🤥
Fresh reports are suggesting the Victorian Government is looking at broader-based taxes and charges to fund a growing shortfall for this #boondoggle.
There was never a realistic pathway to "value capture" $11.5 billion ($11,500 million) from land value uplift alone around the six precincts. Not without destroying any incentive to see take-up from business, developers and buyers for housing alike.
💸The alternative, a hypothecated tax stream, simply means that funds are captured for a specific purpose instead of going into general revenue. In other words, stamp duty and land taxes will be captured for reinvestment into the SRL precincts, rather than funding other works and services. Or perhaps is a special levy raised in these areas, captured specifically to fund works, over and above a "windfall" tax.
Either way, it's a massive departure from what was sold to the electorate.
🏛️With the Federal Government (rightly) refusing to provide more money to the project, the shortfall expected to be picked up by the Victorian taxpayer continues to grow.
💰The ongoing refusal to reveal updated costs – realistically more like 2x the $34.5 billion "official" figure from 2021 – means Victorians will need to contribute circa $65 billion ($65,000 million dollars) for this single project. Over five–times the $12B they keep telling us.
If you didn't think SRL would impact you negatively, think again.
❓How many other potential projects will never see the light of day to fund just this one?
❓Which services will you miss out on in your local community?
❓How many more taxes do you want applied to your property?
Every time you look into the details behind the SRL, it gets worse. It's genuinely time to pull the plug.