Brisbane's 2025–26 budget revealed: rate hikes, service fee rises and major infrastructure plans
'We are the cheapest. We are staying the cheapest. We are committed to staying the cheapest,' he said.
'If you're living in Logan, Redlands, Ipswich, Moreton Bay — you're already paying hundreds more than what people in Brisbane are paying.'
The latest rate hikes come with a citywide green bin rollout and millions in Story Bridge repairs.
The average rates bill will rise by around $100, with an additional $49 waste charge for households without a green bin.
Of that, $33 is blamed on the state government's landfill levy — what Schrinner calls 'a straight tax grab.'
'We're trying to avoid the state government's waste levy, which is their bin tax,' he said.
'Effectively, that has pushed up the bin charge by $33 alone this year.'
Standalone homes will automatically receive a green waste bin unless they opt out.
They will be rolled out from August through to December.
Schrinner says it will reduce landfill, boost recycling, and ultimately save residents money long-term.
Footpath fix and federal funding fight
The Council will also spend $18 million on the ageing Story Bridge, including $6.9 million to replace the closed footpath, which is due to reopen by the end of the year.
Schrinner is calling on the federal and state governments to contribute, citing a recent $628 million federal investment in a bridge in Hobart.
'All we're asking for is a similar deal to what people in Tasmania would get,' he said.
'It was 80 per cent funded by the federal government and 20 per cent funded by the Tasmanian Government.'
'This is not a local road.
'It is used by 42 per cent of people from outside of Brisbane every day, which means people from Logan, Redlands, Ipswich, Moreton Bay are using the Story Bridge each and every day.
'This is an asset that serves a national transport purpose.'
Work is already underway to replace the closed Story Bridge footpath with the manufacturing of new decking expected to take up to 17 weeks, Schrinner revealed.
Installation will then begin, with much of the work done overnight to minimise disruption to commuters and traffic.
'Money is not the issue for the footpath here,' Schrinner said.
'We've allocated all of the money that is required to do this job… we're going to be working as fast as we can.'
Schrinner confirmed at least one footpath will be reopened by the end of the year,
Inner-city units, fees and fairness
Inner-city unit owners will also feel the change, with a rates increase aimed at closing the gap between apartments and suburban homes.
'Ninety per cent of all units across Brisbane are only paying the minimum rate — about $228 a quarter,' Schrinner said.
From October 1 people who buy units will pay up to $100 per year more.
'This tries to rectify that gap to make sure that everyone's paying their fair share.'
The average rates bill across the city will rise by 3.87 per cent, though the exact increase for unit owners will depend on individual property values and location.
Fees for services including pet registration and home improvements will also rise by about 4 per cent, adding further pressure to family budgets.
But Schrinner insists the increases are modest compared to neighbouring councils.
'We've worked hard to keep the costs down.'
Despite a challenging economic environment, Schrinner promised the Council will reduce debt by more than 20 per cent over four years — from $3.6 billion to $2.9 billion — while still investing in core services.
'Roads, rates, rubbish — and now rapid transit,' he said.
'This is a responsible budget. We're spending what we can afford, and not putting unnecessary costs on Brisbane households.'
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After this, Mr Netanyahu said he hoped to expand the Abraham Accords that were struck during President Trump's first term in office, with the Arab nations playing a role in the security of the region. 'I think we're on the verge of completing this war, a seven front war that includes Iran and its proxies,' he said. 'And when that happens I think we'll have tremendous opportunities to expand the peace. 'I myself made with President Trump the Abraham Accords four peace treaties with the Arab states that hadn't been done for a quarter of a century, and I think after our victory we're gonna have plenty more.' ON THE FUTURE OF THE AUSTRALIA-ISRAEL RELATIONSHIP Mr Netanyahu firmly blamed the Albanese government for the escalating diplomatic tensions, which mark the lowest point in the Australia-Israel relationship. He said the dispute had come down to a lack of conviction from Australia while Israel was fighting a war on behalf of Western Civilisation. Asked what it would take to restore the friendship between the two nations, Mr Netanyahu pointed to the long and warm history, forged on the battlefield more than a century ago. "There's been a great underlying friendship there for over a century,' he said. 'In 2017 I had the 100th anniversary in Beersheba, a celebration of the Australian forces along with New Zealanders who actually liberated Beersheba from Ottoman rule, and you know we had the charge of the Australian Light Horse reenacted. It was very moving. 'We've had a great relationship over the years. I think it's gone astray because I think leaders did not show the strength and conviction that they should have when we're actually fighting the war of Western Civilisation against these barbarians. 'I think ultimately most Australians will get it, if they don't get it now. I think many of them will get it today, and many will get it once we finish this war and give a future of peace and prosperity.' 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He spoke about the failure of Western leaders, like Mr Albanese, to confront the surging antisemitism that had occurred under their watch. 'I think a lot of Western leaders are showing this weakness, or what Churchill called the 'slumber of democracies. He said democracies go to sleep and they wake up only when they hear the jarring gong of danger. 'Well, we hear more than a jarring gong, we hear alarm bells all over the place, where you have these fanatics, these Islamist fanatics who not only target Israel, they (also) want to murder Arabs who don't share their nefarious creed, they want to destroy the West, they say so openly. 