Appropriation (Supplementary 2024-2025) Bill 2025

Confirmed Labor's support for the supplementary appropriation bills as routine governance, but used the debate to criticise the government for scrapping cost-of-living relief measures such as electricity rebates and failing to act on the fuel crisis, health waitlists, and the Patient Travel Subsidy Scheme.

“For that reason, of course, the Labor opposition will be supporting the supplementary appropriation bills.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Continued his second reading speech arguing the appropriation bill fails to deliver cost-of-living relief, contrasting it with Labor's $1,000 electricity rebates and criticising LNP cuts to affordable housing, renewable energy projects and community services like Skilling Queenslanders for Work.

“I emphasise again that the LNP really does need to view these bills as an opportunity to deliver cost-of-living relief to ordinary working Queenslanders.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, arguing the supplementary appropriation was necessary to fix the former Labor government's hidden cost blowouts and underfunded services. Highlighted government achievements in primary industries, biosecurity, housing, and local electorate projects.

“What Queensland and the Treasurer have uncovered little by little since coming to government is the deception of the former Labor government, and the numbers make very clear just how deceptive they all were.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills as necessary to authorise $5.746 billion in unforeseen expenditure driven by what he described as funding black holes left by the former Labor government in child safety, health and housing.

“Today I rise to speak in support of the Appropriation (Supplementary 2024-2025) Bill 2025 and the Appropriation (Parliament) (Supplementary 2024-2025) Bill 2025 and to address the amendments currently under consideration.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

As Treasurer, moved the second reading of the cognate bills, framing the $5.746 billion in supplementary appropriation as a consequence of the former Labor government's hidden project blowouts and underfunded frontline services, while noting the 2024-25 figure is down from over $9 billion the previous year.

“The purpose of these bills is to provide for supplementary appropriation for unforeseen expenditure that occurred in the 2024-25 financial year... I commend the bills to the House.”— 2026-03-25View Hansard

Supported the bills as a responsible opposition ensuring the machinery of government functions, but criticised the government for walking away from cost-of-living relief, failing to meet its consultants savings cap by $1 billion, and presiding over a negative credit rating outlook.

“The opposition supports the bills because we believe in the proper functioning of government, but let us be equally clear. We do not support the direction this government is taking Queensland.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Criticised the LNP for failing to use the appropriation bill to provide cost-of-living relief, fund a Bundaberg flood buyback scheme, a second Bundaberg fire station or support Maryborough train manufacturing jobs.

“In the past, appropriation bills have been used for a range of different measures to help people facing cost-of-living challenges. One that comes to mind is the energy rebate.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, framing the $5.7 billion in unforeseen expenditure as the consequence of the former Labor government designing a budget to survive an election rather than serve Queenslanders. Highlighted local delivery including 50-cent fares, housing initiatives, and community safety measures in Pumicestone.

“This bill tells a very clear story—a story of a former government that hid the truth, underfunded essential services and left Queenslanders to pick up the pieces.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills as necessary constitutional authorisation of expenditure, arguing the scale of supplementary appropriation reflects funding black holes left by the former Labor government.

“I support them because parliament must properly authorise expenditure. I support them because Queenslanders deserve honesty about the true state of the finances.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Indicated Labor will support the bills as a constitutional requirement, but used her speech to criticise the Treasurer's budget strategy, the LNP's failure to meet its consultant cap by $1 billion, the scrapping of electricity rebates, and the risk of a credit rating downgrade.

“These bills fulfil that requirement and for that reason, of course, the Labor opposition will be supporting them, but I note the Treasurer's commentary around previous supplementary appropriation bills.”— 2026-03-25View Hansard

Stated Labor would not oppose the bill but criticised the government's health record, including cutting hospital expansions at Prince Charles and the Queensland Cancer Centre, record ramping, and rising specialist outpatient waitlists. Attacked government spending on taxpayer-funded propaganda while claiming insufficient health funding.

“Labor will not oppose the bill because supplementary appropriation bills serve a formal purpose, but Queenslanders are entitled to judge the priorities of the government behind the bill.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Stated the opposition will not oppose the bills as they fulfil a legislative requirement, but criticised the LNP over cost-of-living, missed consultant savings caps, cuts to Queensland Rail staffing and inaction on housing.

“The opposition will not be opposing these bills as they fulfil a legislative requirement, but that does not mean that the LNP is off the hook when it comes to scrutiny and ensuring that there is transparency in how they are spending Queenslanders' taxpayer dollars.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting the shift from neglect to delivery in the Redlands electorate, including permanent 50-cent ferry fares, vehicle ferry subsidies, the Weinam Creek precinct, youth crime initiatives, hospital improvements, and school investments.

