Appropriation Bill (No. 2) 2023
Bill Story
The journey of this bill through Parliament, including debate and recorded votes.
Referred to Economics and Governance Committee
Moved the second reading as Treasurer, outlining $1.24 billion in supplementary appropriation for unforeseen expenditure across 10 departments, with the largest being $697 million for Queensland Health employee entitlements and new certified agreements.
“Let me make this clear: the Labor government will always invest in the front line, and that is exactly what this bill does.”— 2024-03-05View Hansard
Confirmed the opposition would support the bill but used the debate to broadly criticise government spending, asset sales history, cost-of-living pressures, health system failures, and infrastructure cost blowouts.
“This bill, which will be supported by the opposition, may be just a few pages but it is important. It is important to good government that the opposition scrutinise the allocation of the public's money expended by the government of the day.”— 2024-03-05View Hansard
Supported the bill as committee chair, explaining the technical nature of unforeseen expenditure and defending the appropriation for Queensland Health enterprise bargaining agreements and public sector wages.
“We on our committee commented—'The committee recognises there are a variety of reasons supplementary funding is required, making the payment of unforeseen expenditure an inherent part of the appropriations process.'”— 2024-03-05View Hansard
Supported the bill but characterised it as another Labor cost blowout, criticising the government's budgeting failures across infrastructure projects including Cross River Rail and the Gabba redevelopment.
“This supplementary bill highlights the extra expenditure in the May to June period last year of $1.244 billion added to the previous supplementary of $1.34 billion in terms of extra expenditure the Labor government has incurred on top of the budgeted almost $70 billion for the state of Queensland.”— 2024-03-05View Hansard
Supported the bill, defending the $697 million Queensland Health allocation as necessary to honour enterprise bargaining agreements and retain healthcare workers in a competitive market.
“I want Queensland healthcare workers to know that when they strike an enterprise bargaining agreement with the Queensland government we will be honouring it and we will be paying it.”— 2024-03-05View Hansard
Plain English Summary
Overview
This bill authorises $1.24 billion in supplementary government expenditure for the 2022-23 financial year. When government departments spend more than their original budget allocations, Parliament must formally approve that spending under Queensland's Constitution.
Who it affects
This is a routine government accountability measure that affects all Queenslanders as taxpayers. It does not create new programs or change existing services.
Key changes
- Authorises $1,243,941,000 in unforeseen expenditure from the Consolidated Fund
- Covers spending by multiple government departments during 2022-23
- Provides retrospective Parliamentary approval for expenditure already incurred
- Complements the main Appropriation Bill 2023 which sought an additional $1.34 billion