Qld 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games independent infrastructure body scrapped

The Deputy Premier has revealed an independent agency to oversee critical infrastructure for the 2032 Games will not go ahead and instead decisions will be shared between his department and the Premier’s.

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Deputy Premier Steven Miles has revealed there will be no independent agency that will oversee the critical infrastructure needed for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Mr Miles, the Minister Assisting the Premier on Olympic and Paralympic Games Infrastructure, confirmed for the first time on Thursday that any such independent agency had been scrapped.

He said a co-ordination agency would instead sit in-house with the state government, because the infrastructure that is being built is for Queenslanders.

Mr Miles insisted the responsible state government agencies were capable of delivering the relevant infrastructure.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Deputy Premier Steven Miles. Picture: Evan Morgan

He also denied that it would lead to less transparency over the delivery of the Games, and suggested an independent authority would be another level of bureaucracy.

“These are projects that the government delivers all of the time,” Mr Miles said.

The government is insisting the model has been agreed to in principle with local and federal government.

Annastacia Palaszczuk’s Department of Premier and Cabinet will be responsible for the overall co-ordination, while Mr Miles’s department of State Development will be in charge of infrastructure.

“I understand the intention was always to have a co-ordinating agency,” Mr Miles said.

“The arrangements that we have made though with the Queensland government solely leading and delivering the Gabba build means there is no need for a whole new bureaucracy.”

An Olympic Coordination Authority was a key part of the submission taken to Tokyo to secure the 2032 Games.

Within the submission, it said the OCA “will be established as a government entity with Australian, Queensland and Local Government representatives”.

“It will have the capacity to co-ordinate the activities of all Australian and Queensland government departments and agencies with responsibilities for Games – related matters.

“This shared governance model will ensure public authorities have full oversight of all Games projects from the planning, scoping and design phase through to contracting, construction and delivery.”

The submission also said the expected timing of the OCA would be within five months of winning the bid – about December 2021.

Mr Miles’ admission on Thursday comes after months of the government dodging questions over whether the authority would take shape.

Both Mr Miles and Ms Palaszczuk have said via spokespeople “announcement would be made when appropriate” when asked for more details.

The submission also includes a breakdown of the key roles of which the OCA was expected to take charge.