Qld budget 'driven by population growth'

Ms Bligh told a women's business lunch on Friday the budget, to be handed down on Tuesday, would include major infrastructure spending, to handle the state's rapid growth.

"Just to give you a sense of what's happening in south-east Queensland and how that compares with the rest of the country, the Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates that by 2020, only 15 years away, one in four Australians will live between Coffs Harbour and Gympie," Ms Bligh said.

"The shape of our country is starting to change."

She said including roads, rail and energy would attract a large share of funding in the budget as the government tried to keep ahead of demand.

Ms Bligh said the good news about the population growth was those moving to Queensland could contribute greatly to its economy, in contrast with the popular stereotype of retirees crossing the border for a seachange.

"These are young people starting out in their early lives in work, young people setting up families, young families buying their first or second home, but people who are going to be in the workforce for another 30 or 40 years," Ms Bligh said.

But the state opposition called for the government not to raise taxes to fund their budget promises.

Opposition treasury spokesman Dr Bruce Flegg said the Beattie government had become the largest taxing government in the state's history, with state taxes leaping ahead of the GST as the major source of state revenue.

Dr Flegg predicted the budget would include state taxation revenue of more than $8.3 billion.

"Looking ahead to the budget, I expect Anna Bligh will increase fees and charges rather than follow the Commonwealth government's example and reduce the burden on taxpayers," he said.

He said many of the increases would come after the budget, in the form of higher charges for water and electricity.

"Overall, I would say Queensland needs to brace itself and start preparing now for a host of new taxes as well as obscured fee increases, courtesy of Anna Bligh," he said.