{"id":67789,"date":"2024-06-18T10:26:21","date_gmt":"2024-06-18T00:26:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=67789"},"modified":"2024-06-18T10:26:32","modified_gmt":"2024-06-18T00:26:32","slug":"melbourne-airport-rail-mediator-also-advising-state-run-rail-authority","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=67789","title":{"rendered":"Melbourne Airport Rail mediator also advising state-run rail authority"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The mediator between the owners of Melbourne Airport and the Victorian government in a long-running dispute over a proposed railway station at Tullamarine has also been doing consulting work for the state-run Suburban Rail Loop Authority, prompting questions about a potential conflict of interest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Both the federal and state governments insist there is no conflict of interest in Neil Scales, a former director-general of Queensland\u2019s transport department, doing consulting work for a different Victorian government agency while also mediating between the parties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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An artist\u2019s impression of a proposed above-ground station at Melbourne Airport.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Scales, who was appointed in April to mediate the fight over the location of the future station at Tullamarine, submitted his final report<\/a> to federal Infrastructure and Transport Minister Catherine King last Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The federal government was aware of Scales\u2019 work for the Victorian government and did not seek any changes to the mediator role, although it has since described him as a \u201cnegotiator\u201d after questions were first raised in Senate estimates hearings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The airport wants the train station built underground, while the state insists it must be above ground to manage costs. The protracted saga has contributed to the rail line being delayed by\u00a0up to four years<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since December, Scales has also been providing advice to the Suburban Rail Loop Authority\u2019s chief executive, board and executive team as it oversees building SRL East from Cheltenham to Box Hill, the first stage of the project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The authority ultimately reports to the state of Victoria, but the state and the federal government say there is no conflict with Scales\u2019 role because the airport project is managed by a separate entity, the Victorian Infrastructure Delivery Authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2022, then-premier Daniel Andrews announced the Tullamarine project, known as Melbourne Airport Rail, would be renamed Suburban Rail Loop \u2013 Airport, highlighting its role in the broader rail loop project. It is still named this way in budget papers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Age<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The mediator between the owners of Melbourne Airport and the Victorian government in a long-running dispute over a proposed railway station at Tullamarine has also been doing consulting work for the state-run Suburban Rail Loop Authority.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":38390,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35,513,47,8160],"tags":[993,10584,8],"class_list":["post-67789","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","category-melbourne-airport","category-rail-news","category-suburban-rail-loop","tag-melbourne","tag-suburban-rail-loop","tag-victoria"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t