In what’s becoming a near-daily occurrence, the Federal Government is yet again up to their necks in shit thanks to more revelations of gross misappropriation of taxpayer funds, this time taking the form of a gargantuan grant handed to a swimming pool in a very swanky inner-Sydney locale that was yoinked out of coffers originally earmarked for regional community facilities only.
According to a damning ABC report published yesterday, Government officials granted the iconic North Sydney Pool, which rests virtually underneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge, a whopping $10 million in public funding. The problem there, is that it came from a fund that was initially designed to support regional and rural community sporting facilities.
The reports suggest that the money was taken from the Female Facilities and Water Safety Stream fund, created by the Morrison Government in April 2019 in the lead-up to the May Federal Election.
That fund was, at least initially, supposed to fund the building of female change rooms and the upgrading of swimming facilities at pools in rural and regional areas.
And then $10 million of it went to the North Sydney Pool.
In April last year, Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg and local MP Trent Zimmerman made an appearance at the pool to announce the $10 million Federal contribution to on-going redevelopment efforts at the historic inner-city facility.
It’s since emerged that that money was taken from the regional fund, forcing the Federal Government to take heat yet again over allegations of porkbarrelling, and forcing North Sydney Mayor Jilly Gibson to make the bizarre assertion that the North Sydney Pool is, in fact, a “regional” facility.
Gibson, speaking in defence of the grant, stated that it was “Federal Government money well spent,” and that she maintains the pool “is a regional facility,” because it’s “used by people from all over the state and throughout the country.”
“It’s one of the most Instagrammed pools in the world, I believe. It isn’t your average suburban swimming pool,” Mayor Gibson said, again arguing the fact that a pool underneath the Sydney Harbour Bridge is a “regional” facility.
North Sydney Pool is currently in the middle of a mucky $57.9 million redevelopment proposal, which included local councillors lobbying State and Federal officials for funding contributions. The revelation of exactly where the $10 million of Federal funds came from has reportedly left some councillors feeling uneasy about the situation.
For what it’s worth, the seat of North Sydney is one of the safest Federal Liberal seats in the country, having being held by the party for 69 out of the past 75 years. Current MP Zimmerman took over the seat from previous incumbent Joe Hockey.
Also of note, while the seat was a comfortable Liberal hold at the last election, there still was a 4.34% swing towards Labor on the two-party preferred stakes.
The more you know.
