Television presenter Natalie Barr has launched a scathing attack on the Australian Bureau of Meteorology after revelations that its website redesign costs have exploded from an initial $4 million estimate to a staggering $96.5 million.
Taxpayer outrage amid cost-of-living crisis
The Sunrise host expressed fury that Australian taxpayers are footing the bill for the controversial website upgrade while many struggle with rising grocery prices. "It sounds funny until you realise it is our money – actual taxpayer money – while people are counting every penny at Coles," Barr stated during a heated exchange on her programme.
Barr directly challenged Social Services Minister Tanya Plibersek, demanding to know how such expenditure could be justified. "If someone wants to spend more than the GDP of a small island nation on the rebuild of a website, does that need to go to the Minister for approval or can they just sign the cheque?" she questioned.
Government defends cybersecurity necessity
Minister Plibersek responded by revealing that the Bureau now has new leadership and emphasised the critical need to address cybersecurity vulnerabilities. "The reason the whole of the back end of the computer system has had to be rebuilt is because the previous government had information that it was very vulnerable to attack," Plibersek explained.
The Minister highlighted the severe risks of not undertaking the upgrade, stating: "You can imagine a cyber attack that takes out all of our weather information as storms are approaching – that is a very serious risk to Australian safety."
According to the Bureau's confirmation over the weekend, $78 million was paid to a private consultancy, with an additional $12 million allocated for security testing. Despite this massive investment, users have complained that the redesigned site offers less functionality than its predecessor.
Website failures compound frustration
The substantial cost admission follows widespread criticism of the revamped website, which faced backlash online and on talkback radio shortly after launching last month. The situation worsened on October 30 when the website's weather radar crashed during severe thunderstorms threatening south-east Queensland.
Barr emphasised the public's frustration, noting: "People are in a cost-of-living crisis, people are counting every penny at Coles and then they see that their tax dollars are going to this. It is so frustrating."
The Bureau defended the expenditure, stating the redevelopment was part of a larger programme to improve "the long-term security, stability and resilience of critical bureau services" and that a complete rebuild was necessary to meet modern security and accessibility standards.
