The Queensland state government handed down its budget on Tuesday, the second one of the Palaszczuk-Pitt administration.
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A state budget is usual less ideological than its federal counterparts, there being a lot less money to spend but predictably reaction to it is split on party lines.
The opposition says agriculture has lost out with 2.5% slashed from funding and no detail on how to improve biosecurity, tackle Panama disease or how the government would work to improve frontline services.
The government countered saying it was committed to the industry with a $77.9 million Rural Assistance and Drought Package, a Queensland Climate Risk and Drought Resilience program to improve farm business capacity and more funding to help eradicate wild dogs in the west.
The truth as always lies between the two extreme positions.
With a hung parliament and the KAP holding the balance of power, the north-west region has done well out of the budget.
There was $20m to seal significant portions of the Hann Hwy – matching a recent federal promise – as part of $30m for western roads.
Refurbishments to Boulia Community Hospital and the McKinlay multi-purpose health service are also allocated within the budget.
There is money to improve the fire station facilities in Mount Isa and Richmond, $1.6 million to fix the damaged jetty in Mornington Island and $1.2 million to rebuild the Waltzing Matilda Centre in Winton.
Tourism in Winton will also reap the benefit of sealing the road to the dinosaur museum and hopefully the nomads who enjoy Winton will come further to check out the charms of our great north-west region.
We’ve got plenty of sunshine here so $500,000 for a solar generation project in Camooweal is also a welcome investment.
Of course. the big challenge will be paying for all these initiatives.
However, even if it means more debt in the short term, these local initiatives are good, strong projects for the local economy which will pay for themselves over the long-term. In tough economic times, governments must be prepared to spend as well as save, and managing a balance these twin challenges will make or break the Palaszczuk administration. DB