Crime and Corruption Commission budget cut by Labor
It's greatly concerning that the Crime and Corruption Commission (CCC) budget for the next year has been cut by Annastacia Palaszczuk.
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This is despite the fact that the CCC asked for more money – that request was rejected by Labor.
Stood-aside Energy Minister Mark Bailey is being investigated over a suspicion of corrupt conduct.
We have seen several other recent probes or reviews about local government corruption.
Labor’s own members have raised significant allegations of corrupt conduct not being dealt with by those in power.
Given the significant threat of organised crime and major crime activities, you would think that this is the time to increase the budget of our independent major crime and corruption fighting body – not cut it as we have seen from Labor.
Annastacia Palaszczuk promised openness and accountability. We have seen anything but.
Labor changed the voting system, giving only 18 minutes notice and without consulting Queenslanders in a bid to rig the next state election.
Report after report has been covered up or buried in legal red tape so that Queenslanders can't be told the truth.
When it comes to Labor, you can't trust them because they'll say anything and do anything to get elected.
Ian Walker
LNP Shadow Attorney-General
Whose side are you on?
Can someone ask our MLA Mr Rob Katter “Whose side are you on because you cannot be on all sides?”
Nowhere has this question been more relevant than in Mr Katter’s latest pronouncements on trading hours in Mount Isa and Cloncurry.
He professes concern for small businesses in the regions thus justifying opposition to the Queensland Government’s gradual program of liberalizing the present anti-competitive hours regime.
He snipes at the LNP because, in the end , they had to support the pro-competitive aspects of the changes.
But the “open slather” for Coles and Woolies cannot be allowed within the next five years, if at all.
Crazily he reckons the changes will not enhance “competition in the long term”.
What is the regional consumer to make of all this?
There are arguments that allowing small grocery retailers to trade when the big guys cannot assists consumers in terms of convenience.
But this is a self-fulfilling prophesy and ignores the major determinant in grocery purchase decision making-cost.
Has Mr Katter counted the cost to low-income consumers of the present ant-competitive system?
It might have once been a luxury that highly paid workers could afford when Mount Isa was flying.
Has Mr Katter noticed much smoke coming out of the Big Stack lately?
Is he aware that the proportion of Centrelink dependant families in the Isa is going up and not down.
So is Mr Katter going to be on the side of those families or the couple of families profiting from Sunday trading as presently configured.
Tim Carberry
Mount Isa
Aghast
I was aghast to find my letter (North West Star, Thursday August 31) sandwiched between Jarrod Bleijie (LNP) and Pauline Hanson (PHON).
Luckily, you can't get stupid by osmosis.
George Harley
Mount Isa
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
