LABOR OFF THE RAILS
Palaszczuk vows to veto Adani NAIF loan
LABOR Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has been accused of forsaking regional Queenslanders to save Deputy Premier Jackie Trad.
As news circulated of Ms Palaszczuk’s move for the state to veto a federal loan to Adani’s Carmichael rail project yesterday, regional leaders reacted with shock and dismay.
Dawson MP George Christensen said the move had nothing to do with an alleged smear campaign. “She is doing it to protect Jackie Trad and … South Brisbane,” he said.
THOUSANDS of jobs have been put at risk over a conflict of interest bungle involving the partner of Annastacia Palaszczuk.
Ms Palaszczuk yesterday moved to veto the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility loan to Adani for the construction of a railway line critical to its Carmichael coal mine after revealing her partner Shaun Drabsch had worked on the NAIF application in his role with firm PwC.
His involvement has created a conflict of interest for the Premier dating back to May last year when he first became involved.
In a major blow to Ms Palaszczuk’s re- election campaign, the Premier revealed she was only made aware of Mr Drabsch’s involvement on Tuesday when her chief of staff flew to Cairns — where she had been campaigning — to tell her of the issue. She went public with the information yesterday claiming the LNP had been planning to smear her with the revelations at some stage during the campaign.
“PwC acted for Adani on their application to the Federal Government’s Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
“Shaun assisted PWC’s work, as a member of its national infrastructure advisory team, only at a federal level and this was after the mining leases were approved.”
She said she was moving to veto the NAIF loan to remove any conflict of interest.
“To action my decision, I propose to write to the Prime Minister to notify him that my government will exercise its ‘ veto’ to not support the NAIF loan and to remove doubt about any perception of conflict.”
Ms Palaszczuk needs the agreement of LNP Leader Tim Nicholls to veto the loan as the Government is in caretaker mode ahead of the November 25 poll.
Mr Nicholls yesterday slammed her move as a stunt.
“Thousands of Queenslanders’ jobs depend on the Premier and she’s failed them,” he said.
“If, as the Premier claims, all necessary conflict of interest measures are correct and above board, why has she put thousands of jobs at risk with this extraordinary backflip.
“Given that NAIF loans are an independent federal process and state governments have a constitutional role to pass through the loan, what’s the problem?
“The Premier should honour her word and pass through the Adani loan if the independent NAIF makes such a decision.”
He denied he was part of any campaign to smear Ms Palaszczuk through her partner’s work.
Northern Australia Minister Senator Matt Canavan described the move as “crazy”.
“The last time I heard from the Queensland Government they supported the Carmichael mine and wouldn’t stand in the way,” he said. “Now apparently because of the Premier’s partner’s job, thousands of jobs are now at risk in Central and North Queensland.”
THOUSANDS OF QUEENSLANDERS’ JOBS DEPEND ON THE PREMIER AND SHE’S FAILED THEM. TIM NICHOLLS