Premier cancels meeting for luxury yacht trip with boyfriend

As colleagues back Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk’s decision to cancel Cabinet while on leave to attend a luxury yacht getaway with celebrities, the LNP insists the move was “unfathomable”.

State government minister Di Farmer has claimed there wasn’t a need for Deputy Premier Steven Miles to chair Cabinet last week after the routine meeting was cancelled because the Premier was on leave.

Annastacia Palaszczuk has come under fire from the LNP amid revelations the weekly Cabinet meeting was cancelled while she was on holidays to attend a luxury yacht getaway on Hamilton Island.

The Opposition is now questioning why Mr Miles did not chair Cabinet instead while Ms Palaszczuk was on her three days of leave.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and her boyfriend Reza Adib (centre) at Hamilton Island Race Week. Picture: Supplied

Ms Farmer on Sunday acknowledged that Mr Miles was able to chair Cabinet meetings, but said there “hasn’t been the need for him to do that”.

“Matters that required resolving were being addressed by the Cabinet sub-committees,” the Minister said.

“There were five Cabinet sub-committees held last week: infrastructure, economic future, Cabinet budget review committee, the youth justice committee.

“These are all really critical issues and important matters were considered – so the business of government kept on going.”

Di Farmer backed the Premier. Picture: Liam Kidston

Deputy LNP leader Jarrod Bleijie suggested sub-committees with a couple of ministers did not “cut it”.

“It’s unfathomable that the work of government stopped because the Premier chose to be on a super yacht,” he said.

“The Deputy Premier Steven Miles should’ve stepped up.

“But it shows the Premier doesn’t trust Steven Miles, his Cabinet colleagues don’t trust him, to be able to take the lead and chair a Cabinet meeting.”

According to the Cabinet handbook, the Deputy Premier can preside over Cabinet meetings “in the Premier’s absence”.

The Premier attended an exclusive event on the Quantum yacht.

Ms Farmer could not say when she first found out that the Cabinet meeting had been cancelled.

She defended the Premier’s work ethic amid attacks from the LNP that Ms Palaszczuk has checked out from the job and is working “part-time”.

“Frankly I think that this attack from the LNP is actually pathetic. The Premier worked every single day for two years during Covid,” Ms Farmer said.

Several of the Cabinet sub-committee meetings held last week were chaired by Ms Palaszcuzk.

EARLIER: Premier cancels meeting for luxury yacht trip with partner

Annastacia Palaszczuk has been accused of being “checked out” after she cancelled Cabinet while on leave to attend a luxury yacht getaway with celebrities on Hamilton Island.

An extraordinary political furore has erupted over the decision, with the LNP claiming Ms Palaszczuk’s judgment was“unfathomable”, while the government slammed the attack as “puny and cheap”.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and her boyfriend, Dr Reza Adib. Picture: Luke Marsden.\

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli said it was highly unusual for a meeting of Cabinet – the key decision-making body of the government – to be cancelled, and demanded to know why Deputy Premier Steven Miles was not asked to step in.

“Everybody is entitled to a holiday, but if the Premier doesn’t trust her Deputy to run things while she is away then the luxury break has to come behind the needs of Queenslanders,” he said.

Ms Palaszczuk took several days leave to attend the opening of Hamilton Island Race Week with her partner Brisbane surgeon Dr Reza Adib last weekend, and was spotted rubbing shoulders with celebrities aboard superyacht Quantum.

As a result, a scheduled Cabinet meeting due to occur last Monday was cancelled.

The Premier’s office did not answer when Ministers were informed the Monday’s Cabinet meeting would not take place, or why Dr Miles did not step in.

According to the Cabinet handbook, the Deputy Premier can preside over Cabinet meetings “in the Premier’s absence”.

“(Cabinet’s) role is so crucial for the running of the state that the longstanding practice across all levels of government is the Deputy chairs Cabinet when the Leader is away to ensure continuity of executive government,” Mr Crisafulli said.

Opposition Leader David Crisafulli said the decision to cancel Cabinet was ‘troubling’. Picture: NewsWire / Sarah Marshall

A spokesman for the Premier said Ms Palaszczuk had taken “very little time off” since the pandemic began.

“For the Opposition to begrudge the Premier a rare weekend off when it took the whole pandemic off is puny and cheap even for them,” he said.

“Unlike most people, the Premier has to take annual leave in order to have a weekend off. “This is what occurred last weekend.

“Cabinet’s forward program takes account of times – like the annual Christmas/New Year break and when Regional Forums are held – when Cabinet does not meet so that the business of government proceeds.”

But Mr Crisafulli said scrapping Cabinet for an opulent getaway while the state was in the grips of a health, housing and cost of living crisis to attend an exclusive party was “troubling”.

“To think the Premier puts so little value in addressing these crises that she would cancel Cabinet in these circumstances must be soul-destroying for the Queenslanders caught up in them,” he said.

Dr Miles served as Acting Premier while Ms Palaszczuk was on leave.

LNP deputy leader Jarrod Bleijie said Cabinet meetings weren’t an “optional extra”.

Deputy Leader of the Opposition Jarrod Bleijie. Picture: NewsWire / Sarah Marshall

“They are at the centre of democratic government,” he said.

“It is unfathomable that the work of government was brought to a halt because the Premier was on a super yacht.

“If Annastacia Palaszczuk is so checked out she’d rather stop government while she swans around with celebrities then perhaps she should sail off into the sunset and give the reigns to someone actually interested in doing the work.

“Annastacia Palaszczuk needs to work out if she wants to be a celebrity or the Leader of Queensland.”

Attorney-General Shannon Fentiman said for Cabinet not to meet if the Premier was away was the usual practice.

“The Premier, like all of us, works incredibly hard and has taken a small break,” she said.

“I understand there was no taxpayer dollars spent, she’s entitled to a small break.

“We work hard every day for Queenslanders and a number of cabinet subcommittees met. I’m a member of the Youth Justice Cabinet subcommittee and we met on Monday. The business of government goes on.”

While Monday’s Cabinet didn’t meet, there were a number of Cabinet subcommittee meetings throughout the week. Several were chaired by the Premier when she returned from leave.