Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that the Brisbane 2032 Olympics and Paralympics will produce extensive beneficial impacts for Queensland and the nation, including economic, infrastructure, cultural, social, and environmental legacies;

(2) acknowledges that the local, state and Commonwealth governments have made a considerable effort to plan and prepare according to the International Olympic Committee's new norms; and

(3) recognises the diligence in planning for a lasting beneficial legacy for Brisbane, Queensland, and our nation from hosting the Olympic and Paralympic events.

We know the world doesn't stop for sport, but every four years the Olympic and Paralympic Games give us the opportunity to focus on something outside of our everyday concerns and worries and to feel we're part of something bigger, something special and something noble. The Olympics and Paralympics are multicultural melting pots of elite talent from every corner of the globe, and in less than eight years time Brisbane and Queensland will proudly host these events.

The Olympics and Paralympics are stages for the ultimate drama. There are charismatic personalities, fascinating backstories, heartwarming displays of sportsmanship, heartbreak when it goes wrong and the joy and celebration of triumph, whether that triumph is making the final, achieving a personal best or even winning gold, silver or bronze. When the games are over we are left with wonderful memories. In the case of Brisbane 2032, memories won't be all we take away from the games. As a member of the Brisbane 2032 board, I can confirm the Brisbane Games will leave a lasting beneficial legacy for not only Brisbane and South-East Queensland but all of Queensland and, in fact, all of the nation. The games are being organised with the new norms of the International Olympic Committee front of mind. The 2032 organisers describe it this way: they're determined to make the games fit into the host city and region, not the other way around.

A key part of this is the 2032 legacy strategy, called Elevate 2042. This strategy includes feedback from more than 14,000 submissions during a year of community consultation. This resulted in four focus areas in preparing for the Olympics: health and inclusion, connecting people and places, a better future for our environment and an economy of the future. Brisbane 2032 is being planned accordingly. We're looking at a 20-year pipeline of economic benefits from the games, starting with direct benefits for local businesses by engaging them to update existing infrastructure—part of the new norm for the Olympics.

I'll be in Cairns in a few weeks time—an Olympic city—looking at some of their infrastructure. The games are tipped to create more than 90,000 jobs in Queensland and 120,000 nationally. Businesses in all cities hosting events will benefit—obviously Brisbane but also the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Townsville, Cairns and even Sydney and Melbourne. People living in and visiting these cities will benefit for years, including prior to the games, from improved sporting and event venues, more efficient public transport and, in South-East Queensland, increased capacity for road and rail corridors.

An expected 3.6 million international visitors are predicted to visit our shores for the games. This will deliver a forecast $4.6 billion boom for tourism in Queensland and $8.5 billion across Australia. It will build upon Australia's image as a safe, politically stable, wonderful destination to visit. There are also social and cultural benefits of hosting the games, like the opportunity to showcase the arts, our musicians, our artists and our performers from high-school level right through to some world-renowned performers. Visitors will be able to immerse themselves in the world's oldest living culture, with First Nations experiences and perspectives throughout.

The games are a platform to boost and inspire community participation, an active lifestyle and sport, something I'm particularly passionate about as co-chair of the Parliamentary Friends—or enemies—of Diabetes group. There are plans to promote active travel to events. Brisbane will promote climate-positive events with low-emissions public transport for all athlete movements.

The Albanese Labor government is investing $3.5 billion into Brisbane 2032 infrastructure, seizing this generational opportunity to bring forward plan development in time for the games and to leave a lasting legacy for the community afterwards. It's important to note that the Queensland government is working to ensure costs remain within agreed funding levels. Their focus, as it should be, is on the community benefit of being the host city and then 10 years after.

I'd like to finish by congratulating the 2024 Olympic Games team members on their fantastic efforts in Paris. I'm looking forward to cheering on the Australian Paralympic team when competition starts on 28 August. The one benefit I haven't mentioned yet is the inspiration these athletes have given young Australians. Many will already be training—in the pool, on the track, on BMX circuits and on courts—and dreaming of emulating the feats of their heroes in eight years time. We look forward to cheering them on in LA and then in Brisbane, Queensland in 2032.

Marion Scrymgour (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is there a seconder for the motion?

Alison Byrnes (Cunningham, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The party that I belong to, KAP, tenaciously opposes the Olympic Games.

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Shame!

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You'll stay there and listen!

Your Olympic Games spat upon Christianity. You spat upon Christianity with the most infantile, puerile, undergraduate—

Madam Speaker, is he going to shut up or will I shut him up?

Marion Scrymgour (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order!

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Come over here and try.

Marion Scrymgour (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order!

