Category Archives: Queensland politics

Seats to watch at the federal election in Queensland, where three-way contests and newcomers may hold the key

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Labor told it needs to ‘find a way to reconnect with Queenslanders’, where the Liberal party holds 23 of the state’s 30 seats

Scott Morrison largely had Queensland to thank for his “miracle” 2019 election, with the party now heading into the 2022 poll holding 23 of the 30 seats in the state, all but one with a margin of under 4%.

Many commentators credit the wave of blue to local objections to Bob Brown’s anti-Adani convoy, doubts over Labor’s climate change and tax policies and preference flows from minor parties, namely Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and Clive Palmer’s United Australia party.

Labor’s post-2019 election review found the party needed to “find a way to reconnect with Queenslanders” if it is to win the next election and indeed, opposition leader Anthony Albanese has spent significant time in Queensland, including visiting a coalmine.

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Almost 400 Queenslanders have waited two years for a decision on domestic violence assistance

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Figures tabled in parliament reveal demand on victims of crime fund growing 16% this year

It took Lisa* and her son just three days to receive a disaster support payment after they were forced to abandon their flooded Brisbane home in February.

But Lisa says after fleeing an allegedly physically and sexually violent relationship, she waited eight months for an initial payment from the state government through Victim Assist Queensland (VAQ).

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Abolition of advisory body criticised after Morrison government promises $5.9bn for Queensland dams

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Former judge Anthony Whealy says size of funding promises justifies keeping body to scrutinise water projects

The costs of the federal government’s commitment to fund dams in Queensland without the scrutiny of a now-abolished national advisory body should be a cause for concern for the community, a former supreme court judge says.

Deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce disbanded the National Water Grid Advisory Body this week, claiming it was “an appropriate time for it to conclude its work”.

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Coal seam gas company Arrow Energy fined $1m for breaching Queensland’s land access rules

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Investigation began after discovery of ‘deviated’ wells drilled from neighbouring properties

The Queensland government has fined coal seam gas company Arrow Energy $1m for breaches of land access rules over four years, after an investigation into allegations the company drilled diagonally beneath farmland without notifying the landholders.

The fine is among the most significant non-compliance penalties ever issued to a resources company in Queensland. Groups that have raised concerns against the rapid spread of the coal seam gas wells in Queensland’s farming communities say the penalty is a “small start”, but that landholders’ rights to object to gas drilling must now be strengthened.

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Citipointe Christian college principal blamed state government for school’s policy on transgender children

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Exclusive: extract of leaked letter reveals school withdrew student counselling on sexuality and gender issues

Brisbane religious school Citipointe Christian college restricted its school counsellors from providing any support to students on matters of sexuality or gender identity last month, amid uproar about new “discriminatory” enrolment contracts.

The school’s principal, Brian Mulheran, took extended leave in February after asking families to sign an enrolment contract that said students could only be enrolled by their “biological sex”.

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Greens and LNP in rare agreement over Qld government’s pandemic powers

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Palaszczuk government’s push to extend Covid pandemic powers meets opposition in parliament

The Palaszczuk government’s attempt to extend Covid-19 emergency powers by another six months has been met with fierce opposition from parties across the political divide.

The Greens and Liberal National Party have both called for greater transparency and oversight over the state’s pandemic legislation, in rare agreement.

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‘Terrible plan’: call for Queensland to stop closing Covid testing clinics as case numbers escalate

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Covid-19 infections in the state have increased by more than 50% in the past two weeks

One of Queensland’s leading infectious diseases experts has called on the state government to rethink winding down Covid testing services given the current wave of infections.

On Saturday, Queensland recorded 9,404 new Covid cases, with eight deaths, and 295 patients in hospital, including 19 in ICU.

