A fair go by all parties

WITH respect to Bettina Warburton’s article “Katter aims to be kingmaker in Queensland” ( TB, 28/ 11) we need to remember that Robbie Katter and Shane Knuth played a valuable role in the last Parliament.

KAP prevented the Government from doing silly things like pandering to the extreme left wing of the party. However KAP represents about 5 per cent of the seats in State Parliament and the ALP about 46 per cent.

The ALP needs to also ensure that some of KAP candidates’ extreme policies such as Gordon Rasmussen’s proposal to build a tunnel from Cairns to Range are rejected completely. KAP was irresponsible in not condemning this insane proposal when Rasmussen made it. Annastacia Palaszczuk, unlike KAP and all backbenchers, has to govern for all of Queensland and Queensland is best governed when divisive self- interest is kept under control.

Less than a week ago Mr Katter was advocating a separate state for NQ. Ma Palaszczuk also will moderate KAP if that party holds balance of power for the simple reason that neither KAP nor ALP has a majority. In fact, the result of a hung parliament with a middle of the road party such as Mr Katter having the balance of power is the best result possible.

The other factor that should be remembered is that Mr Katter has no more power than any other MLA, however all in ALP and LNP have given that power away by behaving like robots under direction of the faceless men. Each of them can regain that power by crossing the floor. As an ex- federal secretary of KAP, I say Ms Palaszczuk ( and all of Queensland) will benefit from a KAP influence on ALP but KAP has got to realise that if it wants to be seen as a Queensland party it has to represent the interest of all of Queensland not just the interest of two electorates in North Queensland. Mr Katter was justifiably highly critical of Ms Palaszczuk’s failure to visit western Queensland but she spent more time there than Katter spent south of the Tropic of Capricorn. Did he campaign any further south than Calliope?

A fair go for all is what is needed. Continually attacking the capital city is no more a fair go than if Ms Palaszczuk was to continually attack Mount Isa or Townsville. Townsville did very badly out of economic mismanagement by the Palaszczuk Government. If we are to have an ALP government we need a Labor government that places jobs and industry above greenies and perversion. ANDREW JACKSON,

Burpengary.