In a fairly standard election promise by oppositions of all political hues the Victorian Liberals have promised to raise parliamentary standards by “considering” the reduction in Dorothy Dixer questions, making the speaker and president more independent, and inserting a ten year sunset clause into all legislation. This all falls under the policy umbrella of their “Transparent and Accountable Government” policy.

However, on the radio this morning shadow treasurer Robert Clark (right — with the used-car salesman smile) indicated that with only four days until the election the Liberals had not yet employed the services of an independent auditor to assess the feasibility of their promises and wouldn’t commit to releasing any such findings before the poll. While ALP treasurer John Brumby also had difficulty naming a release date for their auditor’s report he could at least confirm that the firm Deloitte had been employed to undertake the audit.

Now, I’m no expert (this doesn’t stop Andrew Bolt from declaring himself the world’s leading climate change authority) but the Liberals’ promise to extend the Cranbourne East rail line and build a station for a mere $6 million seems a little far fetched. As does a similar extension of the Epping line for $12 million. I’m willing to bet that any actual expert, auditor or consultancy would recommend the allocation of much more money to the projects — but I’m willing to be proven wrong. If the Libs were actually committed to the principles of transparent and accountable government maybe they would pull their finger out and release an independent audit before the election so the punters could make up their own minds.