'Barnaby Joyce and Bridget McKenzie money' reallocated after nothing found to support projects

The government reallocated unassigned money from two regional schemes, worth $7.1 billion and $2 billion respectively, reviewed the merit of projects with evidence supporting them and cancelled those with nothing underpinning them.

The Energy Security and Regional Development Plan and the Regional Accelerator Scheme was negotiated by the Nationals in exchange for their support of the Coalition's climate policies, however many of the projects backed by the funds were criticised for lacking businesses plans.

"The departments knew them as 'the Barnaby money' or the 'Bridget money'," a senior minister said, referring to former Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce and former Regional Development Minister Bridget McKenzie.

"If [a projects] stacks up, if there's rigour behind it, if it meets those tests of quality spending, we were proceeding with them. To be honest, some of the Barnaby money didn't have anything underneath it."

Other programs, such the Strong and Resilient Communities and the Community Business Partnership, were also cut. But Labor ministers stopped short of calling them waste or slush funds.

The Safer Communities program, part of the Attorney General's portfolio, will have $50 million redirected "to realign expenditure to support other government priorities" as one of several programs cuts as part of a spending audit.

In their place with the new Growing Regions Program and the Precincts and Partnerships Program (a combined $3 billion over three years) for place-based projects to transform regional centres, and the Priority Community Infrastructure Program ($1 billion over five years) and Investing in Our Communities Program ($350 million over five years).

Infrastructure Minister Catherine King said Labor was honouring its election promises, and this budget was a "first step" towards ensuring infrastructure spending was responsible, affordable, and sustainable as the government examined budget repair.

Some projects had been moved into future years after talks with states, territories, and local councils "when the market will have greater capacity" to take on the work, she said.

"The government is also closing down the Urban Congestion Fund and cancelling a number of the Coalition's most egregious commuter car park projects."

"Our first Budget takes an important step to make our infrastructure pipeline more sustainable and to ensure we don't further strain a sector already facing labour constraints, inflationary pressures and cost increases due to supply chain challenges," Ms King said.

But some critics have noticed that many local projects promised by Labor at the last election were outside the Commonwealth's areas of responsibility.