Andrew Barr says federal government's $240m to Tasmania is good for Canberra's stadium vision

The federal government's decision to spend $240 million on a new venue in Tasmania to help the state secure an AFL licence has sparked fierce debate about a lack of investment in Canberra's sporting facilities.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher attempted to play down the like-for-like comparison with the bid for a new rectangular venue in the capital, citing investment in other areas as proof the capital gets a slice of the Commonwealth funding pie.

But the Commonwealth-owned Canberra Stadium has had minimal-to-no federal funding for the past 23 years, leaving Barr to talk about a stadium overhaul for the past 14 years without an actual plan in place.

Barr has ditched his own plan to build a stadium in Civic to connect the city to the lake despite Senator David Pocock and industry leaders urging him to reconsider it as the No. 1 option for a new venue.

Instead, Barr has been speaking with Gallagher, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Sport Minister Anika Wells about a joint ACT-federal partnership to revive the 64 hectare AIS site in Bruce.

Stumbling blocks have emerged during the negotiations, including ownership rights for a rebuilt Canberra Stadium and having to juggle NRL, Super Rugby and A-League schedules during the construction process.

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It's unclear how much the federal government is willing to put towards the stadium it owns, or if the ACT government would take over ownership if it was the major investor.

Barr is hoping to strike an agreement with the Commonwealth before the ACT budget in June as the Civic campaign bubbles in the background.

"[The deal with Tasmania] is an investment in the precinct ... we continue to work with the Commonwealth on the AIS precinct renewal project," Barr said.

"This is one that has many similarities to the Tasmanian project in that it is a precinct, not just a stadium. Having spoken with the prime minister and the finance minister in recent days, it's very clear that the precedent that the Tasmanian partnership sets will work well in almost exactly the same context.

"[The AIS] is due for renewal, as part of that the stadium that the Commonwealth owns sits at the heart of that. We think there's potential for renewal of the sporting infrastructure as well as creating a mixed-use precinct that would include housing.

"A new stadium, a renewed arena and more housing is a precinct renewal partnership at Bruce, and that's what we're pursuing. We've been talking about this for years, it's not a new issue."

Senator David Pocock is leading the push for Barr to strike a city deal partnership with the Albanese government, with a stadium and convention centre precinct at the top of the wishlist.

Barr wrote to former prime minister Scott Morrison in 2021 to start discussions about a city deal, but he now says the building blocks are in place with existing funding for different projects.

Gallagher pointed to the public service investment, a national security precinct in Barton and $535 million split across nine national institutions over a four-year period as recent federal investments in Canberra and a reason not to compare the new Tasmania stadium to potential funding for a Canberra Stadium.

Pocock, however, has pointed to historic under-investment in the capital as a reason why the city deserves a major partnership, and he's keen to put Civic on the agenda as a stadium option to sit alongside a state of the art convention centre.

"Whatever it is labelled as, we've already been delivering on elements of [a city partnership with the federal government]," Barr said.

"I've outlined half a dozen of them, there will be more in the Commonwealth budget and they've already pre-announced one of the most significant things we've been calling for - funding for our national cultural institutions."

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