Cost of Australian? Parliament rockets

Press, 13 January 1987, Page 8

Cost of Australian ? Parliament rockets

NZPA-AAP Canberra Canberra’s new Parliament House will cost Australian taxpayers sAustlOM million ($l2BO million) to complete — about sAust2oo million ■ ($256 million). more than original estimates — as a result of gross mismanagement, the Federal Opposition claimed yesterday.

Skyrocketing completion costs, phoney contracts, industrial blackmail, strikes, lack of cost control and “extraordinarily generous” wages and conditions for workers were some of the reasons given for the cost blow-out.

The Opposition Waste Watch Committee chairman, Senator Michael Baume, said actual construction costs for the new building had risen by 50 per cent over the last three years, compared with an inflation rate of only 20 per cent Quoting “secret” reports . from consultants and a confidential efficiency audit by the Auditor General, Mr Baume

outlined incidents ranging from a plumbing contract now 17 months overdue which had trebled in price from sAust2.l ‘ million to sAust6 .8 million, to materials waste , such as a claim for 23 cu. m of concrete for use in a nine cu. m column ; base. ' He also released documents showing that 38 per cent of the large contracts were more ’ than 25 per cent over their original time estimate, and 17.5 per cent exceeded contract price by more than 25 per cent

Mr Baume said the Minister for Territories, Gordon Scholes, should resign over the issue. He also urged an investigation to try to recoup costs lost through phoney contracts and other suspect action, and demanded greater accountability and checking of any further expenditure.

While conceding that the former Liberal Government must shoulder

some of the blame for having set up a structure under which “mistakes” were made, he said the bulk of blame lay with the Labour Government, which he said had- been: so intent on completing work that it had. tailed to take due caretoeasure against profiteering and waste; i

The price of labour on site had trebled while: inflation only doubled,: and there had been con-' tinual strikes and disrup-: tion .despite “very expen-: sive deals done with the ’ unions” to maintain Industrial peace, said Mr ■■ Baume. ■ r.xlf

The various setbacks had deferred the official opening date for the new Parliament from Janu- | ary to May, 1988, and the building would still not I actually be ready for oc- j cupancy till August. . Mr Baume said he had I gained his information | after being approached £ by a former consultant to the project. He had then approached others in subsequent investlga- 'il tions.