“The contrast is clear. The former government delivered delay; this government is delivering progress.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills, framing them as cleaning up Labor's fiscal mess, and criticised unfunded Labor commitments in Hervey Bay including the fire station and hospital car park.

“The Crisafulli government is closing a deceitful decade of populous clown shows and restoring respect for Queenslanders' money across government.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

As chair of the Economics and Governance Committee, supported the bills, characterising the supplementary appropriation as evidence of Labor's fiscal mismanagement, including project blowouts such as the Coomera Hospital, and praised consolidating appropriation into a single set of bills.

“This bill is the latest chapter in the sorry story of Labor's fiscal deception and mismanagement. In its 2024-25 budget the Miles Labor government hid its project blowouts and underfunded key frontline services.”— 2026-03-25View Hansard

Supported the bill as a procedural necessity but criticised the government for fiscal mismanagement, stalled infrastructure projects in Far North Queensland despite available federal funding, inadequate Patient Travel Subsidy Scheme rates, and failure to deliver cost-of-living relief.

“This supplementary appropriation bill reflects more than unseen expenditure. It reflects the unforeseen consequences of poor planning, broken commitments and a failure to understand the realities facing Queenslanders.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Criticised the LNP Treasurer for cutting $1,000 energy rebates, missing the consultancy spending cap by $1 billion, and cutting rail worker hours while supporting the parliamentary supplementary funding.

“The very first thing they did was make everybody's electricity bill $1,000 more expensive in the middle of an affordability crisis that has only got worse under their watch. That is disgraceful.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting Central Queensland investments including 3,600 new land parcels, the Rockhampton TAFE Excellence Precinct, social housing construction, the health sciences academy, sports precinct upgrades, and Great Keppel Island infrastructure.

“What Queenslanders needed to see—what they wanted to see—was a government that delivered, and this government is delivering for the people of Keppel and for the people of regional Queensland.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills as necessary to authorise unforeseen expenditure driven largely by funding gaps left by the former Labor government in health, child safety and housing.

“These are not optional areas of expenditure; they are core responsibilities of any state government and yet they were left in a position where additional funding had to be found to ensure services could continue and Queenslanders would be supported.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the legislation as the right thing to do for good governance, praised Labor's 50-cent fares initiative as a cost-of-living relief that the LNP claimed credit for, advocated for teacher wage increases, and called for FairPlay/Play On! vouchers to be extended to more dance schools.

“Those opposite can take credit for our 50-cent fares, but never in a million years do I think the LNP would have done that first.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Spoke during the cognate debate after the lunch adjournment, raising concerns about the Premier's rebranding costs for Queensland government signage to LNP colours.

“Supplementary appropriations should show the millions of dollars that cost, but they do not.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, arguing they demonstrate the government cleaning up Labor's fiscal mess while delivering for Queenslanders. Highlighted local projects including the Bribie Island breakthrough, new Banya primary school, Beerwah fire station, Caloundra Congestion Busting Plan, and the new TAFE centre of excellence.

“These bills are important because they do more than simply authorise unforeseen expenditure. They tell the real story of the financial position this government inherited and they show the work the Crisafulli government is doing to clean up Labor's mess.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Criticised the Treasurer's attacks on Labor's use of supplementary appropriation bills, defended Labor's $1,000 electricity rebates, and raised concerns about the spread of fire ants despite $81 million allocated to the suppression program.

“He should know by now that the purpose of the bills is to provide for unforeseen circumstances that apply as a result of following a budget bill. Those scurrilous attacks upon Labor were uncalled for.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills as a routine appropriation process but criticised the government for the absence of tangible cost-of-living relief, rising electricity, housing, and fuel costs, and failure to support affected sectors including tourism, fishing, agriculture, and trucking.

“If they can find billions in funding for the additional expenditure that is in these bills, surely they can find support for families.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills, arguing departmental allocations were needed to address unfunded Labor commitments including child safety, housing, Queensland College of Wine Tourism, regional roads and the Whetstone Rural Fire Brigade.

“Some of them immediately stood out to me as glaring examples of Labor departing office having left prawns in the curtain rails and having left no money in the budget to keep the wheels of government turning.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, detailing government investments in Nicklin including a Nambour police beat and CCTV upgrades, road safety improvements, housing crisis responses with HOME outreach teams, the Everyday Foundation low-cost supermarket, school accessibility upgrades, and emergency services equipment.

