Herald Sun: Massive bill to scrap East West Link despite no-compo pledge 15 Apr 2015
VICTORIAN taxpayers have been left at least $640 million out of pocket after Premier Daniel Andrews struck a deal with the East West Link consortium to walk away from our biggest road scheme.
In what could become the costliest cancelled infrastructure project in Australian history, the Premier on Wednesday revealed $339 million had already been spent by the East West Link consortium since it signed contracts to build the toll road in October.
In addition to that wasted money, the Premier admitted taxpayers would also wave goodbye to $81 million in fees paid to the financiers of the dead project.
On top of that, the Government revealed taxpayers had already forked out at least $220 million in setting up what is now a non-existent 6.6km road.
Announcing the deal, Mr Andrews described it as the “best possible result we could have achieved, and it puts the interests of Victorians first”.
His Government had “acted responsibly at all times”, he said.
“No compensation, none at all, will be paid to the East West Link consortium,” he said.
