By Jim McIlroy
BRISBANE — The Queensland Labor government will become a minority government, forced to rely again on the support of independent Peter Wellington, if it loses even one of the two by-elections for the traditionally safe Labor seats of Bundamba and Woodridge on February 5.
The biggest challenge to Labor comes in Woodridge, where the January 21 committal of the former ALP member for the seat, Bill D'Arcy, on child sexual abuse charges is a wild-card issue facing the new candidate, former state ALP secretary and chief right-wing "numbers man" Mike Kaiser.
Kaiser faces a serious threat from local councillor Russell Lutton, a former ALP member, who is set to receive preferences from most other candidates in the seat. Lutton has scored some points locally by accusing Kaiser of failing to do anything to improve representation and facilities for the working-class residents of Woodridge, which has one of the highest unemployment rates in the state.
The state government has come under fire for stitching up a deal which allowed D'Arcy to retire, with his full $600,000 taxpayer-funded superannuation paid out, before being formally charged with the 49 child sex offences.
In Bundamba, Labor candidate Jo-Ann Miller faces a somewhat easier ride since the announcement that all other candidates in the seat, including Liberals', will direct preferences against former One Nation senator-elect, and now candidate for the One Nation split-off City-Country Alliance, Heather Hill.
The Labor government is desperate to consolidate its hold on office. According to the Brisbane Courier-Mail, Premier Peter Beattie announced on January 2, "We did all we intended to do with our social program last year. There will be no more major reforms in that area in 2000."
This was followed the next day by reports that the government may sell up to a quarter of its 50,000 houses, which would double public housing waiting lists within three years, allegedly because of federal government funding shortfalls.
"The conservative course set by the Beattie Labor government seems set to get worse", Democratic Socialist Party organiser Graham Matthews told Green Left Weekly. "We support the return of Labor candidates in these by-elections, after voting for the Greens and putting City-Country Alliance last, because government is in the balance.
"But a major struggle will need to be waged to force this right-wing government to implement policies in the interests of the working people of Queensland."