Ewen Jones (Herbert, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There seems to be a disconnect when it comes to fairness in Queensland. There seems to be no issue of fairness in the south-east corner, where the Labor state government spent $160 million developing a stadium at Robina for the Gold Coast Titans before they had even played a game. There seem to be no problems with this issue of fairness when the state Labor government could spend $144 million developing a stadium for the Gold Coast Suns even before they were a franchise. There seems to be no issue of fairness in the south-east corner, and it is entirely fair for a state Labor government to spend $1.5 billion on the Commonwealth Games for the Gold Coast.

But, when it comes to North Queensland, it seems that a deadset a line has been drawn. When it comes to North Queensland, the state government is only promising $100 million—absolute top dollar—for a stadium that is going to cost $210 million for the North Queensland Cowboys. To me, there seems to be a bit of a disconnect there when it comes to what is fair. The state planning minister, a Dr Lynham, who has parliamentary experience of nearly three months, said the federal government left North Queenslanders 'begging for their fair share'. I say: give us our fair share, Dr Lynham, and let me know when you are prepared to start, because at the moment you are not proposing anything at all. We have three local Labor members who are very quiet on this issue. No-one is prepared to ask them where they are and why it is completely and utterly fair that Labor funds all these things in the south-east corner but in North Queensland we are left to carry the bundle. It is a shame.