“Budgets are not just numbers; they are statements of priority. They show what a government values, whom it is listening to and whether it is prepared to tackle real community problems with practical solutions.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Acknowledged the Labor opposition supports providing supply to the government but criticised the LNP for missing the consultant cap by $1 billion, cutting rail worker shifts and failing to deliver direct cost-of-living relief.

“I rise to speak on the supplementary appropriation bills for 2024-25, and I want to acknowledge that the Labor opposition supports providing supply to the government.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills as fulfilling responsibilities for unforeseen expenditure, but attacked the government on cost of living, citing surging electricity prices, rising rents and housing costs. Highlighted the fuel crisis and referenced the OzHarvest report on food insecurity, criticising the government's inaction compared to other states.

“Do you reckon that the couple I spoke to, who go without meals every night so they can give their kids three meals a day, said, 'Di, can you make sure we get a dashboard? That would really help.' No person said that ever.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills as a response to funding black holes left by Labor, characterising Labor's 2024-25 budget as a 'clown show' and highlighting LNP-funded permanent 50-cent fares.

“This bill is almost entirely about filling the funding black holes left by Labor—promises they made with no plans to fund them.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Spoke in strong support of the bills, arguing they represent the necessary clean-up of a decade of Labor failures. Highlighted local delivery in Thuringowa including Townsville University Hospital expansion, youth crime measures, Jabiru Park upgrades, and Thuringowa State High School air-conditioned hall.

“This legislation is not some dry accounting exercise; nor is it simply a routine adjustment of the state's books. In reality, it is the necessary clean-up of a decade of Labor failures.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Criticised the Premier's rebranding of Queensland government materials to LNP blue as wasteful, and listed cut and delayed projects in Logan including the Yarrabilba satellite hospital, bus services and Mount Lindesay Highway works.

“I will continue to fight for Logan and I will continue to fight against the waste and misdirection of appropriation funds by this government.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bill as a constitutional requirement but criticised the government for failing to deliver cost-of-living relief, noting 80 per cent of Inala residents experience housing stress. Highlighted the government's failure to fund MND Queensland and the missed consultants savings cap, warning of consequences for the state's credit rating.

“Supporting the passage of this bill does not mean supporting the priorities of this government, because at a time when Queensland families are under pressure this government is underperforming and has failed to deliver with this bill.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills and defended the 'Delivering for Queensland' blue-branded banners, criticising the former Labor government's failure to deliver a proper South-East Queensland regional plan or make 50-cent fares permanent.

“We are a government that is in the business of delivering. Every time we print one of those brochures, every time a website goes live, every time a banner gets planted in the ground... we are making a commitment to the Queensland people that we will deliver.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, arguing the $5.7 billion in unforeseen expenditure exposed the reality of the former government's budget that was never designed to last. Highlighted the impact on Mackay's hospital system, housing, and community safety, and praised the government's methodical approach to budget repair.

“What we are doing here is not just approving past expenditure; we are exposing the reality of the former Labor government's budget that was never designed to last.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Confirmed opposition support for the bills to authorise already-incurred expenditure while calling for scrutiny of service delivery outcomes in youth justice, health, housing and transport.

“The opposition supports their passage to ensure that expenditure already incurred is properly authorised; however, that support does not remove the responsibility of this parliament to scrutinise how and why this additional expenditure has occurred.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Stated the opposition was not opposing the bills but criticised the government for removing cost-of-living measures like electricity rebates and rego discounts, rising fuel prices without government response, inadequate public transport investment in growing communities, and failure to deliver promised consultants savings.

“While the opposition is not opposing these bills, let me be very clear: not opposing the passage of appropriation legislation does not mean that we support the performance of this government.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills while attributing much of the $5.7 billion in unforeseen expenditure to Labor budget overruns on Gold Coast Light Rail stage 3 and the $11 million for additional parliamentary staff.

“Quite clearly any downgrades are wholly and solely due to 10 years of Labor spending like drunken sailors and unfunded commitments.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting government investment in police resources including Taser 10s, body worn cameras, and radios. Praised the delivery of 165 new overnight beds at Townsville University Hospital, the professional foster care pilot program, and housing initiatives including the Residential Activation Fund.

“I googled the word 'funding' and it comes up as a verb. The example used was 'a government funding its promises'. That is the difference between this side of the chamber and that side.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Criticised the LNP's missed consultant savings target, their decision to cut hospital beds compared to Labor plans, and lack of new investment in his Greenslopes electorate.

