April 30, 2013
Greens candidate for Maranoa Grant Newson attended a public forum in Kingaroy on Monday night to voice his opposition to the sale of public assets by the State Government.
The forum, which was held on the eve of the release of Commission of Audit report, outlined the possible consequences of selling off Queensland’s public assets such as the electricity grid.
“The Greens have always held the position of not selling our public assets,” Mr Newson said.
” ‘Outsourcing’ is just privatisation by another name, and the LNP has embraced outsourcing in just about every area of government responsibility. Transport, health, education, rural fire brigades, aged care – it’s all up for sale.
“The LNP keeps chanting a mantra about privatisation reducing Queensland’s oppressive debt and restoring the State’s financial strength and security, which tells you they’ve already made up their minds before they even ask the electorate.
“They have closed their minds to analysis from the likes of The Australia Institute which just yesterday blamed privatisation for driving up electricity costs, and economist Dr John Quiggin at the University of Queensland, who concluded recently that the sale of Queensland electricity assets has been put forward as a way to reduce electricity prices and improve the State’s financial position (but) in reality, it will achieve neither of these goals.”
Mr Newson said $720 million was generated for the State Government from the electricity grid in the 2011-12 financial year.
“That money was income reinvested into the economy through health, roads and many other essential services that constantly need funds,” he said.
“You lose the income from these industries once they are no longer public assets. All the profit goes into the pocket of the owners, shareholders and massive payouts for CEOs like it did for Telstra.
“Regional communities will lose the smaller depots, staff will be laid off, services will drop and investment into research and development will cease.
“Look at it this way … if you have a mortgage of $300,000 and you sell your car for $20,000, you still have a $280,000 mortgage to pay off – but no car. What’s the point?”
Queensland Greens Senate candidate Adam Stone said the LNP’s response to the Costello Commission’s audit report showed that they were “already halfway down the path to privatisation, whatever they may say about waiting for a mandate”.
“By the time the LNP get around to asking Queenslanders how they feel about privatisation at the next election, it will be a moot point,” he said.
“Government buildings and facilities will be full of private operators and we’ll just be debating whether we sell the buildings, too.”
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