Political Chronicle 397

Queensland: January-June 1997

The Politics of Confrontation — Style At the start of the new year the Government and Labor Opposition in Queensland were determined to repair their political fortunes and return from the political dead. The previous tumultuous twelve months had taken their toll on both sides of politics. The Coalition appeared disorganised, variously incompetent and engaged in a steep learning curve after arriving in office. Labor by contrast were dejected, revengeful and feeling their way with a relatively new and untested front bench. The three party leaders still appeared shell-shocked and unfamiliar with their new responsibilities. Behind the scenes members of the public service were floundering and looking for direction now that "policy" had become a dirty word associated with the previous Labor Government. The electorate had suspended judgement and most appeared not to want another election so soon after the unexpected outcome of 1995-96. The Coalition Government was anxious to begin the year afresh with some of the political scandals and controversies which dogged the new government in 1996 seeming to have 398 Political Chronicle abated. The government now intended to focus Country-based National Party members were on imposing its own mark in a range of policy most in danger of losing support in the event of areas while gradually accumulating a record of a challenge from the right-wing One Nation achievements. It was beginning to look at party, although city and provincial Labor seats improving its electoral chances and preparing were also not immune. The electorate remained the way for re-election. volatile, and did not display firm commitment to The Labor Opposition was also anxious to either major party grouping. Elections for local rebuild public confidence in their party after the government and for a state seat in a by-election protest votes of 1995 and 1996. Beattie's tactic gave some hint of this volatility. initially was to minimise the scope for political differences with the government, while Local Government Elections presenting a more humane and responsive message to Queenslanders. He sustained a Local government elections were held in March schedule of regular, almost daily comment and with shires and city councils going to the polls criticism on government proposals or failings, across the state. The results of these elections but was impeded by the impression that Labor were generally regarded as good news for the was once again a "one-man-band". Other ALP with strong Labor wins in and spokespeople among the front bench were Townsville. Labor's Jim Soorley was returned in noticeable for their silence, and many Brisbane for his third term (with a vote of backbenchers were preoccupied with working almost sixty per cent) and was supported by a their own seats as a survival strategy. Labor majority on the city council. His Opinion polls in the early part of 1997 challenger Bob Mills put in a lacklustre recorded a large drop in support for the performance and with around only thirty-six per Coalition, with the primary preferences falling cent of the city-wide vote departed from city from forty-nine per cent enjoyed throughout politics. Mille steady leadership of the Liberal 1996 to a steady forty-one per cent for the caucus on the council was immediately missed period from January-June 1997. The ALP and the remaining Liberal councillors had some initially increased its support from forty to difficulty in determining who would be the next forty-one per cent the previous year to forty- sacrificial lamb to head the party at the local four per cent in January-March, but then fell level. Eventually June O'Connell was selected back to forty-one per cent again. This put both to lead the party. Soorley was only the second major political sides neck-and-neck in opinion Brisbane lord mayor to achieve a third term, and polls by mid-year. Those satisfied with the way he recommenced his new term committed to the premier was doing his job further restructuring and running the council on steadied at between forty-one to forty-three per business lines. In Townsville, Labor's Tony cent (well below the levels regularly achieved Mooney (the unsuccessful Mundingburra by the former premier ). Peter candidate in 1996) recorded a landslide victory Beattie achieved the same level of support for over a Liberal opponent, giving him his fourth the way he was performing as opposition leader. term as mayor. In Pine Rivers, the National On a head-to-head contest for most preferred Party's Yvonne Chapman was returned as the premier, Borbidge remained narrowly ahead of mayor winning by a massive margin, beating in Beattie (by thirty-nine to thirty-four per cent) the process a foriner Liberal parliamentarian but a high percentage of those surveyed Rosemary Kyburz. Gary Baildon beat the sitting remained uncommitted on this matter (twenty- mayor Ray Stevens in the Gold Coast (after eight per cent). The tightness of the polls served political flak over the high salaries of local to discourage the government from announcing councillors). a snap poll. They also tended to buoy the ALP slightly with some prospect of a return of some The Kurwongbah By-election in May voter support. The other significant factor in the polls was One electoral contest took place on 24 May in the rise in preferences for minor parties and the Labor-held seat of Kurwongbah located in "others" including independents (which rose the northwestern outskirts of Brisbane. from nine to eighteen per cent in published Kurwongbah had been a safe Labor seat, and the polls). Many sitting politicians openly party managed to retain it in 1995 with a countenanced the possibility of a tough election two-party-preferred vote of 55.9 per cent (after battle with local independents or (if the party suffering a seven per cent swing). This chose to stand for state elections) the new One by-election was caused by the sudden but not Nation party led by . unexpected exit of Margaret Woodgate from Political Chronicle 399 State