Sports Minister Tim Mander has doubled down on verbal assurances that big builds for the 2032 Olympic Games will remain within budget, despite polling showing waning public confidence.
About two-thirds of voters polled in a Resolve Political Monitor survey between October 6 and 10 doubted the government would remain under its $7.1 billion funding envelope.
On Saturday, Mander repeated the LNP government’s habitual assurances that larger projects would remain on time and on budget, and said the state would not reveal any kind of master plan.
“I’m not going to give any deadlines or timetables, it’ll happen progressively as these things are all decided,” he said.
The minister said the August reveal of the RNA Showgrounds upgrade – which would cost taxpayers $287.5 million for a non-Olympic venue – was a model for how it would release information piecemeal as projects progressed.
“Everybody knows the cost of [the RNA Showgrounds upgrades], and that will happen progressively as we head towards the Games,” the minister said.
When asked whether the state could give tangible evidence to back up its claims, the minister said there was “nothing that’s come to light at the moment that suggests there’s going to be any blowouts”.
“We are keeping to that budget, that’s why we are taking our time to secure the contracts that we are doing, making sure they’re as tight as they possibly can be.”
He also would not confirm whether the government would release a financial audit next year after more deals were finalised.
When confronted with the polling on Friday, Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie said the government was focused on “financial discipline and transparency”, which he expected would ease voters’ concerns.
The Resolve polling recorded answers from 434 Queensland voters across the political spectrum, finding roughly two-thirds of voters for all parties had little or no confidence the state would remain within its Olympic Games budget.
The most optimistic were left-leaning, with 29 per cent of Labor and 30 per cent of Greens voters indicating they had faith in the government’s promise to remain within or close to its $7.1 billion budget.
One Nation voters were the most sceptical, while 28 per cent of LNP voters were confident the state would stick to its budget.
Mander said questions over the state’s ability to deliver the projects within their promised $7.1 billion price-tag were normal and “reasonable” ahead of any Olympic and Paralympic Games.
He said ballooning costs in supportive infrastructure – such as calls for better accommodation and improved access to Rockhampton’s Fitzroy River rowing venue – were also not a responsibility the state would shirk, but rather a welcome by-product of the Games.
A day after the river was cleared for rowing events by an independent report, World Rowing hosed down the state’s claims the venue was “signed, sealed, and delivered” by outlining additional hurdles such as hotels and services for athletes.
The state’s new stadium, under construction in Victoria Park, has also faced ongoing scrutiny about whether it could reliably link to infrastructure upgrades designed to ease travel across the Games period.
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