The decision to change the Ekka public holiday to October, clashing with Year 12 exams, has been criticised by the state opposition.

The new date has been locked in for Friday 29 October, in the hopes Queenslanders will book a long weekend away.

It applies to residents in Brisbane, Moreton Bay and the Scenic Rim.

Education Minister Grace Grace said it gave families the opportunity to enjoy a long weekend.

“It is around student exam time, but with this amount of notice we can easily accomodate for the exams on that Friday.”

But Shadow Minister for Education, Christian Rowan, said his phone was “ringing off the hook” after the announcement.

“The Minister for Education needs to do her homework, and understand there’s a lot of confusion and concern out there as to how this is going to be dealt with for those students who are due to be completing their exams on 29 October,” he told Scott Emerson.

He said there hadn’t been “proper consultation and communication”.

Press PLAY below to hear how more about the reaction from schools

Image: Getty

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