Parliament. Although she served as of the Coalition Government would eventually Minister for Family and Community Services in rest on the capacity of the Liberals to hold (or the final months of the Goss Government, gain) southeast Queensland seats. The Monday Margaret Woodgate had been suffering failing after the by-election result the Liberals health for some time. Her decision to resign appointed a new State Director, Greg Goebel, a came after a spell in hospital. Careful to long-standing party activist. Goebel replaced preselect a woman for the still safe Labor seat, Jim Barron (who left to work for the Federal the ALP endorsed Linda Lavarch, the wife of Family Services Minister Judy Moylan). Goebel the former Federal Attorney-General, Michael explained he was appointed to lift the party and Lavarch. prepare for the next state election, saying it was Of the seven candidates who contested the his lob to make sure the organisation was in election, Labor's main challengers were the good shape for the fight". He also volunteered Liberals, who stood Peter Rankin — a non-local that the Coalition minority government was candidate who along with the party hierarchy "facing some challenges" and was "a new did not provide much evidence of active government that has had to learn some hard campaigning. Rankin confessed half way lessons and make fundamental changes in the through the campaign that he did not think he bureaucracy and direction" (Courier-Mail, 21 had a chance of winning the seat. This odd May 1997). tactic of conceding early did not appear to impress voters overly. Of more interest was the 1997-98 State Budget array of other candidates, including: a breakaway conservative candidate (Yvonne In the lead-up to the 1997-98 State Budget, the Moran who ran as an Independent), and a Coalition Government released a forty-page Shooters' Party candidate (Bev Salisbury). Kim glossy booklet called "Your Queensland" which Patano from the Greens stood again, and the was circulated via Sunday newspapers. As a morals campaigner, Rona Joyner, threw her hat propaganda exercise the idea was borrowed in the ring one more time. Yvonne Moran, who from the Kennett Government in , had unsuccessfully sought preselection through which had already identified that financial the Liberal Party, presented the main threat to transparency paid off in investor confidence. the Liberals from the right. She emphasised her The Queensland Government's effort was more local standing and had made statements which a "tick-list" of ostensible achievements (such as some regarded as sympathetic to Pauline delivering the previous State Budget, helping Hanson's One Nation party. increase international trade, provide new jobs). After the close of counting, Labor claimed it It included details of programme improvements, was "back from the political dead in extra spending and additional staff, and a Queensland". The Liberal's primary vote pot-pourri of news items of interest (often with collapsed in the by-election, dropping by eight a liberal interpretation of events such as the per cent from 1995. Labor's primary vote rose holiday visit of the US president Bill Clinton by three per cent to a total of 48.2 per cent of which was classified as a special event first preferences to the Liberal's 24.9 per cent. achievement of the Borbidge Government). The After the allocation of preferences, Labor Opposition greeted the booklet as a waste of claimed a two-party preferred vote of 60.2 per public money, and a publicly-produced piece of cent giving it a 4.3 per cent swing overall. Two party propaganda with a list of lies, points of note were the low result for the exaggerations and inaccuracies. They estimated Shooters' Party candidate (who managed just that the booklet had direct costs of over two per cent of the vote) and the high personal $400,000 not counting the time invested by vote recorded by the former Liberal Yvonne public servants; they also claimed it was two Moran who gained over fifteen per cent of the months' late in appearing. primary vote. Three independents (Joyner, In Parliament the Treasurer Salisbury and Byrne) lost their deposits. delivered her second budget at the more regular The Kurwongbah result was not so much a time of May. The 1997-98 Budget contained boost to Labor (as it had always expected to win few real surprises except for the huge increase comfortably), rather than a blow to the Liberals. in the allocation approved for public works. The Their appalling campaign and poor showing on government proposed to spend $14.2 billion in election day raised many questions about the the State Budget (an increase of $759 million), capacity of the Liberals to campaign effectively of which $4 billion was earmarked for capital in a state election and put up a fight in the works and the rest consumed in government southeastern corner of Queensland. The survival services. Recurrent outlays estimated at over 400 Political Chronicle $10 billion were expected to increase ahead of regarded as a "gross overstatement", and some inflation (by approximately five per cent) increases in departmental staff were less than confirming that this government like its Labor had projected in its final 1995-96 budget predecessors maintained a commitment to big (e.g. police numbers). Perhaps Labor's most spending at the state level. The government telling criticism concerned the "plundering" of called the Budget "Delivering for $850 million from the electricity corporation to Queenslanders" and promised 50,000 more jobs, help pay for recurrent programmes in the extra education places for students, and extra budget. They argued that the funds skimmed service workers. The big winners in the Budget from the supposedly off-budget corporation were health which gained 500 additional represented an additional tax or cost to workers, education with over 1,000 new electricity consumers of $1,000 per year. This teachers, and police with 450 additional police was the second year in a row that the Treasurer and civilian staff. Roads also benefitted had removed funds from