No public transport for you – The #QldWeekly blogazine: @Qldaah #qldpol

Follow the week in Queensland politics and news at NoFibs blogazine.

Table of contents

No public transport funding for you.

(May 30, 2015) – The Courier Mail attacks ‘Green smear’.

(May 29, 2015) – LNP asks, ‘What went wrong?’

(May 28, 2015) – Queensland’s overcrowded prisons.

(May 27, 2015) – The value of political connections.

(May 26, 2015) – No deals for Carmody.

(May 25, 2015) – Tim Carmody ready to resign.

(May 24, 2015) – No funding without asset sales.

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No public transport for you

Queenslanders face a third election on asset sales as Prime Minister Tony Abbott told reporters in Brisbane this that he would not be funding public transport unless the state agreed to the federal government’s asset recycling program. Asset sales were a major election issue for both the Bligh Government in 2012 and the Newman Government in 2015. Both lost government which the subject being a major polarising platform among Queenslanders.

In its fledgling one hundred day existence, the Palaszczuk Government has continued to vow not to sell any assets. At the same time it remains determined to secure funding for such projects as the cross-river rail project and the dual Sunshine coast railway extension. Queensland Deputy Premier Jackie Trad leads the government’s charge for public transport funding. If the initial Twitter shots between herself and the Liberal’s Jamie Briggs are anything to go by, there are a lot more robust discussions about to take place.

Perhaps it's you, @BriggsJamie & @TonyAbbottMHR who should stop your irrational opposition to public transport infrastructure? Ping @AlboMP

— Jackie Trad (@jackietrad) May 21, 2015

Doing the “noddies” along side the PM as he broke the news on Sunday was Liberal MP for Brisbane, Teresa Gambaro. She remained silent on the issue as she did in 2013 with the then Queensland Premier Campbell Newman as Abbott torpedoed any chance of federal funding for the cross-river rail project.

Federal treasurer Joe Hockey finished the week in parliament by blaming Queensland Labor as the reason for a perceived lack of business confidence.

• Steven Scott reported, “Joe Hockey has delivered a stinging attack on the Queensland Government, accusing it of stifling business investment. The Federal Treasurer said the new Labor Government’s refusal to sell off assets is to blame for a drop in business confidence and planned expenditure. But his state counterpart, Curtis Pitt, said Mr Hockey was attempting to drum up support for state asset sales.”: Treasurer Joe Hockey blames Queensland’s lack of asset sales for business doldrums.

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(May 30, 2015) – The Courier Mail attacks ‘green smear’

Nothing wrong with Reef claims Craven

• Brian Williams reported, “A FIVE-year nightmare for Australia is close to an end, with a critical UNESCO report finding that the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area should not be listed in danger. International Union for the Conservation of Nature scientists accepted that enough has been done by Australia to stop out-of-control development and Reef degradation. An in-danger listing would have had the potential to dent the nation’s international reputation and devastate tourism earnings on the Reef which earns Australia up to $6 billion a year. It also would have blemished one of the defining world images of Australia. The overriding message of the draft decision handed down in Paris by the World Heritage Committee was that UNESCO has rejected the threat of a listing.”: Great Barrier Reef: UNESCO report recommends Reef not be listed as ‘in danger’”: Great Barrier Reef: UNESCO report recommends Reef not be listed as ‘in danger’.

 

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(May 29, 2015) – LNP asks, ‘What went wrong?’

