A CALL by state Liberal MPs for $10-20 million to be provided in this year's budget to plan the F6 motorway extension comes after their federal counterparts quietly dropped a promise to provide a similar sum.
There was a familiar ring to the words when the seven state Liberal MPs from Sutherland Shire, St George and the Illawarra all launched a "public campaign" for the funding last Thursday.
In a statement, Mark Speakman (Cronulla), Mark Coure (Oatley), Lee Evans (Heathcote), John Flowers (Rockdale), Melanie Gibbons (Menai), Shelley Hancock (South Coast) and Gareth Ward (Kiama) all called for the project to be advanced to "the 'shovel-ready' stage within two years".
During both the 2007 and 2010 federal election campaigns, Liberal candidates Scott Morrison (Cook) and Craig Kelly (Hughes) pledged $20 million for a study to get the project to "shovel-ready stage".
However, the promise wasn't repeated in last year's campaign.
When the Leader queried this omission with Mr Morrison this month, he said firstly a state government process had already begun, and the "second part is straight fiscal".
"There was not that sort of money to commit at the last election," he said.
Last year's state budget provided only $1 million for planning the project.
Mr Speakman, who co-ordinated last week's announcement, rejected the suggestion the group wouldn't have campaigned for a budget allocation if they weren't sure it would be delivered, saying there was "no guarantee" of the money.
"Hopefully [it] will be provided."
See related story from 2013.
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