Palaszczuk government and Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner clash over RNA stadium plans

The bungling of the state government’s bombshell demand for key stakeholders to share the cost burden for a new $137m boutique Brisbane stadium has it on a war footing with council and two sporting bodies.

Artist impression of what the RNA Main Arena might look like during the Gabba redevelopment.

• Revealed: New boutique stadium
• Battlelines: ‘Out of control’ Games plan

The bungling of the state government’s bombshell demand for key stakeholders to share the cost burden for a new $137m boutique Brisbane stadium has placed Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on a war footing with council and two revered sporting bodies.

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner on Friday sensationally accused the government of attempting to extort Brisbane City Council as he categorically refused to contribute funds to redevelop the RNA stadium as a temporary replacement while the Gabba is being rebuilt.

The expectation that AFL and cricket would also fork out tens of millions of dollars left Queensland Cricket and the Brisbane Lions shocked and blindsided.

The Courier-Mail revealed on Friday that the government offered almost $50m towards the construction, with Brisbane City Council, the RNA, QC and the Lions asked to pay the remainder.

But this request was rejected by Mr Schrinner, who said “we’re not contributing the ridiculous amount of money the state is trying to extort from Brisbane ratepayers”.

“While we may consider a small contribution, what’s currently proposed is a blatant attempt to rip off ratepayers to help cover their Gabba blowout,” he said.

“It was the state’s decision to tear down the Gabba so it’s the state’s responsibility to find the Lions and Heat a home.”

When asked how it would cover the cost of the stadium if its key partners refused to chip in, the government had no answers.

Sport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe insisted on Friday morning that the announcement was the “beginning of a conversation”.

Sports Minister Stirling Hinchliffe parading a previous newspaper clipping from The Courier-Mail in which Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner backs a stadium at the RNA showgrounds.

He maintained the stakeholders were in discussion with government and negotiations would progress, and was dismissive of Mr Schrinner’s escalation of the political stoush.

“I welcome the growing maturity of the Lord Mayor’s acknowledgment that a Brisbane City Council contribution could be made,” he said.

“Let’s leave off the noise and distraction to start negotiations as other stakeholders have flagged.”

The Courier-Mail can reveal the two sporting codes were yet to agree last night to the government request, with one insider saying they were “so far off starting the discussion”.

It is understood key figures in the AFL and cricket were furious to learn of the deal in a bungled announcement after pleading for months for transparency about where they would be based while the Gabba was being rebuilt.

Behind the scenes, the sporting codes were deeply disappointed by the handling and were last night still formulating a plan of attack.

The government is also battling an internal war, with Labor MPs in revolt after finding out about the plan in The Courier-Mail on Friday.

There are fears among party figures that the announcement of a new cost burden would further irritate voters.

The increase of the Gabba rebuild to $2.7bn from the ambitious early estimate of $1bn has already caused political headaches. And the $137m cost to develop RNA is well above the $80m originally flagged mid-last year.

On Friday morning, Mr Hinchliffe fronted media parading a previous newspaper clipping from The Courier-Mail featuring an interview with Mr Schrinner calling for the RNA Showgrounds to be the temporary sporting base.

“Let’s be clear,” he said. “The Lord Mayor of Brisbane made it very clear that he thought this was the right solution – he thinks this is the right thing for Brisbane.

“But when it’s come to actually putting forward some commitment to something that delivers for 2032 (Olympic and Paralympic Games) and our city’s ambitions and our region’s ambitions for years to come, he’s left pretending like he’s got no capacity to make a difference.

“This is a local government that collects $1.3bn worth of rates – I think it’s time they stepped up and contributed to what we’re trying to achieve for South East Queensland.”

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner.

A tweet by Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner.

Mr Hinchliffe refused to say if the government would cough up the full amount if the other partners refused to contribute: “We have made it clear that we’ve put forward a third of the $137m cost and we wanted to look forward to seeing the other partners contribute and we see this as something that should be the role of the City of Brisbane to deliver.

Ms Palaszczuk was also grilled about the cost imposition and the future of the proposal without financial support from stakeholders.

She refused to provide details, instead declaring the council “needs to step up”.

“The Lord Mayor ... had a front-page photo sitting at the RNA saying it’s the best option,” she said. “So what the Queensland government has done is a very reasonable proposition that we will put in a third, the RNA puts in a third and the Brisbane City Council puts in a third.

“You don’t go and do photo ops and not stump up the cash. I’m sorry, it doesn’t work like that. And we’re not saying to the Brisbane City Council do it all. We’re saying let’s work in a partnership. And just think about the legacy item there of doing up the RNA Showgrounds.

“It actually is time for it to be rejuvenated.”

When quizzed about the mounting blowouts associated with the Games, Ms Palaszczuk said the relative costs were minor.

“The money that is being spent on infrastructure is a fraction of the price of what has been spent on infrastructure and right across Queensland,” she said.

“There is joint state and federal money for a whole range of facilities across regional Queensland as well and hopefully we’ll be able to announce that money very shortly as well. I want all of regional Queensland to share in the Olympics, not just Brisbane.”

A plan of the new boutique stadium