Senator BOSWELL (Leader of The Nationals in the Senate) (2:32 PM) —My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Local Government, Territories and Roads, Senator Johnston. Is the minister aware of comments by the Premier of Queensland, Mr Beattie, that the amalgamation of local councils will have very little impact, and what is the Howard government proposing to do to give Queenslanders an opportunity to exercise their democratic right to be heard on this vital issue?

Senator JOHNSTON (Minister for Justice and Customs) —In just three days last week the Queensland government implemented one of the most dishonest and draconian pieces of legislation, with their local government reform bill, in the history of the one-chamber Queensland parliament. In fact, this Premier is so contemptuous of everybody and so full of his own inflated importance that he insists that the amalgamations will have very little impact on the federal Labor campaign. That is not what Queensland Labor candidates are saying. The candidate for Flynn says:

In Cairns, the ALP candidate for Leichhardt also expressed his concern about the amalgamation, saying:

I must ask: where is the Leader of the Opposition on this vital issue? He has been stood over and done over by the Queensland Premier. Mr Beattie has said that Mr Rudd has been tactically clever on this issue by calling for more consultation. Can you imagine Mr Rudd as Prime Minister being pushed around and bullied, cringing and whimpering and completely at the mercy of state Labor premiers bashing him up on a daily basis? This legislation was rammed through and they used the guillotine. We hear all these platitudes and homilies from the other side—‘Don’t to do as we do, do as we say.’ In the limited time I have, let me give you a sample of the legislation. Section 159YP of the legislation says the commissioner redraws the boundaries and his decision:

This has the flavour of Europe of 70 years ago. This is disgraceful. These people are volunteers and they are being disenfranchised by the despotic government of Queensland. It is absolutely outrageous. There is no right of appeal, you cannot take it before a court and there is no prerogative writs—just do as we say. The commissioner decides where the boundaries are and to hell with legal process. Nowhere in the statute books in this place or in any state have I ever read such a qualification. This is what they are up to in Queensland, and what do we hear from the opposition here? ‘We are frightened about the federal election.’ They are getting bashed up in Queensland, Mr Rudd is in a corner and he has nothing to say except, ‘We will just do a bit of consultation.’ (Time expired)