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'Not Possible to Know' if Lottery Pact Was Best Deal
The auditor-general said the government used exclusive negotiations and limited public visibility, while internal analysis said a competitive process was unlikely to do better.
- Auditor-General Andrew Greaves released a report Wednesday criticizing the transparency of Victoria's secret 40-year, $1.145 billion lottery licence extension with The Lottery Corporation.
- The government negotiated exclusively with TLC for almost three years to secure a premium payment, aiming to keep state net debt below $200 billion.
- While a commercial adviser valued the licence at about $1.372 billion, Greaves noted it was impossible to confirm whether a competitive process would have yielded more.
- Gaming Minister Enver Erdogan defended the process, though the opposition criticized the secrecy, calling it a "vain attempt" to keep net debt under $200 billion.
- The report identified no integrity issues but recommended Treasury develop new rules for disclosing major commercial decisions, which the department accepted in principle.
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11 Articles
Sydney Morning HeraldReposted by 
Brisbane Times
Brisbane TimesRevealed: The secret backroom dealings behind $1.1bn lotto licence deal
The auditor-general has laid bare how the government struck a 40-year extension of Victoria’s lotto licence, prompting criticism that it used the deal to prop up the budget.
·North Sydney, Australia
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Integrity watchdog probe into Victoria’s secret $1.1bn lottery deal released: What it found
Victoria’s Auditor-General has found Labor’s controversial $1.15bn secret lottery deal was struck with “limited public transparency” and helped the government keep a lid on the state’s ballooning debt.
·Southbank, Australia
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources11
Leaning Left5Leaning Right3Center2Last UpdatedBias Distribution50% Left
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources lean Left
50% Left
L 50%
C 20%
R 30%
Factuality
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