Please attribute the following to Shadow Integrity Minister Fiona Simpson:
I’m deeply concerned by more reports surrounding the actions of the Office of Independent Assessor.
All Queenslanders should know this is a very serious issue.
Elected officials should be able to freely express their views in their own local communities without fear of prosecution.
I fear there is a genuine risk being posed to our democracy.
I fear the Office of the Independent Assessor is being used to strong-arm elected officials who hold contrary views to the current Queensland Government.
I fear the actions of the OIA are authoritarian which doesn’t represent who we are as a society.
As I understand, the Mayor was pointing out some realities about the logistical difficulties of how to get vaccinations to his community.
He was speaking as a local who knows and cares for his community.
His job isn’t to follow the script from the central government casting, it’s to represent his community.
As Queensland’s Shadow Integrity Minister my job is to call out overreach and political bullying when I see it.
-ENDS-
Please attribute the following to Shadow Local Government Minister Ann Leahy:
PCCC hearings into the Logan Council sacking, Supreme Court Cases against journalists, now potential misconduct for highlighting failures of the vaccine rollout.
There is starting to be a pattern of overreach in Queensland by this third-term State Government.
This is deeply concerning.
The abilities of elected mayors and councillors to represent their communities is being made impossible by the overreach of State Government and the ‘independent’ bodies it oversees.
Cr Sean Dillion’s case, is one of many, and again highlights how mayors and councillors are being prevented from doing the job they were elected to do.
It is obscene that a Brisbane-based bureaucrat can use their powerful State Government funded office to strong-arm the elected councillors of a small local government.
The State Government must rein in the overreach of the OIA.
These bodies are ultimately answerable to Queenslanders and right now I fear the OIA is not working in the best interests of Queensland’s great local communities.
For months we have stood alongside Queenslanders and asked for a plan to reopen borders.
While Queenslanders would have liked this plan released sooner, it provides a degree of certainty we have all been yearning for.
Reopening the border will mean many families can reunite with loved ones.
Let’s be clear that this is a border reopening strategy but Queenslanders still want to know what their lives are going to look like when the border reopens. What restrictions will be in place once COVID-19 enters Queensland?
What conditions will businesses trade under? What does it mean for the number of people you can have at your home? What does it mean for religious gatherings for example? What does it mean for venues? Queenslanders still have a lot of questions that need answering.
It is only when the full roadmap is released that Queenslanders will have the full certainty they need for the future.
We will keep advocating for a complete roadmap
There are serious questions about what the State Government has been doing to invest in more ICU beds since the COVID pandemic began.
Government data from a Parliamentary Question on Notice shows only six new ICU beds were funded in two years across the entire state.
Opposition Leader David Crisafulli said the LNP is asking the state government to clarify why it hasn’t committed to more permanent fully funded ICU beds.
“What has the State Government been doing for the past two years to prepare our hospitals in the event of a major COVID outbreak,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“Former Health Minister Steven Miles and Yvette D’Ath should have been doing everything possible to boost resources, but instead they’ve gone backwards.
“Queenslanders rightly expect a whole lot better than six beds in two years.
“The State Government needs to be open and transparent with Queenslanders about our health system and tell us what the path out of the pandemic looks like.
“Queenslanders deserve to know our health system is ready for the future.”
Shadow Health Minister Ros Bates said the Treasurer also cut a billion dollars from the health budget.
“That’s a billion dollars that could have been spent on a new hospital, more nurses and quite clearly more ICU beds across the state,” Ms Bates said.
“At a time when our hospitals have never been more crucial to the lives of Queenslanders, the State Government is ripping out a billion dollars.
“As a nurse and former hospital administrator, I know how stressful it can be for our frontline staff who are working under extreme pressure.
“More ICU beds will help ease the pressure on our hospitals.
“The LNP has put solutions on the table including improving triaging, more beds, real time data monitoring of our emergency departments and empowering local health boards.
“The embattled Health Minister has some simple questions to answer.
“What’s the plan for our hospitals? How much more will she invest? And how will she support the doctors and nurses across Queensland who are stretched to the limit?”
Source: https://documents.parliament.qld.gov.au/tableoffice/questionsanswers/2021/1036-2021.pdf
The LNP is calling for a full, thorough and independent inquiry into the actions and operations of Queensland’s building regulator.
The independence of the Queensland Building and Construction Commission has been shattered.
Explosive evidence supporting this is growing by the day.
