yesterday, in sydney's western suburbs, prime minister gillard stated a federal funding commitment for the connex road network, linkin' the west to sydney, (and is vitally important to those who live there), provided that:
. must go all the way through to the city
. must service the port botany and
. there must be no new tolls on existin' roads.
these things make total sense
today, dodgy abbott takes the usual liberal party evasive route on this topic
Abbott sidesteps questions on WestConnex CBD
16 minutes ago
"Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has refused to say whether his $1.5 billion commitment to the WestConnex road project in Sydney remains contingent on it including a final link to the CBD.
Yesterday Prime Minister Julia Gillard promised an unspecified amount of Commonwealth funding for the motorway, as long as it connects through to the city and the port, and does not include tolls on roads that are currently free.
The announcement created a new stoush between Ms Gillard and New South Wales Premier Barry O'Farrell, who said the Prime Minister's demands would add up to $8 billion to the project, which is already estimated to cost between $10 billion and $13 billion.
Mr Abbott responded to the announcement yesterday, saying: "I think what the Prime Minister has done today has set up a new fight with the State Government, not a real commitment to actually make this thing happen."
In January Mr Abbott told News Limited it was not good enough the WestConnex project did not include an expressway through to the city.
"The WestConnex project is still evolving but we'll ensure there's an expressway-standard road from the west to the city as part of our commitment. It has to be in there," he was quoted as saying.
Asked today whether that remained his position, Mr Abbott sidestepped the question and instead focused on Ms Gillard's announcement."
