The significance of the decision to launch a new Commission of Inquiry into failures at the Queensland DNA Lab cannot be overstated.
We will now have a Commission of Inquiry into the original Commission of Inquiry.
The failures at the DNA Lab are why we made the decision to fight for another Commission of Inquiry into the Lab.
Labor ignored this first time. They ignored it the second time.
But on both occasions the right result was secured for Queensland.
This is not about a Government backflipping, once again.
It’s not about another under-pressure Labor Minister being forced into an embarrassing about face yet again as they face increasing pressure.
It’s not about a Government who fought against the very position they have now adopted, again.
It’s not about a Government who appallingly lobbied victims to get their way.
This was always about getting justice for victims.
This was always about keeping the community safe and rebuilding faith in our justice system.
The knowledge that perpetrators of the most heinous crimes could be walking our streets because of failures at the Lab, and that this Government kept its head in the sand again for so long, will have infuriated Queenslanders to no end.
I committed many times to Vicki Blackburn that I would leave no stone unturned to deliver the justice she deserves.
I vowed to keep fighting to get justice for Shandee, and to stand up for all victims affected by these failures.
Today is the result of a mountain work by Vicki Blackburn, Dr Kirsty Wright and journalists who refused to back down. They should all be commended for what they have achieved.
The community deserves more than a Government surviving from one media cycle to the next.
Queenslanders deserve to know their safety will always be the priority of their Government.