the electricity (especially motorways like the Pacific corporation (they took $400 million in Motorway which attracted $641 million and 1996-97). general state roads which gained an additional $43 million). The losers were public housing The Politics of Confrontation: "Joh one Day, (cut by $150 million), vocational education and Rob the Next" training (down by $28 million), and the environment (down by $8 million). One of the recurring themes in Queensland The Budget announced selective tax cuts politics is for governments to lash out at their (land tax concessions and a payroll tax threshold opponents when in trouble. This tactic increase) and no explicit tax increases were eventually proved attractive to Rob Borbidge as included. The Treasurer also announced an he wrestled with a "knife's-edge majority" and overhaul of the tax administration system. attempted to impose his premiership and Budget projections, however, indicated that the priorities on to the wider political agenda. government expected large increases in taxes Initially his main concern was in containing the and charges paid in a number of categories, such damage and fall-out from the Carruthers' inquiry as bank debit charges, tobacco tax, stamp duty into his secret Memorandum of Agreement with and speeding fines. In total these state taxes the Police Union, but by 1997 his attention had were projected to rise by $170 million. Sheldon shifted to a mixture of parochial interests, also announced that she would consider national policy concerns and the new abolishing payroll tax altogether (because of its conservative agenda in Australia. This brought supposed "anti-business" nature and him into conflict with other states and the disencouragement to employers to hire Federal Government as well as with other additional staff — a "jobs tax") if the important institutions; but unlike the Victorian Commonwealth Government agreed to the Premier, Jeff Kennett, who was also known to reform of the federal taxation sharing put his views strongly, Borbidge's arrangements with greater guarantees for the pronouncements were often ill-advised if not states. counter-productive. The Treasurer also admitted that she had But Borbidge was determined to get on to directed that capital reserves of $850 million be the front foot and initiate debate from a transferred from the Electricity industry to the variously hardline conservative position. Budget to assist pay for services. This had often Targets for his attack were many and often been done in the past but was becoming more involved a degree of Canberra-bashing: the Wik difficult under corporatisation and financial native title decision, the Criminal Justice transparency. On other economic projections, Commission, the Australian Constitution, the the Treasurer admitted that unemployment southern media, and the High Court — which would remain stubbornly at high levels with Borbidge described as a bunch of "historical Treasury predictions that the state's jobless rate dills" for producing the Wik decision. In would still be 9.2 per cent by the end of the particular the Queensland Government's Federal budget year. Coalition colleagues received their share of Labor criticised her big spending budget as abuse. The Premier made it clear on many one that would increase public debt, give little occasions that he held the Federal Treasurer incentive to business and not create much new Peter Costello in low regard. The acrimony employment. The government's claim that it between the two simmered over the early was creating 50,000 new jobs (mostly full time months of both Coalition Governments. according to the Treasurer) was particularly Political Chronicle 401 Borbidge's uncompromising stance on native well as from the opposition. Senior Liberals title also attracted criticism from the Prime such as , Peter Costello, Joan Minister, John Howard. In response to Howard's Sheldon and all either compromise "10 point plan" announced on 1 opposed Borbidge's plan or distanced May which aimed to water down the themselves from supporting his intention. implications of the Wik decision, Borbidge At home, the Criminal Justice Commission along with the National Farmers Federation continued to enjoy a tense and acrimonious actively promoted a "one-point" plan of one line relationship with the premier and senior extinguishment. This extreme position was ministers. A variety of investigations and legally dubious, politically unachievable, and criminal cases involving National Party potentially costly in compensation, yet the identities helped poison the relationship. The Queensland Nationals persisted in promoting CJC also contributed to the worsening relations this view, possibly to indicate to their own with its own public pronouncements and membership base they were promoting their counter-claims. Most attention was directed interests. The Nationals were worried about the toward the ongoing Connolly-Ryan inquiry into prospect of a "bush revolt" especially with the Commission (established by the government Pauline Hanson's One Nation party competing in October 1996 to "review" and possibly for support in rural areas. Borbidge also began dismantle the crime body). This expensive to make policy on the run and use policy exercise (estimated to have cost $13 million by decisions deliberately to increase pressure on a June 1997) was preoccupied with uncovering particular issue — such as with the interim ban "dirt" on the Commission in order to provide a on land lease transactions for fear of incurring rationale for removing certain functions from compensation. These moves were designed the body. In this way the government thought it simply to up the ante rather than work toward a could escape the political heat of "taking on" policy resolution. Such hardline positions on the CJC which was likely to occur if it had Wik meant that the Nationals were widely simply opted to disembowel the regarded as puppets advocating the sectional Fitzgerald-inspired commission. interests of a minority (the pastoralists and Journalists and commentators