A long wait for the Queensland Liberal National Party’s economic plan is over but questions remain after it copied a federal Labor initiative to find savings.
The opposition finally revealed its election costings just days before Saturday’s poll, unveiling changes set to save almost $7 billion on consultancies and contractors.
But the LNP came under fire from the Labor government after borrowing from the Commonwealth’s playbook.
The opposition is set to copy federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ idea of establishing a consultancy firm within the public service it predicts will save billions.
The LNP’s “fully costed, fully funded” plan did not feature a much-touted Brisbane 2032 infrastructure review or pumped hydro alternatives integral to Queensland’s renewable energy transition.
.176 billion by 2026/27. Image by Russell Freeman/AAP PHOTOS
Opposition treasury spokesman David Janetzki on Thursday unveiled his plan after being hounded by the state government, revealing a plan to deliver an operating surplus of $1.176 billion by 2026/27.
A key plank will be taking a leaf out of Dr Chalmers’ book and creating Queensland Government Consulting, costing $87 million to set up and run over four years.
Mr Janetzki said the LNP would not cut consultants but scale back on private sector dependency, a move he believed would empower the public service and save $6.8 billion.
“Anyone on a contract, consultant or external contractor will continue with that contract to deliver the services that they are offering,” he said.
“But what we need to see is that over reliance on consultants and contractors come to an end.
“We’ll adopt the framework of Jim Chalmers and the federal Australian government consulting to get that right.”
Treasurer Cameron Dick had spent weeks demanding the David Crisafulli-led LNP reveal its economic plan while spruiking his transparency, setting up a website for voters to monitor Labor’s election commitments and costings.
Labor’s election spending commitments total $9.7 billion, with the LNP’s revealed to be $7.12 billion on Thursday.
Mr Dick fired up when he finally saw the LNP plan, saying it was a “total fantasy” to think the LNP would save so much under the adopted Dr Chalmers scheme when the federal model had only raked in $4 billion in two years.
“It is inherently unbelievable that a state the size of Queensland can make more savings than the government of the Commonwealth of Australia,” he said.
“Every doctor, every nurse, every teacher, every paramedic, needs to be ready for voluntary redundancies, forced redundancies – closures and cuts are the only way that the LNP can deliver on their election commitments.”
The LNP’s costings total $2.3 billion in 2024/25 with total debt projections at $124.6 billion in the same year and $171.3 billion in 2027/28.
Labor’s costings, also officially released on Thursday, show a $3.2 billion deficit compared to the budget’s $2.6 billion with total debt at $176 billon by 2027/28.
Labor has put the budget into deficit on cost-of-living initiatives, with a return to surplus forecast by both parties in 2026/27.
Under the LNP costings, almost $1 billion will be saved in scrapping Labor’s Pioneer-Burdekin pumped hydro project.
But plans for proposed smaller pumped hydro alternatives did not feature in the costings.
Nor were any funds for a much-touted, 100-day Olympic infrastructure review if LNP are elected.
Mr Janetzki was hammered with questions on proposed smaller pumped hydro alternatives, revealing negotiations were yet to begin
But he did commit to maintaining coal royalties over the next four years.
More than 1.2 million have cast their vote before Saturday’s poll, with about 690,000 postal votes processed.
