This year’s budget estimates hearings, where ministers and their senior bureaucrats are compelled to answer questions on how they spend the public’s money, begin on Tuesday.

Seven days of hearings have been reduced to two with each committee sitting for longer, but at the same time. 

How the new schedule will work for the Opposition and media is anyone’s guess, but there are some things we are fairly sure of seeing.

Five things we can expect to hear about at this year’s Queensland budget estimates hearings.

• Questions about the Director-General of the Premier’s department, Jon Grayson, the boot camp tender process, how much a particular bureaucrat has been paid or was hired, and the leaking of Labor’s Stafford candidate Anthony Lynham’s Queensland Health payroll information.

Premier Campbell Newman has already denied the leak of Dr Lynham’s information came from the government, but it will be a key issue the Opposition is expected to follow up.  There is always at least one question related to the salary of a particular public servant – Ben Myers was the main target last year.  How people within government departments were hired is also a favoured – and successful – topic for the Opposition – think Michael Caltabiano and former minister Ros Bates’s son.

The tender process for Queensland’s boot camps, an initiative of the Attorney-General’s office, already raised questions earlier in the year and it is sure to be brought up again.  Likewise for anything related to Mr Grayson, whose private business dealings have been an issue the Opposition has repeatedly turned to

•  Doctor contracts

The moving of senior medical officers and visiting medical officers from their current contractual arrangement with Queensland Health to individual contracts with health boards was a rare misstep for Health Minister Lawrence Springborg, who has, at least according to the government, handled the hospital pass that was the health department with aplomb. Doctors across the state protested the move, resignations were threatened and Stafford MP Chris Davis, who spoke out about how the process was being dealt with, eventually resigned, leading to this Saturday’s by-election.

• Infrastructure funding

Other than 1 William Street, which is being funded by the private sector, the state government does not have confirmed funding for many other projects, outside road projects.  It does however, have plans including new dams and the BaT.  So far we’re told asset sales could help build Queensland’s new projects, but the Opposition will want to know more.

• How much it costs deputy premier Jeff Seeney to travel to and from Monto and Brisbane.

This question has been a perennial favourite of the Opposition.  Mr Seeney travels once a week between his electorate of Monto in central Queensland and Brisbane to fulfil his ministerial and parliamentary duties.  Given the lack of commercial flight options, the government charters a four-seater Cessna for Mr Seeney’s travel.  It costs about $160,000 a year.  “You can go to Vegas 57 times for that amount,” Opposition leader Annastacia Palaszczuk pointed out last year.  “Nothing has changed and nothing will change,” Mr Seeney said.

• Backhanded thank-yous from a minister to either an Opposition or minor party MP for their question.

These non-thanks are honed during parliamentary question time and executed with precision during estimates hearings.  Given the setting, certain protocols have to be adhered to – such as no personally addressed attacks -  but some ministers now have it down to a fine art leading to Hansard transcripts that read a scene from The Thick of It. For Example -

 “It is a day of firsts. The Leader of the Opposition was not here when I made the observation this morning...that since the last estimates I have sat in the parliament day after day after day eagerly waiting for a question from the Leader of the Opposition...but none was forthcoming. The member for Mackay asked me one question, so...more power to the member for Mackay. I am pleased that the Leader of the Opposition attended the committee today to break her duck, so to speak,” Jeff Seeney said last year.

And this exchange between Transport Minister Scott Emerson and Opposition Treasury spokesman, Curtis Pitt from last year.

“ Mr [Curtis] Pitt: Minister, I think you referred earlier to the Prime Minister as being all talk and no action. It is something I have heard applied to some of the commitments made by your government, quite frankly.

Mr [Scott] Emerson: I am glad to see you endorse my comments about Kevin Rudd.

Mr Pitt: Minister, you are trying to put words in my mouth as you usually do and again you are failing in your attempt. Minister, it seems that again it is about talking big but not delivering from your perspective. Will the government put in an additional $1.8 billion to meet its 20 per cent commitment which is obviously what would be in line in terms of the Abbott government’s commitment? Where is that money coming from? Can you point to where that is going to be in the forward estimates? Can you confirm this money will be on top of the money already allocated in your current budget?

Mr Emerson: In the forward estimates there is $340 million already in the budget.

Mr Pitt: We are talking about $1.8 billion.

Mr Emerson: Look, I know that you struggle with the budget, member for Mulgrave.

Mr Pitt: No, I do not struggle with the budget, Minister. I am asking you a direct question.

Mr Emerson: Member for Mulgrave, you do struggle with the budget; I know.