Chris O'Brien is a senior state political reporter for the ABC based in Brisbane. He has worked in radio and television news since 1987 and contributes regularly for ABC online. Chris also comperes political and business events including state election debates. He tweets at @COBrienBris.
Posted
| UpdatedThe controversial $800 million West Village project in West End is officially approved, setting local member and Deputy Premier Jackie Trad up for a battle with the Greens for her seat at the next election.
Topics: government-and-politics, urban-development-and-planning, community-and-society, west-end-4101, brisbane-4000
Posted
| UpdatedQueensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is presented with a sudden opportunity to reshuffle Cabinet after the resignation of Agriculture Minister Leanne Donaldson over a string of personal financial blunders.
Topics: state-parliament, government-and-politics, parliament, brisbane-4000, qld
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| UpdatedQueensland Agriculture Minister Leanne Donaldson says the ALP has paid her three-year outstanding Bundaberg City Council rates bill, but promises to repay the party next week.
Topics: government-and-politics, local-government, alp, political-parties, brisbane-4000, qld, bundaberg-4670
Posted
TransLink's interim train timetable for south-east Queensland commuters could be disrupted again on Friday just as it is about to be replaced with a new, more reliable schedule.
Topics: government-and-politics, states-and-territories, community-and-society, brisbane-4000
Posted
| UpdatedQueensland Transport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe is expected to come under more pressure today to resign in the face of continuing problems with the south-east train network.
Topics: government-and-politics, state-parliament, parliament, brisbane-4000
Posted
Darling Downs coal miners and farmers picket outside Queensland Parliament in Brisbane to protest against a water bill they say will threaten hundreds of jobs.
Topics: state-parliament, coal, mining-industry, mining-environmental-issues, mining-rural, agribusiness, dairy-production, beef-cattle, brisbane-4000, toowoomba-4350
Posted
| UpdatedQueensland Transport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe, backed by Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, tries to turn the heat on the former LNP Government as he expresses "outrage" over Queensland Rail's failure to warn him about crew shortages earlier this year.
Topics: state-parliament, parliament, government-and-politics, brisbane-4000, qld
Posted
| UpdatedDrivers' ability to see stopping points and the comfort of guards are revealed as the issues being ironed out with the supplier of Queensland Rail's new trains.
Topics: government-and-politics, qld
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A senior Palaszczuk government staffer is putting up his hand to be one of the first LGBTIQ candidates chosen under Queensland Labor's new five per cent affirmative action target.
Topics: government-and-politics, state-parliament, parliament, brisbane-4000, qld
Posted
| UpdatedTransport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe attempts to gain the upper hand in the Queensland Rail timetable controversy by claiming services have improved this month even with a reduced frequency interim timetable.
Topics: state-parliament, parliament, government-and-politics, public-sector, urban-development-and-planning, community-and-society, brisbane-4000
Posted
Federal Labor Leader Bill Shorten acknowledges the party's electoral shortcomings in Queensland, in his address to the state conference on the Gold Coast.
Topics: government-and-politics, federal-government, federal-elections, elections, qld
Posted
| UpdatedSpecialist engineers will examine all rides at all Queensland theme parks, including Dreamworld where four people died this week, the State Government says, with the Premier also announcing a Workplace Health and Safety audit.
Topics: workplace, travel-health-and-safety, occupational-health-and-safety, state-parliament, alp, coomera-4209
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Queensland Rail warns commuters in the south-east there could be last-minute changes to services today as the network continues to adjust to the interim timetable put in place to deal with a driver shortage.
Topics: government-and-politics, public-sector, rail-transport, community-and-society, brisbane-4000, qld
Posted
| UpdatedQueensland businesses remain gloomy about the future despite improved conditions, according the Chamber of Commerce and Industry's quarterly Pulse Survey.
Topics: business-economics-and-finance, industry, globalisation---economy, economic-trends, qld
Posted
| UpdatedVaccinating horses against Hendra virus should not be made compulsory, despite the deaths of 77 horses and four people since 1994, a Queensland parliamentary committee finds.
Topics: hendra-virus-infection, diseases-and-disorders, health, veterinary-medicine, state-parliament, activism-and-lobbying, qld, brisbane-4000, bundaberg-4670, cairns-4870, gladstone-4680, longreach-4730, mackay-4740, maroochydore-4558, mount-isa-4825, rockhampton-4700, southport-4215, toowoomba-4350, townsville-4810
Posted
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland says the fall in Queensland's unemployment rate is due to discouraged jobless people making "an exodus" from the labour market.
Topics: unemployment, economic-trends, state-parliament, activism-and-lobbying, brisbane-4000
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The Queensland Treasurer says a slight drop in unemployment shows the Government's economic plan is working, but the Opposition says it is just a sign people are giving up the hunt for work.
Topics: unemployment, state-parliament, brisbane-4000, bundaberg-4670, cairns-4870, mackay-4740, maroochydore-4558, mount-isa-4825, rockhampton-4700, southport-4215, toowoomba-4350, townsville-4810
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| UpdatedA new plan for housing and infrastructure in south-east Queensland will ignore warnings about an over-supply of units and apartments, while trying to unlock land set aside for development.
Topics: activism-and-lobbying, public-sector, regional, regional-development, housing-industry, local-government, housing, brisbane-4000, qld, australia, maroochydore-4558, southport-4215, toowoomba-4350
Posted
| UpdatedQueensland could regain its AAA credit rating within two years, Treasurer Curtis Pitt says, after Standard and Poors becomes the second ratings agency to maintain the state's AA+ rating.
Topics: economic-trends, state-parliament, budget, brisbane-4000
Posted
| UpdatedA conciliatory note is struck in the stand-off between the State Government and Council over transport projects in Brisbane, state political reporter Chris O'Brien writes.
Topics: local-government, activism-and-lobbying, government-and-politics, public-sector, brisbane-4000, qld
Posted
| UpdatedSweeping changes to Queensland's senior assessment and tertiary entrance system are postponed for a year, and will now start with Year 11 students in 2019.
Topics: education, government-and-politics, qld
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| UpdatedThere have been seven economic reports released in as many days. Some of the results are good, some are just OK, and others are not so good, state political reporter Chris O'Brien writes.
Topics: public-sector, economic-trends, government-and-politics, qld, australia, brisbane-4000
Posted
The 2018 Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast could provide up to $4 billion to Queensland's economy - double the figure previously suggested, the event's chairman Peter Beattie says.
Topics: commonwealth-games-organising-committee, commonwealth-games, sport, government-and-politics, southport-4215
Posted
| UpdatedA new adolescent mental health facility will be built at the Prince Charles Hospital in Brisbane to replace the Barrett Centre which was controversially shut down in 2014.
Topics: mental-health, government-and-politics, youth, community-and-society, brisbane-4000
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A report on the Palaszczuk Government's 14-year plan to make Queensland the biggest user of renewable energy in Australia is rejected as "flawed" and "dodgy" by Opposition Leader Tim Nicholls.
Topics: alternative-energy, environment, government-and-politics, qld