This year’s Melbourne Formula One Grand Prix has cost taxpayers AUS$49 million ($46 million) as the Victorian state government had to cover the race's highest-ever shortfall.

Even though attendances increased by 5,000 to 305,000, revenues fell by 30 per cent to AUS$24 million and costs rose by nearly 20 per cent to AUS$73 million, excluding the AUS$8 million renovation of the Albert Park circuit, also paid by the state.

“We’re bailing out a millionaires’ car race for these sort of dollars, I think we have got our priorities wrong,” said independent state MP Craig Ingram. “I think it is just outrageous. It has gone past a joke and it is time both sides of politics started to seriously reconsider the ongoing taxpayer bailing-out of this event.”

However, major events minister Tim Holding said the economic benefit to Victoria “far outweighs the cost” of staging the GP. “The economic value of this event to Melbourne is in the order of $62 million,” he said. “The race was seen by about 12.8 million people in Europe this year.”

Organisers of the Grand Prix said “global financial crisis continued to have a significant impact on revenue for the 2010 event”.