Path to victory paved for her
IF Annastacia Palaszczuk wins the October 31 election, she should send a big bunch of flowers to Victorian premier Daniel Andrews and LNP state president Dave Hutchinson.
Andrews is demonstrating how easy it is to screw up the coronavirus crisis.
A bumbling bureaucracy, union meddling in security contracts and Andrews taking his eye off the ball have all contributed to this latest cluster.
Throw in a healthy dose of arrogance and hubris and you can understand why Victorians are fast losing patience with the man they call Chairman Dan.
Contrast that with Queensland, where people are going about their daily lives as though locked down Victoria was 16,000km away, not 1600km.
Criticism of Ms Palaszczuk’s socalled recalcitrance in keeping the borders closed for so long — effectively shutting down the tourism industry — is evaporating fast.
Many Queenslanders are lauding the Palaszczuk government’s hardline response to the health challenges of COVID-19.
One smart political guy from Victoria told me Palaszczuk was now wearing a halo and Queensland had become The Vatican of Australia.
Ms Palaszczuk copped the criticism and to her credit, did not politicise the pandemic.
Her greatest strength in the pandemic has been her risk-averse nature.
It is also her greatest weakness as a political leader.
Criticism of her government has been for the moribund, lacklustre decision-making which has been a hallmark of Queensland’s economic performance.
When first elected in 2015, the Labor government’s fallback position on just about everything was to call an inquiry or a review.
Political watchers believed Ms Palaszczuk would unshackle the government in its second term, making bold decisions to encourage prosperity.
Other than one of her passion projects, bidding for the 2032 Olympics, the decision-making has been uninspiring.
A debt approaching $100bn, a corpulent and lazy public service, integrity scandals, child safety failings and youth crime out of control, especially in the regions, is not a good resume to be taking into an election.
All at a time when the unions are running amok with their outrageous demands.
Where’s the long-term economic plan? Where’s the plan to pay off the debt? Where’s the commitment to job-creation?
Instead, Labor is still besotted with appeasing the Greens, prepared to stop coal mining if it fits the political narrative.
Will Queenslanders forgive Labor’s poor performance and reward it for keeping people safe during the greatest health crisis of our generation?
Or will voters with long memories punish Labor for its hapless fiscal performance?
And please, please voters don’t buy this irresponsible and reckless rhetoric coming out of Treasury that COVID-19 has put Queensland into the parlous fiscal position we now found ourselves.
We were in big trouble well before coronavirus.
The LNP’s internal squabbles are a disgrace.
Whoever decided to get rid of Lawrence Springborg from the state executive needs to go.
Whoever decided it was a good idea to undermine leader Deb Frecklington with poor polling numbers being leaked needs to go.
The Opposition is facing the stark reality right now of another four years in Opposition.
If it can’t get its own house in order, how can it run Queensland?
Peter Gleeson
WILL QUEENSLANDERS FORGIVE LABOR’S POOR PERFORMANCE AND REWARD IT FOR KEEPING PEOPLE SAFE DURING THE GREATEST HEALTH CRISIS OF OUR GENERATION?