Peter Debnam MP
NSW Liberal Leader
NSW Liberal Leader Peter Debnam said today it's now confirmed Morris Iemma's Government lied over the blocking of an extra lane in the Lane Cove Tunnel in exchange for a $79 million upfront tax on the tunnel.
"It has been clear since last year the builders of the Lane Cove Tunnel wanted a three lane tunnel each way, but their requests were rejected by the Labor Government," Mr Debnam said.
"To establish the truth on whether the Labor Government traded off an extra lane in the tunnel for an upfront payment was one of the main reasons I established the inquiry – and this confirmation from the tunnel operators proves Morris Iemma's Government lied," he said.
"Morris Iemma and Eric Roozendaal refused to be honest with the public – it took the Parliamentary inquiry to get the truth."
ReplyDeleteRoads Minister Roozendaal told Parliament on 28 February 2006 in response to a question from Liberal MLC John Ryan: "I am advised there was no proposal from the Lane Cove tunnel consortium to pay the Roads and Traffic Authority $79.3 million in lieu of providing a full third lane on the Lane Cove tunnel."
"Shadow Minister for Roads Andrew Stoner and I have repeatedly called on the Iemma Labor Government to release the traffic management reports for the tunnel to allow full scrutiny, but Minister Roozendaal has refused," Mr Debnam said.
"The inquiry continues to push for answers on:
• the road closures and funnelling measures, particularly the narrowing of Epping Road;
• the date of the tunnel's opening and any compensation payments for a delayed opening;
• the Lane Cove Tunnel collapse; and
• the traffic projections for the tunnel.
"The inquiry will highlight potential problems before they occur and give Morris Iemma the chance to fix them before the tunnel opening later this year," Mr Debnam said.