Statement by Opposition Leader David Crisafulli
Ambulance ramping is back in Queensland.
The State Government is losing control of healthcare, meaning Queenslanders are losing access to vital services.
Today’s emergency meeting called by the Health Minister must work towards implementing genuine solutions.
The LNP is advocating for solutions like:
1) Data on resource availability to be made available in real time so patients and our health professionals can make choices in real time.
2) Providing better resourcing for triaging in emergency departments to ensure the service is fit for purpose.
3) Investing in more resourced beds instead of fudging the figures by counting chairs in the hospital bed tally.
I urge the State Government to work with us.
Queenslanders deserve a world-class health system they can rely on.
Today the LNP has announced it supports the Auditor General’s recommendations that state finances should be released before state elections and for the state government to provide real transparency around the Queensland Future Fund.
New South Wales and Victoria have strict deadlines to release financial statements and the Auditor-General is calling on the Labor Government to also be transparent.
Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Shadow Treasurer David Janetzki says honest Queenslanders deserve to have the full picture before state elections.
“Last year, Queenslanders were effectively blindfolded heading to the ballot box,” Mr Janetzki said.
“The Auditor-General says it was wrong and has called it out.
“This is not just about the numbers, this is about the truth.
“The Auditor-General has dragged the state government into the spotlight and it’s time the Labor Government stopped conducting government business in the dark.”
Shadow Minister for Finance Jarrod Bleijie says this about transparency and integrity.
“Labor has an appalling record when it comes to open and transparent government,” Mr Bleijie said.
“Queenslanders should always have the full picture, but the state government would rather hide the true state of the books.
“The LNP accepts the recommendations of the Auditor General’s report.
“It’s a shame the Premier hasn’t read it.”
The LNP is fighting for every Queenslander who cannot find a place to live.
Hard-working, honest Queenslanders are being forced to live in their cars, in garages or with family and friends as the number of new housing lots falls to the lowest levels since records began.
Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli said it was shameful that Labor had ignored the plight of so many Queenslanders by not releasing new land.
He said the State Government’s poor planning and lack of infrastructure was to blame for Queensland’s housing crisis.
“We haven’t seen this lack of investment in infrastructure for a generation,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“We need to make more land available and we need to build the roads, water and sewerage to support it.”
In Parliament today, Labor could not answer basic questions like where Queenslanders can afford to buy or rent a home or what they’re doing to fix it.
“Labor is losing control of housing affordability,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“We must build the infrastructure that protects the lifestyle of the people who are already here and that gives opportunities for our kids to get into the market now and into the future.”
Official figures show the number of new housing lots have plummeted 22.4%, with some of the highest population growth areas hardest hit.
In a decade on decade comparison, the number of lot registrations in Queensland fell by 77,699. In the period 2001 to 2010, the number of lot registrations was 346,947. In the corresponding period of 2011 to 2020, that number was 269,248.
BACKGROUND:
The Urban Development Institute of Australia Queensland figures show:
• Housing lot registrations on the Gold Coast have fallen 37% in the decade on decade comparison, while its population soared by almost 15% in the same period.
• The Sunshine Coast is down 20% while its population increased by 15%.
• Cairns is down a staggering 68.7% while experiencing population growth of 10%.
• And Townsville has fallen 54% with an 8% increase in population.
• Moreton Bay, one of the fastest growing areas in Queensland with a population increase of 17% recorded a 13% fall in housing lot registrations.
• Only six of the 41 regions analysed across Queensland showed an increase in housing lot registrations.
Labor must explain how they will stop lawlessness and thuggery at Queensland building sites under a plan to scrap the independent construction industry watchdog.
Figures show lawlessness at Queensland building sites is worse than in any other state or territory across the country.
Currently, 10 of the 34 cases brought before the courts by the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) are in Queensland, higher than in any other state.
There are also 21 CFMMEU representatives currently before the courts in these 10 Queensland matters.
Shadow Minister for Industrial Relations Jarrod Bleijie said it was outrageous that Industrial Relation Minister Grace Grace backed moves to abolish the ABCC.
“It is astounding to think that Queensland Labor wants to abolish an independent regulator that assists employees in recovering unpaid wages and entitlements,” he said.
“There will be endless incidents of bullying, coercion and other unlawful behaviour committed by Queensland’s militant CFMMEU without the ABCC.
“The only way Queensland’s building industry will thrive is if there is a strong and independent regulator to keep the unions in line.”
Since being re-established in December 2016, more than $11.2 million in penalties have been handed down by the courts against the CFMMEU and more than 100 of its representatives for around 1400 contraventions of the law.
Of these, almost $3 million relates to 914 contraventions by the CFMMEU and 35 of its representatives in Queensland.
This represents more fines, contraventions and officials penalised as a result of ABCC court action than any other State or Territory branch of the CFMMEU in Australia.
Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli has arrived in Longreach to tackle urgent issues affecting the region including an explosion of grasshopper numbers.
Mr Crisafulli has walked paddocks north of the township to see the devastation first hand.
“The economic consequences are dire,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“In a month, entire paddocks have been stripped bare. Calls for assistance to the State Government have gone unanswered.
“Graziers are being forced to offload livestock which is the last thing they need after experiencing a torturous drought.”
Member for Gregory Lachlan Millar said the consequences were akin to fire and drought and the Government must put in place similar support structures.
“Agriculture Minister Mark Furner’s response to my question in parliament was another low blow,” Mr Millar said.
“Labor’s idea of a grasshopper impact survey won’t fix the problem any time soon.
“This should have been tackled with a co-ordinated response by the Department of Agriculture and local graziers.
“The Minister hasn’t bothered to visit the region to see it for himself.
“We need financial assistance to get them through and a promise if these pests return next summer the Government won’t sit on their hands.”
Mr Crisafulli is travelling across Queensland and meeting with local workers and business owners.
“There is a jobs crisis in the bush and that’s why it’s crucial the Premier fast-tracks infrastructure projects. Outback Queensland has an unemployment rate of 12%. We must do better.
“The youth unemployment rate horrifies me. One-in-three teenagers can’t get a job.
“I want to lead a Queensland where young kids in the bush can learn, earn good pay and provide for their family.”
The LNP is joining our farmers in calling for an end to the uncertainty over the state’s water pricing policy.
Under the current scheme, neighbours are paying different prices for the same water simply because they choose to plant a different crop.
LNP Shadow Minister for Water and Regional Development Deb Frecklington said the scheme was totally unfair.
“To make matters worse we know that this Government doesn’t have any detail on how its water election promise will be implemented,” she said.
Ms Frecklington said farmers in the Mackay region will also be forced to pay more for water from 1 July despite the Government’s election promise to make the scheme fairer.
“Make no mistake this unfair and sham election promise puts more than 7,200 sugar industry jobs in the Mackay region at risk,” she said.
“The LNP will always support a policy that delivers cheaper water for farmers.
“Water price discounts should apply to all farmers regardless of what crop farmers choose to farm," Deb said.
