IN OUR BEST INTERESTS
VOTERS across Queensland face a grim choice this weekend as they grapple with determining which party is best to govern.
There is no standout choice as leader, and which party will take the helm will be determined by a plethora of regional issues rather than any statewide appeal.
That might well leave Queensland at the mercy of minor parties and independents – and that threatens the Gold Coast as it stares at traffic gridlock and pleads for strong leadership to deal with its transport nightmare and with issues such as crime.
If the Palaszczuk Government survives the poll, it will have been propped up by Greens preferences that are critical to it winning seats. The price for that will be painful for the Gold Coast, with the tradeoff for Greens’ support being little or no funding directed into motorway and other road construction.
The LNP has pledged a $500 million fix for the M1 headache, promising a second motorway and also an extra $100 million to fix the M1’s exit ramps where stalled traffic poses a threat to life and limb.
This is balanced to an extent by Labor’s stronger commitment to extending the light rail, which is a major component in delivering an efficient and well-patronised public transport system. We have yet to see anything more than tepid support for that from the Nicholls Opposition.
However it has more than matched Labor’s commitment to boosting police numbers on the Gold Coast.
Indeed the Government’s record on crime has been poor.
Jails are overcrowded and a turnstile justice system is at play, with offenders often let off with a slap on the wrist. Meanwhile Police Minister Mark Ryan has been under fire here over handling of issues involving domestic violence, inadequate police resources and police morale.
Gold Coasters have not forgotten too that it was this Government that dismantled the VLAD laws that saw the outlaw bikie gangs run for cover. The LNP has promised to return that safety net.
In an election that might ultimately be determined by hip-pocket issues, the irony – particularly for the latte-sipping inner suburbs of Brisbane – is that the party with the best approach to reducing skyrocketing power bills is One Nation, which is determined to have a coal-fired power station built in the north to provide more reliable and cheaper electricity supply.
The LNP too is supportive of expansion of baseload power through a public-private partnership in a northern power station, and has pledged to stop the price gouging by energy providers.
On these measures, the LNP is in front. Both sides have shown they understand the need for another hospital in the Gold Coast’s northern corridor, but neither should receive credit because they only came on board after the Bulletin demanded they act.
Gold Coasters must cast a vote this weekend that is in the best interests of their city. On balance, the LNP has shown through its policy announcements and in response to the Bulletin’s Going For Gold campaign that its proposals will benefit us the most.