The LNP has been soul searching after its 2015 election defeat

• Amy Remeikis reported, “Hubris, a false sense of security, leadership issues, a breakdown between the executive and the parliamentary wing, lack of consultation and listening, the election timing, errors in policy and political judgement and a perception of arrogance that just would not go away. The Sheldon-Borbidge review into what went wrong for the LNP at the January 31 election has returned a list of criticisms into the one-term Newman Government, but maintains “Queensland was left a far better place than the LNP inherited when it came to office in 2012″.”: Hubris and unpopular leader – what went wrong for the LNP.
• Amy Remeikis reported, “Hubris, arrogance and in-fighting is a long way from governing with “grace, humility and dignity”, but the party that said it was listening to Queenslanders while in government, insists that now, having lost government, it really is listening to Queenslanders. But despite wide-ranging criticism of both the parliamentary and executive wings of the LNP in a review of why the Newman Government was relegated to history as a one-term wonder, Party President Bruce McIver said he was confident his leadership was secure. Responding to the “warts and all” review carried out by Rob Borbidge and Joan Sheldon, which found things began to go wrong for the LNP almost as soon as it won the 2012 election, Mr McIver said he still considered installing Campbell Newman as party leader from outside parliament, the right move. “I think if you look back to 2012, everyone to a man, woman agreed that this government was the right government for Queensland,” he said.”: ‘Now we’re really listening’ – LNP.

If you can't be bothered to wait for the LNP election review to be officially published at 2:00pm. Here it is http://t.co/BH73QWPa25 #qldpol

— Possum Comitatus (@Pollytics) May 29, 2015

LNP post-election report shows they don't understand why they won in 2012, nor why they lost in 2015 #QldPol

— Evan Moorhead (@evanmoorhead) May 29, 2015

This is actual, no joke. #lnpreview #qldpol pic.twitter.com/WAlpd3OA5D

— David Marler (@Qldaah) May 29, 2015

Full public election funding

• Brisbane Times reported, “Queensland Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg says it’s worth considering full public funding of election campaigns, meaning trade union and corporate donations would be banned. The recommendation was the last of 39 made in a Liberal National Party (LNP) review into why the party surprisingly lost January’s state election, despite having an overwhelming majority in parliament. “I think that that’s something well and truly worth considering,” Mr Springborg said.”: LNP to consider full public funding of election campaigns.

Great Barrier Reef report

• Jake Sturmer reported, “United Nations conservation agency UNESCO has recommended the Great Barrier Reef not be placed on the World Heritage “in danger” list. One of the World Heritage Committee’s key requirements was to create a Long Term Sustainability Plan for the reef.”: Great Barrier Reef: UNESCO recommends world heritage site not be placed on ‘in danger’ list.
• Joshua Robertson reported, “Unesco will release a draft ruling on whether to list the Great Barrier Reef as in danger early on Saturday morning in a critical moment for Australia’s stewardship of the world’s largest coral reef.”: Great Barrier Reef: Unesco to release draft ruling on ‘in danger’ listing.

Education funding fight

• Brisbane Times reported, “A bitter fight about federal education funding is either over $30 billion or absolutely nothing, depending on which political party you believe. State and territory Labor ministers say Australian schools will be left with a $30 billion black hole from 2018 after the federal government made changes to a six-year Gonski funding deal signed under the previous Labor government. But federal Education Minister Christopher Pyne maintains there are no cuts and funding for schools will actually increase over the next four years.”:Bitter fight ensues over education funding.

Indigenous protest Adani coal mine

• Oliver Millman reported, “A Queensland Indigenous group has escalated its battle to halt Australia’s largest mine by launching a federal court case, while members of the group are travelling to the US and Europe to urge banks to not fund the project. The Wangan and Jagalingou people, which have a native title claim over 30,000 sq km of central Queensland, have lodged a legal bid to overturn a decision that clears the way for the $16.5bn Carmichael mine, overseen by Indian mining firm Adani. Court documents allege that Adani “grossly overestimated” the economic benefits of the mine to the national native title tribunal, which decided the mine was in the public interest in June.”: Adani overestimated Carmichael coalmine benefits, Indigenous group says.
• John Taylor reported, “A small Indigenous protest has been staged in Brisbane’s CBD to highlight a legal challenge against the proposed $16 billion Adani Carmichael coal mine project in the Galilee Basin. The protest of about eight people was lead by Adrian Burragubba, who is part of a registered Native Title claim by the Wangan and Jagalingou People. “We don’t consent to Adani being on our country,” Mr Burragubba said on the street outside Adani Mining’s Brisbane office:”: Indigenous protest held in Brisbane against $16 billion Adani coal mine in the Galilee Basin.

