Pauline Hanson demands Brisbane cancel the upcoming Olympics NOW: Here’s why
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has demanded the 2032 Brisbane Olympics be canceled as preparations for the event appear to be in shambles.
International Olympic Committee vice-president John Coates this week said the Games were “on the nose” of the Queensland public after the government botched the redevelopment of venues.
Former Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk had placed a redeveloped Gabba Stadium as the crown jewel in the Olympic bid, but the project has been declared ‘dead’, with Mr Coates saying the government had failed to promote alternative venues.
In January, Queensland’s new Premier Steven Miles ordered an inquiry into the redevelopment amid fears the price tag had risen from $1 billion to $2.7 billion.
Senator Hanson said on Thursday that her party had warned “as far back as 2018” that “Labour’s Olympic vanity project was unfeasible and not properly costed”.
“We warned you that there would be budget crises and waste,” she said.
“We warned you before the 2022 state elections. We’re warning you again.”
She pointed to cost estimates for the 2000 Sydney Olympics, which rose from $3.2 billion to $6.9 billion, with the two-week event posting a $2.1 billion loss.
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has called for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics to be canceled after the redevelopment of the main stadium looks increasingly unfeasible
Senator Hanson pointed out that the 2000 Sydney Olympics were loss-making in terms of revenue and tourism.
Her comments follow ex-Victorian Labor Prime Minister Dan Andrews sensationally canceling the 2026 Commonwealth Games in his state last year after cost estimates rose from $2.6 billion to $7 billion.
Prime Minister Miles commissioned former Brisbane mayor Graham Quirk to investigate the Gabba project and the equally troubled Brisbane Arena project, which would see a 17,000-seat auditorium built above the Roma St railway to host the swimming events house.
But Coates, who was central to Australia’s efforts to secure the Olympics in Sydney and then Brisbane, this week pre-empted the March 18 review by saying in an interview that the Gabba project was “just not right”.
“We have put it to the review committee that we need to leave the Gabba and look for another venue for athletics,” Mr Coates told News Corp.
He has proposed holding the opening ceremony at Suncorp Stadium and the athletics at the Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre, the venue for the 1982 Commonwealth Games.
IOC vice-president John Coates said this week that the Brisbane Games were ‘on the nose’
The redevelopment of Brisbane’s iconic Gabba Stadium for the Olympics has all but failed after costs ballooned to triple its original $1 billion cost
Since then, Australian Olympic Committee president Ian Chesterman agreed there were better options than rebuilding the iconic Brisbane venue for the Games and that these would be put to a review committee.
Brisbane Mayor Adrian Schrinner said the Gabba project was “dead”, while Infrastructure Minister Grace Grace said she would wait for the report.
Brisbane 2032 organizing committee chairman Andrew Liveris said the Gabba and Brisbane Arena projects had wasted valuable time preparing for the Games.
“I regret the loss of time and distraction that has taken away a little from the amazing achievement of winning these Games,” he said
‘We should not challenge every decision about locations and infrastructure again. We must achieve the best results for all stakeholders and continue planning work for what will be the largest event in Queensland’s history, and one we can all be proud of.”
Ms Grace denied that time had been ‘wasted’ and that the Games had become a ‘planning mess’.
“There have been a lot of changes post-Covid since our bid… construction costs are one of them… so it’s time to take stock,” she said.
Queensland Infrastructure Minister Grace Grace insisted the Olympics are not ‘dead’ in the state and alternative venues will be found
Whether the Gabba should be demolished and rebuilt as the centerpiece of the Games had been hotly debated since a plan was released in November.
The Queensland government unveiled a $2.7 billion Gabba rebuild plan, which would see the stadium demolished, reconstructed and decommissioned between 2025 and 2030.
It would also force the AFL and Brisbane cricket to find a new home.
Opponents had called for a halt to reconstruction because of rising costs, after the plan’s initial $1 billion price tag ballooned to nearly three times that estimate.
Announcing the review in January, Prime Minister Steven Miles said he hoped the independent process could find options with better value for money.
Mr Miles also said he shared concerns raised by Queenslanders about the level of costs involved in a five-year rebuild.
“Concerns about the costs of some venues have caused division in the Queensland community. I want to change that,” Mr Miles said.
Deputy Opposition Leader Jarrod Bleijie said the LNP’s position on the Gabbas had not changed.
“The Liberal National Party has always been of the view that we do not support the complete knockdown of Gabba,” he said on Thursday.
“It was a $2.7 billion project, without a business case, without any financial credibility.”
The Queensland Greens have also called for the entire project to be scrapped, citing the threat the rebuilding plan posed to East Brisbane State School.
“The Greens have been fighting this stupid project for three years now, calling out the extreme costs, the lack of consultation and the fact that destroying a school and a park for a four-week event is ridiculous,” said MP Amy MacMahon. South Brisbane. said.
“We won’t stop until we hear the Prime Minister say the Gabba rebuild has been scrapped and East Brisbane State School and Raymond Park protected.”