Coalition vows to cancel controversial VNI West power line project

The Coalition has promised to scrap the controversial VNI West Transmission Line Project, a move aimed at winning back crucial votes from farming communities ahead of the November state election. The proposed energy interconnector, valued between $7.6 billion and $11.4 billion, would run between Victoria and New South Wales, cutting through the heart of the Ripon electorate. This seat is currently held by Labor's Martha Haylett by a narrow margin.

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We've gone back and had a look at all of the data that surrounds VNI West and it's really clear that the project isn't going to ever stack up.

One Nation has also made the project a central part of its Victorian campaign, capitalizing on local opposition. The Liberal and National parties, initially promising to pause the build, have now escalated their commitment to outright cancellation if they win power. Deputy Nationals leader Emma Kealy declared the project "dead, buried and cremated," stating that internal reviews showed it would "never stack up."

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It's basically what we've been pushing for a long time and it's not a moment too soon.

Farmers like Jason Barratt, whose property lies in the planned corridor, expressed relief and satisfaction. "It's basically what we've been pushing for a long time and it's not a moment too soon," Barratt said, criticizing the Victorian Labor government's plan to bisect his farm. He noted that the Coalition's firm promise had reopened the possibility of voting for them, rather than One Nation, despite his previous dissatisfaction with their less decisive stance.

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They [the Victorian Labor government] want to basically cut our farm in half with this massive transmission line.