Brisbane protest against Adani mine @abcnews pic.twitter.com/9czFDXa3Fo

— John Taylor (@JTQld) May 29, 2015

Security stop traditional owners going up to #adani offices to object to #carmichael mine in #galilee. #qldpol pic.twitter.com/WNjX0NIT7U

— Nathan Paull (@NathanPaull) May 29, 2015

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(May 28, 2015) – Queensland’s overcrowded prisons

At breaking point

In 2012, the Newman Government cancelled the Murri Court. Then then Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie said, “The Murri Court was not delivering consistent results and did not justify the amount being spent to keep it operating.”

However,  founder and Murri elder Uncle Albert Holt commented that the state government would need to build more prisons as a result.

“It is absolutely disgraceful for the elders who participated in the Murri Court. It’s unacceptable the over representation of Aboriginal people in the criminal justice system. We’ve got a lost generation just in our jails. The government didn’t even have the decency to address the issue with the elders and I think that’s abysmal,”: Murri Court comes to an end.

A recent report by Joshua Robertson showed a 21 percent increase in the Queensland prison population with incarceration among indigenous at record levels: Indigenous incarceration at record levels as Queensland’s prison population soars.

• Elise Worthington reported, “Queensland’s jails are overcrowded and becoming more dangerous for staff and prisoners, figures from the state’s Corrective Services department show. The State Government is urgently seeking a solution after discovering there are 1,600 prisoners sharing cells.”: Queensland prisons are grossly overcrowded, Corrective Services figures show.

All Qld high security jails now overcrowded w/ 1600 prisoners sharing cells like this @abcnews http://t.co/iEh1634Dxu pic.twitter.com/2dbAnJLqxy

— Elise Worthington (@elisereports) May 28, 2015

Tim Carmody cancels speech

• Joshua Robertson reported, “The Queensland chief justice, Tim Carmody, has cancelled his appearance at a legal conference where he was to deliver a contentious speech to a closed audience including a judge he purportedly referred to as a “fat fuck” and another who recorded the remark.”: Tim Carmody cancels contentious talk on judicial reforms due to wife’s illness.

Legacy way toll rises before it opens

• Jorge Branco reported, “The long-awaited Legacy Way tunnel will be one of the most expensive tolls in south-east Queensland by the time early discount periods end in May next year. Car drivers taking advantage of the Toowong to Kelvin Grove shortcut will pay just $3 a trip when it opens, with an increase to $3.90 by November 16. But that rate is scheduled to jump to $4.85 on May 2, 2016, when the standard price kicks in.”: Legacy Way to be among Brisbane’s most expensive tolls.

Water bills to rise in SEQ

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(May 27, 2015) – The value of political connections

Developers with strong political connections

• Joshua Robertson reported, “Researchers have quantified the value of political connections to property developers in rezoning decisions worth “many billions of dollars” across Australia every year. A new study, “Clean money in a dirty system”, which examined the record of Queensland’s Urban Land Development Authority (ULDA), found developers connected to networks containing politicians and bureaucrats were 19{17ac88c265afb328fa89088ab635a2a63864fdefdd7caa0964376053e8ea14b3} more likely – and those at the centre of networks 44{17ac88c265afb328fa89088ab635a2a63864fdefdd7caa0964376053e8ea14b3} more likely – to win favourable decisions than “outsiders”.”: Developers with strong political connections ’44{17ac88c265afb328fa89088ab635a2a63864fdefdd7caa0964376053e8ea14b3} more likely to win favourable decisions’.

