Wednesday, 17 June 2026

 Joe McCRACKEN (Western Victoria) (10:14): I move:

That this house:

(1)   notes that:

(a) in October 2022 the Victorian government announced $49.2 million for accessibility upgrades at Ballarat station as part of Commonwealth Games legacy infrastructure commitments;

(b) despite the cancellation of the Commonwealth Games in July 2023, the project proceeded without a revised business case or cost–benefit analysis;

(c) the published cost of the project has continued to increase, including a further increase in the 2025–‍26 state budget attributed to market escalation;

(d) serious concerns have been raised that the total cost of the project is vastly disproportionate to its physical scope including a 28-metre pedestrian bridge, two lifts, stairs and a ramp, and that comparable infrastructure could be delivered by the private sector for a fraction of the published cost;

(2)   in accordance with standing order 10.01, requires the Leader of the Government to table in the Council, within three weeks of the house agreeing to this resolution, the following documents:

(a) the business case for the Ballarat station upgrade, including any revision following the 2023 cancellation of the Commonwealth Games;

(b) all documents relating to project cost increases, including gateway reviews, ministerial briefings and departmental advice;

(c) all documents relating to the procurement model for the project, including the allocation of the project to the Western Program Alliance;

(d) a breakdown of total project expenditure by category, including design, construction, alliance overheads, project management and consultancy costs; and

(e) any analysis or benchmarking comparing the cost of the Ballarat station upgrade with comparable accessibility upgrades at other railway stations.

Ballarat railway station is a beautiful historic building that stands out in the Lydiard Street precinct for its amazing Victorian era architecture. The Victorian government started a project to build a pedestrian overpass at the station, primarily to cater for those with mobility concerns. I want to make it very clear that I 100 per cent support disability access and improving the lives of those with mobility issues, especially to public transport. But I would argue that this particular project does not really hit the mark. The problem is the design is not in keeping with the beautiful architecture that surrounds the precinct, and, I might add, it ended up costing close to $53 million. That is a huge amount of money and should have been much less of a figure. The worst part is that the overpass cannot be accessed from the adjoining car park, which just seems bizarre. You have to go into the station itself, all the way along the platform and then up the stairs to where the elevator is. For a project which is meant to be about accessibility, it does not really seem to be that accessible.

The initial budget allocation for this was $50 million. A year later it went up to $51 million in the budget, and now it is almost $53 million. I am seeking documents that show how the project cost could be that much, including a breakdown of costs line by line, which will show exactly where the $53 million was spent on a project that seemingly appears very poor value for money. I want to know how much was spent on the design of the lift and of the overpass itself. I want to know the costings of the construction and indeed how much was spent on consultants; I want a full breakdown of the construction elements and how they have been accounted for; and I would like to know how much time was billed to any department for any works that were done, whether that be public consultation or whether that be advice – whatever. There is a saying, ‘If you’re going to do a job, do it once and do it properly.’ I cannot see that commonsense approach applied here.

The community of Ballarat also deserve answers, and the member for Wendouree has been silent on the matter. In fact Ms Addison asked me to provide her with costings, and the reason why is because I have said publicly that the project should not have cost that much. I have had contact with developers, engineers and experts in the field who have said it should have been in the vicinity of between $6 million and $10 million. I want to make it crystal clear that I am not the government and I do not have access to the department officials and the data that the government members clearly have. I encourage people like the member for Wendouree to provide those figures publicly. But of course, when pressed about those matters, nothing happened. In fact it has been brutal silence, with no attempt to release costings and no attempt to provide transparency to the public. The member for Wendouree really needs a reality check. So if Labor will not be transparent about the costings of this project, I have got no choice but to use the parliamentary processes available to me to seek those documents and get answers for the community. To be frank, I should not have to go through those processes just to get answers about a project.

People in Ballarat have a right to know exactly what the money was spent on, especially for a project that appears to be excessive in cost, ugly in appearance and completely impractical in helping those it was actually designed to help. As I said, people who have disability issues, whether it be mobility or whether it be other things that limit their movement, should not have to go into the train station when the disability lift abuts the car park. They are met with a high steel fence. That is hardly a thing that encourages anyone to feel welcome, let alone try to access the supports that are meant to be in place for them. It just seems completely bizarre. I do not know which person designed it, but they seriously need to have a look at who they were trying to serve. It is completely nonsensical, what has happened, and it sends a message to people who do have mobility issues that the Victorian government does not understand them.

I look forward to seeing the documents. I hope that the government is cooperative in providing them, and hopefully they can shed some light on what has happened here. We want to know the costs. We want to know the breakdown of those costs. We want to know where the money was spent. It is not just me; the people of Ballarat have a right to know.

 Michael GALEA (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (10:19): I am very delighted to have the opportunity to speak to motion 1486 today, because it does give us an opportunity to highlight and talk about what has been a transformational project for the Ballarat community. It is good to see that the Liberal Party are prepared to half-heartedly acknowledge, at least, that this government is getting on and doing the job. Of course back when you and I were little tackers, Mr McCracken, it was your Liberal government that closed the lines back to Ballarat. You could not go beyond Ballarat in the Kennett years, and it was Labor governments that then extended it further beyond again. Indeed it is the hardworking advocacy of good local Labor members like the member for Wendouree Juliana Addison that has been so instrumental in getting this project up and away.

