Hervey Bay MP David Lee claims Labor’s Adrian Tantari misled voters over unfunded fire station

A Qld MP has told parliament his Labor predecessor and party peddled misleading claims and campaign flyers falsely stating an unfunded, unbuilt fire station had been “delivered”.

The vacant lot where Labor has pledged to build a new fire station on the corner of Doolong Rd and Main St in Hervey Bay.

Hervey Bay MP David Lee has delivered a fiery speech in parliament, claiming the Labor campaign to re-elect his predecessor “pitched a misleading and deceptive story” that a new fire station building had been “delivered”.

Tabling Labor’s “delivered for you” flyer from the state election campaign, which included new fire and rescue station for the electorate, Mr Lee said the former MP “made express and implied pre-election representations to the Hervey Bay community to mislead the electorate into the erroneous assumption that a new … fire and rescue station had been delivered”.

He also referred to the adjournment speed made by Mr Tantari on the floor of parliament in which he said, “I told them we would deliver this new state of the art station and that has been done”.

Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli and now Member for Hervey Bay David Lee during the election campaign. Picture: Liam Kidston

Mr Lee, in his speech on Thursday, warned “this may arguably have misled the House”.

“The facts are – Labor have not delivered a new fire and rescue station – an inconvenient truth for Labor,” Mr Lee said.

“We all know Labor will inevitably take the low and predictable road and falsely claim the Crisafulli Government cut the unfunded Hervey Bay fire and rescue project – the facts disclose a very different story.

The campaign flyer distributed by Adrian Tantari's camp during the state election campaign.

During the campaign a maroon Queensland Government banner and construction fencing was put up at the vacant block on the corner of Main St and Doolong Road which had been acquired in 2024 (Labor had originally announced a new fire and rescue station for Hervey Bay in 2022).

However, other than a fresh mow, no work was carried out on the property and, as pointed out by Mr Lee in parliament on Thursday, funding for the build was “not even identified” in the 2025 capital budget papers.

“The desperate former Member for Hervey Bay simply peddled mistruths and disinformation,” Mr Lee told parliament.

“Our hardworking Hervey Bay fire and rescue service personnel deserve more than Labor’s slick slogans and vacuous promises”.

During a Meet the Candidates forum in Hervey Bay last year Mr Tantari listed the new fire station as one of his achievements.

Former Qld Premier Steven Miles visits Urangan Pier in Hervey Bay with ex-Maryborough MP Bruce Saunders, and former Hervey Bay MP Adrian Tantari during the election campaign. PICTURE: Adam Head

He has been contacted for comment.

The State Opposition has also been contacted.

When first asked about the fire station funding immediately after the election, Shadow Fire Minister Nikki Boyd said “Labor secured the land for the fire station, and it’s now on David Lee and the LNP to deliver it, or come clean to the Hervey Bay community and admit they’ll cut it”.

FOLLOW MORE STATE PARLIAMENT COVERAGE HERE. 

Originally published as Hervey Bay MP David Lee claims Labor’s Adrian Tantari misled voters over unfunded fire station