Charges in Broady brawl case that sparked Newman’s VLAD laws

Premier says Queenslanders should make up own mind on Carmody crisis

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(May 26, 2015) – No deals for Carmody

Government won’t negotiate on terms of resignation

• Amy Remeikis reported, “The deputy premier has fired a sharp broadside at Chief Justice Tim Carmody as pressure mounts on him to make a decision on his future. The Chief Justice has publicly announced he is willing to resign, but added conditions to his moving on, which included reforming the courts and the judiciary which never accepted his leadership.”: Deputy premier blasts Tim Carmody as he sets conditions of resignation.
• Nine News Brisbane reported, “Deputy Premier Jackie Trad says the government won’t agree to any of his demands because it would be an illegal inducement. Ms Trad warned Justice Carmody’s demand for changes to the judicial system and policy was outside his area and potentially breaching the traditional separation of powers. “It is not up to judges to make policy from the bench. It is up to them to preside over cases and dispense the justice that Queensland can expect from them,” she said.”: Qld govt won’t meet Carmody conditions.
• Amy Remeikis reported, “Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath says her door is open for whenever Tim Carmody makes his decision about whether to stay or go as Chief Justice, but she will not be offering him anything to make the decision easier. “: A-G’s door open, Chief Justice Carmody sets conditions for resignation.
• Dr Mark Bahnisch wrote, “The embattled Queensland chief justice’s bluster over court modernisation shows he fails to understand the separation of powers”: Tim Carmody can’t demand reform as part of his severance package.

‘It's not up to judges to make policy…’ – @JackieTrad on Chief Justice Carmody: http://t.co/j8vjShLQeI #QldPol #9News pic.twitter.com/SWeuKu93IW

— 9News Queensland (@9NewsQueensland) May 26, 2015

The Boiler Room scams

• Mark Willacy and Mark Solomons reported, “Former police officers are in the sights of Queensland’s Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC) as it investigates multi-million-dollar Gold Coast fraud syndicates. There are allegations the syndicates may have been protected by corrupt former officers. The CCC and police are probing a range of so-called boiler rooms, or high-pressure sales offices. Customers across Australia invested tens of thousands of dollars in software packages on promises of high returns from sports betting. But in the words of one insider, “it’s a giant con”.”: Former police officers under suspicion over Gold Coast boiler room scams that raked in millions of dollars.

Queensland supports removal of GST on tampons

• Amy Remeikis reported, “Along with South Australia, the Northern Territory and ACT, Queensland Deputy Premier Jackie Trad also backed the move. “This is the first time you’ll hear me agree with Joe Hockey, but of course,” she said.”: Most states back scrapping GST on tampons.

Segway mounted police go quietly into the night

• Josh Bavas  and Michael McKinnon reported, “The Queensland police Segway trial was a hit with the public but not very useful when it came to law enforcement, Right to Information documents have revealed. The $40,000 trial involved the rollout of eight Segways across the state, two each at Brisbane’s South Bank and in Cairns, then another four between the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast.”: Queensland Police Service quietly abandons Segway squad trials after early fanfare.

No more segways for QLD Police, after 10-month trial: http://t.co/K5oTq3v6xD. File image @CoPStewart #9News pic.twitter.com/jpgDmF692v

— 9News Queensland (@9NewsQueensland) May 26, 2015

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(May 25, 2015) – Tim Carmody ready to resign

Carmody crisis nears an end but what’s the catch?

• Hedley Thomas reported, “The Chief Justice of Queensland, Tim Carmody, is poised to quit in what he describes as a bid to “stop the bleeding” and end extra­ordinary tensions unleashed at the judiciary’s highest levels.”: Chief Justice Tim Carmody: I’ll quit to ‘stop the bleeding’.

