The head of Australia’s national Olympic body has said there have been no concerns from international stakeholders about the progress of the Brisbane 2032 Olympics.
At a recent parliamentary inquiry hearing, Matt Carroll, CEO of the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC), who is expected to step down in May 2025, was questioned on the readiness of Brisbane as an Olympics host.
“The [Brisbane 2032] Organising Committee is well established and in the process of setting up their organisation and the operational components of that organisation,” he told the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport References Committee.
“So a lot of work has been happening, which is not terribly newsworthy, but obviously, they’ve been employing there.”
Carroll also noted that the appointment of a new chief of sport would be announced soon, and that the plan to build new indoor sports centres across South East Queensland was still proceeding.
When asked about the timeframe for the final decision on venues, the CEO said they could be made in the first half of 2025.
Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie then inquired about the reaction of international stakeholders toward the slow progress of discussions on transport infrastructure supporting the Games.
Carroll said there were no concerns.
“The other international stakeholders are the International [Sport] Federations and obviously the National Olympic Committees,” he said.
“And they’ve expressed no concerns to us, or as I understand, to the organising committee [of the] Brisbane [Olympics] 2032 at this point in time.
“A lot of our stakeholders are somewhat focused on the [2026] Winter Games in Milan [and] Cortina, which is still being finalised for some of their infrastructure.”
Commitment to Deliver Within Budget
Meanwhile, representatives from the Queensland government told the committee that the state was committed to delivering the Olympic Games within the allocated budget.“Queensland government has made a commitment to all Queenslanders to deliver statewide, long-term legacy outcomes that are delivered in time and within the $7.1 billion (US$4.54 billion) allocated funding envelope agreed between the Queensland and Australian governments to be shared on a 50-50 basis,” said Andrew Hopper, director-general at Queensland Department of Sport.
“Queensland government also remains committed to ensuring the Brisbane 2032 Organising Committee delivers on its responsibilities within its cost-neutral budget.”
Olympic Team Says Suspending BPIC Will Speed Up Work
Another Queensland government representative also said the state had made some policy changes to step up progress, including the temporary suspension of the Best Practice Industry Conditions (BPICs), which granted union workers very generous pay and work conditions.“Queensland government had moved quickly to temporarily suspend BPICs, which responded to industry concerns and proposed to boost productivity and reduce construction costs through increased market competition,” she said.
“That suspension will continue until the Queensland Productivity Commission undertakes its review of Queensland building and construction industry and the government has responded to those findings.”
Regarding the timeline for the construction of Olympic facilities, Hopper said the Queensland government was awaiting the finalisation of a 100-day review into Games venues and transport infrastructure before making a decision.
The review is scheduled to be released on March 8, along with a state government’s response on March 25.