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There won't be any trying. There'll be medical research for you. Madam Speaker, is he going to shut up and allow me to speak? And I want an extra minute here, because he took it off me.

Marion Scrymgour (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Member for Kennedy, you have the floor, so proceed.

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, he's had the floor up to date, and he doesn't like me saying that they spat upon Christianity. My friend, you enjoy democracy because the Magna Carta was written by Archbishop Langton. That's who wrote it. Pax Romana was brought to the world by Constantine because he became a Christian. The most brutal regime on earth, Rome, was Christianised and civilised, and I think that's an accurate description.

No. They spat upon Christianity. The six greatest scientists in human history are Pasteur, Newton, Galileo, Einstein, Faraday and Mendel, and all of them were profound Christian believers. Mendel was a monk and Faraday was a preacher of religion. They're the six greatest scientists in human history. Who destroyed communism? It murdered 78 million people, and who destroyed it? Gorbachev. And his first comment to the world was: 'When we go down upon our knees at night we all pray to the same God.' The world that I lived in was different than the world that I was brought up in, with the terror of the atomic bomb threatening us every day of our lives, and it was cured by that great man, Gorbachev, and the Pope of Rome and Charlie Wilson, who were all profound Christians, motivated by Christianity. Who got rid of slavery? We Christians did. Who led the civil rights movement in the United States? We Christians did. I now see it spat upon by this organisation and this organisation being lauded by people in this parliament.

There's the little matter of cost. It's a big party for Brisbane. I don't think there are too many people in Brisbane who are anxious about it. No-one else applied for it. No-one else in the world wanted it. Don't skite about getting it, because no-one else in the world wanted it. Unlike most people in this place, I was an Olympic qualifier in long jump. I didn't go; I won't go into that.

I want to come back to the issue of the cost of $30 billion. That's the average cost of the last four Olympic Games, with a little bit of inflation. That's from a budget of $50 billion. What could I do with that $30 billion? In Far North Queensland we had five deaths on the roads in two weeks and 74 deaths in 14 years. We need a tunnel. Brisbane's got 36 kilometres of tunnels. North Queensland hasn't got one kilometre of tunnel. Brisbane's got 1.2 million people, and we've got a million people.

What you're seeing is the tyranny of the majority, and there was a good example of it here this evening when I tried to defend Christianity. The member kept interrupting, all the time. Obviously, he hates Christianity and that's probably why he is backing the Olympics.

Marion Scrymgour (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Moreton?

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I ask that the member withdraw that dangerous comment, that slur.

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I withdraw the comment. He's tried to take up all my time, and I can't blame him because I'd hate to be sitting there hearing that the state's going to be up for $30 billion for some fun time for a part of Brisbane whilst the rest of the state pays for it, because most of the state's revenue is coming out of the northern half of the state, where a million people live. We can't even be given one kilometre of tunnel by the city that this man represents. There are 36 kilometres of tunnels in Brisbane. It's the tyranny of the majority.

Europe after the collapse of Rome was set upon by vultures from all sides, and the people that defended it were the crusaders. In the Battle of Lepanto, the Battle of Malta and the Battle of Vienna—

Marion Scrymgour (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I now call the member for Hunter.

Dan Repacholi (Hunter, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I stand here today as a proud five-time Olympian. There is no greater feeling of pride than representing your country at an Olympic Games in a sport which you have dedicated your entire life to. The only thing that could possibly beat this feeling is being able to do it at a home Olympics. Unfortunately, I didn't get this experience—I just missed out on qualification for the 2000 Sydney Olympics—but I'm incredibly excited for the future crop of athletes who will have the honour and privilege of representing their country on home soil at the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games.

We're a nation that admires and idolises our sporting and Olympic heroes. Our athletes deserve their chance to feel this admiration at a home Olympic Games, and they deserve to have their friends and family supporting them in their own backyard. We've all just witnessed the Olympic Games in Paris. Many of us stayed up until all hours of the night cheering on athletes. The games dominated our TV screens, took over our newspapers and became a part of most conversations with our loved ones and our workmates. There's something truly special about the Olympic Games that unites us and brings together people from all walks of life, regardless of their differences.

The Australian people deserve the chance to witness iconic Olympic moments right in front of them, to pack the Olympic aquatic centre, the track and field stadium and, hopefully, the shooting range to cheer on athletes to gold medals. Going to the games, let alone winning an Olympic or Paralympic medal, is the stuff that dreams are made of. The best part is that, in 2032, this is all going to happen on home soil. That is why, as a government, we continue to work closely with the Queensland government on the 2032 Brisbane Olympic and Paralympic Games.

