ACT BUDGET BLOW-OUT MORE THAN $420 MILLION SINCE FEBRUARY THIS YEAR
Ed Cocks MLA
Shadow Treasurer
Media Release
10 June 2025
The ACT Treasurer Chris Steel has been forced to reveal another ACT Budget blow-out with an additional $39.4 million spent just weeks after the passage of the Financial Management Act 2025 which forces the government to reveal when it uses its emergency spending powers.
The $39.4 million blow-out is on top of the $387.7 million extra contained in the Appropriation Bill that was introduced on 6 February 2025.
Since February, the ACT Labor government has been responsible for a $427 million over-spend, which if averaged across a twelve month period would equate to a $1.3 billion Budget blow out – or around14% greater than was originally budgeted for.
The $427 million blow-out is the equivalent of more than $3.5 million per day or almost $25 million per week.
Under the Financial Management Amendment Act 2025, the Government is now required to notify the Legislative Assembly within five business days whenever the Treasurer uses this discretionary spending power.
Shadow Treasurer Ed Cocks welcomed the release of the Section 18 instruments, which reveal:
$34.1 million in additional funding to Transport Canberra and City Services for cost pressures including fare shortfalls, city maintenance, libraries, and Fix My Street;
$5.3 million for the Canberra Institute of Technology to address a short-term funding shortfall linked to reduced revenue and higher-than-expected staffing costs.
“This is exactly why we introduced the legislation-to shine a light on spending decisions that previously would have been hidden for months,” Mr Cocks said.
“Almost $40 million has been spent outside the budget process since the end of March, and thanks to the new law, the Assembly and the public are being told in real time-not buried in a quarterly report five months later.”
The Treasurer’s Advance allows the Government to authorise spending in emergencies. Prior to the passage of Mr Cocks’ bill, these decisions could be kept from the Assembly for up to five months.
Mr Cocks said the use of emergency funds must be viewed in the context of the ACT’s broader fiscal position.
"The ACT is running structural deficits with the recent budget update showing a deficit close to $1 billion, and net debt has climbed to more than $9 billion," Mr Cocks said.
"This is a Government spending more than it earns year after year. Fiscal responsibility means making hard choices-not relying on emergency top-ups to cover ongoing pressures.
“The Government has already blown out the ACT Budget by over $427 million in extra spending this financial year alone-a staggering figure that shows how bad the Labor Government’s economic management is.
"It's clear the Government has lost control of its spending, relying on emergency funds to paper over an addiction to spending. ACT taxpayers should be rightly concerned that they are about to get slugged with higher taxes to pay for government mis-management.
“This is why our reforms to financial management are so important,” Mr Cocks said. “At a time of rising debt and deficits, taxpayers have a right to real-time accountability.”
