Editorial: Handout sugar hit a cynical vote grab

It might seem in the moment an easy solution to an immediate problem, but in reality Labor’s cash splash is totally unsustainable, and seriously damaging to future wellbeing, writes the editor.

The Queensland Labor government’s decision to use some of the cash it has made from royalties on the state’s finite coal assets to fund a voter sugar hit is the equivalent of drawing down on the equity in your home to pay this week’s grocery bill.

It might seem in the moment an easy solution to an immediate problem, but in reality it is totally unsustainable, and seriously damaging to future wellbeing.

And so when state Treasurer Cameron Dick claims the plan to give every household $1000 off power bills from July at a cost of $2.5bn is “a responsible thing for government to do”, he is wrong.

It is actually the exact opposite. This is a cynical and desperate move by a government that has shown it is willing to trash any pretence of responsible economic management in an increasingly panicked attempt to try to remain competitive at the October state election by blatantly bribing voters.

Perhaps it will work, as handing out $1000 to every household – rich and poor alike – will likely be a popular thing, particularly in the middle of a very real cost-of-living crisis, in which Queenslanders are genuinely hurting. But still, it is evidence that this government has a pretty insulting view of voters.

If this really was about helping those people struggling with cost-of-living pressures, would you not make at least some effort to target those households most in need? Nope, because this is base buy-vote politics – pure and simple.

The obvious political motivation aside, such blanket subsidies are fundamentally bad ideas for all sorts of reasons.

Most notably, there is the long-term cost. As economist Gene Tunny, of Adept Economics, points out, “taxpayers will bear the brunt of this cash splash for years, if not decades, to come”.

Had this not been funded by some of the royalties Treasurer Dick has taken – without warning – from the profits of coalminers, the ongoing interest bill on $2.5bn would be $100m to $125m a year.

Mr Dick says there is nothing to worry about, because the $2.5bn is indeed being paid for by those coal royalties. But the opposite also applies here – the cash the state could generate if you invested, or even banked, that $2.5bn instead.

And that is perhaps the most depressing part of this expensive vote-buying stunt – the truth that Queensland may never ever have it so good again when it comes to coal royalties.

When in September 2022 Mr Dick announced his controversial new coal royalties regime – designed to capture a bigger share of record high coal prices – he predicted it would add about $1.2bn to state coffers.

The reality, fuelled by record high prices and demand, has been a windfall beyond even the most optimistic treasurer’s dreams – an extra $20bn or so depending on where you start and finish your calculations.

And so this really was a once-in-a-generation opportunity to set up Queensland’s budget for the
long-term – enough money perhaps to seed a genuine Future Fund for the state and its people.

But no. Instead the government has blown the entire cost of a new stadium on a single hand-out.

Mr Dick insists he is spending all the extra money wisely and well, citing the government’s $90bn, four-year Big Build capital works program. But in the next breath, he reveals that net state debt could reach $73bn by 2028 – five times higher than $15bn currently. Add in all the money owed by state-owned energy and water companies and the expected figure jumps to $188bn, from a current $110bn.

So despite this unprecedented windfall, the government has kept borrowing at unprecedented levels, while also still finding a lazy couple of billion dollars for some blatant pre-election voter bribery.

This is most definitely not “a responsible thing” to do.

The move also does nothing to solve the underlying problem of high retail power prices.

It literally just papers over that far greater problem until after the election. And we wonder why are all so cynical these days.

BETTER VISION ON ROADS

The release of vital road safety data, previously kept secret from Australians will be made public for the first time following a campaign led by The Courier-Mail.

The federal government announced yesterday it would begin releasing information about road conditions and dangerous sections – a key recommendation from the Australian Automobile Association which sought to make funding announcements transparent and increase accountability.

The announcement comes after The Courier-Mail and our regional mastheads exposed alarming safety concerns on the Bruce Highway in our campaign Help Our Highway.

AAA managing director Michael Bradley said: “This is a win for motorists and a win for taxpayers because it’s a reform that will not just save lives but it will go a long way to ending pork barrelling and the politicisation of road funding,”

The move is to be applauded as an important step towards finally fixing the Bruce. There is still more to do, however – and we will keep fighting.

Responsibility for election comment is taken by Chris Jones, corner of Mayne Rd & Campbell St, Bowen Hills, Qld 4006. Printed and published by NEWSQUEENSLAND (ACN 009 661 778). Contact details here