Around 11am this morning, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh drove the short distance from George Street in Brisbane’s CBD to Government House in Bardon to ask Governor Penelope Wensley to dissolve parliament for an election to be held on the 21st of March. Bligh might have considered as she drove through Paddington that, as she passed from funky inner citydom to leafy upmarket suburbia, she never left Labor territory. If some such thought passed through the Premier’s mind, it might serve as a metaphor for the stakes of the coming battle.
In fact, Bligh could have driven almost anywhere in Brisbane without hitting a Liberal held seat, and done that at any time since the first Peter Beattie landslide in 2001. It’s not that upper middle class as well as swinging voters have necessarily become enamoured of state Labor, though Beattie’s pizzazz certainly didn’t hurt while the romance lasted. It’s rather that the Liberals and Nationals have presented an unelectable face over the past three elections.
If Lawrence Springborg had gone for a drive around town this morning, he might have been thinking about the traffic jams and the shiny new hospitals, which still generate a drumbeat of horror stories in the media day by day. Springborg and the LNP will be hoping voters focus on infrastructure, education and health, and decide that eleven years is long enough. Bligh, by contrast, will be running against the Nationals and painting the Borg and his crew as both inexperienced and having been round the block too many times without much of a record of achievement. But, above all, Bligh will be arguing that tough economic times require proven leadership — that’s why the election follows on so closely from the state’s budget review on Friday.
The stakes in this contest are high — and at federal level as well. A loss in Kevin Rudd’s own heartland would be unthinkable for the Prime Minister. But — equally — the newly amalgamated LNP would lie in tattered ruins if the Borg can’t surmount the forbidding electoral mountain in his way. And whatever is left — after even a narrow defeat — won’t look pretty. Labor has to be favoured to win this election, but past experience shows that campaigns — which in true Queensland style can be quite mad and surprising despite all the best efforts of the apparatchiks to script them minutely — do matter. It’ll be a fascinating ride.
See Anna Bligh’s poll announcement, made this morning via YouTube.
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If Labor’s actions in Townsville (long a Labor stronghold and currently the seat held by the Speaker of the House – Mike Reynolds) they are keen on losing the election seat by seat, having done a factional deal to roll well-connected previous Mayor Tony Mooney in favour of a complete political neophyte.
Amen to Noddy! This is an election by a government that knows its economy is gone, like a boxer hanging on the ropes for dear life. With a nett debt of 11.2% of the state’s gross domestic product and the AAA credit rating about to go up in smoke, falling commodity prices and Labor spending like a drunken sailor ( NSW are second behind QLD. How those Labor apparatchik’s love to spend ! Just ask John Robertson. What an embarrasment those boof head unionists are!), this is a case of ‘elect me and we’ll go down together’. This should be an interesting campaign.
Please, Nathan, do it! Call the election. Anna has the b–lls. Dont let her show you up..
Anna is a bit like the Courier Mail – not game to mention the downgraded triple-A rating, billions of dollars in debt…just a casual reference to tough economic times the majority of Queenslanders will assume is linked to that global downturn going on out there. As for her so-called experienced team ready to manage what really is an unprecedented state and global financial crisis – the line-up could well be the unemployment queue at Centrelink. Our democratic system is becoming more frightening everyday as the astute and experienced leave politics to the dregs of our workforce.
If only we could have an early election in NSW……
Good move by Anna.
Labor is destroying the state of Queensland( as well as many others) but there is no opposition ( in other states as well, mainly NSW). Mr Springborg is ok but does not stand for anything. Anna will win just because people know her.
LNP= If you feel like you are going to lose( as it looks like you are by a long shot), do something bold. Run on the platform that you will introduce daylight savings in Queensalnd.Use real facts about how it is better for the green house gases and a better lifestyle. Then you can debunk any of the old wife tales of confused cows( the rest of the worlds cows are ok) and fading curtains( the amount of sun does not change) This way, we may catch up with the rest of the world.
This is your only chance to get votes.