As it happened: Brisbane on Tuesday, January 21​on January 21, 2025 at 7:03 am

Premier David Crisafulli has announced an inquiry into what he has described as Queensland’s “broken child protection system”.

Honouring an LNP election promise, Crisafulli said the inquiry followed not only the “horrendous breach of trust” in the Ashley Paul Griffith case, but other child protection failures in recent years.

Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said the Blue Card system, allowing people to work with children, had “let down” many parents and providers and would be the central focus of the inquiry.

She said the former Labor government had failed to act on the failures exposed in the Tiahleigh Palmer case.

The inquiry will be headed by Luke Twyford from the Child Death Review Committee, which has the power to conduct a more extensive review.

Luke Twyford, the head of the LNP government’s child protection inquiry, has previously criticised key elements of its policy platform on young people.

Twyford is the chair of the Child Death Review Committee, which has powers set to be used to conduct the inquiry, and also the head of the Queensland Family and Child Commission.

The commission has previously criticised Queensland’s youth detention system, and told a federal inquiry that young people felt the social media ban, which had bipartisan support, was “victim-blaming young people”.

While Twyford said on Tuesday he continued to work with the government in relation to youth detention, and reiterated it was “not the most effective way to keep the community safe if we want to rehabilitate young people and make them positive members of society”.

Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said Twyford was someone of “incredible standing” with the background and experience necessary to conduct a thorough inquiry.

“I think we couldn’t have got a better person,” Frecklington said.

The head of Queensland’s child protection inquiry will request documents from state and federal police and the education department in relation to the Ashley Paul Griffith case.

Twyford, the chair of the Child Death Review Board, was today announced as the head of a Queensland government inquiry into the Blue Card system and child protection policies.

At a press conference with Premier David Crisafulli and Attorney-General Deb Frecklington, Twyford said he wanted to produce a report later this year that would help prevent child sexual abuse in Queensland and nationally.

While Frecklington said children had been put at risk by the former Labor government’s failure to implement recommendations from a 2017 Blue Card review, Twyford would only say that would be a key focus of the inquiry.

“There are still open recommendations from the Blue Card review of 2017,” Twyford confirmed, adding that the failure to adequately respond to those findings was not best practice policymaking and “doesn’t respect the review process”.

Frecklington said she would also discuss the issues at a national level.

Premier David Crisafulli has announced an inquiry into what he has described as Queensland’s “broken child protection system”.

Honouring an LNP election promise, Crisafulli said the inquiry followed not only the “horrendous breach of trust” in the Ashley Paul Griffith case, but other child protection failures in recent years.

Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said the Blue Card system, allowing people to work with children, had “let down” many parents and providers and would be the central focus of the inquiry.

She said the former Labor government had failed to act on the failures exposed in the Tiahleigh Palmer case.

The inquiry will be headed by Luke Twyford from the Child Death Review Committee, which has the power to conduct a more extensive review.

Premier David Crisafulli and Attorney-General Deb Frecklington are speaking in Brisbane.

A dingo has bitten a three-year-old child on the leg on K’gari.

The child was bitten near Kingfisher Bay on the island, formerly known as Fraser Island, about 5pm on Saturday, while with family on the beach.

“The parents picked up the child and tried to scare the dingo away, but it wasn’t deterred,” a Department of Environment spokesperson said.

“People on two nearby yachts came to assist, with one using a kayak paddle to attempt to deter the dingo and maintaining distance between the visitors and the dingo. The dingo kept a distance but was not deterred.”

Rangers are now attempting to identify the tagged dingo.

A man has been charged over a police incident in Annerley, where an officer was shot in the leg earlier this month.

The man has been accused of two counts of attempted murder, trespassing, wilfully assaulting a police officer, and other assault offences after the incident on Tamar Street on January 10.

Police said that when officers arrived, the 26-year-old Acacia Ridge man was brandishing a piece of wood and was agitated.

“It is further alleged an altercation occurred where the man lunged for the male acting sergeant’s service firearm, which resulted in the acting sergeant being shot in the left thigh,” police said.

After a struggle, in which the accused also allegedly bit another officer, he was shot twice by police, and taken to hospital.

He is scheduled to appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court today.

More than four out of five jobs filled in the past two years have been in public service, health and education, prompting warnings from economists that the government’s focus on adding jobs could continue to fuel inflation.

While there have long been calls to end the shortage of nurses and teachers, the growth in jobs tied to government spending will be a flashpoint in the upcoming election amid concerns that it is adding to price pressures.

The Albanese government has repeatedly claimed the Coalition would cut 36,000 public service jobs after Nationals leader David Littleproud last year said it was the “first thing” they would do, and a Liberal Party website cited the number under an example of wasteful spending.

However, a spokesperson for opposition public service spokeswoman Jane Hume said no commitment had been made to slash the public service headcount, and that the Coalition’s position was to halt growth.

Speaking at a doorstop in Canberra, newly sworn-in Government Services Minister Katy Gallagher said laying off 36,000 public servants was unrealistic.

Economics writer Millie Muroi picks up the story.

Transport Minister Brent Mickelberg says Smart Ticketing will not be fully implemented, without the need for Go Cards, until December 2027.

Smart Ticketing is expected to be introduced on the final three bus services in Brisbane, Logan and the Gold Coast by June, allowing commuters to tap on and off using credit cards and smartphones.

But Mickelberg said commuters who were unable to use a credit card or smartphone would need to keep tapping their Go Card until a replacement reloadable card was available.

He blamed the former Labor government for the delay, and the budget blowing out from $371 million to $433.75 million.

“Running two systems due to Labor’s delays is not efficient but must be done to ensure everyone who wants to use public transport can, no matter how they choose to tap on,” the minister said.

Treasurer David Janetzki will hand down the state budget update on Thursday.

Queensland’s Legal Services Commission has prosecuted another person for using Airtasker to offer legal services despite not being qualified.

Jessica Louise Wager, also known as Jessica Lindman, created a profile under the name “Jessica Louise” and engaged with customers seeking help with their legal affairs.

In Mackay Magistrates Court, Wager was convicted of illegally holding herself out to be a lawyer and fined $7000 plus $1000 in costs.

Commissioner Megan Mahon said there had been an increase in unlawful operators using online platforms and social media.

“Fundamental to the protection of anyone seeking legal services is ensuring those services are lawfully provided by qualified, licensed and insured practitioners,” Mahon said in a statement.