The inaugural Leadership Queensland 09, presented by Australian Industry Group

(Ai Group), Infrastructure Partnerships Australia (IPA), the Property Council of Australia (PCA) and the Tourism & Transport Forum (TTF), provided a rare opportunity to gather half the Queensland Cabinet in a single forum to discuss the issues facing the state and the business community.

 The summit took place against the background of one of the most challenging economic and operational environments our combined sectors have ever faced. Global recession and a slowing domestic economy have taken a heavy toll on Queensland tourism, which has been reflected in severe job losses during 2009. For the infrastructure sector, the recession has made it more difficult for private construction to get underway and more challenging for governments to get PPPs off the ground. And for the Queensland Government, the global recession has severely impacted on the state’s finances, forcing it to make some tough decisions to secure the state’s future prosperity. The government response to these issues – and industry’s role in partnership with it – was the key theme of the event. The event’s combined ministerial keynote addresses and panel discussions allowed delegates to ask questions and enter into dialogue with ministers, departmental/agency heads and industry leaders. A summary of key discussion topics is outlined below. 

As part of the Driving Queensland’s economic growth session, Treasurer Andrew Fraser spoke about the government’s opportunity for securing future prosperity by making tough choices, including the sale of five commercial assets. He argued that the asset sales program provided an opportunity to consider the role of government in a modern economy and divest old assets to re-invest in new ones. 

Throughout the Building Queensland: Meeting the state’s infrastructure needs session, Infrastructure and Planning Minister Stirling Hinchliffe spoke about the importance of putting in place the infrastructure needed now, while planning for the state’s future needs. He outlined how the government will need to create new infrastructure funding and delivery models, including tax increment financing, to meet its mammoth infrastructure targets.  

Transport Minister Rachel Nolan, as part of the Keeping Queensland moving session, outlined the transport and congestion challenges facing the state and how to address them through statewide integrated transport and regional planning. She argued that planning for the state’s future transport needs to happen now, before current systems reach capacity due to population growth, and discussed the successful roll-out and integration of the SmartCard system across Queensland. 

The Reinvigorating Queensland’s tourism and national parks session focused on how to create a sustainable tourism industry and the benefits of developing partnerships between national parks and tourism. Tourism Minister Peter Lawlor spoke about the importance of developing appropriate destination infrastructure and the role of government in facilitating tourism planning from concept to realisation. Climate Change and Sustainability Minister Kate Jones spoke about the government’s recognition that the state’s natural assets including national parks, marine parks and forests are critical to the tourism industry. She also discussed the importance of partnerships between tourism and national parks: striking a balance between conserving natural heritage, while allowing it to be enjoyed by tourists. 

The event culminated in the Industry Leaders’ Luncheon, at which Queensland Premier Anna Bligh gave the keynote address, outlining the challenges the government faces to modernise Queensland over the next 20 years, tackle population increases and address major transport and infrastructure needs. The Premier argued the need to divest assets to invest in major infrastructure projects including a second Cross River Rail and an underground Rapid Metro system linking Toowong, West End, the city, Newstead, Bowen Hills, Bulimba and Hamilton North Shore. She committed to holding a South East Queensland Growth Summit in 2010 to further explore the ideas discussed at Leadership Queensland relating to growth, livability, sustainability and public transport.

The value of Leadership Queensland lies in the advocacy and networking opportunities it provides, its positioning of our sectors as major employers and economic drivers and the subsequent opportunities it generates for enhanced dialogue with the key players in the Queensland Government.  Thank you for participating in the event and engaging in discussion. We hope you found the event worthwhile. 

The four organisations issued a joint, post-event communiqué supporting the Queensland Government’s asset sale. Click here for the communiqué and here for the summit program.