LABOR has announced the first new policy of the Queensland election campaign, committing $110 million to improve patient care in hospitals.
OPPOSITION Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk announced the funding in Townsville on Thursday, saying it would see an extra 400 nurses employed across the state within four years.
She said she wanted a one-to-one nurse-to-patient ratio in intensive care units and at least four-to-one in general wards. “These nurses work hard … to ensure patient safety is paramount,” Ms Palaszczuk said. “What the nurses have been saying to me is they’ve been stretched to the bone. “They’ve been working harder than ever before.” Ms Palaszczuk was again coy about how a Labor government would pay for the policy, saying full costings would be released before the end of the campaign. Premier Campbell Newman is yet to announce any Liberal National Party (LNP) policies, saying he wanted to spend the first week of the campaign talking about the government’s achievements. The election will be held on January 31.