Queenslanders will remain in the dark over what their state assets are truly worth until after the government has sold them.
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New South Wales annoucned it was releasing the outcomes* of its scoping studies into the long-term lease of its electricity network this week, but the Queensland government is sticking to its guns of not making its own scoping studies, or the official response public until after the privatisation process is finalised.
That won't be until after the election. The government has announced it will lease the state's electricity network and its ports for 50 to 99 years in order to pay down debt and build infrastructure.
But Mr Nicholls has admitted that at the end of the lease, the government may have to buy back any infrastructure which has been repaired or built by the private company which leases the asset.
With public feedback telling the government a sale was unpalatable, the vernacular switched from sales to leases for the 'strong choice final plan'.
Mr Nicholls said the government would not be pushed into releasing any information from the scoping studies ahead of its schedule, despite the NSW government move.
"I haven't seen the release of anything from New South Wales, but let me say this – our position is very clear," he said while announcing a higher-than-expected deficit and revenue write-down during the mid-year financial report.
"We have said all along we will take our plan in relation to the leasing of assets to the people of Queensland at the election.
"We have released our strong choices plan, a comprehensive plan to deal with the leasing of those businesses and what we will do with the proceeds and we will continue to explain it to Queenslanders, why we need to pay down that $80 billion worth of Labor debt in order to firstly stabilise the state's finances, stop paying that wasted money in interest and then to be able to invest in job-creating infrastructure."
Mr Nicholls said Queenslanders "very clearly" understood what their choices were at the next election.
*Clarification: An earlier version of this story said the New South Wales government was releasing its scoping study, this has been clarified to the 'outcomes' of the scoping studies.
