· In short: Almost $300 million in funding was given to WA sporting and community organisations between 2020 and 2023 — but a report found most of it was handed over without any justification publicly given.

· The Auditor General report found some of the taxpayer money stemmed from election commitments which raised the prospect of pork-barrelling.

· The WA Liberals have accused the government of 'pork-barrelling' and 'abusing power'.

A scathing report into the funding of sporting and community projects by the WA Government has raised questions of pork-barrelling, after hundreds of millions of dollars were allocated without any evidence of them being rigorously assessed.

The Auditor General's report found that of the $298 million provided by the state government for community sport and recreation projects between 2020 and 2023, just $36 million was properly assessed as being of benefit to the community and as an effective use of public money.

The remaining $261 million, however, was not.

"The practices used by government to select, assess and approve these projects were not transparent and therefore the public and parliament cannot be assured public money has been fairly and equitably awarded to communities," Auditor General Caroline Spencer found.

Public information 'patchy'

Ms Spencer's report revealed only "limited" and "patchy" public information was available on how the government chose to allocate the $261 million, which did not follow the normal funding guidelines used by the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries (DLGSC).

Election commitments comprised $136 million of the contentious grants, while the remaining $125 million was from a special COVID-19 economic recovery fund.

"The guidelines did not apply to this funding , and therefore, their principles to guide fairness and achieve value for money did not apply," Ms Spencer wrote.

“It is not clear how the merit of some of these projects was assessed, and there is no public transparency on why some projects were funded and others were not.”

She found the government gave money to organisations without them applying for it, and it was used to fund things that would normally have been funded through club fees and fundraising.

These included everything from coffee machines and trophy cabinets to soccer balls, cricket bats and uniforms.

Pork-barrelling raised

Big ticket election commitments on the list that were apparently not assessed included $10 million for the Canning Vale Regional Open Space and Sporting Complex and $8 million to upgrade the Sorrento Surf Club.

COVID funding initiatives that got the green light included $30 million for the WACA redevelopment, $20 million for the Keirnan Park sport and recreation precinct in Mundijong and $10 million each for two projects in then premier Mark McGowan's electorate of Rockingham — the Baldivis recreation centre and the Rockingham jetty upgrade.

Six infrastructure projects that were approved, worth more than $19 million, have not even begun construction three years later, "because prerequisites have not been met."

Ms Spencer noted the feasibility of these projects was not assessed by the department before approval was given for the funding.

"Setting aside money for projects without advice on whether they can be delivered, risks the effective use of public money," she said.

"Improving the transparency, accountability and value of government spending to meet election commitments, to address what is commonly known as 'pork barrelling ', is a topic of debate across many Australian jurisdictions."

Liberal leader Libby Mettam said the report pointed to "pork-barrelling" and accused the government of believing they are above accountability and "abusing their power".

"Every member of the WA community deserves to feel outrage at a time when we are experiencing a cost of living crisis," Ms Mettam said.

"To see over $125 million spent on projects which had no criteria, where there was a lack of transparency, points to a government who have become increasingly out of touch with their role in leading and governing this state.

"The Cook Labor government need to take their responsibility seriously … and they need to ensure that they are governing in the best interests of this state and provide the transparency that was once promised."

Election promises 'different'

Ms Spencer's recommendations include that all election commitments "be assessed for merit and value for money" and publicly disclosed, including "funding approved by ministers for projects in their own electorates."

However, the Department of Premier and Cabinet said in its response that the community expects election commitments "will be delivered", making them different from other government funding initiatives.

It said the issues raised would be considered as part of a wider review of grant guidelines.