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The Gold Coast mayor is pleading for a four-week window to put forward a plan to host the 2026 Commonwealth Games after Victoria axed the event due to cost blowouts.
Key points:
- Tom Tate says he is interested in hosting the games at the Gold Coast
- Treasurer Jim Chalmers says it is a state issue
- A Gold Coast councillor is against the move
But the Queensland government says it has no interest in hosting the international event.
Tom Tate — who put his hand up on Thursday in a long-shot bid to host the games — said a Gold Coast games would not need additional infrastructure investment because the city hosted the event just five years ago.
It came despite his deputy previously ruling it out, with councillors being opposed to a second games.
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she was "100 per cent focused" on hosting the 2032 Olympics this week.
She said the state could not afford spend more money an event.
Queensland Sport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said it was "an emphatic no" on the state holding the games.
"I understand Tom's enthusiasm, Tom's enthusiasm is hard to repress," Mr Hinchliffe said, at a press conference alongside Cr Tate on Friday.
"He's always out there making sure he's boosting and spruiking the Gold Coast and why wouldn't he.
"The reality is I'm a bit more in deputy mayor Donna Gates' camp when she said earlier this week that the idea was ludicrous, we didn't have the right time."
Cr Tate said the state didn't need money for infrastructure and the event could be held for less than $1.2 billion.
He said all that was needed was operational funding.
"Just give us four weeks, I'll show you a road map of how we can deliver it, it'll be great for Queensland," he said.
"I will approach the premier and [say] 'look we don't need any dollars from you, I only want some input in time'," he said.
"That shouldn't be such a hard negotiation.
"As far as the Gold Coast is concerned we can deliver this with pizzazz and with our reputation intact for the world."
The office for Federal Sports Minister Anika Wells said Gold Coast officials had not contacted her office.
'A state project'
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the decision by the Victorian government was a let down for many.
"Overwhelmingly, this was a state government project, we know the decision taken here has been disappointing for a lot of people," Mr Chalmers said.
"But we also understand that you've got to get value for money for these kind of events."
He said it would have been a difficult decision to make.
"I'm not going to second guess it ... they've come to the view that this doesn't represent value for money," Mr Chalmers said.
Mr Chalmers said he understood the Queensland government was not interested, but he also respected Cr Tate's views.
"Obviously, Tom Tate is someone we listen to and views we take into consideration but I think the premier has made it clear that we're not coming at that suggestion," he said.
"So it may not be a starter ... if it was, hypothetically, a starter, then we would just engage in the usual conversations about providing the usual support."
Councillor against it
Gold Coast City councillor Gail O'Neill said the city had enough in its plate.
She said prospect of the city hosting the Commonwealth Games hadn't been discussed by council and she was against the idea.
"At the end of the day I think it's probably going to be a state call and I do believe that the State government has ruled it out," Cr O'Neill said.
"I think that we had a fantastic Commonwealth Games [in 2018] and we should be concentrating on the Olympic Games.
"We've got a lot of huge projects on the go at the moment, one being the light rail, so I think our next few years are jam-packed."