FROM foreign-made T-shirts to promote Queensland goods to the horror of the health payroll debacle, the former Labor government's carefree approach to spending has been laid bare at the annual Budget Estimates hearings.
The hearings are normally an opportunity to scrutinise the financial fineprint of the current administration's most important document, but in the past two weeks the LNP used its majority on parliamentary committees to deflect attention from its own Budget and focus on why Queensland's coffers have run dry.
Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney sank the boot in over the $10,000 spent on T-shirts bearing the logo, "Buy Local - Back Queensland", which were meant to assist with the 2011 flood recovery.
Public servants were ordered to cut the clothing tags out to try to hide the fact they were "made in Bangladesh".
In another embarrassment, 58,000 Travelsmart backpacks were found "gathering dust" in a Brendale warehouse.
Transport Minister Scott Emerson also highlighted expenditure of $43,000 to install 24 electric carparks in Adelaide St despite having no plans to purchase electric cars.
Water and Energy Minister Mark McArdle brought a set of garden gnomes to estimates, as a reminder of a failed water conservation campaign that cost $20,000.
The long-running health payroll debacle proved an easy kick for Health Minister Lawrence Springborg, who likened its multimillion-dollar cost blowout to "paying $400 for a Mars Bar".
Arts and IT Minister Ros Bates was highly critical of Labor's decision to pay more than $1 million commissioning a New Zealand artist to create a giant statue of an upside-down elephant tipped on its head and eyeballing a water rat, money she said would have been better spent locally.
AN astonishing bungle left Queensland taxpayers forking out tens of millions in charges for more than 23,000 Government phones that did not exist.
A statewide audit has so far found 16,661 unused fixed phone lines and 6587 idle mobile phone plans.
The phones were defunct or simply unplugged in office moves.
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PHONE BUNGLE? TELL US BELOW
Information Technology Minister Ian Walker said the chance discovery of the phantom phones pointed to "reckless financial management" during the Beattie-Bligh era.
Mr Walker said the good news was that $17, 651,108 was saved in the last financial year because of the review of information and communications technology strategies.
And a further $16 million would be saved this year by continuing to review phone plans and reducing other ICT waste, he said.
"The flagrant waste has now come to an end, thanks to all government departments working hard to find savings and cut the duplication that was allowed to flourish under the previous Labor Government," Mr Walker said.
"This government is determined Queenslanders will get best value for their tax dollars and we are doing that by cutting down on waste across a number of key areas including telecommunications, printing and vendor management."
He congratulated the Queensland Police Service for achieving the greatest savings to date with reductions of $6.1 million, including $5 million for printing.
Mr Walker said $3.6 million had also been slashed from Queensland Health's ICT expenses, mainly through telecommunications efficiencies.
"Additionally, the Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services and the Integrated Transport Planning division collectively reduced ICT costs across all areas by $2.9 million," he said.
"These savings will be used to pay down the debt and deficit left by Labor and we will continue to identify opportunities to reduce ICT costs and waste."
Mr Walker said he believed more savings could be achieved by optimising internet service provider costs through consolidation and renegotiation.
