‘Failed state’ Victoria’s broken Games promise won’t hurt our Olympics: Albo
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews speaks to media during a press conference after the Andrews Labor Government has cancelled the 2026 Commonwealth Games, slated to be held across Victoria. (AAP Image/James Ross)
Premier Daniel Andrews said the state could not go ahead with the 2026 games as the price tag had blown out to about $7 billion, more than double the initial estimate. The state may be liable for up to $1 billion in compensation for the last-minute change of heart.
Mr Albanese said he was shocked by the decision of the Commonwealth Games cancellation, but reassured that the future Olympics would go ahead in nine years time.
“The planning is well under way there. I’ve met with (Queensland) Premier (Annastacia) Palaszczuk many times. That’s a great global event, of course,” he told Sydney radio station 2GB on Wednesday.
“Everyone’s looking forward to the Brisbane Olympics – (they) will be a very big deal.”
The prime minister said he was disappointed for the Australian athletes who would not get to compete at a major sporting event at home.
“Obviously, it’s not something that we were anticipating, given that it’s been in the wind for some time,” he said.
“The regret is for the athletes, who will be hurt by this. The idea of competing at your own games is always a positive thing.”
The cost of running the Commonwealth Games had been fiercely disputed by organisers who claim the government ignored cost-cutting options such as moving the event to Melbourne.
Commonwealth Games Australia chief executive Craig Phillips said the decision was “beyond disappointing” and the price of the event would be less than half of what Mr Andrews claimed.
He hoped another Australian region could step in to host, but no leader has volunteered to take on the event.
“We know there is strong interest in the Games and strong love of the Games here in Australia,” Mr Phillips said.
“We’ll reset after this and move on, and look to see whether we can continue to be the host nation for 2026.”
Victorian Liberal senator Jane Hume said the state government had mishandled the situation.
“This is because Victoria is broke – we are a failed state and it’s because of the incompetence of this government,” she told Seven’s Sunrise program.
“In any other state, somebody would resign. Unfortunately, Dan Andrews is going to say ‘not my fault, not my problem’.”
NSW Premier Chris Minns said his state was not in a position due to record debt and a need to follow through on election promises.
That was rebuffed by the opposition, who said the state was the “obvious home” for the games.
Ms Palaszczuk said she was focused on the 2032 Olympic Games while West Australian counterpart Roger Cook said he would prefer to invest money in schools and hospitals.
Former Queensland premier Peter Beattie, who was chair of the 2018 Games, told the ABC the only viable hope for the future of the 2026 Games was for them to go back to Birmingham, which still had the infrastructure after hosting them in 2022.
South Australia, the ACT, Tasmania and the Northern Territory have also ruled out taking on hosting duties.
Victoria was the only bidder for the Games with five regional cities originally slated to host sporting events.
The state government has promised to still pump $2b into the regions through housing, infrastructure and tourism.
Business and industry groups were concerned Victoria’s reputation as a major events destination had been jeopardised but welcomed efforts to rein in state debt, which is forecast to top $171b by 2027.
It’s the second time a Games host has dropped out in recent years, after South African city Durban lost the 2022 event and Birmingham stepped in to take over.
The Commonwealth Games was last cancelled during World War II.
The Victorian government has confirmed Ernst & Young was involved in the initial $2.6b estimate outlined in the last year’s state budget and the latest business case will be released, subject to legal advice.
The cost of breaking the Games contract is yet to be settled, with further talks between the state government and organisers taking place after Tuesday’s decision.
Andrews refused to speculate on how much it could cost state taxpayers to exit the contract but pledged the figure would be accounted for.
About a decade ago, the Queensland government investigated the cost of axing the 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast and determined it to be more than $1 billion.
The figure was revealed in estimates in 2018 and it could come in higher for Victoria given skyrocketing inflation and the limited time for organisers to find a replacement host.
It’s not the first time the Andrews government has spent taxpayers’ money to break a signed contract.
A $642 million termination settlement was paid out to scrap Melbourne’s East West Link road project despite Andrews declaring the contract could be ripped up at no cost before the 2014 state election.
Andrews said his government considered other options to lower the Games’ price tag, including reducing the number of sports and hubs or moving the Games to Melbourne, which still would have cost roughly $4b.
The premier suggested no contracts for major Games projects have been signed and minimal costs incurred to date.
State Opposition Leader John Pesutto said paying out compensation was an inevitability and called for Andrews to consider his position.
