Shadow Minister for Sport and Recreation, Peter Rundle MLA, has slammed the Cook Labor Government for sidelining the long-standing Community Sporting and Recreation Facilities Fund (CSRFF) and Community Night Lights Program (CNLP) in favour of a new program designed to bankroll Labor’s election commitments.
Mr Rundle said revelations during Parliamentary Question Time confirmed the $332 million PlayOn WA initiative would prioritise projects promised by Labor during the State Election, leaving community sporting clubs and local governments shut out of future funding opportunities.
“When I questioned the Minister for Sport and Recreation, Rita Saffioti, she admitted the $332 million PlayOn WA initiative is being used to deliver Labor’s election commitments,” Mr Rundle said.
“That effectively shuts the door on new CSRFF and CNLP applications in the near future and leaves community sporting clubs across regional WA in limbo.”
The CSRFF and CNLP have historically provided critical funding assistance to local governments and sporting organisations for grassroots infrastructure upgrades, including clubrooms, courts, lighting and recreation facilities, particularly in regional communities.
Under the new PlayOn WA model, both programs now sit beneath this broader initiative controlled directly by the Government.
“The Minister confirmed during Question Time that $20 million in unallocated CSRFF funding is being redirected to Labor-selected projects facing cost blowouts,” Mr Rundle said.
“She refused to guarantee the reinstatement of CSRFF or commit to considering new applications from clubs and councils desperately needing infrastructure upgrades.”
Mr Rundle said the decision would have significant consequences for regional sporting communities already struggling with ageing facilities and increasing demand.
“Since 1992, CSRFF has been one of the most important funding sources for grassroots sport in Western Australia, particularly in the regions,” he said.
“In last year’s Budget, the Government allocated $20.2 million to CSRFF and $2.5 million to CNLP. Now local governments and sporting clubs are being told there is effectively no pathway to access those funds.”
Mr Rundle said the PlayOn WA program lacked transparency and appeared to hand broad discretion to the Minister without clear application processes or assessment criteria.
“There are no publicly available application guidelines, no transparent selection criteria, and no certainty for sporting clubs trying to plan future infrastructure projects,” he said.
“CSRFF was already oversubscribed, and I have consistently called for the program to be expanded. Instead, Labor has benched it altogether.”
Mr Rundle also criticised the Government for prioritising high-profile metropolitan projects over grassroots community sport.
“This Government is obsessed with big-ticket city projects while regional sporting clubs are left fighting over scraps,” he said.
“Millions are being poured into projects like the Burswood racetrack while local sporting clubs are left wondering how they will fund basic upgrades to facilities their communities rely on every week.”
Mr Rundle said concerns about the missing CSRFF funding had already been raised by multiple Shires and sporting clubs across his electorate.
“Local governments and clubs have contacted me directly urging the Government to immediately restore the fund,” he said.
“While CSRFF still appears on the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport website, the Minister needs to come clean about whether the program still genuinely exists.”
“I will continue calling on the Cook Labor Government to immediately reinstate both the CSRFF and CNLP and restore certainty for sporting clubs and local governments across Western Australia.”
