Queensland Government told to get Gold Coast council representative on Olympic committee
The decision to not have a Gold Coast representative on the Olympic organising committee has received fierce backlash and the Palaszczuk Government has been asked to fix it.
Gold Coast
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THE Palaszczuk government must intervene and appoint a Gold Coast council representative on the new Olympic organising committee, state Parliament has been told.
On Wednesday, the Bulletin revealed the city had been exiled from the powerful committee, despite hosting up to nine sports and an athletes village for the 2032 Olympics.
Instead, a local government spot on the 20-person board has gone to Redlands Mayor Karen Williams, overseeing one event – white-water rafting. The decision prompted Coast Mayor Tom Tate to write to Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
Referring to the decision by the Council of Mayors, Mr Tate said Coast residents would view this as “a classic case of ‘Brisbane knows what is best for the Gold Coast’”.
Veteran Coast LNP MP Ray Stevens, speaking in the House on laws to create the Games committee, said he was disappointed that the Council of Mayors had snubbed the Coast.
He recalled how Labor reached out to him as a former mayor to be part of the Indy organising committee, and that arrangement had helped make the race a successful, long-running event.
Mr Stevens said the appointments were Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner’s choice.
“I found it very disappointing to see in the media that the lord mayor has made his pick before the legislation has passed,” he said.
“I find that hard to understand, because the Gold Coast conducted a very successful Commonwealth Games – but the experience gained from that Commonwealth Games is not being utilised at this stage by including the representative of the City of Gold Coast.”
Mr Stevens said there was still an opportunity for Mr Tate to be on the board. The Premier could make a “captain’s call”.
“I hark back to an era when the Indy was flagging. Then sports minister Bob Gibbs moved it to Tom Burns, a great Labor politician – they could do with his talent here today, I can assure you,” Mr Stevens said.
“Tom Burns called the then mayor of the Gold Coast directly – that would be me – and said basically, ‘You have to get on to this Indy committee to take the Indy event out to the community. It will not work unless we have the local government support for the matter’.
“We did and it continued on to be a very successful event.
“This particular board needs to include the major representative – I am not talking about the mayor here today, it could be the lady mayor next time or whatever, but it should be the mayor of the Gold Coast.”
Lord Mayor Schrinner told the Bulletin the decision was by the Council of Mayors, he was a fan of Mr Tate and would back him getting a board seat.
How Brisbane snubbed Coast in Olympics
December 1, 2021
The Gold Coast will host up to nine sports and an athletes village, and put up $200m of ratepayer-owned facilities at the 2032 Olympic Games.
But it won’t have a say on how it’s all run.
In what’s been dubbed an “insipid and short-sighted” political play, the Gold Coast has been exiled from the powerful organising committee.
Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner has given a local government spot on the 20-person board to Redlands Mayor Karen Williams, despite her overseeing one event – white-water rafting – at a facility yet to be built at Birkdale.
Redlands’ population is less than a quarter the size of the Gold Coast.
Gold Coast political leaders are furious, given the city’s co-host status, and have urged Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk to override the snub.
“Gold Coast ratepayers will continue to fund the maintenance and upgrade of venues over the next 11 years, so they are in first-class order for an event of the magnitude of the 2032 Games,” Mayor Tom Tate said in a letter to the Premier.
“I find it incongruous the Gold Coast would not formally command a position on a board of 20 people. Residents will quite rightly see this as a slight on our city and a classic case of ‘Brisbane knows what is best for the Gold Coast’.”
The Coast had already felt snubbed after losing the marathon to the Sunshine Coast and golf to Brisbane.
City leaders are lobbying to get it back at a top Coast course.
Mr Tate said the solution was for new legislation, before Parliament, to be repackaged to include assigning a board position to the Gold Coast.
He supported government policy on equal female board representation and any problems could be solved by appointing Deputy Mayor Donna Gates.
Mr Schrinner’s decision to appoint Ms Williams was “flawed” and Mr Tate has raised “that insipid and short-sighted decision” directly with him, he said.
After reading the notes accompanying the legislation to create the board, Cr Tate branded the decision to exclude the Coast as “bizarre”.
Membership of the board should be set to ensure voting rights reflect the Games partners’ level of investment and risk, the notes said.
“I cannot see how the government can support legislation able to be manipulated to act against its own principles,” Cr Tate wrote.
“The legislation needs to be amended on the floor of Parliament so the Parliament can keep faith with the principles it is promoting in establishing the Corporation.
“Those principles will otherwise be rightly seen by the Gold Coast population as empty words able to be manipulated at will for petty political interests.”
At the recent Business Excellence Awards, the Premier indicated there would be some Coast representation.
Mr Schrinner confirmed the decision was made by the Council of Mayors but he back Cr Tate being on the Board.
Proposed law required he consult the Council of Mayors (COMSEQ) before nominating the other local government representative.
“The State’s proposed law requires that I consult COMSEQ before nominating the other local government representative to the organising committee.” he said.
“To meet this requirement, COMSEQ members recently voted and chose Mayor Williams.
Unfortunately, Mayor Tate ruled himself out when he quit COMSEQ in June.
“However, I am a big fan of Tom’s and would happily write a letter supporting him if wants one of the Premier’s positions on the committee.”
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