Covid Qld: Annastacia Palaszczuk won’t reveal full Wellcamp cost

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk will only reveal the construction cost of the state’s controversial quarantine hub, leaving questions about its operating expenses.

The price tag for the state’s Wellcamp quarantine facility remains secret despite Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk declaring she would finally reveal how much taxpayers had tipped in, but only if the Commonwealth revealed its quarantine facility costs.

The State Government would only confirm a partial costing of $48.8 million for the project’s capital costs yesterday, refusing to reveal the overall budget including the lease.

Ms Palaszczuk’s shock declaration came after nearly six months of repeatedly insisting the budget could never be made public because it was “commercial-in-confidence”, leading to confusion around what had suddenly changed.

Under sustained questioning as she officially opened the 1000-bed Toowoomba facility, Ms Palaszczuk said she would be “more than happy to release our costs” if the Federal Government also revealed how much its Pinkenba quarantine facility in Brisbane’s east was costing.

Opposition finance spokesman Jarrod Bleijie accused Ms Palaszczuk of a political “own goal” and said she had accidentally revealed there was actually nothing stopping her from releasing the cost.

It comes as the Opposition wrote to the state’s Auditor-General requesting he undertake an independent audit of the Wellcamp project, rumoured to be costing north of $200 million but so far only hosting a maximum of 60 guests since it opened this month.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk at the Wellcamp quarantine hub yesterday. Picture: Nev Madsen

The Federal Government has committed to revealing the cost of the Pinkenba facility – which is one of three centres nationwide – once it nears completion.

The budget for all three is $1.3 billion, with the Brisbane site expected to cost $350 million to $400 million.

The State Government won’t outline lease costs with the Wagner Corporation, which owns the land, or the cost of paying Aspen Medical to provide health services.

Ms Palaszczuk and State Development Minister Steven Miles were forced to defend the secrecy of the Wellcamp bill yesterday, insisting it was commercial-in-confidence.

Asked whether taxpayers should have a right to know how much public money was being spent, Ms Palaszczuk pointed to the Federal Government’s facility.

“Some matters are commercial-in-confidence and this is a lease agreement,” she said.

“Now the Federal Government is also building a Pinkenba facility.

“If at some stage they want to release those costs, we are more than happy to release our costs.”

Pressed on why that was a bar for releasing information, Ms Palaszczuk said there seemed to be “one standard for the State and one standard for the Federal Government”, while saying the lease was commercial-in-confidence.

Ms Palaszczuk assured Queenslanders the Wellcamp quarantine facility would be put to good use and that she was “future-proofing this state” for whatever “is thrown our way”.

But Wagner chairman John Wagner has repeatedly said he does not want the cost of the contract with the Government to be disclosed.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk (centre) at the Wellcamp hub with owner John Wagner (far left) and State Development Minister Steven Miles (far right). Picture: Nev Madsen

“That’s a matter for ourselves and the Government to discuss, but I really feel quite strongly that we bid it, and we don’t want people knowing what our commercial deals are,” he said last month.

The Government is leasing the 1000-bed facility from Wagner Corp for one year, with the first 500 beds having opened this month.

The remaining 500 are expected to be finished by the end of March.

It comes as Mr Bleijie wrote to Auditor-General Brendan Worrall requesting an audit of the project “with the aim of determining” the entire cost and if the procurement methodology delivered best value to taxpayers.

He also wants to know whether the government’s use of commercial-in-confidence provisions aligned with its confidentiality provisions and whether recommendations of the Audit Office’s Confidentiality and disclosure of government contracts 2017-18 report were implemented and applied for Wellcamp.

The Government said yesterday the facility would be used for a raft of purposes, including housing unvaccinated international arrivals, seasonal workforces whose vaccinations didn’t meet TGA requirements, and people unable to isolate at home.

Ms Palaszczuk said she was very proud of the facility, which was state of the art, and that it was her understanding that it cost less than similar hubs across the country.

Mr Miles said a huge emphasis had been placed on sourcing local staff and using local businesses on the project, while Mr Wagner said 85 per cent of everything on site had been procured from the Toowoomba region.