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New Gabba train station centrepiece of $1.8bn infrastructure spend in south-east Queensland

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Three levels of government announce ‘city deal’ plan in Brisbane to address ‘positive issue of growth’ amid population boom

Environmental and “liveability” pressures that are mounting on south-east Queensland as its population booms will be alleviated under a $1.8bn “city deal”, the prime minister, Queensland premier and Brisbane lord mayor have all promised.

The three leaders spoke on Monday morning from inside the Gabba, the stadium that will be knocked down, rebuilt, integrated into a new underground train station and will, according to the prime minister, Scott Morrison, form the heart of a deal which plans for the next two decades.

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Citipointe Christian College teachers threatened with dismissal for expressing homosexuality

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Exclusive: Only last month, the school apologised to students over enrolment contracts that described homosexuality as ‘immoral’

Teachers at Brisbane religious school Citipointe Christian College are being asked to sign employment contracts that warn they could be sacked for being openly homosexual.

The school says the wording of staff employment conditions is “under review” but one former teacher, who refused to sign the document last month, says he has now effectively lost his job for taking a stand.

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‘Obsessed by coal’: former Queensland LNP minister hits out at Morrison government

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Bundaberg mayor Jack Dempsey says voters in his region ‘oppose coal’ and want no new mines

Bundaberg mayor and former Queensland LNP minister Jack Dempsey has described the Morrison government as being “obsessed by coal” and out of step with almost everybody on the climate crisis “except the big polluters”.

Dempsey also alleged federal resources minister and member for Hinkler, Keith Pitt, who has strongly advocated for the coal industry, was out of step with his electorate, which stretches from Hervey Bay to Bundaberg – an area he called the “heartland of Queensland”.

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Queensland to provide $3,000 subsidy to buy electric vehicles

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Palaszczuk government to support purchases of EVs cheaper than $58,000 and invest $10m in charging stations

The Queensland government will pay a $3,000 subsidy to electric vehicle buyers and build new charging stations to incentivise take-up, under a new strategy to be announced on Wednesday.

The 10-year strategy includes measures the state says will help to drive down emissions and ultimately help Queensland meet its net zero commitment by 2050.

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‘Took no action’: Annastacia Palaszczuk and department criticised for response to ‘bitch on a witch-hunt’ slur

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The Queensland premier had told public servants Nikola Stepanov and Robert Setter to ‘get back to work and get on with it’

Queensland’s integrity commissioner says the premier’s department took no further action after a top public servant rejected her plea for mediation over his alleged behaviour towards her.

The state’s integrity commissioner, Dr Nikola Stepanov, became upset when she told a parliamentary committee on Monday that the Public Service Commission chief executive, Robert Setter, allegedly described her as a “bitch on a witch-hunt” during a 2018 phone call.

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Australia news live updates: Palaszczuk says too late for emergency declaration in Qld; Rio Tinto ditching Russia; 21 Covid deaths

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Palaszczuk rejects Morrison’s move to declare national emergency in Queensland, where flood costs are ‘well into the billions’; Rio Tinto will terminate all contracts with Russian businesses; nation records at least 21 Covid deaths amid concerns over Omicron subvariant. Follow all the updates live

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is being questioned about his promises to keep the cost of living down as he chats to ABC News Breakfast:

Well, we have been making policies that have been driving down the cost of living, for example, around electricity prices which are down by 8% in the last two years.

They doubled under our political opponents, but what I was referring to last night is the international events in the Ukraine have seen a spike in oil prices, and that is flowing through with some people paying more than $2 a litre.

This high and increasing burden of skin cancer emphasises the need for continued investment in skin cancer education and prevention.

We know what needs to be done. Now is the time to do it so that one day Australia is no longer considered the skin cancer capital of the world.

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Australia Covid live news update: NSW outlines reopening plan as state records 787 cases, 12 deaths; Victoria 705 cases, one death

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ACT eases some restrictions after recording 19 cases, one death; Gladys Berejiklian announces 11 October as day NSW restrictions ease after state records 787 cases and 12 deaths; Victoria records one death and 705 cases; no new cases in Qld; NT continues with reopening plans; 12 new cases in NZ. Follow all the day’s news

A...scamdemic? AAP reports that a record amount has been scammed from Australians this year.

