A Minns Labor Government will put rail safety and budget honesty first, and will abolish Dominic Perrottet’s Transport Asset Holding Entity (TAHE).
TAHE has been a financial and ethical disaster for the NSW Government.
The Government first ignored multiple warnings from its own advisors about the inherent conflicts of allowing a for-profit company to manage the safety and value of the State’s rail infrastructure, land and trains.
Last year, the Auditor-General took the rare step of refusing to sign-off on the accuracy of the state’s accounts, amidst concerns that Mr Perrotett’s government was using TAHE as a device to artificially reduce the size of the state’s budget deficit.
Despite its for-profit status, TAHE has never earned a profit. To date, it has cost the taxpayer more than $25 billion in write-downs and government bail-outs, including a rushed $5.2 billion bailout authorised in December last year. Millions in public money has already been spent by TAHE on consultants and PR firms.
Last week Labor revealed State Government plans to fix TAHE’s budget hole by turning it into a mega-property developer. TAHE was secretly tasked with selling off over $40 billion worth of public land near train stations for high-density apartments, student accommodation and even a hotel at Sydney’s Central Station.
If elected, NSW Labor will take advice from experts including on rail safety, about a suitable time to implement the TAHE abolition.
NSW Labor Leader Chris Minns said:
TAHE has always been about the NSW Liberals pursuing their agenda for transport of privatisation and higher fares as well as perpetuating a huge Budget con.
“The Perrottet TAHE Budget con as cost the taxpayer $25 billion in write-downs and bail-outs, all the while putting at risk rail safety.
Shadow Treasurer, Daniel Mookhey said the public had had enough spin and accounting cons.
“TAHE has to go. The public wants an end to the accounting trickery, lavish consultant spending and now the flogging off of public assets – all because Perrottet continues to mismanage the State’s finances.
“Perrottet and Kean will sacrifice budget honesty and rail safety to plug the hole in their ailing budget. Labor will always put the safety of our rail network and honesty in the State’s finances first.”