Commonwealth and State support for 2032 Olympic and Paralympic bid welcomed

The events in Cairns on Thursday, 8 August 2019, when the heads of the three tiers of government and the President of the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) met for the first time to scope out the approach to pursuing a bid for the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games has been warmly welcomed by Sunshine Coast Council Mayor Mark Jamieson.

The coming together for the first time last week of Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Council of Mayors SEQ Chair Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner and John Coates from the AOC to plan and agree an approach for a potential bid, marked a great step forward for an initiative that has come about from the work of the SEQ Mayors.

“In fact, were it not for the work of the Council of Mayors SEQ, we would not even be having a conversation about a potential Olympic and Paralympic Games bid,” Mayor Jamieson said.

“We have come a long way and this goes to show that it is the vision and hard work of local governments that brings big ideas like this to fruition.”

Mayor Jamieson also welcomed the invitation for all three tiers of government to be represented in the delegation that will meet with the IOC in Lausanne in Switzerland in September.

Mayor Jamieson will represent the Council of Mayors SEQ in the delegation to the IOC, which will also include Premier Palaszczuk, the Prime Minister’s Special Representative for the Olympic Games and Member for Fairfax Mr Ted O’Brien MP and AOC President John Coates.

“This is an unparalleled opportunity for a united and cohesive presentation by all tiers of government and the AOC to present our value proposition for hosting an Olympic and Paralympic Games and I am delighted to be representing my colleagues from SEQ,” Mayor Jamieson said.

“What we have to offer in terms of extensive planning to date, the availability of existing infrastructure and a clear focus on the community benefit and legacy from hosting an event of this nature, should reinforce with the IOC that we offer the best option for 2032.”

Mayor Jamieson also highlighted that the legacy of hosting an Olympic and Paralympic Games – namely contemporary and efficient transport and digital infrastructure for the communities of south east Queensland – had been the paramount driver for the Council of Mayors SEQ from day one and very much remains the core priority.

“When we started this work in 2015, we did so in tandem with the work we had underway to bring the Federal and State governments to the table to negotiate a City Deal for SEQ, which would be the blueprint for the delivery of critical connectivity infrastructure like fast rail to service SEQ, to improve the productivity and functionality of our region,” Mayor Jamieson said.

“The SEQ Mayors have always had a clear objective of leveraging the impetus of an Olympic and Paralympic event as a means to deliver sooner, the transport and digital connectivity to south east Queensland that will ensure our region functions efficiently, the liveability of south east Queensland is enhanced and business, industry and the community would have outstanding linkages nationally and globally,” Mayor Jamieson said.

“This is the dividend we want to see for our communities – and we are looking forward with great interest to seeing the State and Federal governments’ proposals – like a potential fast rail solution from Brisbane to the Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba and the Gold Coast.

“As with the Olympic and Paralympic Games bid, the Council of Mayors SEQ has already done all of the preliminary work in relation to the transport and digital infrastructure requirements and priorities, through our work on the SEQ City Deal proposition and the People Mass Movement Study – both of which were released earlier this year.

“We are looking forward to the Federal and State governments coming to the table in the near future to spell out their respective infrastructure investment plans for inclusion in the SEQ City Deal, which will not only position us favourably for an Olympics and Paralympics Games bid, but will also ensure the liveability and connectivity of SEQ – which is home to one in seven Australians – is second to none.”