were quick to miners). Many critics saw this as irresponsible pick up on this new style of leadership and and short-sighted, but more pragmatically the made parallels between Borbidge's antics and government had painted themselves into a those of the former premier Bjelke-Petersen. corner from which negotiations or compromises Normally a quiet, relaxed and easy-going were difficult and influence on the final politician, journalists talked of Borbidge outcome jeopardised. assuming the "Joh mould", of Borbidge also found himself alone when he "mischief-making", of "hairy-chested made provocative statements about the practice leadership", and of his "makeover into an of senate replacements. When Labor's maverick old-style headkicking National". More sceptical senator looked likely to resign his journalists commented on "Borbidge's fumbled senate seat in early 1997 (amid travel rort Joh" impersonation which was not seen as allegations), Borbidge indicated that he may convincing (Steketee in Australian, 8-9 March defy the Constitution by not replacing Colston 1997). Other commentators identified that with an ALP nominee. In part his motivation Borbidge was attempting to develop a new was spurred by personal dislike for the likely leadership style but was short of appropriate ALP nominee — widely believed to be Wayne role models, and hence was appearing extreme Swan — a former ALP state secretary and and farcical. It provided good copy for the defeated MHR for Lilley. Borbidge reasoned papers while it lasted. that since Colston had resigned from the ALP and was an independent senator, he was then at Time Out: Labor's Policy Work While in liberty to appoint another "independent" senator Opposition by using his numbers in State Parliament to select a non-ALP candidate (presuming the Labor in Opposition were still smarting over Independent would agree to their inglorious departure from office. One of this move). He also considered the possibility of the criticisms most often made by the unduly delaying the nomination but was conservatives about Labor when in government effectively prevented by parliamentary standing was that they were a government of reviews and orders. Borbidge's suggestion to defy the spirit inquiries and not one of action and deed. After and the words of the Constitution produced twelve months of the Coalition Government, much criticism on his own side of politics as however, the Labor Opposition was able to turn 402 Political Chronicle the criticism back on their opponents. Labor's which felt aggrieved contributed toward leader and deputy leader exposure of the internal politics, especially both charged that the Coalition was guilty of when one endorsed candidate (Russell Carr, a establishing about 200 reviews and inquiries up local left-wing meat worker from the "Labor to the end of June 1997, representing almost one Left" faction) was disendorsed ostensibly inquiry every two days. Some of these inquiries because he had displayed disloyalty to the party. were standard departmental reviews and Right-wing factions used.their strength on the advisory sessions (such as on workplace safety, party's Administrative Committee to disendorse drugs in prisons, road speed limits, tick Can in May after a dispute about his eradication, or the review of the Criminal candidature was submitted to the party. After Code). Others were overtly political exercises, party internal documents were sent secretly to such as the Treasurer's review of Labor the Liberal candidate , the Labor programmes, the Commission of Audit review leader Peter Beattie stepped in to calm the of state finances, the Connolly-Ryan inquiry factional rift and reinitiate a new selection into the Criminal Justice Commission, or the process. A new plebiscite was conducted and review of gun laws. Other reviews were Can's wife Lindy Nelson-Car• was successful in established to buy time or depoliticise issues as winning the nomination. This dispute was, with retail trading hours, the radioactive dump however, more of an isolated incident in the at Esk, wheelclamping of illegally parked preselection rounds for state seats held over the vehicles, or hospital waiting times. first half of 1997. For the most part, the internal With spare time on their hands Labor began politics of the ALP had remained cohesive after a systematic re-think and review of its policies. the electoral rout of 1995, a factor which placed The Labor strategy was entitled "New them in a realistic position to recapture Directions" and the policy messages were government when the premier chose to go to the promoted throughout the state including by polls. special train whistle-stop tours. Most of this work was performed or commissioned by the J.W. Opposition Leader's office in conjunction with the relevant shadow ministers and with consultation/input from wider party fora. Labor distanced itself from previous Goss nostrums such as economic rationalism, and hardline social policies. They deliberately indicated that they would not return to the central agencies used by Goss like the Office of Cabinet, or the Public Sector Management Commission Instead, Labor released revised policies on state economic development, international trade, jobs and employment generation, regional development, restructuring government departments (removing economic policy from Treasury), coordination and consultation. The message was clear, that a Beattie-led Labor Government would not simply return to the Goss agenda and be preoccupied with economic principles and the processes of decision-making. By contrast, Beattie was emphasising the importance of the "social fabric that binds communities together". Importantly, all Labor's New Direction statements were open to public input and comment before they were finally adopted as Labor policy. Factional disputes still rocked the party, however, particularly over pre-selection. In Mundingburra (paradoxically the same seat which caused Labor to lose government) factional infighting was publicly exposed, and a bitter war of personalities ensued. Factions