The White Elephant Award goes to...Wellcamp, Toowoomba
Policy Insights' inaugural White Elephant Award this month goes deservedly the Queensland Government's Wellcamp Facility in Toowoomba. Well done!
The White Elephant Award
Here at Policy Insights we like to give recognition where recognition is due. In fact, we thought it was high time that wasteful use of taxpayer dollars for pointless projects was given the recognition it truly deserves. That is why we have decided launch to the White Elephant Award or WEA for short.
The criteria for this prestigious and much-coveted prize is as follows - a project must either :
Waste copious amounts of taxpayer dollars for minimal or negligible public benefit.
Fail to be delivered on time, or to budget or both.
Fail to or do not fully achieve the publicly stated objectives of the project.
Be maintained beyond its use-by date or when it was clear it was never needed in the first place.
Be delivered with little to no public transparency or accountability.
And the winner is…
Therefore we are pleased to announce the inaugural winner of the White Elephant Award is the Queensland Palaszczuck Government’s Wellcamp Quarantine Facility built in Toowoomba.
As recently announced, the illustrious named Queensland Regional Accommodation Centre aka Wellcamp COVID-19 facility is to be mothballed from 1 August 2022 having only been in use for less than 6 months. This has come at a cost to taxpayers of $223.5 million (so far) for the construction and operation of the facility, as revealed by the Deputy Premier Steven Miles in Budget Estimates this week. The LNP Opposition have put the cost more likely at $237.8 million.
The Opposition has also pointed out only 730 people have stayed at 1,000-bed Wellcamp facility to date, with an average of 30 people a week and at a cost of $325,000 per person. At that cost, if you had been one of those 730, you would feel somewhat ripped off that the Government didn’t just put you up in the Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast instead.
It is worth revisiting some of the earlier promises on this project from the Premier and her Ministers and businessman John Wagner.
“This is going to be a great boost for our defence against the Delta virus in this country, and in fact I believe we need regional facilities, right across the country. I have been advocating for this for a long, long time. It is a no-brainer.” - Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, 26 August 2021
“When you consider that the last lockdown alone cost more than a billion dollars in economic impact, and compensation, you can see just what fantastic value it will be” - Deputy Premier Steven Miles, 26 August 2021
“Going forward, this quarantine facility will play a vital role in the success of Queensland’s COVID-19 Economic Recovery Plan, as well as its COVID-19 Vaccination Plan to Unite Families.”- Minister for Agriculture, Industry Development and Fisheries and Minister for Rural Communities Mark Furner, 2 November 2021
“The Centre will continue to provide a significant economic boost to the region in terms of local jobs and regional development opportunities.” - John Wagner, Wagner Corporation CEO, 2 November 2021.
In addition, the Government has spent $40 million on Hotel Quarantine, a program that has only accommodated 12 guests in the past 6 months. This is on top the other announcement by the Queensland Government that they will no longer be requiring the use of the $400 million Commonwealth dedicated quarantine facility now nearing completion at Pinkenba in Brisbane.
Queensland taxpayers will of course be super pleased to know that they will continue paying for Wellcamp facility, that is owned by the Wagner Corporation, well into next year when the contract finally ends late February. This is despite no one staying at this facility beyond August 2022.
Wagner Corporation boss John Wagner, who was recently appointed to the Brisbane 2032 Olympics Legacy Committee by Ms Palaszczuk’s cabinet, will of course be laughing all the way to the bank.
Do you have a project that you wish to nominate for WEA? Let us know in the comments below.
Look out for the forthcoming book White Elephant Stampede - Case Studies in Policy and Project Management Failures edited by David Gration, Bruce Kingston and Scott Prasser and published by Connor Court is due to be released in September 2022.
Worthy winner among many strong competitors.
The NBN....wireless was always going to overtake fixed line.....thus stranding the NBN .
Wireless 5G is now here
White Elephant indeed