Property developers will again be able to donate to political parties, in sweeping law reforms
Property developers will again be able to donate to political parties, in sweeping law reforms introduced by the LNP, reversing a decision made by Annastacia Palaszczuk. VOTE IN OUR POLL
Property developers will again be able to donate to political parties and prisoners serving more than one year in jail will be barred from voting in Queensland elections in sweeping law reforms the government says will “level the playing field”.
Attorney-General Deb Frecklington tabled a series of major electoral law changes on the final sitting day of parliament 2025.
They include lifting the ban on property developer political donations at state elections.
Property developers were banned from donating to political parties in 2018 by the Palaszczuk government after a CCC investigation found property developers were influencing local councils through donations.
The LNP at the time said the move to extend the donor ban to state elections was politically motivated and a financial gerrymander.
Premier David Crisafulli last year vowed to remove the ban, declaring “you cannot have one rule for one class and another rule for the unions”.
Ms Frecklington, introducing the election law amendments on Thursday, said the changes would finally “right that wrong” and “level the playing field”.
Property developers will still be banned from donating to local governments, with an additional offence introduced that prohibits a political party from donating to a local government election campaign.
Ms Frecklington said the changes properly reflected the outcomes of the CCC Belcarra investigation, which only recommended restriction of developer donations for local elections.
“The level of government that determines approvals for property sits with the local government,” she said.
“It doesn’t sit with the federal government, it doesn’t sit with the state and that’s exactly why all relevant disclosures will be made.”
However, legislation introduced by the Crisafulli government also dictates that all Olympic and Paralympic related infrastructure will be decided solely by the state’s GIICA board, not local governments, raising the question of whether MPs could be unduly influenced by developers looking to secure 2032 projects.
Ms Frecklington, asked whether this would open corruption risk for the LNP ahead of the 2032 Games, said the state government would “govern with integrity and honesty, openness and accountability”.
“That’s exactly why people can go onto the ECQ website at any time or day they wish, and have a look at who’s donated to every party,” she said.
Shadow Attorney-General Meaghan Scanlon said the LNP did not tell Queenslanders plans to increase donation caps at the state election.
“This arrogant LNP government is using its big majority to increase the donation cap from $12,000 to $48,000,” she said.
“At a time when there should be less money and influence in politics, the LNP is giving the top end of town even more influence.”
Greens MP Michael Berkman called the bill an “obscene” move by the LNP, saying it undermined all electoral funding reform.
He said allowing developer donations would severely impact ordinary Queenslanders seeking meaningful action on the housing crisis.
“This is just a blatant effort from the LNP to line their own pockets with developer donations and legalise another avenue of corruption in Queensland,” he said.
Mr Berkman said all corporate donations should be banned.
“I don’t have any faith that developer disclosure or donation disclosure is actually going to work,” he said.
“Its not going to interrupt that direct purchase of ministerial time and government decisions.
“Ultimately, we should move to a system where there were no political donations whatsoever, and where elections were publicly funded in a fair and equal way.”
Under the sweeping changes, donation caps will also be quadrupled.
Currently, donors cannot give more than $4,800 to a party or more than $7,200 to a candidate within a four year period.
That limit will change to a period of one financial year.
It would give donors the ability to make up to $19,200 to a party and $28,800 for an individual each election cycle.
“The bill amends the donation cap to be each financial year, with the amounts to be indexed each financial year,” Ms Frecklington said.
“It simplifies the electoral donation framework, making it easier to understand for electoral participants.”
The new donation cap period will apply retrospectively to the first of July 2025.
The LNP has received $1.4m in donations over the past six months compared to Labor’s $400,000 in donations.
Ms Frecklington, asked whether the law changes benefited her party the most given the disparity in donations, said “no, not at all”.
“Because what I’d say to that is that just shows how bad the Labor Party are doing at the moment,” she said.
“People have a right to express their political wish and want.
“We’re not treating people as criminals like the Labor Party did who set up a financial gerrymander for themselves.
“We’re not restricting the trade unions, so we’re not doing what the Labor Party would do by restricting their massive donors.”
Property developer donations were one of six reforms proposed under the Electoral Act.
Among the other changes is the removal of the requirement for the Queensland Electoral Commission to oversee preselection ballots - a rule that applies uniquely to the LNP as Labor directly appoints candidates through its union-based factions.
Parties will also be allowed to draw from regulated financial institutions, or banks, to fill their election warchests.
And election materials will be able to be distributed up to 12 months prior to election day, instead of the currently regulated 26 days.
Ms Frecklington said this was to ensure greater transparency and accountability in election material.
“What we’re doing is ensuring that those scare campaigns just can’t happen,” she said.
Asked why the government did not just include Truth in Political Advertising laws, Ms Freckling said there was already quite a bit in the bill and to “wait and see”.
She also confirmed the LNP remained committed to introducing optional preferential voting before 2028.
Prisoners serving a sentence of more than one year will also no longer be entitled to vote.
Previously, prisoners serving sentences up to three years were allowed to vote at both state and local government elections.
Ms Frecklington said this was “unacceptable and an insult to victims”.
Queenslanders aged over 18 who were sentenced to detention for a period of one year or more as a juvenile offender and are still serving that sentence as an adult will also no longer be entitled to vote.
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