Brisbane Lord Mayor’s ‘thinly veiled threat’ to inner-west voters

Brisbane’s Lord Mayor has made “thinly veiled threats” to left-leaning residents in part of the city’s dress ring, warning them their roads would remain car parks if they voted Greens or Labor.

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner says roads like Moggill Rd (pictured) and the Western Freeway would remain “carparks” under the Greens and Labor. Picture: AAP/Richard Walker

BRISBANE’S Lord Mayor has made “thinly-veiled threats” to left-leaning residents in the inner-west, warning them their roads would remain carparks if they vote Greens or Labor.

The city’s lone Greens councillor Jonathan Sri said Cr Schrinner’s warning ahead of this weekend’s federal election showed the LNP was “feeling very threatened by the Greens”.

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner told voters in the western suburbs that Labor and the Greens were “not as committed to the western suburbs as they should be” on road upgrades.

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“While people are sitting on the Western Freeway carpark, or on the Moggill Rd carpark, (thinking) ‘I’m worried about congestion’ and they might be thinking about voting Green, they need to remember, they’re not going to their roads upgraded if they vote Green,” he said.

“It won’t be an outcome if they vote Labor either.”

Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner. Picture: AAP/Richard Walker

Cr Jonathan Sri (The Gabba), the only Greens councillor in the chamber, looked amused as Cr Schrinner handed down his warning to potential Greens voters in the inner-west.

“The LNP are obviously feeling very threatened by the Greens in the inner-west,” he told the Westside News.

He said wards like Paddington, Walter Taylor and Pullenvale were seeing “a big surge in support for the Greens” over concerns on poorly planned, unsustainable development.

“Contrary to the mayor’s thinly-veiled threats, the Greens are supportive of rethinking and redesigning the Moggill Rd roundabout, but unlike certain political parties, we understand the only lasting solution to congestion is to make public transport cheaper, more frequent and more reliable,” he said.

Greens Cr Jonathan Sri (The Gabba) and Cr Nicole Johnston (Tennyson). Picture: AAP/Richard Walker

Cr Schrinner’s words came after independent Cr Nicole Johnston (Tennyson) asked him if the council had decided on a design for the Moggill Rd and Coonan St roundabout upgrade.

Cr Schrinner said they would not sign off on a final design until the council had consulted with residents, and took the opportunity to plug former councillor and LNP candidate for Ryan Julian Simmonds.

Earlier this year, Mr Simmonds made an election promise of $25 million for the notorious roundabout.

“I can assure Cr Johnston it will happen quicker if Julian Simmonds is elected and his Government is elected and certainly I know if Labor or the Greens are elected you can write it off for a very, very long time,” Cr Schrinner said.

Cr Johnston later moved an urgency motion that Brisbane City Council consult herself and the residents of Tennyson Ward on the project, which sits in Walter Taylor Ward.

The council voted against it, but Cr Schrinner later made the commitment that the council would consult with Cr Johnston and Tennyson Ward residents.