Queensland Election 2017: Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk denies campaign off course from Adani
WITH Annastacia Palaszczuk continuing to cop flack over Adani from all sides, it took a Senator to produce the first major stumble of the LNP election campaign.
QLD Election
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A NEW father confronted Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk over the Adani mine as she toured Logan Hospital, saying he wants the $16 billion mine to be built so he can support his young family.
The Adani issue has overshadowed the Premier’s campaign as she struggles to get her message out amid protesters crashing her events and fallout out from her controversial decision to veto the mining company’s loan application against the Integrity Commissioner’s advice.
She was even unable to escape the subject in the maternity ward of Logan Hospital, where she announced a significant $679 million health package.
Concrete pump operator Justin Owen, who has a newborn son, was holding his four-year-old daughter Imogen when he raised the mine with Ms Palaszczuk.
“Tell the Premier where daddy wants to get a job,’’ Mr Owen said to his daughter. When the youngster turned shy, he said: “Adani mines”.
Palaszczuk took it in her stride and spoke of job opportunities in the sector.
Mr Owen, who previously worked in the mining industry, said he wanted the Premier to ignore the Greens and push for the mine to go ahead.
“Unless you’ve lived in the regions and see how hard the locals do it, you don’t understand,” he said.
“I would like to get out there, make a few bucks, get ahead in life and pay off my mortgage. It could be a good thing for central Queensland for years to come.”
Ms Palaszczuk rejected suggestions her campaign was thrown off course by her decision to veto Adani’s $1 billion loan application to the Federal Government to build a rail line.
“We support the project; it needs to stand up financially,” she said.
“The people of Queensland do not want to see taxpayers’ money being used to go to a billionaire. We recognise the jobs it brings.”
On Friday she announced her veto, using advice from the Integrity Commissioner that she had a conflict of interest caused by her partner Shaun Drabsch working on Adani’s loan application.
But it was revealed the commissioner had advised her to avoid making any decisions regarding NAIF applications due to the conflict.
Opposition Leader Tim Nicholls took aim.
“On Friday she said she wasn’t going to go ahead based on advice from the Integrity Commissioner because she thought there was going to be some sort of problem with her partner, her boyfriend,” he said.
“We’ve now found out that’s not the Integrity Commissioner’s advice. She hasn’t sought legal advice and she’s now backtracking ... she’s had more positions and more twists on this than a corkscrew.”
Federal Resources Minister Matt Canavan, who has attacked Ms Palaszczuk for vetoing the Adani loan, was forced to apologise after he suggested a “domestic” sparked her controversial decision.
He last night said: “I did not intend the insinuation that some are making out. But I won’t shy away from criticising the absurd situation that because of the Premier’s boyfriend’s job, thousands of Queenslanders can’t have a job.”
The apology followed criticism by LNP Leader Tim Nicholls after his federal colleague had caused the party’s first major campaign stumble in Mackay.
Originally published as Queensland Election 2017: Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk denies campaign off course from Adani
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