State government ‘trying’ to use taxpayer cash wisely despite monster blowouts, minister insists

Fresh from a new $864m budget blowout and a significant overpayment for a homeless hotel, the state government says it is managing taxpayer cash well. Do you agree? VOTE IN OUR POLL

The state government insists it is “trying” to be responsible with taxpayer cash and holding firm against building a new stadium despite project blowouts and overpayments costing Queenslanders hundreds of millions of dollars.

Fire and Disaster Recovery Minister Nikki Boyd was on Monday grilled about the state government’s track record of managing taxpayer cash and whether Queenslanders should expect every project cost to increase.

“Right now there’s a practical reality to the environment that we’re operating in and that is that things cost more money right now than they did previously,” she said.

“We’re seeing that right through the construction industry and we’ll see that right through a lot of sectors that have supply and demand pressures.

“We’re trying of course to be very, very responsible with taxpayer dollars, which is why you’ve seen us make a decision like we have around a new stadium for the Olympics.”

Minister for Fire and Disaster Recovery and Minister for Corrective Services Nikki Boyd. Picture David Clark

The insistence came after The Courier-Mail on Monday revealed the state government had overpaid $8.6m for the Park Hotel at Spring Hillto house people at risk of homelessness.

It was also revealed Transport Minister Bart Mellish knew the cost of the Coomera Connector stage one had blowout by $864m in January – some two months before he publicly acknowledged it.

Ms Boyd said the government remained transparent over cost increases.

“I think Mr Mellish has presented the information around the infrastructure increased costs in his portfolio … he’s committed to doing that on a regular basis going forward,” she said.

“There is the budgeted cost for that and then there is what we anticipate the cost to be. It’s happening right across the nation.

“What you originally budgeted for something a year or two years or three years ago, is considerable more money right now.”

Ms Boyd justified the purchase of the Park Road hotel, noting the state government was already leasing it to support people at-risk of homelessness.

She also said the state government was pushing the federal government to “meet us halfway” and allocate $432m to fund the Coomera Connector cost increase.

Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli said Queenslanders were “getting less and paying more”. Picture: Richard Walker

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli said Queenslanders were “getting less and paying more”, with the Coomera Connector starting as six-lane highway for $1.5bn before downsizing to a four-lane highway for more than $3bn.

“The minister somehow suggests that this isn’t a problem, because the initial funding envelope was still there,” he said.

“What on earth does that mean?

“If it’s not in the middle of an episode of Yes, Minister, that is absolutely farcical.”

Stage one of the Coomera Connector is expected to open progressively from late 2025.

Originally published as State government ‘trying’ to use taxpayer cash wisely despite monster blowouts, minister insists