The Honourable Curtis Pitt MP Treasurer, Minister for Employment and Industrial Relations Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships handed down the Palaszczuk Government’s first State Budget forecasting a $6.9 billion in surpluses over the next four years. 

In a number of Media Releases published Tuesday 13/7 the Treasurer handed down his first budget for 2015-16 announcing, in part, the following:

The Budget provided for a $962 million operating surplus for the 2014-15 year, rising to $1.2 billion in 2015-16. Surpluses are forecast to be above $2 billion for both 2016-17 and 2017-18, with combined surpluses over the next four years predicted to hit $6.9 billion.?

These surpluses represent the underlying strength of the Queensland economy and position the State to capture sustainable economic growth.

Focusing on the impact of the budget from a localised regional and coastal perspective, there is several announcements worth highlighting.

Building Our Regions: 

The Treasurer said he was ´’proud to be a Treasurer from regional Queensland – the first since the late 1980s announcing the Building Our Regions fund has been brought forward by a full year to commence in 2015-16.  Over the next two years, local councils in rural and regional Queensland will share in an additional $200 million in infrastructure, through the Building Our Regions fund. 

State Development Minister Dr Anthony Lynham said the funding for Building our Regions was the biggest ticket item in a $620 million budget for the Department of State Development. Other important programs that the department would deliver this financial year also included fostering economic development while protecting the Great Barrier Reef through implementation of the Government’s port-related commitments in the Reef 2050 Long-Term Sustainability Plan.

Funding to improve Great Barrier Reef water quality and address climate change: 

No government in history has been more committed to protecting the Great Barrier Reef than the Palaszczuk Government. This commitment has been recognised by UNESCO and the World Heritage Committee. We will provide an additional $100 million over five years to protect the iconic Great Barrier Reef. This funding will enable investment in water quality initiatives and scientific research, together with helping businesses to transition to better environmental practices. We will also improve coordination of existing Reef water quality spending through annual investment plans and reports. This addresses the deficiencies recently highlighted by the Auditor-General.

Additionally, local governments will share in $15 million over the next three years to weather the impacts of climate change through the establishment of the Climate Change Adaptation Fund and the development of a Queensland Climate Change Adaptation Strategy.

Minister for Environment and Heritage Protection, National Parks and the Great Barrier Reef Dr Steven Miles said the Budget delivered on the Government’s promises to tackle some of the key threats facing the Reef and to help coastal communities prepare for rising sea levels, storm tides and erosion.

On top of the $100 million to improve Reef water quality, the Government has committed an additional $6 million over four years to expand the regional report cards program to include Cairns and Townsville.

The Government is partnering with the Local Government Association of Queensland to deliver $12 million to coastal councils to assist with the development of local plans and options to deal with their escalating climate risks, with applications open from October this year.

Budget delivers for Tourism:

The Budget restores tourism and events funding, providing a total budget of around $400 million over four years so the industry can move forward with confidence.  This funding will:-  

• grow the capacity of Tourism and Events Queensland 
• promote our destinations and drive our tourism growth 
• the tourism industry could operate with certainty 
• enable TEQ to enter into multi-year partnerships and look more strategically at marketing and events investment with tourism and event operators in Queensland’s regions 
• retain high-value events with longer planning cycles that will deliver better visitation growth.
  
  

Budget delivers support for Small Business: 

The Budget delivers support for Queensland small businesses to encourage growth and create jobs through the $2 million Queensland Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow program.  This includes:- 

• $1 million over three years to encourage students to consider starting their own business through entrepreneurship and IT skills programs in schools across Queensland. 
• $1 million over three years to assist stay-at-home parents to develop home based businesses. 
• Continuing the Queensland Small Business Advisory Council which provides direct input to government on issues facing the small business sector 
• establishing the Red Tape Reduction Advisory Council to focus on addressing red tape affecting small business. 
• funding to stage the Small Business Week program of events in early 2016.” 

