A Senate committee examining the government's decision to award $443.3 million to the Great Barrier Reef Foundation has recommended unspent funds from the controversial grant be returned to the commonwealth and reserved for future reef projects.
The committee chair, Peter Whish-Wison says “this grant was a desperate attempt to cover up this government’s legacy of reef mismanagement, years of chronic underfunding and disregard for climate change.”
The report recommends the federal and Queensland governments publish an updated Reef 2050 Plan that outlines current figures on established funding listed by both the source and priority area for spending.