There are a lot of benefits that can come from being the host of the Olympic Games, and it's so important that we use the next eight years to make sure that we're able to make the most of these benefits. The social benefits of the games are estimated to be worth $3.5 billion for Queensland and up to $9.1 billion nationally. The economic benefits are going to be huge. By looking at countries who have previously hosted the Olympic Games, we have seen that the international tourism to host cities and the nation as a whole jumps not only during the Olympics and Paralympics, but before and after the games as well. We expect this to be the case in Brisbane as a result of the games in 2032. The games are expected to attract 3.6 million international visitors. The games are also a massive generator of jobs. The games are expected to generate more than 90,000 jobs per year in Queensland and more than 120,000 jobs per year nationally. The 10-year lead-up to and legacy of the games together are forecast to generate increased international tourism and trade, with $4.6 billion for Queensland and $8.5 billion for the nation.

The games are a win for everyone. We are committed to making the 2032 Olympic Games the most successful ever. We want to support athletes to achieve great sporting success through high-performance systems and focus on getting more Aussies up on the podium. We also know that, if the games are going to be a success, we need to make sure we build world-class facilities. That's why we are committing up to $3.4 billion for venue infrastructure projects to support the games. We want to remain the No. 1 supporter of these games by being a funding partner in delivering games venues in time for 2032 to make sure it's an Olympics to remember. I also want to note that the Queensland government is prioritising community benefits whilst ensuring costs remain within the agreed funding envelope of $7.1 billion, to be shared between the state and Commonwealth governments, which is important in making these games successful.

2032 is a long way away, and there's a lot of work to be done. But I'm confident we'll host one of the greatest Olympic Games of our lifetimes. I can't wait for the 2032 Olympic Games. We've heard many newspaper reports and reports on the TV saying that we are behind time. We're this; we're that. We're not going to have the best games ever. Look at Sydney. We had all the naysayers saying the exact same things before the Sydney Olympics. The Sydney Olympics was one of the best Olympics that has ever been held anywhere in the world, and I can guarantee you that Brisbane will be the same. To the naysayers saying this won't happen and that it'll never get there, shame on you. Shame on all of you! We're Australians. We're proud of our sporting success, and we will continue to show our sporting success all the way. Let's get behind the 2032 Olympics and show the world what Aussies can do. Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi!

Garth Hamilton (Groom, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

How can I possibly follow a speech on the Olympics from an Olympian? It's an impossible task. It can't be done. But I'll give it a go. The member for Hunter does a great job talking up sport in Australia. I agree with his enthusiasm, and I think it's important that we do stand up and congratulate everyone who competed in the Olympic Games, wearing the green and gold. Once you're wearing those colours, you're ours. We get behind them. It has been fantastic to watch that. Like in a lot of families, I sat with my kids, watching a whole range of sports that I will probably never watch again until the next Olympics rolls around. But I think that's part of what it is—giving kids a view of what they can do and achieve, and that's one of the best things about the Olympics. I watched a little bit of shooting. The Turkish shooter certainly drew a bit of attention. I'm not sure how he goes against you, member for Hunter!

I do want to talk about this, because I think there is an important conversation to have about the Olympics, this role it plays in the national psyche and what they do for us as a country. Thinking back to the Sydney Olympics is a great point. Look what it did for us. I think it's right for us to turn towards those 2032 Olympics and really see what we went to get out of it. But I do want to pay some tribute to the people who got that bid off the ground, because people don't remember this. The Brisbane 2032 Olympics was originally the South-East Queensland Olympics.

Absolutely, Graeme. I think it's important to point these people out. You know who else it was? It was my former mayor from the Toowoomba Regional Council, Paul Antonio. Paul spoke about this at the Council of Mayors South East Queensland and was laughed at. 'There's no way you can have a regional Olympic Games. There's no way South-East Queensland mayors can get together and pull an Olympics together.' To his credit, when the state government of the day and the federal government weren't confident, Paul and other members from that group, like Graham Quirk representing Brisbane City Council, pushed on. And the Olympic Games morphed, and people started to get behind it. It became, over time, the Brisbane Games. I think it is reasonable. While we're looking forward to it, I think it's important to look back at the people who pursued this idea and got us those games.

One of the issues we have had and one of the reasons I raise that is that, since that time, the role of South-East Queensland in the games has diminished significantly. I think that's unfortunate, because it was from these regional heartlands that this idea came about. We went through a very difficult conversation about the upgrades for the Toowoomba Sports Ground that were proposed to be part of these Olympics. This was really a substandard offering for the people of Toowoomba. We weren't going to get an actual football game. What we were going to get was a preliminary warm-up game in Toowoomba and, rather than get legacy infrastructure, what we were offered was temporary stands added onto the Toowoomba stadium. To put this in context, what these temporary stands mean is that you don't have to have noise abatement or light abatement—and, unfortunately, this stadium is in the middle of an suburban area.