• Kim Stephens reported, “Queensland’s Chief Justice Tim Carmody has confirmed his intention to resign, taking a parting swipe at the judges who have “made it their primary goal to force me out”. In a statement released on Monday morning, Justice Carmody confirmed newspaper reports that he would stand down, saying that he believes the move to be in the best interests of Queenslanders.”: Queensland Chief Justice Tim Carmody to resign: reports.
• ABC Radio Brisbane spoke to Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath and Shadow Attorney-General Ian Walker about the Chief Justice’s intention to resign, “The stoush between the judiciary and Chief Justice, Tim Carmody, continues. Mr Carmody has told The Australian newspaper he is prepared to resign because his position is untenable. Mr Carmody was unavailable for interview this morning, as was former Attorney-General, Jarrod Bleijie, who was responsible for Mr Carmody’s appointment under the premiership of Campbell Newman. Steve Austin spoke with Attorney-General, Yvette D’ath, and shadow Attorney-General, Ian Walker.”: Embattled Chief Justice Tim Carmody is prepared to resign.
• Amy Remeikis reported, “Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath says the ball is in Chief Justice Tim Carmody’s court when it comes to his resignation. Ms D’Ath confirmed Mr Carmody approached her in mid-April with an offer to resign, but she said it was not for her to decide what happened next.”: Resignation rests solely with Tim Carmody: Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath.

Developer crack down

• Sarah Elks reported, “Dodgy developers who secretly demolish buildings without permission could be slapped with $500,000 fines, in an overhaul of planning laws being considered by the Palaszczuk government.”: Crackdown on Queensland developers in planning law overhaul.

Boost for Yeppoon

• Austin King reported, “Cr Ludwig said Livingstone Shire Council would match the $1.5 million State Government injection. That essentially would boost the $5 million stage three water park feature into an $8 million project. He also said that extra funding could go towards building ground-level car parks behind The Strand, and associated pedestrian links. Cr Ludwig suggested the funding could also be used to put a roof over the amphitheatre.”: Yeppoon foreshore receives $1.5m boost from State Govt.

Depressed Borg

100 days of @AnnastaciaMP govt not much to cheer about says @SpringborgMP #7NewsQ pic.twitter.com/xyEaPGdc6A

— Geoff Breusch (@gbreusch) May 23, 2015

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(May 24, 2015) – No funding without asset sales

Abbott rules out public transport funding

• Guardian Australia reported, “The federal government must contribute to Queensland public transport projects without strings attached, the state’s deputy premier Jackie Trad said. But the prime minister, Tony Abbott, is refusing to budge. Canberra has allocated $1.1bn for state roads in the federal budget, but Queensland can only access federal funding for public transport projects if it privatises or sells state assets.”: Tony Abbott refuses to budge on funding for Queensland public transport.

Rugby League commitment for Rockhampton

• Amy Remeikis reported, “Rockhampton is to get its time on the big stage, with the government one step closer to securing a nationally televised NRL game in the central Queensland town. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the government’s $250,000 commitment to the game on Sunday. She said she was confident the NRL was on-board, with just the teams and the date to be set.”: Annastacia Palaszczuk announces $250,000 Rockhampton NRL commitment.

Qld Election 2018

• Amy Remeikis reported, “Not content with having helped the LNP to lose government, Queensland unions are working on a new plan to see if “it has really changed” ahead of the 2018 state election. Marginal LNP seats Whitsunday, Chatsworth, Mt Ommaney and Everton are among the electorate target list for the Together Union as it begins its campaign to see the government’s industrial relations laws pass the minority parliament.”: Unions already planning fight for 2018 Queensland election.

Fitzgerald Inquiry never happened

Galaxy poll 52 percent to Labor

• Amy Remeikis reported, “Support for Labor has grown since the election, with neither the Billy Gordon scandal or a lack of policy direction enough to deter voters from the government.”: Palaszczuk Government support continues to grow: Galaxy Poll.

ReachTEL poll 52 percent to LNP

• Amy Remeikis reported, “Queensland’s pollsters appear to be as split as the voters, with two separate polls delivered on the same day returning paradoxical results. According to the latest Galaxy Poll, first published by News Corp, which queried 800 voters across the last three months, Labor has gained 2.5 points since the last election, to lead the LNP on first preference 40 per cent to 39 per cent. Based on preference flows from the January election, Labor leads the LNP 52 to 48 on a two-party preferred basis. “: State polls show mixed response to Palaszczuk government.

-Ends