Revealed: how Stuart Ayres drove the plan for Penrith’s even more ambitious new stadium

Exclusive: documents show the former minister pushed for the compulsory acquisition of Penrith Paceway for a new stadium to be built in his seat

• Follow our Australia news live blog for the latest updates
• Get our free news app, morning email briefing or daily news podcast

The former NSW sports minister Stuart Ayres was centrally involved in persuading the state government to pursue the controversial compulsory acquisition of the Penrith harness racing paceway site to allow for the construction of a new stadium next door for the Penrith Panthers, rather than the $309m rebuild originally planned.

The acquisition order was announced in July, despite the government putting the upgrades of other suburban stadiums on the backburner, citing acute budget pressures.

Sign up to receive an email with the top stories from Guardian Australia every morning