Brisbane mayoral hopeful launches campaign

Brisbane has a hole in its heart and needs to attract more businesses to fill it, the man facing off against the city's lord mayor says.

Labor lord mayoral candidate Rod Harding, who kick-started his campaign on Saturday, is concerned about the growing number of empty offices in the central business district and has vowed to take swift action, if elected.

The vacancy rate in Brisbane's CBD office market reached a record high of 15.6 per cent this year, according to the Property Council of Australia.

"Our office vacancy rate is the highest in Australia," Mr Harding said.

"In the CBD there is half a million square metres of office space gathering dust."

The bank manager and former lawyer said attracting more businesses would create the "perfect circle" of economic activity in Brisbane, with more people using under-utilised toll roads and public transport services.

He has also promised to fast-track the construction of a pedestrian and cycle bridge between Kangaroo Point and the CBD, if elected.

Mr Harding grew up in Charleville, where his father was a publican, but studied and raised his family in Brisbane.

The father of three has no formal political experience but was reportedly touted as a contender to take on then premier Campbell Newman in Ashgrove if Kate Jones decided not to run.

Toppling Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk in the 2016 election will be no easy task, with the LNP having held office since 2008.