A government IT failure has gouged a $760 million hole in state revenue that could otherwise be invested back into Bendigo’s hospitals, schools and ambulance services.
Secret documents, obtained under Freedom of Information, this week revealed that up to $760 million in fines have been written off by the Andrews Labor Government over 30 months due to problems with its Fines Victoria’s IT system.
With the May State Budget just weeks away, Leader of The Nationals Peter Walsh said this wasted money must not become an excuse not to invest locally.
He said the priority must be on projects and services that make a genuine difference in the Bendigo region, like better education and health care or upgrades to the road network.
“This is a mammoth waste of funds that would be better spent elsewhere on local projects that actually benefit local people,” Mr Walsh said.
“But instead, a failure to deliver these basic IT services has flushed nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars down the drain.
“This has been going on since December 2017 – surely, by now, these IT failures should have been fixed.
“I’ll be looking closely at the May State Budget to make sure projects that matter get the funding they deserve.
“We shouldn’t have to miss out because of the Andrews Labor Government’s incompetence.”