You note that "Yet before he could have received any substantive analysis of the review, the Premier seemingly committed the Government to substantial additional expenditure. This is not prudent government: Cabinet should first have considered a Treasury analysis of the review."

There are two issues here. Both should be addressed before any further health funding is considered; neither will be. First, Beattie's government has been characterised from the outset by ad hoccery, knee-jerkism, populism and anti-intellectualism. Expenditure has rarely been committed on the basis of a careful study of the issue, the facts, the options and cost-benefit analysis. Indeed, one of the first actions of the Beattie Government's recycled Under Treasurer, Gerard Bradley, was the abolition of the economic policy (Microeconomics) branch, which I headed. For several years, this branch had been the sole source of rigorous analysis and reasoned debate within the Queensland Public Service on a wide range of issues.

Second, Queensland Treasury since 1998 has not been a force for serious analysis and good policy in the public interest. Those who value such analysis - many of them recruited by me from the Commonwealth, or trained by me as graduate entrants - have been sidelined. Most soon moved on.

The problems with Queensland Health are endemic to the Queensland Government and QPS. Space permitting, I could give many examples of the appalling decision-making processes and rampant toadyism which prevail. I am amazed that Beattie gets credit for the growth of the Queensland economy - so many decisions have been anti-growth, denying change in favour of declining vested interests. The growth has been in spite of Beattie, and would have been greater under a hands-off government. Oh, and I supported the ALP until shortly after Beattie's elevation.

Faustino MMMmmm? Appreciated your realistic sane and sensible comments. However,until all Politicians and Public Servants are made personally liable for any of their deceptive and misleading and untrue comments and 'buck passing" over there negligence and serial muddle and mess "stuffups* (to quote Peter Perfect) not much will ever happen. In fact not much of real value has happened since Expo 88 and Joh Bjelke Petersen and Russ Hinze left George Street!
But we've closed Queen Street and heard all the pathetic excuses for crises such as the Blundering busway to the Eight Mile Plains/M1 Traffic Tragedy, Prisons calamity ,child abuse fiasco, stolen generation, Health Crisis, Water crisis, Electricity crisis, traffic crisis ad Infinitum Ad Nauseum Wonder what would be happening if the Courier Mail hadn't exposed them all?

I was greatly amused that not long after Joh's departure to the "gold mine in the sky" Peter opened a time capsule and read that 25 years before 800 people a week were migrating to Queensland from the Southern States. Peter smirked that it was now currently 1500 per week. What he didn't boast was that lots were coming here in retirement and dramatically forcing up the costs of previously cheaper housing, bringing their cars, clogging up our already "stuffed" (thank you Peter) continually catastrophic billy-goat cart track road system.
What Peter (he who claims responsibility for everything but does nothing except apologises and says "We'll fix it")seems to have overlooked that all those southern people paid nothing for our now mostly "stuffed" and straining infrastructure. Oh Yes to get to the point. The biggest attractions I've heard many of the aged Southern Belles describe is Queensland's "free" hospitals and "it's great to put up your feet in the sun when you pick up the pension and reap the benefits of other's efforts and taxes"! Hadn't heard Peter mention this aspect very much - have you? And some wonder why our Health and most other services and State are "stuffed"?
Take care Keep safe, well and healthy. PS The Labor party is not my "flavour of the decade" anymore either.

Des and Julie

Thank you for your article. You say that " ... cash is not a cure ...". I disagree with regard to the plight of people who have protracted mental illnesses, such as the illness of schizophrenia. The illness cannot be cured, but funding sure as hell would go a long way to assist the many thousands of mentally ill people who are unemployed, homeless, and hungry. Funny how the Beattie Government has found some $7 million dollars allocated to mental health/illness which has not been spent!

Faustino and Aussie 1 - many thanks for your posts.

Faustino - would be interested in more posts from you. Why the pseudonym?

Cheers
Kay

Kalweb, I'd be happy to post more often, as my energy permits - I'm sometimes restricted by OLO's posting limits. Graham recently invited me to submit articles and bloggets - I'm not in a position to do so at the moment - perhaps he'll relax my limits? ;-)

For various reasons, I wish to remain pseudonymous.

Faustino, How does a Government, who holds an enquiry, make a descion before the Commissioner hands down his report, in this case the Davies Commission. The report was commissioned to find the facts and report back to the Government. The Government then takes the report, and decides what measures to implement, for example cleaning up the QPS. You sound like a bitter person because you lost your job, cheer up with the new Howard IR laws, you will soon have plenty of company.