Queensland Labor’s “optimistic” budget will redirect $10.6 billion in existing funding to meet election commitments and cut debt.

Treasurer Curtis Pitt’s first budget promises to create jobs with record spending on health, education and training, and pay off $9.6 billion in debt by 2018/19.

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”Labor budgets are positive. They are optimistic,” Mr Pitt told parliament.
”They seek to challenge, to extend, to grow new industries, to tackle the enduring tests with optimism about the future.”

The government is spending $14.2 billion on health, $12.4 billion on education, and more than $2 billion on 977 new police vehicles and training an extra 266 officers in 2015/16.

Mr Pitt expects a $10.1 billion spend on infrastructure and capital works to generate about 30,000 jobs.

There’s also $240 million set aside for Labor’s Skilling Queenslanders for Work program and $200 million for a regional development fund.

The government will use $180 million to stimulate the innovation and research sectors as part of its Advance Queensland plan.

But the primary challenge for Labor has been finding all the cash without privatising assets, forcing redundancies or creating new fees, taxes and charges.

To achieve this, all departments have been ordered to redirect $1.125 billion in funding by 2018/19, which means many must end outsourcing services or cut contracted jobs.

Queensland Health will be hardest hit, needing to redirect $484.4 million, and the Education and Training department is expected to redirect $264.7 million.

The government plans to save another $2 billion by pausing voluntary contributions to the public servant superannuation pool for the next five years.

Labor will also save $3.46 billion by only funding individual long service leave when it’s required, rather than keeping a set amount in a pool.

Transferring debts of state-owned firms from the government’s balance sheet to their own books will save another $4.1 billion, Mr Pitt said.

He’s confident his $10.6 billion worth of savings measures will not impact on the state’s credit rating or impact on the quality of services.

“We’re getting out of the habit of borrowing,” Mr Pitt added.

The government forecasts an operating surplus of $6.9 billion over the next four years on the back of strong annual growth of 4.5 per cent in both 2015/16 and 2016/17.

– AAP