Brisbane lord mayor Adrian Schrinner quits Olympics’ leaders forum over Palaszczuk government plan to demolish Gabba

Brisbane’s lord mayor has yanked his support for the Palaszczuk government’s Gabba demolition plan amid a push for the council to foot the bill for a temporary home for the Lions and Heat.

Brisbane’s lord mayor has yanked his support for the Palaszczuk government’s plan to demolish and rebuild the Gabba for the Olympic Games in retaliation for the state’s “extortionate” push for the council to help pay for a temporary stadium for the Brisbane Lions and Brisbane Heat.

Liberal National Party mayor Adrian Schrinner – who will face voters in March at the local government elections – insisted the $2.7bn Gabba overhaul should be independently re-evaluated to see if there was a better option and abruptly quit the Olympic and Paralympic Games Inter­govern­mental Leaders’ Forum.

His outburst followed Friday’s announcement that the Labor state government would re­develop the RNA Showgrounds’ main arena to build a 20,000-seat temporary stadium to host the Lions and Heat AFL and cricket teams from December 2025 while the Gabba was out of action.

Sport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe made it clear the state would chip in only $46m of the $137m RNA upgrade, relying on the Brisbane City Council, the RNA (which hosts the Ekka agricultural show at the venue), and the sporting teams to fund the rest.

On Sunday, Mr Schrinner said he would resign immediately from the forum, throwing into peril the bipartisan support for the 2032 Olympics and Paralympics that helped Brisbane win the bid.

He described the situation as “mismanagement” because the state had originally promised to pay the entire bill for the temporary venue. “I will no longer fall into line and support the state government’s current Gabba plan … It has become clear that there must be better options than demolishing and rebuilding the Gabba,” Mr Schrinner said.

Locals rally against the plan to demolish and rebuild the Gabba, which would also result in the knocking down of a local school. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Tertius Pickard

The cost of the project has blown out from an original $1bn forecast by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk to $2.7bn now, not including the $46m the state will pay to rehouse the Gabba’s main tenants.

“Unless the state government’s approach changes, this opportunity will be squandered through mismanagement,” Mr Schrinner said. “I believe the government has completely lost its way on the road to the Games … The state government’s ham-­fisted and foolish attempt to extort Brisbane ratepayers for tens of millions of dollars for a new RNA stadium was the final straw.”

He said the state government never properly considered alternatives to knocking down the Gabba, and suggested the opening and closing ceremonies could be held on the Brisbane River to be “open to all”.

Mr Hinchliffe described Mr Schrinner’s position as a “bewildering backflip,” after he had previously supported the Gabba rebuild and RNA as the solution and he said the mayor’s withdrawal from the forum made it “more difficult” on early planning.

Brisbane Lord-Mayor Adrian Schrinner. Picture: Steve Pohlner

In July, Mr Schrinner said the Heat and Lions should play in Brisbane while displaced and described an upgrade of the RNA’s historic arena as “a no-brainer”.

“The arena already needs significant improvements to host events during the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games,” he said at the time.

“Getting this work done earlier so football and cricket can play at the RNA while the Gabba is out of action just makes sense.”

The stoush over the Gabba comes as The Weekend Australian revealed on Saturday that the Queensland government was exploring alternative sites for another Olympics venue, the Brisbane Arena, as insiders doubt it can be built for the $2.5bn promised by the Albanese government.

The arena, to be built over the city’s busy Roma Street train station, would be home to the Olympic swimming events.

A redevelopment of the RNA was not the preferred solution for either the Gabba’s cricket or AFL tenants. Neither code will want to pay for a temporary stadium, and both have been pressing the state government for compensation for the disruption to their tenancy.