James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am going to be controversial tonight because I want to defend Campbell Newman and the Liberal National Party government of 2012-2015 in Queensland. Right from its election in March 2012 the Liberal National Party government in Queensland made the tough but necessary decisions needed to stabilise the budget after not just years but decades of Labor waste and mismanagement.

The Liberal National Party reduced the rampant growth in spending while at the same time increasing funding for the front-line services that Queenslanders want in health, education, transport, and law and order. The Liberal National Party government in Queensland kept state taxes amongst the lowest in Australia and put downward pressure on the cost of living.    The Liberal National Party froze car registration and reduced public transport fares by five per cent across the state for the first time in history. The party reversed Labor's $7,000 stamp duty whack on the family home and provided a one-off water rebate to South-East Queensland residents. For the business community the Liberal National Party abolished the waste tax, forced down the cost of workers' compensation premiums and reduced the burden of payroll tax, helping to boost jobs and economic growth. Through this disciplined economic management the Liberal National Party has left Queensland on track for a surplus in 2015-16 of $862 million—the first surplus in a decade.

On the economic front the Liberal National Party left the state on a track to higher economic growth, with nation-leading projected economic growth of 5.75 per cent in 2015-2016. But, most importantly, the Liberal National Party of Queensland halted Labor's debt train at $80 billion, $5 billion less than the former Labor government had planned, meaning less money on interest payments to overseas banks and more money for public services.

Then there are the achievements in health. The Liberal National Party, under the stewardship of Minister for Health Lawrence Springborg, delivered the best elective surgery waiting times in the nation. Patients treated at emergency departments within four hours went from 63 per cent to 73 per cent. The Liberal National Party obliterated the long-wait public dental waiting lists from 62,500 to zero and also ensured that, unlike under Labor, Queensland's nurses and doctors actually got paid.

And the story in education is just as good. John-Paul Langbroek, the Minister for Education, saw NAPLAN testing results improve in years 3 and 5, with 90 per cent of kids reaching the minimum national standard. One hundred and thirty independent public schools were funded across the state, enabling principals, teachers and parents to decide themselves how best to meet the educational needs of their children. And the $300 million dollar maintenance backlog in public schools left by Labor was all but eliminated.

In law and order the Liberal National Party, unlike Labor, did not shy away from tackling the thugs and hooligans terrorising Queensland families and businesses. Over 800 extra police were put on the beat, supported by new technology, more helicopters and, more importantly, stronger laws. And the statistics speak for themselves. For the year ended October 2014,    car thefts were down 21 per cent, break-ins were down 20 per cent, robberies were down 24 per cent and assaults were down 4 per cent. On the Gold Coast the results were stronger, with robberies down a whopping 43 per cent.