The local residents, quite rightly, raised their concerns about having a temporary structure brought into play. This was a problem. The people of Toowoomba spoke up when Mr Quirk ran his review of Olympic infrastructure, and he came back and removed the Toowoomba stadium from the plan for the 2032 Olympics. That was a good move because the people in and around the stadium did not support it. It had no legacy benefits for the area.

We now find ourselves having a very direct conversation in Toowoomba with the organisers of the 2032 Olympics about what would actually be legacy infrastructure for our region. What comes back time and time again is the equestrian centre proposal that's been put forward for the showgrounds. Somewhere around 60 per cent of Queensland's thoroughbreds come from my area. Equestrian is a huge sport. Overwhelmingly, it's a sport dominated by women. My sister was one of them. We've seen that change. If you go to a pony club nowadays, it's a sport where women absolutely dominate. This is a great thing. It's something that I think our region can get behind.

Whilst we're reflecting on what was an excellent Olympics for Australia, I hope we can look forward and see that we need that legacy infrastructure coming to regional areas. They're the areas that brought the Olympics to Brisbane. They're the ones that believed in it all the way through. (Time expired)

Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this motion put forward by my friend and colleague, the member for Moreton, this evening. Excitement for Brisbane 2032 is certainly high after the amazing efforts of our sensational Olympians at Paris 2024. In total, over 460 Australian athletes competed for medals in 329 events. Our Olympians gave it their all in Paris and went on to win 53 medals—18 gold, 19 silver and 16 bronze—making Paris our most successful games to date.

I would like to take a moment to reflect on the fantastic efforts of team Newcastle at the Paris games. I want to extend a massive congratulations to Newcastle's Jess Hull, who claimed silver in an incredible run in the women's 1,500 metres. She became the first Australian woman to win an Olympic medal at a distance further than 800 metres. Nathan Power, a product of the Hunter Hurricanes water polo team, co-captained the Aussie Sharks, steering the side to the quarterfinals before a loss to the United States sent the Sharks to the classification rounds. The Hockeyroos, with the assistance of South Newcastle striker Mariah Williams, and the Kookaburras, with the help of North Newcastle teammates Matt Dawson and Ky Willott, made it through to the quarterfinals in the women's and men's hockey. Newcastle surfer Tyler Wright's campaign ended in the quarterfinals after a strong debut in her opening rounds. Former Newcastle Jet, Emily van Egmond, and the former Adamstown Rosebud, Clare Wheeler, both featured in the Matildas campaign for gold in the women's football. Local track superstar Rose Davies gave it her all in the women's 5,000 metres and became the first Australian woman to run the distance in under 15 minutes. Reigning women's pentathlon Oceania champion, Newcastle's Genevieve van Rensburg, made her Olympic debut at Paris in the modern pentathlon. Last, but certainly not least, Wallsend's Jacqueline Nichele made her Olympic debut in the 71 kilogram women's weightlifting category.

I know I speak on behalf of all Novocastrians when I say we are so proud of you all. You have represented Newcastle and Australia brilliantly, and you can continue to inspire the next generation of local sports men and women. While we celebrate the success and achievements of Olympians, I'd like to remind you the race is only halfway through, with the Paralympic team set to make their debut in Paris at the Paralympics next week. I'd like to give a special shout-out to local superstar Lauren Parker, who will compete at the games for the second time, in the para-triathlon.

Sport plays such an important role in our community, whether it's at the local, regional, state, national or global level. The success of 'team Newcastle' and 'team Australia' at the Paris games has made the excitement ahead of and the anticipation of Brisbane 2032 that much more palpable. For countless kids and young people out there today on fields, on courts, on arenas, on pitches and in the pools, the games are the pinnacle of success. The lead-up to Brisbane 2032 will be used as a platform to boost and inspire more community participation and to promote an inclusive environment where women and girls and Australians of all abilities feel welcome.

Over the next eight years we have the opportunity to maximise the benefits of hosting the games. We will support athletes to achieve greater sporting success through a high-performance system focused on achieving enduring podium success. The Australian government is committing up to $3.4 billion dollars towards the Brisbane Olympic Games, which is set to generate billions of dollars in social and economic benefits for not just Brisbane but our entire nation.

Australia is a country which loves sport, and it runs deep in our veins. We know that hosting the Olympic Games in Australia has profoundly positive impacts on the development of local sports and athletes, leaving a legacy that extends well beyond the games. Bring on Brisbane 2032!

Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There being no further speakers, the debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.