NSW uses fund for ‘transformative’ infrastructure for truck stops

The revelations come the day after analysts poured doubt on Mr Mookhey’s claims that government expenses would only rise at 0.8 per cent a year over the next four years, despite a gloomy economic outlook of high inflation and rising unemployment.

It also comes as the Minns government draws a hard line on privatisation and refuses to contemplate selling assets, such as newly built roads, to fund more than $115 billion of infrastructure. Gross debt is on track to surpass $180 billion by 2026-27.

Budget papers for this year revealed that the government had secured the “release of the centrally held funds”, which would help finance new spending measures. The main commitment so far is $8 billion to scrap a public sector wage cap.

On Wednesday, Premier Chris Minns toured a residential development in his home electorate of Kogarah to spruik a $2.2 billion housing and infrastructure fund to solve a housing crisis.

“It means government committing infrastructure to essential parts of metropolitan Sydney in particular, so that we’ve got the wastewater, public transport and road infrastructure ready to go,” he said.

Other cash pools to be tapped in the coming year include the $5 billion WestInvest fund, the $150 million Digital Restart NSW fund and another $8.8 billion Restart NSW fund. That fund was created by the O’Farrell Coalition in 2011 with a specific objective of “enabling ... high-priority infrastructure projects that improve the state’s economic growth and productivity”.

It will be used to pay for election commitments and infrastructure.

These include a $1 billion Energy Security Corporation, announced in the lead up to the March election, and $400 million for a signature housing infrastructure fund, which formed the centrepiece of Tuesday’s budget.

About $900 million will be put towards infrastructure, including an urban roads fund, a Parramatta Light Rail and a rapid bus system to service Western Sydney Airport. Another $150 million will fund a truck stop, a business case for the Metro rail project, a residential mental health facility and four hospital upgrades.

Ahead of the budget, Mr Mookhey pledged budget repair and to change the trajectory of the state’s spending. However, analysts were disappointed with a budget in which gross debt is still on track to surpass $180 billion only one year later the former government had expected.

Mr Mookhey has been outspoken among his state treasurer peers on the state’s responsibility to support the federal government’s fight against inflation, and has insisted that a raft of spending plans – including public sector wage rises – won’t push inflation higher.