Palaszczuk trying to rewrite history on Adani approvals

premier-palaszczuk

 

  • Annastacia Palaszczuk says one thing about Adani in Townsville but another in Brisbane
  • Annastacia Palaszczuk’s claims she will ‘stare down the Greens’ is totally laughable
  • The Palaszczuk Labor Government has no interest in ensuring Adani gets off the ground.

 

 The Palaszczuk Labor Government has frustrated and delayed the assessment and approval process for Adani’s Carmichael Coal project and associated infrastructure at every opportunity.

Shadow Mines Minister Andrew Cripps said despite the Premier’s claim she had “stared down” the inner city Greens which prop up her administration, nothing could be further from the truth.

“Annastacia Palaszczuk’s tough talk in Townsville is inconsistent with the actions of her government,” Mr Cripps said.

“This is a case of Annastacia Palaszczuk saying one thing in North and Central Queensland and doing another in Brisbane.

“The pro-development rhetoric we’ve heard during her visit to Townsville doesn’t match the actions of her government.”

Mr Cripps said the Palaszczuk Labor Government intervened and held-up the application and approval processes to expand the Abbot Point Port which significantly delayed this critical part of the Carmichael project.

“Labor withdraw the applications submitted by the previous LNP Government and submitted a new one, which triggered a totally new Environmental Impact Statement process and significantly delayed progress,” he said.

“The Palaszczuk Government earlier this year delayed the signing off on Adani’s mining lease for the Carmichael project, despite the fact that the Environmental Authority had been issued after a full assessment and approvals process.

“Labor’s failure to demonstrate a vote of confidence in the opening up of the Galilee Basin was a cruel blow to Central and North Queensland communities where unemployment was and is a major concern.”

Mr Cripps said, in yet another red-tape set back, Labor had recently introduced a new piece of environmental legislation into Queensland Parliament that looked set to capture Adani’s Carmichael coal project in transitional arrangements.

“This could be a significant hurdle for the project to overcome, particularly in relation to the opportunities for green activists and third parties to subject the environmental approvals for the project to several further rounds of legal challenges and appeals,” he said.

“The truth is that at every step in the process undertaken by Adani to secure approvals, begin construction and create jobs from the Carmichael project, the Palaszczuk Labor Government has been uncooperative and indecisive.”

Tags: , , , ,