No risk of losing Games amid questions over Gabba rebuild

Premier Steven Miles says Olympic events could be moved out of the southeast in an effort to cut costs, but declared no risk to Brisbane losing the Games altogether if the Gabba was not redeveloped.

• Analysis: Premier’s Gabba games

Premier Steven Miles says Olympic events could be moved out of the southeast in an effort to cut costs, but declared no risk to Brisbane losing the Games altogether if the Gabba was not redeveloped.

After this week revealing he had tasked former Lord Mayor Graham Quirk with a “blank sheet” review of Games’ venues, Mr Miles said on Friday “nothing was out of the question”.

Asked about a push by his Labor colleague Don Brown to scrap the $100m Redland Whitewater Centre at Birkdale – and send the event to Sydney instead – the Premier said he had “known for a long time” about the concerns held by the Capalaba MP.

Questions hang over the future of the Gabba after Steven Miles ordered a review of Olympics venues. Source: Queensland Government

“Nothing is out of the question here, and if there is a venue that is going to cost us potentially hundreds of millions of dollars, and the community doesn’t want it, well, that’s not the whole idea of Brisbane 2032,” he said.

“It’s not the whole idea of the new norms and so they’re all things that can be considered.”

But while the Premier said he did not want “to see many more events go to other states”, he was open to moving events out of Brisbane.

“I think we’ve been very generous in agreeing to share some of the preliminary football with Sydney and Melbourne,” he said.

“But this is a Queensland Games and so, if we’re moving more events out of the southeast, I’d prefer to see them go to regional parts of Queensland. We’ve already got plans for events in Toowoomba, Townsville and Cairns.

“I’d like to see more utilisation of our venues there, as well as places like Mackay and Rockhampton.”

Mr Miles said this week he hoped Mr Quirk’s review would find an alternative to the current plan to completely knockdown and rebuild the Gabba stadium for the Games, for an estimated $2.7bn.

Premier Steven Miles at a media conference in Brisbane on Friday. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

But when asked, the Premier was adamant that despite the Gabba being touted as the event's main stadium in the official host questionnaire delivered to the International Olympic Committee, any differentiation would not risk Brisbane losing the Games.

“There’s no risk here to the Olympic and Paralympic Games,” he said.

“Brisbane 2032 will be the best games ever. I’m absolutely determined of that, and that’s one of the reasons that this review is important.

“We bid for the Olympics under the new norms, and the whole point of the new norms was not to burden communities with costs that they don’t need, for projects that they don’t need. “Historically, that’s what the Olympics have seen – stadiums that aren’t required for their cities.

“The reason we bid for the Olympic and Paralympics was to bring forward infrastructure and sure, some of that is venues, but the focus has been too much on venues.”

Pressed on whether his department had been pressured by him as Infrastructure Minister to provide advice recommending the Gabba was rebuilt, Mr Miles said it was “actually quite the opposite of that”.

“The advice I asked for was to find me viable alternatives – I would have much preferred different advice at the time,” he said.

“I said, ‘find me an alternative’. And at that time, we were unable to, and I’ve released as much of the information throughout that process as I could. As much of that advice, and that assessment, as I could.

Former Brisbane lord mayor Graham Quirk will undertake a 60-day review of proposed 2032 Olympic and Paralympic venues. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

“I think this review is really going to have to go to wider questions than we considered at that time.”

Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee president Andrew Liveris said he welcomed the announcement of the review.

“The Olympic and Paralympic Games will be the biggest event that Queensland has hosted, with billions tuning in, millions travelling and visiting Brisbane, Queensland and Australia, and enduring, positive legacies generated across communities,” Mr Liveris said.

“We look forward to working closely with the Queensland Government, review leaders and other stakeholders as we continue to plan for an Olympic and Paralympic Games to be proud of.”

Mr Quirk, who will be supported by independent adviser Ken Kanofski and experienced global partnerships expert Michelle Morris, will provide the findings of the review to State Development Minister Grace Grace on March 18.