Some critics have gone as far as to say the “nation building” agenda is a con. 

The headline-grabbing $75 billion in infrastructure funding promise suddenly means very little when it is spread over 10 years. Worse, much of this $7.5 billion per year appears re-announced or already committed money. 

When the flagship projects, the inland rail and Snowy Mountains scheme 2.0 are all years away from even project commencement and the other big winner is another Sydney Airport, it is not hard to see why Victorians are feeling dudded.

By contrast there are transport projects in Victoria that are crying out for attention. Steps have been made to address some of these demands, but there is clearly so much more to do.

But at this time of epochal opportunity for the regions, when connectivity is a fundamental to its success, the federal government has chosen to answer with a lot more in the way of words than dollars.

The average commuter and the average voter have no interest in the complexity of the funding arrangement or who is paying for what; they want to see things done.

It is Victorians paying the income tax and the GST and there is a reasonable expectation they should then see a reasonable proportion on their investment when it comes to infrastructure. But the percentages are badly skewed in favour of other states. A billion dollars might seem like a lot, but not when it is short 30 per cent of the arranged payment.

Federal Minister for Infrastructure Darren Chester has rightly observed there is nothing people like less than petty infighting between politicians. But the problem here is his own government has thrown a massive stumbling block in the way of the very thing people want; getting things done.

Worse the preference of the federal budget listed items in Gippsland, Geelong and Shepparton could be construed as blatant preference for Coalition held seats.

If this is true, it is the very essence of a myopic electoral-cycle driven judgement and the antithesis of what regional Australia needs.