LNP slams Labor for ‘cheering’ budget, but premier notes a lack of ‘new money’

The news

Queensland Opposition Leader David Crisafulli says the federal budget is a choice by the Albanese government to prioritise its political survival over infrastructure planning in one of the country’s fastest-growing states.

Even Labor Premier Steven Miles acknowledged the lack of new money from his federal party mates for road and rail projects, with others scaled back or facing unanswered questions since the last budget.

“I’m not going to ... just sit down and roll over in the way that the state government has done”: LNP leader David Crisafulli.Credit: Dan Peled

But he stopped short of outright criticism.

“This was a budget that prioritised contributing to the costs of households. So, you shouldn’t be surprised that there wasn’t lots of new money for lots of new projects,” Miles told a media conference in Bundaberg on Wednesday.

At a Sunshine Coast media conference of his own, Crisafulli said: “the federal government’s chosen short-term political survival in southern states over long-term infrastructure planning”.

Why it matters

Queensland is the third-most populous state with population growth to match in the year to September – and is growing faster than forecast in the last federal budget.

But consecutive record coal-driven state budget surpluses have driven an expected drop of almost $1 billion in GST funding as the Commonwealth also straddles cost-of-living pressures, inflation and construction pipeline crunches.

This federal budget, with a surplus of $9.3 billion, could be the Albanese government’s last before an election due by next May. Miles’ government will deliver its next budget on June 11, before an election in October amid souring polls.

What they said

Crisafulli used his media conference, and social media posts, to accuse federal Labor of failing to deliver for the growing state in the budget and highlighting hundreds of millions of dollars in lower infrastructure, health and housing payments across coming years.

“And today, the premier and the [state] government are cheering,” the LNP leader said. “I’m sorry, I’m not going to cop that and just sit down and roll over in the way that the state government has done.”

Miles, former premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and their third-term government have not previously shied away from criticising Canberra colleagues – pushing for more infrastructure funding as recently as Tuesday.

On Wednesday, he hailed the budget as a “win for Queenslanders” and welcomed the federal $300 energy bill rebate for every household, which he said followed the path of the state’s fast-tracked $1000 rebates.

Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner, another LNP heavyweight, said the budget was a missed opportunity that locked the city into “a cycle of worsening congestion” by covering only cost escalations on existing road and rail projects in the broader south-east region.

Where to from here

State Health Minister Shannon Fentiman, speaking alongside Miles, said while the government was yet to see more money from new state and federal health funding negotiations, the talks were “progressing”.

Miles reiterated previous comments that “there won’t be a lot of other shiny new announcements” in the looming state budget, either – a budget his treasurer Cameron Dick has warned would be “difficult”, with focus on cost-of-living relief.

Brisbane-based federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton will deliver his budget reply speech on Thursday night. Crisafulli will have to do so himself after the state budget next month, in which – or after – he will face increasing pressure to further detail the LNP’s election platform.