Annastacia Palaszczuk’s funding demand is a whole new Games
Annastacia Palaszczuk’s demands on federal funds have been called out by the Sydney 2000 Olympics bid chief.
The head of Sydney’s Olympics bid says the 50/50 funding split demanded by Annastacia Palaszczuk of the federal government to host a potential 2032 Brisbane Games is way beyond the deal for the 2000 event.
Rod McGeoch, who led the Sydney Olympic bid, said there was little “direct supplementation in infrastructure spend” for the 2000 Games and the bulk of the infrastructure costs was borne by the NSW government.
The funding arrangement is in stark contrast to the 50 per cent contribution being sought by Ms Palaszczuk, who last week said time was running out to meet a deadline on Monday to provide assurances to the International Olympic Committee, which has identified Brisbane as its preferred bidder.
“That didn’t happen in Sydney,” Mr McGeoch told The Australian.
The federal government was blindsided by the announcement last week of an upgrade of the Gabba for the Games bid, and the funding plea, and the lack of co-ordination has frustrated some within the organising committee.
A 2003 NSW government report on the financial contributions to the Sydney Games said the federal government contributed $150m towards the construction of Olympic facilities and about $100m towards co-ordination and event funding.
It estimated the NSW government spent $1.185bn on capital expenses and contributed $1.3bn to co-ordinating the Games.
The Brisbane Games are expected to be significantly cheaper under the International Olympic Committee’s new requirements, which ask for host cities to use existing infrastructure as much as possible.
Mr McGeoch said Scott Morrison’s tourism marketing background would likely lead him to recognise the return on investment the contribution of taxpayer money would bring.
“I don’t think there’s any doubt Australia gets an enormous benefit,” Mr McGeoch said.
“(The federal government has) given money to bids and conventions so it sees, I think, that these sorts of activities … benefit the whole of Australia.
“Whether she (Ms Palaszczuk) can twist him (Mr Morrison) into half, God only knows.”
Mr McGeoch said unity was key to securing the Sydney Games, and to the success of the event, which was dubbed by then IOC president Juan Antonio Samaranch “the best Games ever”.
Ms Palaszczuk said the proposed 50/50 funding split was based on a similar arrangement to the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.
Mr Morrison on Sunday had yet to respond to Ms Palaszczuk.
An IOC spokesman said the organisation required guarantees to be provided to back up the Brisbane bid submission.
“The Future Host Commission will report back to the IOC Executive Board on the outcome of these discussions in due course,” the spokesman said.
“If all the requirements are met, the EB can propose the election of the preferred host of the Games of the XXXV Olympiad to the IOC session.”
An announcement confirming Brisbane as the host city would be expected in July, but is not guaranteed to be made then.
Mr Morrison’s Olympics representative, Ted O’Brien, has said he was confident the guarantee deadline would be met but it did not necessarily include a funding commitment for the Gabba from the federal government.
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