The Bligh government has announced that a substantial amount of money (about $200 million) derived from the sale of QR’s highly profitable coal business will be used to upgrade heavily subsidised passenger rail services between Brisbane and Cairns, correctly described by the Transport Minister as a “luxury” service. In this case the rhetoric of the Premier and Treasurer, spurious when applied to the income-generating coal freight service, is absolutely correct – every dollar spent on new tilt trains is a dollar that can’t be spent on schools and hospitals.
Hat-tip: David Adamson
John Quiggin 
Well the federal Labor party spent a lot of money on schools and look at the crap they had to wade through for that good deed. “The Australian” still goes on about it.
Well, look on the bright side – every dollar not earned from the money-making asset that is QR is money we can spend on a sports event no-one cares about!
So when is the next Qld elections.
Time to throw out the garbage ❓
But what is the alternative.
It’s all about keeping the thousand rollingstock engineering workers in Maryborough employed until after the election, Prof Q. They’ll all be sacked then, because the privatised QR will be buying waggons from China, but the short term problem will have been fixed, and isn’t that the only issue that counts with this government?
Highlander, patent that and you’ll make a motzah. And the others, esp Hal9000.
(B) lying scum they are.
Well surely it doesn’t matter it if it is a luxury service, or a service that will only benefit a few. If it improves a service that makes money, then surely that is of benefit to the whole state anyway?