‘David Crisafulli likes to talk the big game but we know he cannot deliver’

Tourism Minister Kate Jones has called out Opposition rival and Gold Coast MP David Crisafulli for helping domestic tourism by travelling the State to get leadership votes.

STATE Tourism Minister Kate Jones is taunting David Crisafulli for 2020s “biggest anticlimax” – but he says Labor should be focusing on pandemic misery not cheap shots.

Asked on a return to state parliament yesterday’s about Queensland’s new Good to Go internal holidays campaign, Ms Jones singled out Broadwater MP Mr Crisafulli for his own travel agenda.

Kate Jones at a Cairns tourism function — always happy to talk up David Crisafulli being on the road to pump up support for a leadership bid. Picture: Brendan Radke.

“We know somebody else has been crisscrossing Queensland with their very own Good to Go campaign. It has been building and building,” she said.

“The challenge, the big moment: the Member for Broadwater travelled 1,800 kilometres across Queensland saying he was good to go and we were all waiting.”

Mr Crisafulli – who this week adamantly rejected any suggestion of a leadership challenge to Deb Frecklington – interjected, prompting a warning from Speaker Curtis Pitt.

Labor has been watching the MP’s social media and media conferences as he travelled north of the Coast.

Kate Jones greeting David Crisafulli at a Cairns Post Future Tourism lunch — they are fierce rivals in state parliament. Picture: Brendan Radke.

Ms Jones told Parliament: “We know the member for Broadwater is good to go. We were all waiting on Monday for the big (leadership) challenge, the moment he has been waiting for, planning for and working towards his whole life.

“Talk about the biggest anticlimax of 2020. This was his moment and he failed.”

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk added the challenge was “a fizzer”.

Before an LNP party room meeting on Monday, where Ms Frecklington received total support from colleagues, Mr Crisafulli said: “I want to give the LNP a chance to win and I want Deb Frecklington to have a chance to win.”

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Queensland LNP member for Broadwater David Crisafulli arrives for a party room meeting at Parliament House in Brisbane. (AAP Image/Dan Peled).

Ms Jones told Parliament: “It turns out the member for Broadwater is all mirrors and no smoke. The Member for Broadwater likes to talk the big game but we know he cannot deliver. “Worse, we all know the Leader of the Opposition will never be able to trust him. This is a man who cut and run on Townsville and who knocked over one woman to get a safe seat.”

After losing Mundingburra in the 2015 election, Mr Crisafulli relocated to Hope Island and beat sitting MP Verity Barton in Broadwater’s preselection two years later.

Liberal candidate for Whitsunday Amanda Camm with Shadow Minister Tourism David Crisafulli on a northern visit.

Ms Jones said Ms Frecklington would have to “sleep with one eye open”.

“The worst thing of all for them is while members opposite are focused on infighting and who jockeying for which position, we will get on with looking after the people of Queensland and delivering the economic support they need during this tough time.”

Mr Crisafulli shot back: “I’m going to rise about the shenanigans of the tourism minister in a fortnight I’ve driven 1800km to meet operators at the coalface who’ve cried on my shoulder.

“Instead of focusing on me I’d prefer they focus on the thousands in the Centrelink queue.”