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This week in State Parliament – 10 March 2016

This week in State Parliament, Liberal and Nationals MPs questioned whether the government’s decision to buy water from the Wonthaggi desalination plant is simply an attempt to justify the previous Labor government’s white elephant. Melbourne’s water storages are still two-thirds full and the government hasn’t even introduced water restrictions.

We demanded the government tell the community the true facts about its Skyrail lines.  This follows revelations it will need to be made twice as large as previously disclosed within the next decade in order to cope with future growth.

We highlighted the worsening shortage of police numbers.  Police stations such as Springvale and Cranbourne have been forced to make unscheduled closures following Labor’s failure to recruit more police.

Legislation to enable the leasing of the port of Melbourne finally passed the Parliament.  This occurred after the government accepted a wide range of amendments, including limiting any taxpayer compensation to just the first fifteen years after a port of Melbourne lease deal is signed if a second container port is built in Victoria.

We condemned the government over the Premier’s refusal to admit to Labor’s rorting of Parliamentary electorate staff allowance to hire campaign organisers.  This was despite an official report to the Parliament making clear that the rules prohibit electorate staff being used for political purposes.

We also asked the Minister for Public Transport, Jacinta Allan, to explain how she could justify spending thousands of taxpayer dollars on a new office, or “private lounge”, at Bendigo Station, just a short distance from her existing office, in the midst of the turmoil in the transport system that she is presiding over.