Queensland demands GST reform as state faces years in the red
Premier David Crisafulli said a $2.3 billion cut to Queensland's GST allocation from the Commonwealth was a 'significant kick in the pants' for the state's budget and a significant driver toward's the state's $8.6 billion deficit in 2025-26.
The Commonwealth Grants Commission's GST allocation will leave Queensland with its lowest-ever share of GST – largely due to the state's coal royalties, introduced by the former Labor government in 2022, which had reduced its call on the GST pool to cover the provision of services across the state.
Queensland budget papers show the redistribution of GST revenue away from Queensland meant a $2.29 billion revenue reduction in 2025-26. In the three years to 2027-28, the negative impact on Queensland was estimated to be more than $5 billion.
'There is no way that one state should bear the brunt of what Queensland did in one year,' Crisafulli said on Tuesday.
'It's just not fair. The fundamentals of the way that the GST is carved up is unfair, where one state can be penalised because of poor performance for others in one year.'
The loss in GST revenue coincided with a significant decline in coal royalties revenue, which Treasurer David Janetzki lamented was on track to effectively halve.
'The former government collected $15 billion in 22-23, $10 billion in 23-24 and now probably, for 24-25, it'll be a touch under $6 billion,' he said.
'Then across the forwards it'll flatline to around $5-6 billion per annum.
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