The government has stepped up its strategy of using small grants to sand bag marginal seats as another $75 million was announced on Monday to fight crime, fix roads and improve sporting facilities across 16 electorates, of which 12 are held by the Coalition.

One promise, by the Justice Minister Michael Keenan to spend $525,000 on CCTV cameras in the marginal seat of Forde, will come from a new $40 million Safer Communities Fund, announced just a week ago after its predecessor, the $50 million Safer Streets Program, was bled dry in the first half of the campaign to fund CCTV and other local crime prevention measures.

At the same time, Labor outspent the Coalition by committing another $163 million to a single policy area – childcare – with measures to cut waiting lists and boost after-school care hours.

Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce promised $8.5 million to boost Tamworth "as a premier location for sport in regional NSW". Andrew Meares

On Monday, The Australia Financial Review reported the Coalition had made $1.7 billion worth of relatively minor announcements since the election was called on May 8. Of this, $1.3 billion came from more than 90 small announcements spread largely across marginal seats and which involved the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, ministers or the local MP, or a combination.

Mr Turnbull and Treasurer Scott Morrison emphasised that all the money being spent by the Coalition was paid for, whereas Labor, still vague over how it would pay for the $3 billion childcare boost it announced on Sunday, had a growing black hole.