Labor accused of jobs for mates with new board appointments
Labor has announced a series of new board appointments, sparking accusations it is handing out jobs for mates as the state prepares to go into caretaker mode ahead of the state election.
QLD Votes
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Labor has been accused of handing out jobs for mates, announcing a raft of new board appointments just two weeks before the government goes into caretaker mode for the October election.
Twenty-six new and re-appointments were announced on Monday in a statement that celebrated the Palaszczuk Government exceeding its target to have 50 per cent of board positions held by women.
Among the new appointments is the wife of former Labor Speaker John Mickel, Catherine, who was named as a director at Seqwater, and the wife of former Labor Trade Minister Craig Emerson,Tracey Winters, who joins Queensland Rail as a director.
Former Labor Townsville mayor Tony Mooney also added another government board position to his CV, named as director at North Queensland Bulk Ports.
Opposition treasury spokesman Tim Mander said Labor was “shamelessly stuffing Queensland’s public boards with Labor hacks and their partners”.
“Queensland might be suffering record unemployment, but Labor’s lapdogs are cashing in every day,” he said.
“These board appointments should be based on merit, not who you’re mates with.
“The Palaszczuk Labor Government has shown again that it doesn’t understand the meaning of the word integrity.”
Treasurer Cameron Dick said the government had addressed inequality in its appointments, with just 31 per cent of board members being women in 2015. That figure is now 54 per cent.
Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said new board appointments were from a diverse background.
“Each chair and director comes with a unique skillset and significant expertise to ensure operational performance is maximised during the critical phase of COVID economic recovery,” he said.
