Independent MLC Meg Webb has flagged a motion calling on the state government to reveal the final cost of the Macquarie Point stadium before any construction contract is signed.
Lodged in the Legislative Council on Thursday, the motion calls on the government to table the highest likely total construction cost based on the winning tenderer’s bid.
It also seeks an estimate of the state’s contribution. Both figures would be released once procurement has closed but before any contract is signed.
“Parliament should have the opportunity to scrutinise what is expected to be the final cost of the stadium and that should happen before contracts are signed,” Webb said.
“I think the Tasmanian people expect parliament to do its job and don’t expect to be told after the fact what they’ve been signed up to and how much they’ll be on the hook for as taxpayers.”
A Greens motion in the lower house seeking an updated cost estimate was defeated 25 votes to seven last month, with Labor joining the Liberals to vote it down.
The state government argued releasing figures during the tender process would compromise procurement and hand commercial information to the two firms bidding for the build, Besix Watpac and a venture including Webuild.
Webb said her motion addressed that objection by seeking the figures only once procurement had concluded.
She said the request replicated scrutiny that would ordinarily occur through the Public Works Committee, which assesses the public value of major infrastructure projects before contracts are signed.
The stadium was not subject to that process, having instead been assessed as a Project of State Significance (POSS).
“To see a government attempt to block a very standard transparent process for the parliament is quite concerning,” she said.
“They should be asking themselves, what is being hidden here in this process if we can’t expect standard scrutiny to occur?”
The estimated cost of the stadium began at $715 million before rising to $775 million, $945 million and $1.13 billion by September last year.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff pledged in February 2024 to cap the government’s capital contribution at $375 million “and not one red cent more”.
The balance would be funded through borrowings by the Macquarie Point Development Corporation (MPDC).
Treasurer Eric Abetz said in July the $1.13 billion figure stood “until such time as we have a proper figure to announce”, a statement noted in Webb’s motion.
The motion also cites correspondence tabled at the Public Accounts Committee indicating updated cost advice is due in late September or early October, with a builder expected to be appointed by the end of the year.
A government spokesperson said it intended “to fulfil the commitments made to parliament in relation to the stadium approval process”.
“This will carefully balance the need to maintain the integrity, probity and independence of the procurement and tender evaluation process,” the spokesperson said.