Ballarat station is a beautiful station. When I have been to visit, I have had the benefit of visiting by train, and what a stunning station it is. But even years ago it was very clear that it was not fit for the standards. Indeed I am informed it was the only station on the entire corridor that did not have proper Disability Discrimination Act 1992 capabilities. As a result, the member for Wendouree has listened to her community who have been speaking up for the need for this upgrade, and she has been extremely vocal in raising these concerns of her community and getting this project delivered, because that is what good Labor governments do. They listen and respond to communities. That is exactly what good local Labor members like the member for Wendouree do, and this is what they achieve. Unlike those opposite, whose only experience with the Ballarat line corridor was closing it off in the 1990s, those on this side know the importance of our regional rail services. It is why services on the Ballarat line have dramatically increased over the life span of this government, and it is why we are continuing to invest through the regional rail upgrade and other projects on all five corridors that V/Line runs across the state. That certainly includes the DDA upgrades to Ballarat station, which I know have been strongly welcomed by the Ballarat community and have been strongly welcomed in particular by disability advocates both in the Ballarat community and in the wider region.

We do have a beautiful heritage station that was built there in 1862, and in doing this the requirements obviously do present a lot of challenges in keeping the heritage value of that station whilst providing the modern, fit-for-purpose facilities that the travelling public need and that the Ballarat community deserve. The member for Wendouree has listened and has acted.

In your remarks, Mr McCracken, you said a few things. In reading through your motion here commenting on previous sporting projects, like the Commonwealth Games, you are implying that you do not actually support this project. You are saying, ‘Well, after that change, maybe it would’ve been best that we didn’t build it.’ Well, that certainly could not be further from the truth. That certainly could not be further from what we on this side think and certainly what the member for Wendouree has been advocating for. You and I were on the committee of course – and you, Mrs McArthur. We were talking about the legacy projects that were being delivered and how we were going to double down on that investment in regional communities. We can debate the scope of how much this particular project was related to that, but certainly the Ballarat station upgrade was a key part of continuing our investment in regional Victoria. We have seen continued investment in the regions, which we do actually respect and do not just refer to as the ‘toenails of Victoria’, like your side do.

I think perhaps the most extraordinary comment from Mr McCracken was the accusation of silence that he applied to the member for Wendouree. It leads me to wonder if he has actually ever met the member for Wendouree, because of anything that you could accuse her of, being silent is not one of them, and certainly being silent on behalf of her community is not one of them. I have learned many a great deal of things about many issues in Ballarat and many projects in Ballarat. Despite being from, straight up, the other side of the state, I have had many good conversations with the member for Wendouree where she has been more than exuberant in telling me and anyone else who will listen about all the good things going on in Ballarat and why it is such a great place to live, work and be in. Indeed she is a phenomenal advocate, and in the time that I have had in this place to visit Ballarat as part of various committee hearings, I have got to see that firsthand. I have got to see the benefit of that Labor investment delivered by wonderful local members, such as the member for Wendouree, into their communities. I have had the privilege of seeing that on my visits into that fine city in the western region, Mr McCracken.

I look forward to perhaps coming to visit you again sometime soon, and we can marvel at the wonder of this upgraded station that has been delivered by a local Labor MP who listens to her community, who takes the fight up to government and who gets the job done.

 Bev McARTHUR (Western Victoria) (10:24): I am struck with this idea of marvelling at the wonder – a $50 million-plus edifice. It must be gold plated, Mr Galea. I have got to say at the outset that Mr McCracken and I support disability access at Ballarat station. The real problem is you failed to do it when you were doing the upgrade: ‘Whoops! I forgot about disability access.’ How could you possibly get it so wrong? How can you possibly say that disability access should cost in the vicinity of over $50 million?

John Berger interjected.

Bev McARTHUR: ‘Do it right’ – Mr Berger, that is a disgrace. You are blowing taxpayers money at the rate of millions. Mr McCracken said he got a quote from people that said it might be $6 million. I will tell you what, I spoke to some builders and developers. They said they would be still making a profit at $1 million or $3 million. Whoever heard of a disability access – a lift going over the top of some railway lines, which you cannot access, as Mr McCracken says, from a car park – costing over $50 million? This is why this state is in so much debt. This is why you absolutely enable corruption of every building organisation, like the CFMEU, with $15 billion gone down the gurgler – unbelievable. Also – Mr Galea, do not walk away, mate – they cannot mention the word ‘respect’ in the one sentence. You people have no respect for the taxpayers of Victoria, not one skerrick of respect, I can tell you.

