LNP delivers first budget since 2014: What it means for you
Queensland’s first LNP budget in more than a decade promises a “fresh start”, with targeted relief for cost of living, housing, crime and health.
Queensland’s first LNP budget in more than a decade is prioritising paying down ballooning state debt, reining in public sector spending, and delivering targeted cost-of-living relief, all while navigating a $2.3bn GST shortfall and falling coal royalty revenues.
Introduced by Treasurer David Janetzki, the budget outlines substantial investments and reforms across key sectors while also highlighting major financial hurdles and attributing issues to the former government’s legacy.
Mr Janetzki said in his speech that under the previous government, debt was forecast to reach $217.8bn in 2027-28 and on a trajectory to balloon further to $252bn in 2028-29.
“Interest costs across the forwards are now forecast to be $2.3bn lower than they would have been under Labor, which leaves more to be paid to our frontline workers rather than our lenders,” Mr Janetzki said.
“This is a budget with no new or increased taxes because it is beyond time that we restored taxation and regulatory certainty and stability.”
Here’s a breakdown of the key winners and losers in Queensland’s latest budget:
Winners
Housing and home ownership
Queenslanders struggling to find a home or buy their first property are among the biggest winners in the budget, with a record $5.6bn investment in housing.
First-home buyers will get extra support through the new $165m “Boost to Buy” program. This initiative allows the government to take an equity stake in new homes, reducing the deposit needed to as little as 2 per cent.
The program is limited to homes valued up to $1m and offers 1000 places initially, with the government flagging the possibility of additional investment in future years if demand is strong.
Eligible applicants can register their interest from July 1, with income caps set at $150,000 for singles and $225,000 for couples.
Stamp duty has also been scrapped for eligible first-home buyers purchasing new homes or vacant land since May, and the first-home owner grant has been increased to $30,000 for another 12 months.
The government has also committed to building 2000 new social homes each year until 2028, aiming to deliver 53,500 new homes for vulnerable Queenslanders by 2044.
An extra $366m has been allocated to crisis and temporary accommodation, along with a 20 per cent funding boost for specialist homelessness service providers.
For the broader housing market, $1bn from the new $2bn Residential Activation Fund will be rolled out by mid-2026 to speed up infrastructure for new developments. This is part of the government’s long-term goal to build one million homes across the state by 2044.
Cost-of-living battlers
Queenslanders struggling with everyday expenses will benefit from a range of cost-of-living measures in the budget.
One of the standout changes is the permanent introduction of 50-cent fares across all TransLink public transport, covering buses, trains, trams and ferries.
More than 600,000 vulnerable households will also receive power bill relief, with the Electricity Rebate Scheme now indexed. Eligible households can expect to save an average of $386 on electricity in the coming year.
The government is investing $26.3m in the Supercharged Solar for Renters program, offering rebates for solar installations to help cut energy bills.
In a move to keep healthcare costs down, GPs will also be permanently exempt from payroll tax – helping to avoid flow-on charges for patients.
Health and hospitals
A record $33.1bn will be spent on Queensland’s health and hospital sector, a 10.2 per cent increase on the previous year.
Central to the investment is the government’s $18.5bn Hospital Rescue Plan, which will roll out over five years from 2024-25. It includes more than 2600 extra hospital beds across the state, the construction of three new hospitals in Toowoomba, Coomera and Bundaberg, and major expansions at 10 existing hospitals including Redcliffe, Townsville, Mackay, Logan, Cairns and Ipswich.
The plan also funds a new Queensland Cancer Centre, a cardiac hybrid theatre in Rockhampton, and more than 4500 new frontline health workers in 2025-26, including doctors, nurses and paramedics.
To help reduce ambulance ramping below 30 per cent by 2028, the Queensland Ambulance Service will receive a $1bn funding boost.
An expanded Surgery Connect program is also expected to deliver 30,000 additional elective surgeries next financial year.
In a move to protect bulk billing, the government has scrapped the so-called “patients’ tax” by permanently exempting GP payments from payroll tax.
Mental health services will receive a $3.1bn investment, including two new Step Up, Step Down youth mental health facilities. All funds collected through the mental health levy will be reinvested, and additional support will be directed toward regional health initiatives.
Crime, justice and victim support
The Queensland government is ramping up its response to crime and safety with a major funding boost in the budget.
“After a decade of weakened youth crime laws, Queenslanders are grappling with a long-term crime crisis that has threatened their safety and the sanctuary of their homes and businesses and exacerbated cost-of-living pressures,” Mr Janetzki said.
A total of $347.7m has been set aside for the new Making Queensland Safer Laws package, which includes 240 new police officers within the first 200 days and a long-term goal of recruiting 1600 officers by 2028.
Victims of crime will also see stronger support. An extra $275m will go towards financial assistance, while the Victim Liaison Service receives a $11.6m funding boost.
A new Victims Advocate Service will be made permanent with $10m in annual funding.
The government has also committed $2.4bn to expand prison capacity and $76.3m to upgrade courthouses, including improved facilities for victims of domestic and family violence.
An additional $73.5m has been allocated to repair Queensland’s troubled forensics system and tackle longstanding backlogs in evidence processing.
Investment in schools and skills
Queensland’s public education system is set to receive the biggest funding boost in the state’s history, with the 2025-26 budget delivering major investments in schools and skills development.