“You do not get to walk in here and blame Labor. You are in government. You are responsible. It is your job now. The failings are yours and I see them every day in my community.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, emphasising the need for responsible budgeting and long-term fiscal discipline. Highlighted investments in Southport including social housing projects for those fleeing domestic violence, affordable housing units, and youth foyers for young people transitioning from foster care.

“A budget is more than a financial document; it is a reflection of the government's priorities, its discipline and its vision for the future.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting $120 million for homelessness services, $114 million for the Immediate Housing Response program and $62.5 million for social housing maintenance to fill gaps left by the former Labor government.

“This bill ensures those budget black holes left behind by Labor are fixed.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Replied to the second reading debate as Treasurer, defending the government's fiscal record and attacking the former Labor government's budget as a 'clown show'. Highlighted the government's permanent funding of 50-cent fares, Play On! vouchers, increased first home owner grants, and housing investment while criticising Labor for unfunded commitments.

“The last budget of the former Labor government was described by the Financial Review as a clown show. The contributions from those opposite over the last few periods of debate have again shown us that they have learned nothing.”— 2026-04-23View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting the $405 million allocation to Transport and Main Roads including funding to make the LNP's permanent 50-cent fares permanent, while criticising Labor's Cross River Rail and Gold Coast Light Rail cost blowouts.

“This bill is about providing the government, the Public Service, with the tools they need to get on with the job of delivering for Queenslanders.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, focusing on energy security, the Taroom Trough oil exploration announcement, and LNP election commitments being delivered in his Theodore electorate including men's shed, cenotaphs and sporting club upgrades.

“I could go on all night about how wonderful the last budget was for Theodore. It just goes to show how much the LNP cares for our area.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting the Mooloolah River Interchange, permanent 50-cent fares, the Energy Roadmap and the Residential Activation Fund delivering for the Sunshine Coast.

“It is a pleasure to speak in this cognate debate because there is some great news for the electorate of Maroochydore and Queensland.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, attributing much unforeseen expenditure to Labor blowouts on Paradise, Wivenhoe, Burdekin Falls and Somerset dams, and highlighting $15.7 million for firefighter workers' compensation that Labor had announced without funding.

“Much of the unforeseen expenditure in this bill is because of Labor's fiscal vandalism during their decade of decline.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, thanking the Treasurer for funding projects in his Everton electorate including the South Pine Road/Stafford Road intersection, local sporting clubs, and the Games On! and Play On! sporting voucher programs.

“In summary, I congratulate the Treasurer and thank him for the money that I am getting for my electorate and thank him for the money that I am getting in my ministry. I commend the bills to the House.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting an additional $8.5 million for the Rockhampton cardiac hybrid theatre and listing LNP-funded projects for Central Queensland including Gracemere high school and the multisport precinct.

“These are not unfunded promises like the previous Labor government; these are real commitments backed by real dollars delivering real outcomes.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, framing them as fixing what was not funded by Labor in health, housing and child safety, while highlighting Toowoomba projects including a new hospital with 538 overnight beds.

“At its core, this bill comes down to three things: fixing what was not funded by Labor, stabilising essential services and restoring discipline to government spending.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, arguing every dollar in the $5.7 billion supplementary appropriation is borrowed from the next generation due to former Labor budget overruns, and highlighting maternity services for Biloela and the Moura aged-care expansion.

“One thing that gets lost is that every dollar we spend, like the $5.7 billion in this appropriation, is money we have borrowed from the next generation.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting the Redcliffe Hospital rescue plan with 210 additional beds, $461 million for child safety, housing funding, and $135 million for permanent 50-cent fares.

“These bills seek approval for the unforeseen expenditure of approximately $5.746 billion incurred during the 2024-25 financial year across 17 departments, the Legislative Assembly and the Parliamentary Service.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, highlighting the $2 billion Residential Activation Fund, $44.2 million for Townsville intersections, Flying Squad police resources and Bruce Highway 80-20 federal funding deal.

“This bill is the latest sorry chapter in the story of Labor's fiscal deception and mismanagement.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard

Supported the bills, framing them as the 'receipt for a decade of Labor mismanagement' and highlighting $1 billion for tourism, the Smithfield Mountain Bike Park and health and transport investment in Far North Queensland.

“Let's call this for what it is: this bill is not just a line item; it is the receipt for a decade of Labor mismanagement.”— 2026-03-26View Hansard