victorian colleagues on this matter. We will not let our state government's failure be simply brushed under the carpet. It is not good enough.

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