The LNP is demanding the QLD Government be upfront with Queenslanders about what is really being delivered in the months and years ahead to heal the Queensland Health Crisis. The budget has revealed Labor’s hospitals plan is severely underfunded. Budget analysis shows that Labor hasn’t been upfront with Queenslanders. When it comes to new hospitals, less than 1% of Labor’s State funding will be spent in the first 12 months for new hospitals, and nearly half of the newly announced health funding for hospitals is completely missing from the Budget.

Glossy brochures and hollow promises won’t heal the health crisis. Queenslanders want real solutions, not hollow headlines. After breaking the health system for the past seven years, Labor wants another seven years to fix the Queensland Health Crisis. That is why the LNP has put solutions on the table, including more resources, better triaging, sharing data in real-time and above all, putting local doctors and nurses back in charge. Once again, we see big talk and promises from the Labor Government – the price tag of promised assets is $10 billion – but only 40% of that is actually budgeted for in the budget. It reminds me of promises made in past elections where Queenslanders were asked to vote for the Government based on promises of new hospitals that would only start after the next election after the one people were voting in! There is a huge black hole in the State’s hospital's promise, and Queenslanders deserve to know the truth.

Earlier this week, it was revelated that this Labor Government had forced local Health and Hospital Services – Gold Coast HHS for the Mountain, Metro South HHS for Beaudesert district – to hand back over $1 billion in funding to central government coffers over past years. These are the funds that get you your emergency doctor and nurse or your knee surgery, endoscopy, or colonoscopy. These funds were CUT by the Government, taken back to Brisbane and spent elsewhere. A record health budget might come every year – but where is that funding actually going? When we find out that local health districts are having their funds clawed back by a Labor Government and bureaucrats in Brisbane, we know things are not going right. Doctors, nurses, paramedics and allied health professionals deserve more respect and resources from the State. Most of all, we all deserve better from our QLD Government.

SCHOOLS BACK FOR TERM 3
As our children head back to school next week, it’s a good time to be reminded of the standard operating hours for most school zones in Queensland: 7–9 am and 2–4 pm. Children can be hard to see and may not be concentrating on vehicle movements before or after school, so it’s important that we take extra care at these times. I wish children, parents, and teachers the best as school returns for Term 3 – remember to be mindful of the 40km/h school zone limit as we get back into the routine of school drop-offs and pick-ups.

SCENIC RIM ELECTORATE OFFICE
You can contact me by phone, toll-free, on 1800 813 960, or email scenicrim@parliament.qld.gov.au, so I can lobby on your behalf in Brisbane. In an electorate as large as the Scenic Rim, there are lots of issues, and I appreciate your feedback that helps me do my job as well as possible.