Opposition Leader says Qld should have best employment rate in country

The LNP wants the State Government to set an unemployment target, but its leader won’t put a figure on his own party’s plans.

LNP Leader David Crisafulli has insisted he wants Queensland to have the lowest unemployment rate of any state or territory in Australia, but wouldn’t place a figure on what that should be.

The LNP attacked the Palaszczuk Government over jobs during Thursday morning’s first Question Time since Labor was re-elected last month, demanding to know whether the party had a target for Queensland.

Queensland’s current unemployment rate is 7.7 per cent.

David Crisafulli in Question Time on Thursday. Picture: Annette Dew

During the election campaign, former leader Deb Frecklington committed to a 5 per cent target, with Labor resisting any commitment to any specific goal.

“I want to be the best in the nation and you should benchmark yourself against the best,” Mr Crisafulli said today.

“And I don’t accept that a state that has been blessed with all the beauty we’ve been given; natural resources, tourism opportunities, agriculture — I don’t accept that we should be fighting out for the wooden spoon.

“That’s what a target looks like.”

Pressed on whether this meant ditching the LNP’s recent target of 5 per cent, Mr Crisafulli repeated that he wanted to be the best in the nation.

“Whatever the best in the nation is, we will be better than them,” he said.

However he could not say what the other state’s unemployment rates were.

“I want to be the best in the nation, they can run their own race, we will run ours,” he said.

Asked what a reasonable target was, Mr Crisafulli said, “New South Wales currently has a 6 in it, so do we have more opportunity than New South Wales?

Yes. Do we have more natural resources than New South Wales? Yes.

“I don’t accept that we should be at mid 7’s when New South Wales is mid 6.

“I just don’t accept that.”

Mr Crisafulli said it was a fair and reasonable approach.