Queensland taps NSW consultant to oversee hospital expansion

Queensland’s new LNP government has looked interstate to rein back the cost of the state’s hospital capacity expansion program, which it claims blew out by billions under the former Labor regime.

Health Minister Tim Nicholls said Sam Sangster, who had extensive hospital infrastructure delivery in NSW and South Australia, was well-placed to oversee the expansion of 11 hospitals, the delivery of three more, plus the Queensland Cancer Centre.

Sangster said while his remit was broad, it would still be up to the government to deliver the goods.

Sam Sangster, pictured in 2019 when he was CEO of Sydney’s Western City & Aerotropolis Authority.Credit: Wayne Taylor

“They may not agree with some of them, or we may have strong agreement, but that’s my job as an independent reviewer, to form recommendations for government,” he said.

Sangster said he had delivered about 130 hospitals across Australia, so was well-placed to head the review.

“I think I’ve got a pretty good understanding about how to actually make this happen,” he said.

Sangster would examine all aspects of the capacity expansion program (CEP), including governance, project management and delivery, budget overruns and stakeholder engagement.

Nicholls said the $9.8 billion hospital CEP could blow out to $23 billion, according to “some independent experts”.

“The expansion to the 11 existing hospitals, and then the three new hospitals and the Queensland Cancer Centre, were all in danger because of Labor’s failure to properly plan, to properly budget and to properly be able to deliver these programs,” he said.

“So with the suspension of the BPIC [best practice industry conditions] principles from our health capital works program, we are now investigating the opportunity of delivering those projects.”

Comment was sought from the Labor opposition.

Queensland Major Contractors Association chief executive Andrew Chapman said, in its current form, the CEP was “very much undeliverable”.

“Our major projects pipeline report this year identified that the health program alone would take up all available trade resources in the state just to deliver it,” he said.

“When we’ve got housing to do, when we’ve got the energy transition, when we’ve got water infrastructure, when we’ve also got transport infrastructure and the Olympics to do as well – we need to balance all of that.

“Yes, we need to do it, but we need to make sure it’s deliverable, and we need to make sure it’s done with value for money.”

Asked if Queensland would have enough workers to deliver that infrastructure pipeline, Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie said he was confident they could be found, either through training or migration.

“Companies that left Queensland because of the CFMEU, BPIC and the industrial relations framework are now wanting to come back, and have already been speaking to government about opportunities to come to Queensland,” he said.

“If they come to Queensland, they’ll bring their workers. Now, that may not be good for New South Wales and Victoria, but I don’t care.

“I’m a Queenslander, we’re the Queensland government, and we want Australians and international people to know that Queensland is open for business.”

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