David Crisafulli begins campaign to become Qld’s next premier

David Crisafulli is already attempting to define the terms of next year’s Queensland election as he ramps up his strategy in preparation for the fight of his political life in 2024.

David Crisafulli is already attempting to define the terms of next year’s Queensland election as he ramps up his strategy in preparation for the fight of his political life in 2024.

The 44-year-old LNP leader, who formally entered the political world 20 years ago as adviser to North Queensland Liberal senator Ian Macdonald, then went on to build a successful career as a Townsville local government politician before his 30th birthday, is well credentialled for next October’s state election.

Crisafulli began sweeping reforms inside the LNP soon after his elevation to the leadership in November 2020, bridging the rifts between the old National Party conservatives and Liberal Party progressives and bringing a coherence to an alliance that was threatening to fracture after the 2020 election defeat under Deb Frecklington.

Crisafulli is also willing to make tough calls, best exemplified last week by his decision to reflect Queensland’s lack of support for the Voice by pulling out of plans for a state treaty.

David Crisafulli is set to outline his priorities for the next 12 months and if he was to become premier. Picture: Steve Pohlner

In today’s Sunday Mail, State Political Editor Hayden Johnson reveals Crisafulli has an ambitious pitch for the youth vote as the LNP leader declares a 10-year plan to make Queensland the national leader in home ownership.

Big on vision but short on detail, the Crisafulli plan could include tinkering with stamp duty and even the appointment of the nation’s first “Home Ownership Minister”.

Crisafulli is betting that the announcement will catch the attention of younger voters, who tend to congregate around Labor and the Greens.

There are more rich pickings for Crisafulli across the electoral landscape. Not least of these are juvenile crime and the appalling state of our health system – not only in the southeast, but across the regions.

Crisafulli will also launch today a blueprint for the next 12 months, dubbed Right Priorities for Queenslanders, which will provide a central theme for the aspiring LNP government.

For all his match fitness, the energetic and highly capable LNP leader must be gazing at his opponent, Labor Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, with a deeply cautious eye.

Palaszczuk, despite her recent slump in popularity, has established a strong relationship with the Queensland people.

That relationship, which strengthened during the Covid years, has endured for nearly a decade and reflects the Premier’s ease and familiarity with ordinary Queenslanders.

In the decade since Labor swept back into power under Palaszczuk, Labor’s campaign machine, which was always well-oiled, has become even more formidable.

Labor enjoys highlighting Crisafulli’s links with Campbell Newman – as a former cabinet minister in the failed government – and will do so with far more vigour when the campaign kicks off.

But a strong political contest is shaping up. And a good contest is good for Queensland.

ENJOY THE WONDERS OF OUR BEAUTIFUL STATE

After the bleak Covid years, we’re at last rediscovering that Queensland is such a fascinating place there’s no need to get on a plane to take a holiday. New data from the Tourism and Transport Forum shows the Sunshine Coast has pipped the Gold Coast as Queenslanders’ favourite place to holiday at home.

The new figures, detailed in today’s Sunday Mail, also show regional towns are enjoying a domestic tourism boom that surpasses even the pre-Covid era.

And when we look across Queensland, the holiday potential is so vast it is difficult to know where to start when deciding on a destination.

Europeans fly thousands of kilometres to look at a Great Barrier Reef, which for many of us in the north represents a mere day trip. The glories of a natural rainforest, such a novelty in so many parts of the world, are also scattered across the entire state.

Queenslanders can party in the Whitsundays, go fishing off Cairns or discover the history of the Outback without lining up at airport security and making our weary way through immigration checkpoints.

We do occasionally need reminding that we live in one of the most beautiful places on earth.

Responsibility for election comment is taken by Anna Caldwell, corner of Mayne Rd & Campbell St, Bowen Hills, Qld 4006. Printed and published by NEWSQUEENSLAND (ACN 009 661 778). Contact details are available at www.couriermail.com.au/help/contact-us