I am deeply concerned by allegations including board members seeking to influence decisions for their own personal benefit; board members pursuing staff who acted against their interests; and board members acting against the law.
I am deeply concerned 15 senior staff members have left the building regulator over the last 16 months due to the toxic nature of the organisation.
I am deeply concerned by evidence extracted in Parliament at odds with the accounts of brave whistleblowers.
I am deeply concerned by the actions of the Minister responsible Mick de Brenni.
Queenslanders are deeply concerned that the building regulator has repeatedly failed to act in the best interests of Queensland families.
There is now no other option.
We must have a full, thorough and independent inquiry.
I will personally be presenting the LNP’s suggested terms of reference for this inquiry at the next sitting of Parliament.
I look forward to the State Government providing its response to Queenslanders.
Queenslanders deserve to know they can trust the independence of Queensland’s building regulator.
The true state of the Queensland Health Crisis has been revealed after hundreds of secret documents were released exposing what's really happening in our sick health system.
The LNP has released documents detailing ambulance operations covering Queensland's three busiest regions: Brisbane, Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast.
Among the shocking findings:
The State Government wanted to keep this evidence hidden from Queenslanders but the LNP has chosen to release the documents online in full this morning.
Queenslanders can see the documents for themselves on David Crisafulli's Facebook page.
Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli said the alarming evidence would shock every Queenslander and called on the Premier to act immediately.
“There is nowhere to hide,” Mr Crisafulli said.
“The State Government doesn’t want Queenslanders to see this, but we won’t stop fighting for the truth.
"Queenslanders deserve to know the truth about the Queensland Health Crisis.
“We’ve put solutions on the table including more beds, better triage, releasing real-time data and giving power back to the frontline staff to make better decisions to improve patient care.
“It’s time for the Premier and the Government she leads, to start listening.
“Honest Queenslanders deserve better.”
Shadow Health Minister Ros Bates said all Queenslanders deserved a world-class health system no matter where they live.
“As a nurse and former hospital administrator, I know how stressful it can be for our dedicated frontline staff who are overworked and under-resourced,” Ms Bates said.
“Our paramedics are doing an incredible job in the toughest conditions.
“It is not fair or right for them to be treated this way.
“Ambulance staff deserve better.”
Shadow Minister for Open Data Brent Mickelberg said the Government’s cover-up must end.
“These documents are just the tip of the iceberg,” he said.
“What else have they got to hide?
“We’ve been relentlessly calling for open data and transparency.
“The State Government needs to end its culture of secrecy which exists from the top down.”
Mr Mickelberg said Queenslanders had a right to know how the State Government was losing control of the health system, and how it plans to fix it.
“Honest Queenslanders deserve an honest State Government,” he said.
The Queensland Health Crisis is deepening after a second inquiry was launched into another Queensland Hospital.
It comes just days after the inquiry into allegations of botched surgeries at Caboolture Hospital was extended.
Queensland Health will now investigate serious complaints from women about complications in the obstetrics unit at Mackay Base Hospital.
Two inquiries across two hospitals is deeply concerning for Queenslanders who expect to receive proper healthcare.
Shadow Health Minister Ros Bates said it was becoming increasingly clear that Labor was losing control of the health system.
“First it was Caboolture, now it’s Mackay,” Ms Bates said.
“Two major hospitals are now at the centre of shocking allegations which are now under review.
“As a nurse and former hospital administrator I know that patient care must be the top priority.
“All Queenslanders deserve a world-class health system no matter where they live and I’d encourage Queenslander to tell their stories.
“By speaking up, together we can heal the health system.
“We won’t stop fighting for Queenslanders being horribly let down by the health system.”
The investigation into Mackay Base Hospital, follows Queensland Health Crisis Town Halls in Cairns, Rockhampton, Hervey Bay, the Sunshine Coast, Redcliffe, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Leader of the Opposition David Crisafulli and Shadow Health Minister Ros Bates have met with patients, carers, nurses and whistle-blowers throughout the year.
Whitsunday MP Amanda Camm said health services were deteriorating across the region since Labor took office in 2015.
“Ambulance ramping has increased, surgery waitlists have blown out and patients are waiting longer in emergency departments,” Ms Camm said.
“I urge anyone in the Mackay/Whitsunday region who’ve got a complaint to come forward.
“We must work together to improve our hospitals and send a strong message to the State Government that we deserve a world-class health system.”
