Federal Government abandons proposal to keep track of local sport and recreation needs

A key element of the Federal Government's Sport 2030 plan aimed to direct funding where it is needed most has been abandoned, despite being backed by state and territory sport ministers less than two years ago.

In a week when Sport Australia officials have been in the Federal Court defending financial allocations under the Community Sports Infrastructure Grant (CSIG) program, the unannounced termination of plans to better track which sports facilities need upgrades would appear to leave sports infrastructure funding vulnerable to political interference.

The project had promised to produce a database on sports infrastructure shared across governments and with sporting bodies that highlighted which facilities need upgrades.

Information released through the Senate Estimates process shows that the Australian Sports Commission’s Sport Australia division worked on a technical platform to support the project in 2018, leading to sports ministers agreeing to consider a proposal to progress the project in November 2019.

However, the project was later removed Sports Australia's work plan without announcement that tis had occurred.

A similar project was recommended in a report by a Federal Parliamentary committee this year into the CSIG program (the so-called ‘sports rorts’) which called for sharing data to apply funding "based on an audit of needs".

A spokesperson for Federal Sport Minister Richard Colbeck said the Federal Government was "considering" the report of this committee, "including recommendation three regarding a coordinated national policy framework for community sport infrastructure".

The Sport 2030 plan was launched in August 2018 by then-Federal Sports Minister Bridget McKenzie.

At the time, Senator McKenzie said it "will ensure we can realise our vision to be the world’s most active and healthy sporting nation, known for its integrity and sporting success".

A key recommendation was for federal, state and territory governments to look at developing a database of sports infrastructure in partnership with councils and sporting organisations.

Image: Liberal candidate Georgina Downer, the daughter of former Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, presents a novelty cheque for $127,000 to a South Australian bowling club - instead of the sitting local MP - in the lead up to the May 2019 election.