Opposition makes $21 million pledges for the state’s justice system

The Opposition Leader is in the north of the state where he made a 21-million dollar pledge to improve the justice system.

Transcript

00:00David Cricifulli has announced if elected, the LNP will increase funding to the justice

00:07system to deal with a backlog of cases.

00:10$21.5 million will be spent over four years, with $12 million to go towards the Director

00:17of Public Prosecutions to boost resources and more staffing.

00:22About $6 million will go towards the DPP catching up on cases impacted by the state's DNA lab

00:29testing debacle.

00:31In addition, a district court judge for Townsville will also be appointed to deal with pressures

00:35on the justice system.

00:37Two commissions of inquiry found serious failings over many years at the Forensic Science Queensland

00:43lab, including a fatally flawed automated testing method that might have seen offenders

00:49escaping conviction.

00:51Mr Cricifulli says the funding will help deal with more than 40,000 cases needing to be

00:56reviewed by the DPP or Queensland Police.

01:00Justice delayed is justice denied and today we reveal our plan for faster justice to deal

01:05with the DNA debacle and the Queensland crime crisis.

01:10Mr Cricifulli was also pressed about his renewable energy plan and what pumped hydro projects

01:15an LNP government would support, given its promise to scrap Labor's pioneer Burdekin

01:21pumped hydro project proposed in the Mackay region.

01:24The LNP leader says he supports the Barumba pumped hydro project west of the Sunshine

01:29Coast, but he wouldn't reveal what other projects he did support, apart from saying that there

01:34were a number of smaller pumped hydro projects proposed from the private sector.

01:39Mr Cricifulli also says that an LNP government would keep coal-fired power stations running

01:45as long as possible to make the transition to renewable energy.