Peter Beattie - 2006

LETTER TO EDITOR - 1 August 2006

Dear Editor

Peter Beattie is a master at self-delusion and make-believe, a premier with more press officers and policy advisors than most hospitals have nurses and doctors combined. He leads a government big on spin but bereft of substance.

For years he has filled the halls of George Street with bureaucrats and statisticians, re-inventing procedures, recycling old ideas and thinking up new themes and logos, while birthing units have closed across the state and communities have tried to save what's left.

While millions have been poured into city football stadiums and foot bridges, regional centres have struggled to maintain even the most essential services.

Peter Beattie’s Smart State continues to poach doctors from Third World communities, our ambulances are constantly being diverted to juggle the remaining beds in our hospitals, and fire officers have been sent to administer first-aid because no ambulance could be found.

But as cities move to tighter water restrictions, Premier Beattie is desperate for distractions to stop city folk focussing on his lack of achievement after years of surfing on the accomplishments of previous administrations.

At last a dam is announced, but for all the wrong reasons and on a site which will not hold water.

And now a footballer, who lacks self-discipline and talks out of turn, is being held up as an ideal candidate for a future Beattie government (AussieWatch, FCC 31/07006).

Is this all he can offer?