This is not just my view. In the UK, Network Rail’s Access for All program delivers accessible footbridges with lifts at railway stations across Britain. The average cost is between £3 million and £5 million; that is roughly A$6 million to A$10 million, as Mr McCracken said. Closer to home, the New South Wales transport access program has delivered over 70 full-station accessibility upgrades since 2011 at a much lesser cost. We have got a situation here where the project has crept upward through at least three publicly documented figures. What we need from this documents motion, as Mr McCracken said, is every detail of this project. Let us be transparent; let us be accountable for a change and provide the documents – that is something you also never do. It started at $49.2 million when it was first announced in October 2022. It was revised to $50 million in June 2024 and was explicitly stated as $51 million by the local member. She can spend money like it is going out of fashion – not her money, taxpayers money. Then, in May 2025, in the state budget the project was allocated an additional $3.6 million due to market escalation. What in the hell is that?

The Ballarat station precinct development, a $28.3 million project, delivered a refurbished goods shed, convention centre, Quest hotel and a 405-space multideck car park – all of this literally at the station. They rebuilt everything around the platforms but forgot to make them accessible. How do you possibly manage a project so incompetently? Apparently the project, instead of going to a competitive tender, was allocated to an existing Melbourne-based alliance. We have builders in Ballarat who can do stuff. We do not need Melbourne-based alliances from inside the tram tracks wrecking our city. This approach is normally taken for high-risk multisite programs; it is not designed for a single pedestrian bridge in a regional city.

So whose pockets were you lining, and what were the alliance overheads? What percentage of the $51 million was project management, design fees and alliance margins, and what percentage actually went into steel, concrete and lifts? These are the questions. We need documents. We need these answers to make sure that we can account for the fact that over $50 million, disgracefully, went into trying to provide accessibility access, but not from the car park – you would still have to wander into the station to get across the road. For about a year the gate was locked. It was unbelievable. You are absolutely hopeless, Mr Galea. We need these documents.

The ACTING PRESIDENT (Michael Galea): Mrs McArthur, you are welcome to say that to me when I am in the other chair, but not in this chair.

 Sheena WATT (Northern Metropolitan) (10:30): What a joy to get up here this morning and make a contribution on this motion moved by Mr McCracken. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to talk about Labor and our enormous commitment to public and active transport. I do not know if it has actually been said by my predecessor here, but as per convention the government will not oppose this motion before us. I am going to take the time that I have to talk about Ballarat station, because it is only Labor that has new ideas and solutions, not just when it comes to making life more affordable but also when it comes to making Victorians’ commute more accessible and more comfortable. Of course there are state-shaping, travel time slashing projects like the Suburban Rail Loop to smaller scale projects like upgrades to the beloved and historic Ballarat station. These are vital upgrades that were completed in March of this year, and they have made the gateway to one of our most beautiful country towns safer and more accessible while keeping the stations’ charming heritage character.

I have got to say, so many Victorians have told me how they have taken advantage of Labor’s free public transport throughout April and May and half-price public transport now to the end of the year. So many people have now seen the beautiful station there at Ballarat because of the necessary investments that we have made to upgrade that station as well as have half-price public transport. Investments like the Ballarat train station upgrade mean families with prams, older Victorians and people with disability can travel with ease, safety and dignity. It means that a trip to Ballarat is no longer a logistical challenge but a simple and seamless journey. It is better and more inclusive infrastructure that opens up regional Victoria for everyone.

Accessibility and functionality are essential, but public infrastructure should also reflect the character and history of the community it serves. This is exactly what has been achieved at Ballarat station. The upgrade was delivered with a strong focus on preserving and respecting the station’s significant historical overlay and heritage overlay, let me just say, through careful design and extensive consultation with Heritage Victoria, the Office of the Victorian Government Architect and local stakeholders. The project honours the rich architectural legacy of Ballarat, a city defined by gold rush traditions. Since it opened in 1862 the station has evolved from regional transport hub to historical icon, and it remains one of only three surviving 19th century railway stations of its kind, with the iconic clock tower that looks like the old train shed a constant reminder of Ballarat’s proud place in Victoria’s history. These vital modern upgrades are carefully designed to sit within and complement this remarkable physical setting, ensuring its character is preserved for generations to come.

Those opposite want to question the importance of these upgrades and complain it is too expensive to provide accessibility and safety to those using Ballarat stations, but clearly they have not done their homework on how thorough and technical these upgrades have been. Delivering accessibility upgrades in a live rail environment within a tightly constrained heritage precinct is not a simple task, but it is necessary. The cost of these upgrades reflects the care taken to do the job properly and to protect a statewide significant heritage site while maintaining train services and delivering infrastructure that will continue to serve the Ballarat community safely and inclusively for generations to come. This project proves that you can deliver infrastructure that is accessible, functional and fit for the future while being beautiful and deeply respectful of our state’s history. Extensive consultation has occurred with disability advocates, heritage experts and local stakeholders, ensuring that the upgrades reflect the voices of people who use them every day. But critically, they affirm that people with accessibility needs deserve to fully experience our state’s fantastic regional offerings, to travel easily, to enjoy our charming towns and to share in the rich cultural heritage of places like Ballarat and all that they have to offer. That is what inclusive investment looks like, and that is the legacy this government is proud to deliver, championed of course by the unstoppable force, the member for Wendouree Juliana Addison. Can I just pay my respects to her for all her advocacy that led to the completion of these works.

Motion agreed to.