Advance Queensland

Budget delivers for job seekers:

One of the centrepieces of this Budget is that Advance Queensland has been boosted, from an election commitment of $50 million, to a $180 million investment. An investment in innovation, in skills, in education, in business development and in a startup culture to deliver knowledge-based jobs now and into the future.

 “Advance Queensland will help make our state a place where industry, universities and government work together to take great ideas, turn them into investment-ready proposals, attract that investment, and create jobs,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

The Palaszczuk Government will invest $180 million in the Advance Queensland program, a comprehensive suite of reforms that will create jobs now, and jobs for the future by implementing:

• commitment to the Working Queensland jobs plan to create the conditions for growing jobs and building new businesses.  
• specific focus on five key priorities: 1. Improving skills and training 2. Enhancing business productivity 3. Boosting Government services 4. Fostering emerging and innovative industries 5. Building our regions. 
  
  

Budget delivers for Education:

The treasurer has ensured Queensland’s education and training budget is also a record spend, growing by over 7% to $12.4 billion in 2015-16. Instead of cutting resources to our schools, we are investing in our schools and our children.

With funds set aside in this Budget, three new future schools will be built in regional Queensland. A new $25 million Special School will finally be built in Cairns, in time for the 2017 school year.

The $178 million maintenance investment in 2015-16 includes $4 million to improve tuckshops and amenities at schools in Queensland’s Indigenous communities.

Skills improvement will be crucial and the role to be played by the revitalised TAFE sector is significant. Additional funding of $34.5 million will be provided over four years to restore TAFE to its rightful place – delivering more foundation courses, more TAFE qualifications through schools and more TAFE teachers.

Key initiatives aim to deliver better outcomes for Indigenous Queenslanders:

New funding of $28.6 million over four years had been provided under the Welfare Reform initiative, enabling the continuation of programs aimed at strengthening Queensland's discrete Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.  This funding will enable:

• support of the Family Responsibilities Commission to build on gains achieved to date 
• an increase in local empowerment and ensure better planning and delivery of ongoing reforms in the areas of economic participation, home ownership and educational achievement. 
• reforms to be introduced in five communities – Coen, Mossman Gorge, Aurukun, Doomadgee and Hope Vale – but will be expanded to other communities in due course.” 
  
  

Sport and recreation spending to support greater grassroots participation: 

The Palaszczuk Government will spend $176 million in 2015-16 to stimulate greater grassroots participation in sport and recreation.

Key initiatives include $15 million this year, with a further $15 million in 2016-17, to build a State Netball Centre at the Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre at Nathan in Brisbane.

“We are working hard to encourage more Queenslanders to play sport and be active and I am convinced that the netball centre is a significant project towards that objective. Netball is already the premier sport for women and girls in Queensland and the sport has grown throughout the state," she said.

State’s most vulnerable benefit with early NDIS launch and seniors boost:

The Palaszczuk Government has announced funding of close to $2 million for an early launch of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) in the 2015-16 State Budget.

The launch forms part of the $1.547 billion 2015-16 Disability Services budget, an increase of $82 million from the previous financial year.

This is in addition to $52 million for Queensland seniors and pensioner concessions in 2015-16 and $2 million over four years for seniors’ wellbeing, participation and safety.

“We value the significant contribution seniors make in our community, which is why we are investing in important initiatives to support them. We have also announced that $347 million has been set aside for pensioner concessions, to make sure our seniors don’t bear the brunt of Federal Coalition pensioner cuts," she said.

In conclusion the Treasurer announced that this Budget demonstrates that there is a better way. It sets Queensland on a new course. A return to growth. A return to optimism. As Queenslanders get back to work, as businesses get back to hiring, as we get on with the job of growing the economy. And as we secure Queensland's most priceless natural asset for future generations – the Great Barrier Reef.

We're building a diversified Queensland economy for the future. One that will thrive – no matter what the global economic conditions.

Focusing on the impact of the budget from a localised regional and coastal perspective, we welcome your comments.