Queensland Government to reinstate Brisbane Olympics infrastructure agency

The Queensland Government is moving to restore an agency to independently manage the multibillion-dollar infrastructure program for the Brisbane 2032 Olympics and Paralympics, under laws to be introduced today.

After months of uncertainty over planning for the 2032 Games, the reinstated agency will be charged with delivering key infrastructure at “arms-length from government” and have control over its funds.

As reported by The Australian, an oversight committee was a key part of Brisbane’s bid to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the Games, but was scrapped by Queensland Premier Steven Miles last year while he was Olympics Infrastructure Minister.

When he brought the co-ordination office in-house last March, giving the Queensland Government total control of Games venues, then-Minister Miles said an independent agency was “a new bureaucracy that would just soak up resources” and was not useful or necessary.

However, shortly after becoming Premier, he appointed former Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk to conduct a ’60-day’ review of venue infrastructure.

When the review was presented on 18th March, with its main recommendation being the building of new venue in Brisbane’s Victoria Park, this was immediately rejected by Premier Miles, instead opting for upgrades at the existing Suncorp Stadium and a $1.5 billion rebuild of the Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre (QSAC) as key Olympic venues.

New Agency
Under legislation introduced by Queensland Development Minister Grace Grace, the authority will be required to develop a transport and mobility strategy by the end of 2026.

An interim chief executive expected to be appointed once the authority is established by the middle of the year, with a board made up of seven independent directors to be named in September.

Board members will be chosen by a selection panel made up of the chief executives of the “Games delivery partners”, including state and federal governments, relevant local councils, the Australian Olympic Committee and Paralympics Australia.

Minister Grace said the venue and legacy authority would follow a similar model to Sydney 2000 and London 2012 and would ensure taxpayers got the “best value-for-money community sports infrastructure to create lasting benefits at a grassroots level”.

Parallel Venues Review
A Federal Senate inquiry into Brisbane Games infrastructure has today heard that while the Quirk review was underway, Premier Miles was undertaking a parallel review process within the Queensland Government.

Revealed by IOC Vice President and former President of the Australian Olympic Committee, John Coates, the parallel review apparently held multiple meetings with Minister Grace and senior Queensland Government officials.

Image: Concept for a new stadium in the Brisbane suburb of Albion Park as submitted as part of the bid for the 2032 Games.