As promised, a Magpie mid-week special examining the validity of the specially commissioned report into the benefit of the V8 event's value to the Townsville community.

The Magpie does not expect this post to break any box office records, but the following information and consequent argument is published as a matter of record, unlikely to be published anywhere else. It involves questions of public money and proper governance. And frankly, that is the old bird's only interest in the issue.

For those who want to, they can make up their own minds

The V8 event is a done deal, to which The Magpie is wholly indifferent (good advertising for the city, though), but the old bird is always interested in transparency when it comes to the ratepayer dollar. So the initial reluctance for the council to release the report, and its author’s continuing refusal to fully disclose both the data and methodology he used to reach what is a most favorable conclusion for the principal commissioning organization, requires the information to be easily and publicly available for independent scrutiny. There are just two links following at www.townsvillemagpie.com.au

Put this link into your menu bar ...

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=gmail&attid=0.1&thid=141958d8e6716dcb&mt=application/pdf&url=https://mail.google.com/mail/?ui%3D2%26ik%3D4c8d7afa45%26view%3Datt%26th%3D141958d8e6716dcb%26attid%3D0.1%26disp%3Dsafe%26zw&sig=AHIEtbQy3dtYkNQM04f6dIfiGAKXER1qxQ

for the full 57-page report commissioned by the V8 organisation, the Townsville City Council and Townsville Enterprise.

The report controversially claims the benefit to the Townsville community to be almost twice that of previous estimates by the same researchers.

The $11,000 report was compiled by a team at James Cook University, led by Dr Murray Prideaux.

The council finally released the report after persistent requests and questioning about its validity by Mike Shearer, one of several analysts who says the findings appear inflated and unsupported by full and proper academic peer review.

Mr  Shearer, long an articulate opponent of the event, gives his analysis in this link .... 

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=gmail&attid=0.1&thid=141b0cd9b1e1a0ad&mt=application/msword&url=https://mail.google.com/mail/?ui%3D2%26ik%3D4c8d7afa45%26view%3Datt%26th%3D141b0cd9b1e1a0ad%26attid%3D0.1%26disp%3Dsafe%26zw&sig=AHIEtbQAZkNjf6v4LW4PPVGVXd-nJ9aRTA

and why he concludes that the findings are unacceptable. Rather than being a benefit, Mr Shearer, a former JCU staffer and experienced research analyst, mounts an argument that the V8 Super car event may actually be a cost to the community and only of benefit to the promoters. His argument is detailed and raises questions that deserve to be asked.