I relish the opportunity to enter this debate today to highlight the hypocrisy from the

LNP. I've got a lot of time for the member for Maranoa and the member for Brisbane, but they've been caught

drinking the IPA Kool Aid on this one. Once upon a time, members from the bush, and all of those regional

members, would have stood up for local jobs, but not on this occasion. It's amazing that this government—

normally engaged in 'the hunger games' that it can't spend five minutes not ripping itself apart—can now not

come up with a policy about procurement for jobs in Australia and can not come up with a policy about buying

locally here in Australia. Instead, it is attacking the Queensland government.

The members opposite today have outlined a plan to deal with this state government policy, which is more

interested, sadly, in fighting for jobs and small businesses in New Zealand than actually fighting for jobs in

Queensland. I say that is a real shame on the side of the LNP. But don't take my word for it—let's look at what

the advice on this policy announced by the Palaszczuk government is. The Chamber of Commerce and Industry

in Queensland, when talking about the policy about Buy Queensland, says:

The chamber sees it as levelling the playing field, so that small businesses who employ over 2 million

Queenslanders can compete on service and not just undercut on price.

Why is the LNP giving up on jobs in Queensland? Why is the LNP more worried about what's happening in New

Zealand than what's actually happening in our own backyard?

I say congratulations to the Palaszczuk Labor government for standing up for Queensland jobs and small

businesses. This government has run out of steam and run out of puff. They're more interested in what's happening

in New Zealand than—well, we're all interested in what's happening in New Zealand with the Deputy Prime

Minister, but we all know today that their priorities are not in favour of Queensland first. The LNP has form

on this in Queensland: they've never met a public servant that they haven't wanted to sack, they've never had

a frontline service they didn't want to cut or an asset they wanted to sell. Cut, sack, sell! That's what the LNP

is on about now—cut, sack, sell.

We know, when it comes to standing up for Queensland, that this LNP—every single member of this parliament

—refused to stand up for and back Queensland when the government needed a hand. Regional Queenslanders

needed a hand with Cyclone Debbie. They completely walked away from that. They are more interested in

spending $122 million on a wasteful survey than $110 million helping North Queenslanders. It was the member

for Herbert and Labor senators who fought to get a fair go so those communities can get rebuilt.

Instead, we have this nonsense from the LNP coming into this place, criticising a state government that wants

to unapologetically have more jobs and more service delivery in the regions. For regional members to come in

here and say, 'We're not worried about what's happening in our local communities. We're worried about what's

happening in New Zealand. We're more worried about jobs offshore than jobs onshore.' I say to the people of

Queensland: organisations like the chamber of commerce and industry are backing this policy in. You go on

record at your peril, because we will be reminding Queenslanders—particularly in regional Queensland—that,

when it came to debate and policy analysis, the LNP would not support a Queensland-first campaign.

We know, when it comes to delivery of infrastructure—when it comes to actually putting one's shoulder to the

wheel—that the LNP are found wanting. We know that the federal government, as I said, won't pay half the

cost of $110 million to help regional communities get back on track. All the mealy-mouthed excuses in the

world won't cut it when it comes to delivering jobs on the ground. That's what Queenslanders want. I say to the

Queensland state Labor government: 'Keep pushing ahead with this policy.' We want to see jobs on the ground

in Queensland. We want the over two million small businesses supported directly through this policy.

We know that, when it comes to delivery on the ground in Queensland, the LNP are all over the place. When

it comes to the former Nicholls-Newman government, we saw 24,000 people thrown on the scrap heap. We

know that, when it comes to selling assets, the LNP can't be trusted. We know that, when it comes to delivering

frontline services, the LNP can't be trusted. Thank heavens the people of Queensland have a Labor government

that is restoring confidence, and restoring and delivering jobs here in Queensland.