CLEVELAND MP Mark Robinson has rejected claims Cleveland District State High School missed out on a $6million hall because of pork-barrelling promises in the premier’s electorate of Ashgrove.
Mr Robinson said claims funding was taken from Cleveland and given to Ashgrove were “wild accusations” and he had never had a commitment money was set aside for the hall.
He said he had lobbied for a school hall for more than six years, wrote to Treasurer Tim Nicholls in November and to Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek last month.
Despite the school being unsuccessful in the latest round of Get in the Game funding, he remained committed to getting a hall for the school.
“Whether we are in Opposition or in government, while I am the Member for Cleveland, I will keep fighting for the funding for that hall,” he said.
“I don’t know all of the reasons the requests have been unsuccessful but it goes back historically and I’m presuming it has something to do with the school getting the Smith Street Hall.
“That hall is far too small now because the whole school can’t meet in it.”
Under the current proposal, drafted by school principal Paul Bancroft, Department of Sports and Redland City Council would both spend $1.5million with Education Queensland tipping in $3million.
However, Mr Robinson said there were other options, including getting the entire $6million from the state government or applying for the next round of Get in the Games Plus grants.
He also said a teacher at the school, who is also a Greens candidate, was speculating on what happened with the funding request and said he did not want to speculate on her “ethics”.
A Future Schools fund will be set up using some of the forecast $8.6billion from the government’s asset leasing program.
The fund will be used to build 22 schools across the state and, Mr Robinson said he hoped it would also go to the high school’s hall.
Mr Robinson said the Cleveland hall was not on his top 10 list of projects to fund in the electorate.
