Qld premier has tickets on herself: Abbott

18 Feb 2012, 5:42 pm   -   Source: AAP
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Premier Anna Bligh took another swipe at the man who wants her job while Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says she has "tickets on herself".

Premier Anna Bligh has taken another swipe at the man who wants her job, while Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott says the Queensland leader has "tickets on herself".

Ms Bligh will on Sunday call an election for March 24 even though the campaigning has been on in earnest for several weeks.

Both Ms Bligh and her would-be replacement, Liberal National Party leader Campbell Newman, raised the stakes on Saturday.

Mr Newman walked the streets of Ashgrove with Mr Abbott at his side but he did not appear as comfortable as his Canberra counterpart in shaking hands and posing for photos.

Ms Bligh milked her "last day" as premier to visit the Airport Link construction site - Australia's largest road tunnel which is still several months from opening.

She spoke of the benefits of the tunnel, which links the airport, Brisbane's business district and the northern suburbs, and criticised the Clem7 road tunnel that was built when Mr Newman was Lord Mayor and has since gone into receivership.

Mr Newman must win the seat of Ashgrove with a swing of more than seven per cent to enter state politics, otherwise he will be left out in the cold if his party wins.

The LNP needs only a swing of about 4.6 per cent to topple the government. That appears highly likely after a Newspoll in the Weekend Australian on Saturday showed the LNP had 58 per cent to Labor's 42 on a two-party-preferred basis.

Ms Bligh launched a scathing attack on Mr Newman in parliament during the week, alleging the conduct of his family's business could land him behind bars. On Saturday she said more questions would be asked of the LNP leader.

"No doubt the polls are bad and this is a David and Goliath contest," Ms Bligh said.

"People are going to see over the next five weeks that Campbell Newman not only has a lot of questions to answer about his personal dealings, he simply doesn't have the big ideas for business for Queensland.

"It's going to be a great campaign."

Mr Abbott seized the opportunity to compare Ms Bligh's parliamentary outburst to that of outspoken former Labor leader Mark Latham.

"I think Anna Bligh has got tickets on herself," Mr Abbott told reporters on Saturday.

"Anyone watching the premier in the parliament this week wouldn't think of David, they'd think of Mark Latham.

"Because that's what the premier had in parliament this week, a Mark Latham meltdown moment."

Mr Newman again refused to speculate on who would lead the LNP if it won the election but he failed to claim Ashgrove.

The LNP's parliamentary party leader Jeff Seeney has admitted it is "technically" possible it could be looking for a new leader on March 24.

"We won't win the election without winning seats like Ashgrove," Mr Newman said when asked if the LNP could win the election without him winning his seat.

"Anna Bligh can play her games. She can roll around in the mud as she has for 10 months with (Treasurer) Andrew Fraser - there's a sight isn't it.

Neither Labor nor the LNP has announced preference deals. That will become clearer on Sunday when Katter's Australian Party announces its plans for the election.

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