ACT defers infrastructure projects, banks A$700 million on 'peak construction' pressure

ABC News reports from Canberra that the ACT Treasurer's pre-budget statement on Monday morning ties the deferrals to a 22% rise in construction costs over 24 months caused by fly-in/fly-out labour bottlenecks. The proposed private health clinic in North Gungahlin slips to late 2027, the fire station to the first quarter of 2028 and the multi-purpose sports centre to early 2029.

The report says the decision was endorsed by the fiscal council, which observed that ACT's capital-programme inflation has been measured at 11% over the past 12 months and that starting new projects before labour and cement costs normalise would push multiple projects into concurrent build phases and inflate cost overruns. ACT's heavy-infrastructure pipeline stands at A$9.4 billion.

The opposition leader said the deferral would penalise residents, while a Municipal Republic spokesperson noted that having to deploy fly-in/fly-out workers from Sydney and Brisbane in addition to Canberra has lifted FIFO costs by 18%. S&P Global has kept the ACT's AAA outlook "stable" pending a clearer long-term investment timetable; the FY26 deficit target stays at 1.2% of GDP.