Palaszczuk: Labor to legalise euthanasia

Putting it at the centre of her campaign, Annastacia Palaszczuk will vote for assisted dying if she wins election.

Annastacia Palaszczuk at Labor’s campaign launch in Brisbane on Sunday. Picture: Dan Peled

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has confirmed she would vote to legalise voluntary assisted dying if her Labor government wins a third term at the October 31 election.

Campaigning at Nerang, on the Gold Coast in the marginal Labor seat of Gaven, Ms Palaszczuk said she had brought the contentious issue into the campaign because it was “important” to many Queenslanders.

Ms Palaszczuk made the surprise announcement at her campaign launch on Sunday, revealing Labor would introduce legislation to legalise euthanasia in February, forcing the Queensland Law Reform Commission to rush its review of the issue due back by March.

“Our investment in $170m in palliative care is so important … so families and people who are impacted have a very clear choice about how they end their life. I think it’s very important that people have dignity in death,” Ms Palaszcuk said on the Gold Coast on Monday morning.

“That’s why I said yesterday if we are re-elected, we’ll introduce legislation in February, this is a very personal decision, between an individual and the medical practitioners, it’s a very very important issue that people discuss for their end of life care.”

“And yes, I would vote for it.”

Asked why she would rush the QLRC to bring forward draft legislation in February rather than March as planned, Ms Palaszczuk said she would give the commission extra resources.

“I think it’s a very important issue for Queenslanders, it’s been raised with me countless times, and there’s no reason any extra assistance the Law Reform Commission is needed, we can bring that forward, so the parliament can have a vote.

“As I’ve said, it’ll be a conscience vote for the members of my team if we are re-elected, and I hope it is a conscience vote for all parliamentarians.”

She said she did not tell the Catholic archbishop that nothing would happen on voluntary assisted dying before March.

Ms Palaszczuk visited a small natural skincare business in Nerang, Grahams Natural Alternatives, to announce $140m in small business funding. It would be funded by extra borrowings, as part of the Treasurer’s $500m Backing Queensland Investment Fund.

She also said the government had identified a state-owned site to build the new Coomera hospital at the Gold Coast.

On track for third term

On Sunday, off the back of strong Newspoll results published in The Australian on Saturday — showing she is on track to deliver Labor a third term in government — and nation-leading unemployment figures, Ms Palas­zczuk officially launched her campaign on Sunday by taking the contentious issue off the political backburner and promising to introduce legislation in February.

At duelling campaign launches on the day before pre-poll voting starts, Ms Palaszczuk in working-class Beenleigh made big-spending education, health and training announcements and trumpeted her government’s border closures and COVID-19 response.

In inner Brisbane, Liberal Nat­ional Party Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington had no new promises but focused on the economy, framing the election as a choice between “the LNP’s economic plan and Labor’s economic failure”.

Fresh Newspoll figures, published in Monday’s The Australian, reveal Labor has the trust of more Queenslanders to deliver jobs, with 43 per cent of voters believing Ms Palaszczuk and the ALP will be more effective on jobs against 29 per cent for the LNP under Ms Frecklington.

Ms Palaszczuk and Labor have weaponised debt, making “borrowing to build” a virtue and using a $4bn debt-fuelled war chest to fund campaign promises and ­attack the LNP.

Queensland Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington with husband Jason at the launch of the LNP election campaign at the Emporium Hotel, South Brisbane, on Sunday. Picture: Sarah Marshall

“The LNP’s fixation on a budget surplus in the midst of the COVID economic recovery can only be achieved by cuts … Labor’s plan is fundamentally different,” Ms Palaszczuk said.

“Just like the federal government, just like every responsible government around the world, we are borrowing to build and to stimulate the economy and to keep people in jobs.”

Ms Frecklington attacked Labor’s $4bn borrowings to fund its policies and the state’s high unemployment rate, and cast doubt on Labor’s vow not to introduce new taxes.

“They are addicted to spending other people’s money,” she said.

“I cannot remember a Labor government that has not added more or increased taxes.”

While Labor Party policy is for the legalisation of voluntary assisted dying, Ms Palaszczuk told parliament in May she would not rush the process, and referred the issue to the Queensland Law Reform Commission, which was not due to report until March.

Ms Palaszczuk said a re-elected ALP government would fast-track the independent review and its draft legislation, and give Labor MPs a conscience vote.

It could work as a wedge to Ms Frecklington, whose party platform opposes euthanasia. She has also said she will give her MPs a conscience vote.

Even though polling conducted by pro-choice advocates the Clem Jones Group last year suggests 82 per cent of Queenslanders support voluntary assisted dying, it opens up an extra front on which to fight the election.

Former Electrical Trades Union state secretary and Labor left faction figure Peter Simpson died last month after a long battle with melanoma, after campaigning for voluntary assisted dying to be made law in Queensland.

LNP strategists say Ms Palas­zczuk is trying to divert attention away from the state’s struggling economy after data released on Thursday showed Queensland had the nation’s highest unemployment rate, eclipsing even locked-down Victoria.

The two parties’ launches could not have been more different. Labor’s was at a union-linked plumber training warehouse at Beenleigh, in the working-class centre of Logan south of Brisbane. The LNP’s was staged in a function room at the up-market Emporium Hotel at inner-city Southbank.

Ms Palaszczuk promised $171m for palliative care funding, $100m for every primary and secondary state school student to have access to a psychologist or guidance officer, and $21m for more free TAFE study and apprenticeships to Queenslanders under the age of 25 in areas of skill-shortage.

She also promised $2.2bn from the existing education budget to employ 6100 teachers and 1100 teacher aides over the next four years, most of whom are required to maintain current staffing numbers.

Labor attacked the Morrison federal government and the LNP opposition’s push for Queensland to reopen the borders, with Deputy Premier Steven Miles saying Ms Palaszczuk had withstood critics “ganging up” on her.

“Even when it felt like everyone was ganging up against us … we are safe here in Queensland because Annastacia Palaszczuk stood strong.”

Ms Frecklington used the impending four-year term of government to warn voters they could not afford to make the wrong choice on election day when deciding which party would lead the resurrection of the state economy.

“This election is about who has the best plan to lead Queensland out of this recession,” she said.

Unveiling new vision of her flagship policy — the dam-building New Bradfield Scheme — Ms Frecklington said her plan was based on four foundations: “investing for growth, unleashing Queensland industry, supercharging the regions and securing our children’s future”.