I am honoured to be a presenter at IAQ’s upcoming Queensland Infrastructure Summit on 29 August in Brisbane, alongside our Deputy Premier Jackie Trad, Treasurer Curtis Pitt, Deputy Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington, and other luminaries including my old UQ economics classmate Damian Gould, CEO of Building Queensland (see speaker list snipped from website below). This is a must attend event for anyone involved in the planning, design or construction of infrastructure in Queensland. My presentation will explore the pros and cons of state development or infrastructure banks.

The summit is well timed in the lead up to the next State election, and I expect the Deputy Premier and Treasurer will be promoting their plan for Cross River Rail, which I expect a major announcement on soon, either at Budget time (13 June) or not long after. Cross River Rail is a must-deliver project for the Government, so it can rebut the Opposition’s claim it is a do-nothing government, so expect the Government to do whatever it can to make it happen. If there is no action on Cross River Rail, the Deputy Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington will get a free kick at the Government at the Summit. I have previously posted on the Government’s options regarding Cross River Rail:

Cross River Rail Budget snub unsurprising given weak business case – will QIC now step in?