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The people of Garbutt are in many ways no different to people in other parts of our State. They are concerned about the Newman Government and their willingness to sacrifice jobs based on political ideology, and a desire to score political points against the former State government. And they are worried the LNP is willing to sacrifice services along the way.
Among the people we spoke to, some had lost government jobs in other parts of the state and had moved to Townsville in the hope that they could find work here. Others were still employed in their government positions, but had seen the effect that retrenchments had had on their co-workers, and were witnessing the effect the on-going uncertainty was having on others. They had concerns about what effect the fear, the uncertainty and the under-staffing might have on job performance and ultimately on services. They also had concerns that they would be expected to deliver the same level of service, with fewer staff. A task that just wasn't achievable or sustainable.
We spoke to people who worked for companies who supported government services, and who had seen serious downturns in the amount of business their company was doing. We spoke with people who had seen some of their customers disappear, they suspected because they no longer had jobs. They were angry with the LNP for putting their jobs at risk eventhough they didn't work directly for the government.
We spoke with pensioners who had seen their ability to access vital services become harder and more expensive. We spoke with people who were concerned about what a decline in government services will mean for them into the future. We spoke with those who said that those who had lost their jobs were obviously needed because a number of community based services had disappeared, and other services had been affected.
To be fair, we did speak to one person who was a fan of Campbell Newman (and Tony Abbott), but they didn't have time to tell us why.
While Campbell tells us that he speaks to people almost daily who tell him what a great job he is doing, we can only assume that his most frequent conversations must occur when he is bunkered inside the LNP party room. He certainly hasn't spoken to people in Garbutt since he became Premier.
In Garbutt people are also concerned about Tony Abbott's plans. He recently confirmed that if elected, he plans to sack 20,000 federal government employees. People questioned why the starting point for the LNP is always 20,000 people (that's where Campbell started, that's what former South Australian opposition leader Isobel Redmond said before jumping ship, that's Abbott's number).
We have a great many names and signatures that contradict what Mr Newman is telling us about the job he is doing. It is also brings into question how in touch Tony Abbott is, given the strong support he has shown for the actions of the Newman government. We'd be happy to show the list to them... if only Campbell, or Tony, or David Crisafulli or Sam Cox or John Hathaway were interested. (and what about Ewen Jones - has anyone seen Ewen??? Is he out scouting Dam locations???)
Back in December the Townsville Bulletin found that 98% of those surveyed didn't think State representatives were addressing the concerns of their electorates... Two things seem apparent - the Locals were right, and nothing has changed.
What are your thoughts?