This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

The prime minister, Scott Morrison, has had to defend two members of government who appeared to announce environmental funding for community groups in a marginal electorate before the grants program had even opened.

In now-deleted Facebook posts, the Victorian Liberal MP Chris Crewther published video of himself and the environment minister, Melissa Price, visiting parts of his electorate of Dunkley to announce tens of thousands of dollars in grants to environment organisations as part of the government’s Communities Environment Program.

But environment officials told Senate estimates hearings on Thursday that applications for grants had not opened, funding had not been appropriated and no money would be awarded until mid-year.

Labor asked the government in question time if it was appropriate to announce the awarding of funds when the program hadn’t opened.

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Price said the government had not announced any money and the trip with Crewther related to “expressions of interest” for the program and he had invited her “to speak to a number of really good local community environment projects”.

But Labor’s environment spokesman, Tony Burke, then read from a media release issued by Crewther on March 15, which quoted the minister and announced funding to four community groups in Dunkley.

“If no announcements under the program had been made, why does the minister appear with quotes in the media release and is in videos with the announcement of $10,000 in Frankston, $7,500 in Boggy Creek and $10,000 at Downs Estate?” he said.

“Each of these announcements are accompanied by a video with the minister present. How can it be that she claims none of it ever happened when she’s quoted in the media release and is personally in the video?”

Price again said the announcements related only to an expression of interest.

The opposition leader, Bill Shorten, said: “Prime minister, your minister is saying one thing, the member for Dunkley is saying another. Who do you believe?”

Morrison said he believed “both members are passionate about the environment”.

In estimates hearings earlier in the day, environment department officials said they were not aware of the Facebook posts and that there had not been a successful grant under the program because it wasn’t open.

In afternoon hearings, the Labor senator Kristina Keneally said the Liberal candidate for Eden-Monaro, Fiona Kotvojs, had posted to her Facebook page on 27 March “that applications for grants under the community environment program close tomorrow”.

“The applications haven’t opened so it’s nonsensical they could close on the 28th of March,” Keneally said. “I would note that Ms Kotvojs is not actually a member of parliament so people can’t apply to her.”

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She said Price also had written on her website “that she encourages people to apply for these grants by 27 March 2019”.

“The minister should know that the grant application process is not open. Why is she inviting people to apply for these by the 27th March 2019?”

Keneally asked the government if it could “deny the plain English meaning” of Crewther’s media release.

The Liberal senator Simon Birmingham would not answer the question directly and repeatedly said he was “sure if Mr Crewther and the government are re-elected that the funding will flow under the program”.