Official Opening of the 2025 Royal Queensland Show

Representing the Premier of Queensland, Leader of the House and State Member for Moggill, Dr Christian Rowan MP; Minister for Primary Industries and State Member for Gympie the Honourable Tony Perrett MP; representing the Leader of the Opposition, State Member for Bundaberg, Mr Tom Smith MP; Representing the Brisbane Lord Mayor, Deputy Mayor Fiona Cunningham; State Member for Stretton, Mr James Martin MP; Queensland Senator Susan McDonald; RNA Queensland President, the Honourable David Thomas and Mrs Jane Thomas, RNA Councillors and Chief Executive, Mr Brendan Christou; Commander 7th Brigade, Brigadier Giles Cornelia DSM CSM, and other Defence Force leaders present; Acting Assistant Commissioner, Queensland Police Service, Mr Rhys Wildman; Archbishop of Brisbane, His Grace the Most Reverend Mark Coleridge; distinguished guests; ladies and gentlemen; girls and boys.

I also begin by acknowledging the Original Custodians of the lands upon which we are gathered, the Turrbal and Jagera peoples, and pay my respects to their Elders past, present and emerging and to all First Nations people here this evening.

I extend my special thanks to the Honour Guard made up of soldiers from the 7th Brigade based at Gallipoli Barracks in Enoggera, and acknowledge the members of the military bands lending the appropriate pomp and ceremony to this grand occasion.

I extend this gratitude to the Queensland Police Service Mounted Unit, and their colleagues on motorbikes who escorted me here all the way from Government House, along with the officers patrolling on foot during the period of the show.

Welcome, one and all, to this magnificent event, the opening of the 2025 Royal Queensland Show––or the Ekka, as Queenslanders have fondly referred to it in the years since the first Intercolonial Exhibition of 1876.

The Ekka is, of course, a hugely important event for so many of the people here whose livelihoods depend on our state’s agricultural economy. They are the mums and dads, business owners, producers, teachers, hospital workers, frontline emergency service members and everyday community members from all places across the State.

Over the past year, I have had the great privilege of travelling far and wide in Queensland and meeting people just like them, and importantly keeping the pledge I made as Governor to visit Queenslanders where they live.

Among the 72 separate Queensland communities I have visited since this time last year, those in our rural and regional heartland tend to stand out.

In every place, I’ve seen firsthand the ingenuity, resilience and pride that define rural life. Nowhere was this more evident than at the Capella Show in May where I had the joy of watching children judge cattle — here were young Queenslanders, brimming with confidence and skill, learning not just the techniques of the trade, but inheriting a deep love of country life and industry. There were also equestrian competitions, a wood-chop contest and all the fun of the fair, with rides and showbags and plenty of show food.

Of course, as proud Patron of the Royal National Agricultural and Industrial Association of Queensland, I am regularly reminded of the central role our primary producers, graziers and rural communities play not only in feeding our families, but in shaping our economy, our identity and our future.

The Ekka is the State’s grand stage for those stories — where regional and urban Queensland come together to celebrate excellence in agriculture, innovation, food, the arts, and, of course, the unmistakable community spirit that sets Queensland apart.

And what a fitting location this is. The Brisbane Showgrounds — this very arena — will soon play a central role in the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. But its spirit of competition, celebration and legacy is already alive and well every August—just ask the 400,000 Queenslanders who walk through the gates each year.

On an evening such as this, it might seem as if all of Brisbane is at the Ekka, just as it might have seemed in 1876, when at least three-quarters of the city’s population of 20,600 people at the time attended the Exhibition’s opening day.

The enduring success of the Ekka is thanks to the vision of the RNA Council and the dedication of event organisers, sponsors, exhibitors, volunteers and stewards—whose commitment ensures the show evolves while honouring its heritage.

As Queensland prepares for an exciting decade ahead, it is this coming together — of past, present and future, of city and country — that will carry us forward.

It is now, with great pride and pleasure, that I declare this year’s Royal Queensland Show officially open. Thank you, enjoy the Show!