Comrades,
Further to the dozen or so Emails sent to you all early last year when the Newman State Government
was really turning the heat up on the Qld Trade Union movement, you will recall it was Newman that had set the agenda for Tony Abbott, having being elected 12 months earlier than Abbott in 2012. It
has been Newman and his LNP Government that has been thrown out 12 months before Abbott has
to face the polls some time in 2016.
Abbott is now a dead man walking, having spoken in glowing terms of Campbell’s great
achievements and leadership, and certainly is more arrogant, even as Rome burns around him he
will remain like Newman a strong leader with a strong team and a strong plan, but a questionable
future!
Newman is the first Premier of a State to lose his own electorate in one term in 100 years and a
crushing rebuttal of his and Abbott’s policies in a comprehensive turn around after the previous
State election.
Remember the Biiiikeeee’s bullshit that some of the naive fell into which gave the apparatus of the
State the go ahead to deck out police in full battle gear better suited to the front line in Iraq, the
special powers granted to police during the G20, the attack on Teachers, nurses, doctors, fire
fighters, the judiciary and making a joke of the CMC. The closing of hospitals, schools and mass
sackings of over 20,000 public servants, TAFE fees restructure where course costs soared 10 fold,
and it goes on.
I want to congratulate the Qld Branch activists and members who were up to their armpits in this
win; it has been a continual campaign against privatization that stretches back to the previous Bligh
ALP Government and through 3 years of this imbecile Newman. It has also incorporated our tanker
campaign as an integral part in the important last two weeks of the election campaign where crew
members of Hugli Spirit determined to take a stand in Cairns in far North Qld around local job
security for Australian seafarer’s, for protection of the environment and the Great Barrier Reef and
for fuel security.
An issue that Newman was to week to act on and stand up to Abbott by raising it as a matter of
National priority and importance, and certainly one Abbott has been to stupid and inept at
understanding as a matter of National security, and one in which a vast Country such as Australia is
reliant absolute on road transport, not to mention the agricultural and aviation industries.
The Tanker campaign must remain a priority for us as our shipping campaign must. These issues
received massive coverage during the Qld election campaign where 2 of the ALP Cairns candidates
participated and received massive majorities in the polls. Now the intellectual elite may say the
swing was on and our luck was in, to that I say that the massive united front campaign including all
of our issues (anti privatization, workers compensation, job security including our tanker campaign,
work place safety, health and education issues) and many more were a galvanizing point to a
committed and resolute campaign, we made our luck and the collective acted on it.
The campaign was not just about a State election result, it was also sending a clear message to
Canberra and Abbott that workers are organized and hurting under the burden of his anti worker,
anti social, and anti union agenda, as they have been hurting under Newman’s agenda in Qld.
The Qld Branch expended approx $105,000 on the State election, more than at any previous
election, State or Federal, I report that because I believe the Union and its members should know
what we spent and how we spent it, and want to thank all those members who contributed out of
their own pockets and who bought donations from their work places to assist.
Our campaign was multi faceted and part of Union movement’s broader campaign, including the
Stand for Qld campaign and Not 4 Sale campaign, the collective purchase of media time, support for
individual candidates who supported our goals, and integrating the tanker campaign and
coordinated action, culminating in the principled stand of Hugli Spirit crew members.
This was a sweet victory for all members of our Union and the Union movement, and I sincerely
hope that we take up and commence Federal election strategies now and keep the momentum
going from the terrific win in the Victorian State election, the Qld State election and approaching
NSW State election which has to look good also.
Once again thanks to all who took the time to assist, and look forward to the NSW campaign in
March, and the main event in 2016?
In Unity
Mick Carr (MUA Queensland Branch Secretary)
Further to the dozen or so Emails sent to you all early last year when the Newman State Government
was really turning the heat up on the Qld Trade Union movement, you will recall it was Newman that had set the agenda for Tony Abbott, having being elected 12 months earlier than Abbott in 2012. It
has been Newman and his LNP Government that has been thrown out 12 months before Abbott has
to face the polls some time in 2016.
Abbott is now a dead man walking, having spoken in glowing terms of Campbell’s great
achievements and leadership, and certainly is more arrogant, even as Rome burns around him he
will remain like Newman a strong leader with a strong team and a strong plan, but a questionable
future!
Newman is the first Premier of a State to lose his own electorate in one term in 100 years and a
crushing rebuttal of his and Abbott’s policies in a comprehensive turn around after the previous
State election.
Remember the Biiiikeeee’s bullshit that some of the naive fell into which gave the apparatus of the
State the go ahead to deck out police in full battle gear better suited to the front line in Iraq, the
special powers granted to police during the G20, the attack on Teachers, nurses, doctors, fire
fighters, the judiciary and making a joke of the CMC. The closing of hospitals, schools and mass
sackings of over 20,000 public servants, TAFE fees restructure where course costs soared 10 fold,
and it goes on.
I want to congratulate the Qld Branch activists and members who were up to their armpits in this
win; it has been a continual campaign against privatization that stretches back to the previous Bligh
ALP Government and through 3 years of this imbecile Newman. It has also incorporated our tanker
campaign as an integral part in the important last two weeks of the election campaign where crew
members of Hugli Spirit determined to take a stand in Cairns in far North Qld around local job
security for Australian seafarer’s, for protection of the environment and the Great Barrier Reef and
for fuel security.
An issue that Newman was to week to act on and stand up to Abbott by raising it as a matter of
National priority and importance, and certainly one Abbott has been to stupid and inept at
understanding as a matter of National security, and one in which a vast Country such as Australia is
reliant absolute on road transport, not to mention the agricultural and aviation industries.
The Tanker campaign must remain a priority for us as our shipping campaign must. These issues
received massive coverage during the Qld election campaign where 2 of the ALP Cairns candidates
participated and received massive majorities in the polls. Now the intellectual elite may say the
swing was on and our luck was in, to that I say that the massive united front campaign including all
of our issues (anti privatization, workers compensation, job security including our tanker campaign,
work place safety, health and education issues) and many more were a galvanizing point to a
committed and resolute campaign, we made our luck and the collective acted on it.
The campaign was not just about a State election result, it was also sending a clear message to
Canberra and Abbott that workers are organized and hurting under the burden of his anti worker,
anti social, and anti union agenda, as they have been hurting under Newman’s agenda in Qld.
The Qld Branch expended approx $105,000 on the State election, more than at any previous
election, State or Federal, I report that because I believe the Union and its members should know
what we spent and how we spent it, and want to thank all those members who contributed out of
their own pockets and who bought donations from their work places to assist.
Our campaign was multi faceted and part of Union movement’s broader campaign, including the
Stand for Qld campaign and Not 4 Sale campaign, the collective purchase of media time, support for
individual candidates who supported our goals, and integrating the tanker campaign and
coordinated action, culminating in the principled stand of Hugli Spirit crew members.
This was a sweet victory for all members of our Union and the Union movement, and I sincerely
hope that we take up and commence Federal election strategies now and keep the momentum
going from the terrific win in the Victorian State election, the Qld State election and approaching
NSW State election which has to look good also.
Once again thanks to all who took the time to assist, and look forward to the NSW campaign in
March, and the main event in 2016?
In Unity
Mick Carr (MUA Queensland Branch Secretary)
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