Queensland's former government never conducted a cost-benefit analysis on the $653 million office tower it approved in the CBD, Tim Nicholls admits.
The new Labor government has reluctantly agreed to move into the 1 William Street property after revealing it had failed to attract any tenants willing to pay the set rent of $650 per square metre, about $150 above the current market rate.
Former Treasurer Tim Nicholls admits the state's auditor-general expressed concern that a cost-benefit analysis on the 41-storey building was never conducted, but he still insists it's a good project.
"What the auditor-general said is that in projects like this you normally need to undertake a cost-benefit analysis," he told ABC Radio.
"And in this instance that cost-benefit was not undertaken, but he did not question whether it was of a benefit or not to Queensland."
Mr Nicholls said the former Liberal National Party government had always intended to move government departments into the building.
He said having those departments under one roof and not "spread across seven ageing city buildings" would result in better decision-making and a better work experience for public servants.
But current Treasurer Curtis Pitt said his government had been left with no option but to fill the city's most expensive office space with public servants as leaving floors vacant would end up costing the state about $200 million over the next 15 years.
"We have got no other option than except to ask for $650 per square metre, that's in the contract," he said.
"If you ask less ... what the LNP would be doing is suggesting we would be subsiding that."
Mr Nicholls said Labor should be trying harder to fill the vacant office space.
"They are just simply giving up on it and making political capital out of it," he said.
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