Senator Barnaby Joyce was today in Isisford, yet another town which will be decimated by the Peter Beattie government's arbitrary nastiness in the council amalgamation decision.
“It was fascinating, verging on pathos, to hear the Labor Minister Mr Fraser state today that he was making this decision by reason of lack of Commonwealth funding. I was wondering why he wasn’t blaming the alignment of planets or his latest personal astrological horoscopes.
“To hear a Labor government, who will spend multiple billions of dollars on a stinking puddle near Gympie called Traveston Dam, to then claim fiscal responsibility as their raison d’etre is beyond contempt.
“I know Mr Fraser, as a good honest tribal follower of Mr Beattie, can be completely relied upon to be arbitrary, ruthless and nasty. This will be personified by the destruction of the regional towns, the cultural treasures of our great state of Queensland, which are currently supported by council.
“Everywhere I’ve been over the last fortnight, travelling around western Queensland, I see tourists from our State and others who are the beneficiaries of the pride these local councils give to an area, whether it is parklands, camping grounds, the Min Min encounter at Boulia, the Birdsville Pub, the Outer Barcoo Interpretation Centre at Isisford, the Qantas museum and Stockman’s Hall of Fame at Longreach or the Waltzing Matilda museum at Winton.
“All these areas are instigated, lobbied for and supported by local councils, as are many of the sealed roads that get people to and from these areas.
“Small populated councils cover huge areas and look after the most marginalised in our State. To amalgamate is a statement by a Labor government that they ignore the most marginalised; their choice is to disenfranchise the marginalised to reinvest in their palace.
"Mr Fraser has endorsed Mr Beattie's wish that they not "waste money" on a referendum on Council amalgamation. Heaven forbid we should ever discern what the wishes are of the people; the hide of Queenslanders who think they might want to have a say in the way their state is run.
“Mr Fraser, a little foot solider of the current regime, can be completely relied upon to look after his future. His interest lies in progressing through the levels of a Labor regime which has long since forgotten to take the dignity of Queensland as their honour to represent. They now believe Queenslanders were born to be represented by them.” Senator Joyce said.