'That is not merely the slumber of democracies, it's the weakness of democratic leaders who at a time of testing should stand up and show leadership - and leadership means standing up for the truth, standing up for your conviction, standing up for the right side of history and not for the wrong side that right now is completely, completely populated with these mass killers and terrorist monsters.' ON PRO-PALESTINIAN PROTESTERS The Israeli Prime Minister also called for action to be taken against the often-aggressive pro-Palestinian marches, where terrorist slogans are chanted and hate symbols displayed. He also said that the prize of a Palestinian state should not be given to those who express an intent to destroy the nation of Israel. 'These people, when they demonstrate in Sydney or in Melbourne or in New York or Washington or in the capitals of Europe, they should be counteracted, they should be opposed, and they should be defied by the leaders, and yet we see - not in America, I'm happy to say, because President Trump is standing strong - but in Europe, one country after another, succumbing to them, condemning Israel that is fighting these monsters and is doing its best to avoid civilian casualties, but basically giving a prize of a Palestinian state to these people who want to use it to destroy the one and only Jewish state,' Mr Netanyahu said. COMPLACENCY OF THE WEST Mr Netanyahu went on to warn of the dangers of 'appeasement', drawing a direct parallel with how Europe sat back during the 1930s and the rise of Nazism. He referenced the Munich agreement, or betrayal, of 1938 where France, Italy, Germany and Britain ceded Czechoslovakian land to Hitler, in an attempt to appease the Nazi leader. He said we were seeing the same appeasement of terrorism by Western leaders now where they seemed prepared to sacrifice Israel. 'It's appeasement, pure and simple. 'The democracies pressed Czechoslovakia to make that concession. They gave that part to Hitler and what did he do? He immediately started World War II, the worst war in the history of humanity that claimed millions and millions of people. Innocent people dead. 'Well, we're not going to repeat that with Israel, a small democracy, the only democracy in the Middle East that is being assaulted by terrorist organisations and other proxies of Iran and by Iran itself and they openly call for our destruction and they openly say that the West will be their next target.' Mr Netanyahu mounted the case for why a Palestinian state, while terrorists remained in control, would jeopardise Israel's very existence. 'These countries do exactly what the Western countries did towards Czechoslovakia before World War II. They're condemning Israel,' he said. 'They want to put Israel at tremendous risk by giving this strategic piece of land right next to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv to these Palestinians who want to destroy Israel. 'They don't even hide it. Well, we're not gonna do that and we're not gonna repeat the mistakes that were made prior to World War II.' ON CLAIMS OF STARVATION AND GENOCIDE Netanyahu addressed claims that Israel was deliberately starving children and conducting a genocide in Gaza, slamming the accusations as 'lies' and vilification. "We bought in two million tonnes of food into Gaza since the beginning of the war. That's one tonne of food for every man, woman and child,' he said. 'Hamas has been stealing this food and selling the remainder at exorbitant prices to the Palestinian civilians they claim to represent. That's what's causing the shortage. 'And as far as the killing deliberately of civilians, I mean Israel has sent millions and millions of text messages and phone calls to Palestinian civilians telling them get out of harm's way. 'Hamas has implanted itself in your neighbourhoods, in your schools, in your communities, get out of harm's way, so that we can shepherd you to safe places, and many did, but many didn't, not because they don't want to, but because Hamas shoots them if they try to get out of harm's way. 'Israel is doing things that no army has done, no army has done in trying to avoid civilian casualties. 'The lengths that we go to to protect the civilian population has been unheard of, yet Israel is being vilified just as in the Middle Ages, and those leaders and those media outlets who know better, should know better, should be ashamed of themselves for propagating this.' Mr Netanyahu said that while the false narrative was being spread by media outlets, he believed that Israel would eventually win both the military and propaganda war. 'The Jews may have been defenceless in the face of these vilifications and lies in yesteryear, but not today,' he said. 'They may get away with pushing these lies against us, but we do not succumb on the battlefield. We roll back those who would exterminate us, those who rape our women, beat our men and burn our babies, and we'll secure the peace. 'And when we win the peace, we'll win both wars. We will win both the propaganda war and the war on the ground and give a different future for the people of Gaza and for ourselves.' ON DONALD TRUMP Netanyahu reveals President Trump views the actions of Australia, and other nations, to recognise a Palestinian state as 'irrelevant'. And he says that while Mr Trump is correct that the United Nations vote at the General Assembly in September won't lead to a physical Palestinian state, he said the issue does matter because Australia is only encouraging radicalisation within its own borders. The Israeli Prime Minister warned that the terrorists Australia are appeasing want to destroy the West as well. Asked about Mr Trump's reaction to Australia, the UK, France and Canada's decision to vote for Palestinian recognition, Mr Netanyahu said: 'It's certainly dismayed us, and I think he sort of said, 'What these countries say is irrelevant', and in the practical sense he's right because we're not going to commit suicide and put another Palestinian state right next to our doorstep in Tel Aviv or in Jerusalem because the distances are tiny,' he said. "So when Prime Minister Albanese and the leaders of France, Britain and others say 'Oh we'll give them a Palestinian state,' they're actually rewarding terror. 'They're saying it doesn't matter what horrors you people do. It doesn't matter that you say that you'll go not only after Israel but after the United States, death to Israel, America, death to the West. 'Last time I looked, Australia was part of the West … it's our common Judeo-Christian civilization. They want to tear it down and destroy it. 'But it does matter. I think it's it in practical terms, no, it won't happen, but what will happen is you will encourage more and more and more of this radicalism in your own country and you will see this violence and this radicalism in your city because if your leaders don't take a stand and they say this is wrong…. Then the crocodile will get you in the end. And that's what we're seeing at the moment. '
