I’ve found it odd that both the Government and Opposition have made election commitments to regional pork-barreling funds that have names based on Western Australia’s Royalties for Regions program. Today’s Australian reports:
ANNA Bligh has denied that her $300 million “Royalties for our Regions” scheme, unveiled yesterday, is a copycat of Campbell Newman’s $170m “Royalties for the Regions” program announced a day earlier.
Surely both the Government and Opposition were aware of the controversy around the WA Government’s scheme, as illustrated by this example (A $250,000 throne fit for Royalties in the Regions):
TAXPAYERS shelled out $250,000 for a talking-musical toilet under Royalties for Regions – while the West Australian Government has been trying to shave 3 per cent from state spending, including hospitals.
Whichever side gets into Government they will need to set up a sound process involving extensive local consultation, possibly through the Regional Development Australia Committees, to ensure worthwhile local projects are identified and funded. A major concern I have is that the funds will go to a lot of little projects of questionable economic merit, but of potentially significant political benefit.
Queensland Economy Watch 
I was even more shocked to read that the $250,000 musical toilet plays Burt Bacharach’s ‘What the World Needs Now Is Love’!
There could be a rationale behind the Bacharach music. There was a few years ago a scheme to reduce crime and hooning at night in public car park areas by playing Barry Manilow as a deterrent. Perhaps this is a similar way to prevent loitering or anyone hogging the toilet?