Independent Member for Noosa Sandy Bolton has accused the state government of undermining democracy during the first sitting week of the 2026 Queensland Parliament.
Sandy said urgency motions were again used to limit debate on what she described as non-urgent yet controversial legislation, including changes to youth justice and political donations. She also criticised the government for not supporting leave for a Motion Without Notice put forward by a crossbench member, preventing broader discussion.
In her speech on the government’s Electoral Reform Amendments, Sandy said it was an “opportunity for real reform squandered, and the antithesis of what Queenslanders seek”.
She said previous reforms had banned property developer donations while allowing unions to contribute, but the latest amendments reversed that approach.
“The Opposition, when in government, allowed unions to donate but banned property developers. This week, under the guise of ‘restoring fairness’, the government brought property developers and others back to potential electoral influence, instead of banning all as South Australia has done,” she said.
Sandy further claimed the legislation was introduced despite warnings from the Crime and Corruption Commission, which she said cautioned the bill increased risks of actual or perceived corruption. “This legislation was pushed through against all evidence and opposition, including by the Crime and Corruption Commission who warned the bill increases risks of actual or perceived corruption, and was against the consensus of Queenslanders who oppose vested interests influencing decision making, including in Noosa where a recent poll saw 94 per cent of respondents against the lifting of developer bans,” she said.
She also questioned the timing of the reforms following the government’s announcement of a Land Activation Program to release under-utilised, state-owned land to developers without mandatory affordable housing requirements. “With our ongoing housing crisis still critical and improvement nowhere in sight, that publicly owned land will not be utilised for our worker families who cannot afford the $1m plus to get even a two-bed unit in South East Queensland anymore, beggars belief,” Sandy said.