As the Australian Grand Prix continues to lose money, the premier of the state of Victoria, John Brumby, has said that once the current contract runs out in 2014 it might not be renewed.

In September, for the umpteenth successive year, organizers reported a total loss of A$49.4m (£29.5m), this followed on from a loss of A$40m for the 2009 event, indeed, the losses hade been steadily growing since 2005 when the Albert Park event lost A$13m (£5.3m).

With taxpayers forced to foot the bill, and an election forthcoming, Brumby is well aware of the local opposition to the event a situation not helped by the fact that a government watchdog - despite claims to the contrary - revealed that the the losses incurred by the event outweigh any measurable gain.

Speaking to ABC Radio, Brumby said: "I know there's a range of views in the community and it is a costly major event, but we've got it until 2014. We'll look at whether we go beyond that, I'm not making any commitment beyond that."

"The event has produced a loss since the first race in 1996," said Save Albert Park president Peter Goad recently, "and the total cost to Victorian taxpayers now totals around A$255 million (£153m). The Australian Grand Prix Corporation's accounts show increasing costs, falling ticket sales and sponsorship revenue, and the trend lines show that over the next five years the event will lose a further A$365 million (£219m), bringing the total operating loss to over A$600 million (£360m).

"The Auditor-General's findings for the 2005 Grand Prix suggest that the 2010 event, with its operating loss of A$49 million, probably produced a net economic loss of A$40-45 million," he continued. "The State Government claims that the Grand Prix TV broadcasts and associated publicity brings additional tourists to Victoria. The Auditor-General could find no evidence to support this claim."

"The 2010 Grand Prix event represents a huge cost to Victoria, with absolutely nothing to show for it. The event is not good for Victoria's economy, and by sacrificing a public park for motor racing, our Government is demonstrating to the world that its 'Healthy Parks Healthy People' philosophy is just an empty sham."

According the Save Albert Park group, the Grand Prix Corporation's accounts show that ticket sales revenue fell from A$41.6 million in 2005 to A$24.6 in 2010. These figures suggest that far fewer out-of-state visitors attended the 2010 event and therefore visitor spending would be far lower.

Earlier in September, Pitpass' Mat Coch reported that the Calder Park circuit in Melbourne had signed a Heads of Agreement to develop the track into a "Formula One standard facility".

The venue played host to the (non-championship) 1980 Australian Grand Prix on the existing 2.3km circuit, an event won by Alan Jones in his title winning Williams.