The budget includes funding to build 15 new schools; among them, two primary schools, a high school, and six special schools.
The government has also secured an extra $2.8bn over 10 years from the Commonwealth through the Better and Fairer Schools Agreement.
Families with school-aged children will get extra help too. Parents of primary school students will receive a $100 Back to School Boost voucher each year to help cover school supplies, and the new $200 Play On! vouchers will assist with sports costs for children aged 5 to 17.
There will also be new funding for anti-bullying initiatives and Rapid Support Squads to improve student wellbeing.
To support training and workforce development, $201.1m will go towards creating four new TAFE Centres of Excellence in key industries.
The popular 50 per cent Apprentice Payroll Tax Rebate has also been extended for another year, helping businesses take on and retain more apprentices.
Record infrastructure plan
The Queensland government has announced a record-breaking $116.8bn capital works program over the next four years, its largest ever infrastructure spend, aimed at boosting the economy and preparing the state for the future.
A major share of that will go towards roads, with $9bn set aside for upgrades to the Bruce Highway, secured through an 80:20 funding partnership with the federal government.
Another key project is the Faster Rail link between Logan and the Gold Coast, backed by $5.75bn in joint funding to improve travel times and ease congestion.
As Queensland gears up to host the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the government has committed $7.1bn for venues and athlete villages as part of the Games Delivery Plan.
The plan includes venues such as a new 63,000-seat stadium at Victoria Park, a new National Aquatic Centre in Spring Hill, mountain biking facilities on the Sunshine Coast, archery facilities for Maryborough, and an upgraded Toowoomba Equestrian Centre.
In the energy sector, the budget backs the CopperString project with a $2.4bn investment by 2028-29 and sets aside $1.6bn to maintain and upgrade the state’s electricity network through the Electricity Maintenance Guarantee.
To prepare for future disasters, $450m will be spent over the next five years to improve natural disaster resilience across the state.
Losers
People relying on temporary cost-of-living support
Some Queensland households will feel the pinch in the budget as several temporary cost-of-living measures come to an end or are significantly scaled back.
Electricity rebates and energy bill relief will drop sharply from $963.7m in 2024-25 to $353m now that the temporary scheme has ended.
Extra vehicle registration discounts have also been cut, falling from $399m to just $36m.
The E-Mobility Rebate Scheme, which offered support for electric vehicle purchases, ended in October 2024 and has received no further funding.
Motorists will also be affected by the end of the one-off 20 per cent discount on vehicle registration, which wasn’t extended beyond mid-September 2025. As a result, government revenue from rego is expected to jump more than 21 per cent next financial year.
Major contractors
Large-scale infrastructure developers and contractors tied to specific projects are set to lose out in the budget.
The government has scrapped the Pioneer-Burdekin Pumped Hydro project, with all work now ceased and site demobilisation under way. As a result, expected equity injections have been scaled back.
The government has also paused the use of Best Practice Industry Conditions (BPICs) on uncontracted projects. While the move is intended to cut construction costs and lower rent pressures, potentially saving Queenslanders up to 7 per cent, it may disadvantage workers and contractors who previously benefited from the enhanced pay and conditions BPICs provided.
Speeding drivers
Queenslanders caught by speed cameras and other traffic enforcement technology are helping to fund state programs, making them unexpected “losers” in this year’s budget.
Revenue from fines and forfeitures, including offences detected by speed, red light, mobile phone and seatbelt cameras is projected to reach $772.3m in 2024-25, a major income stream for the government.
That figure is expected to grow by an average of 11.4 per cent over the following two years, driven by the continued expansion of the Camera Detected Offence Program.
The government has committed an extra $9.5m over four years (plus $1.9m annually ongoing) to the Queensland Police Service and $26m over two years to the Queensland Revenue Office to manage the growing program.
Framed as a road safety initiative, the program also plays a significant role in bolstering state revenue, meaning drivers who break the rules are contributing directly to the government’s bottom line.
External consultants and contractors
Queensland’s new government is moving to reduce its reliance on external consultants and contractors, meaning fewer opportunities for businesses in this sector.
Under the previous administration, spending on consultants and contractors reached an estimated $4n in 2023-24. The latest budget introduces the Queensland Government Consulting Services (QGCS), an in-house team designed to provide advice directly to government agencies.
This shift is expected to save $681.5m in contractor and consultant costs in 2024-25 alone, signalling a significant reduction in future government spending on external services. Businesses and individuals who rely on these contracts may feel the impact.
Future budgets
Queensland’s future budget resilience is under pressure after more than half of the $2.5bn Long Term Asset Fund, also known as the GST buffer, was withdrawn in May 2024.
This fund was set up to protect the state against sudden drops in Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue. However, the remaining funds have now been earmarked for other projects, leaving little left to cushion the impact of a record $2.3bn GST revenue reduction expected in 2025–26, the largest redistribution in history.
Without this financial buffer, Queensland faces a higher risk that future revenue shortfalls could require spending cuts, service reductions or increased borrowing to balance the budget.
On Tuesday afternoon, S&P Global Ratings said the budget highlighted a sharp deterioration in the state’s finances, with rising debt used to cover operating deficits and infrastructure spending.
S&P warned the state’s credit rating (AA+/Negative) remained under pressure due to falling GST revenue, ongoing deficits and elevated debt.
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