Australians have lost a record $211m to scams so far this year, with people bombarded by bogus calls and texts purportedly from well-known businesses or the government.

The losses between 1 January and 19 September this year have surpassed the $175.6m reported to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s Scamwatch throughout 2020.

The prestigious Melbourne University joins several other tertiary institutions in announcing mandatory vaccination policies.

The University of Melbourne will make having a COVID-19 vaccine a compulsory requirement for attending any of its campuses. Exemptions to apply on medical or eligibility grounds. #springst @UniMelb

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Queensland assisted dying opponents table 55 amendments as MPs share emotional stories

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Health minister Yvette D’Ath breaks down in parliament as she speaks about her mother’s suffering

Opponents of Queensland’s proposed voluntary assisted dying laws have tabled 55 separate amendments to the bill ensuring there will be a protracted debate in the state parliament this week.

Many MPs shared emotional personal stories during Tuesday’s debate with packets of tissues passed around the Legislative Assembly.

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Australia secures Pfizer doses from Poland as Victoria chases mystery cases – as it happened

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12 Sydney LGAs to get half of the one million extra Pfizer doses secured from Poland; rapid antigen testing to be trialled in some Sydney aged care homes. This blog is now closed

We’ll leave it there for now. Here are today’s main developments:

Police are cracking down on large gatherings in breach of Victoria’s lockdown restrictions, reports AAP.

In the inner city, dozens congregated for a takeaway drink pub crawl event on the streets of Richmond on Saturday, while in Northcote about 200 people gathered for a street party.

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Australia politics live: parliament resumes; Victoria records four new Covid cases; Westmead hospital worker tests positive

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Anthony Albanese wants the Morrison government to provide a one-off $300 payment to every person who has been fully vaccinated by 1 December. Follow latest updates

The RBA is meeting today to discuss Australia’s cash rate.

I don’t want to spoil anything for you...but expect, no change.

For those interested, you can find the daily legislation schedule for the house, here

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NSW Covid update: Sydney lockdown extended one week as state records 27 new cases

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Focus shifts from eastern suburbs to Sydney’s south-west with Gladys Berejiklian not ruling out stricter measures for three local government areas

The greater Sydney lockdown has been extended for a week after New South Wales recorded another 27 local Covid cases and health officials expressed concern about the growing spread of the virus in some south-western suburbs.

The NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, said the decision to extend the lockdown was a difficult but necessary one.

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Australia Covid live news update: NSW reports 16 local cases; three residents positive at Sydney aged care home

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Two residents of SummitCare home at Baulkham Hills taken to hospital as a precaution and facility is in lockdown; Queensland records one new local case. Follow live

Police have recovered the bodies of three fishermen and their upturned boat near Wollongong south of Sydney.

Relatives raised the alarm about 6am on Sunday after the trio set off from the Bellambi boat ramp in Wollongong about 2pm the previous day.

Tasmanian’s opposition leader, David O’Byrne, has announced he’s quitting as Labor leader, with the ALP investigating allegations he sexually harassed a woman more than a decade ago.

O’Byrne announced he was resigning on Sunday and said while he would remain in parliament as the member for Franklin, he would not seek or accept a position in the shadow cabinet.

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Queensland Covid update: premier Annastacia Palaszczuk lifts Brisbane lockdown despite five new cases

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Man who works as a baggage handler at Brisbane domestic airport among new coronavirus cases

Brisbane’s lockdown ended at 6pm on Saturday despite the state recording five new Covid-19 cases, including one not linked to an existing outbreak.

Queensland’s premier, Annastacia Palaszczuk, told reporters on Saturday morning that the state was “not out of the woods yet” and that some restrictions, including mask mandates, would remain in place, but that the snap lockdown announced last week would end.

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