$800k spent on consultants to tell government to axe Olympic body

Queensland taxpayers forked out close to $800,000 to consultants to tell the state government it should scrap a planned independent Olympic infrastructure body.

Queensland taxpayers forked out close to $800,000 for a third-party consultant to tell the state government it should scrap a planned independent Olympic infrastructure body.

The state government controversially scrapped the Olympic Coordination Authority (OCA) ­­– which would have been an agency involving all levels of government to oversee Games-related infrastructure in March – despite it being in the original bid.

At the time, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk pointed to an unreleased report prepared by Deloitte into the Games governance arrangements, saying the report recommended the establishment of a Brisbane 2032 Coordination Office.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk. Picture: Dan Peled / NCA NewsWire

A question on notice to the Premier has now revealed Deloitte were paid $788,317 to prepare the report, which was delivered to the government in February.

It also confirmed Deloitte was engaged in May 2022 – about six months after the original bid documents said the OCA should already have been established.

The lack of such a body was criticised by a number of people including Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner, who said in December it was the issue which was “costing me sleep at night” – more than 500 days after he travelled to Tokyo with Ms Palaszczuk to secure the Games.

Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison also weighed in, saying it was a key component when he agreed in principal with the Premier that the federal government would back a 50:50 funding agreement on Games infrastructure.

That funding agreement was ultimately formalised without the body established in February this year.

A government spokesman told The Sunday Mail “Deloitte provided expert advice having spent nine months consulting with Games Partners and all levels of government”.

“The report, announced in March, was accepted and endorsed by the delivery partners including International Olympic Committee Vice President John Coates, who said it showed eminent sense, cut red and saves costs.”

The Deloitte report recommended, according to the state government, a recognition of the Queensland’s government’s “existing expertise in delivering infrastructure”.

“The model leverages existing capability and legislative powers within agencies,” the report stated.

“There is a high level of goodwill and willingness to co-operate among Games Delivery Partners which good governance will facilitate …”

The report has not been made publicly available.

Director-General of the Department of Regional Development, Manufacturing and Water Graham Fraine was appointed to oversee the Coordination office.

LNP treasury spokesman David Janetzki said it was clear the government had spent more than three quarters of a million dollars to justify their political decision not to set up an independent Olympic infrastructure body.

“This is $788,000 of taxpayers’ money Premier Palaszczuk has used to justify her own decision to take complete control of the Olympics for herself,” he said.

“This is a direct violation of the Coaldrake Review which warned against the government’s ‘overreliance on external contractors and consultants’ accelerating ‘an identifiable loss of capacity in the public service.

“The longer the Palaszczuk Labor Government remain in power the more taxpayers’ money they waste fuelling their own political wills instead of delivering better outcomes for Queenslanders.”