The opposition leader ended a press conference as she was asked whether her policy to pause and review the project would mean tools down on construction sites.

The documents were tabled to Victoria’s parliament on Friday afternoon as part of the government’s “dump day” tradition, including reports that exposed major failings in the health system and budget blowouts.

Both major parties are ensnared in a conundrum: what to do with a major project that is too big to fail and increasingly expensive to build?