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Premier denies defying Adani advice

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has denied her decision to veto a federal government loan to Adani goes against the Integrity Commissioner's advice.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk at a press conference
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has denied any wrongdoing over Adani at a press conference. (AAP)

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Source: AAP


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Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has denied her decision to veto a major federal infrastructure loan to mining giant Adani goes against the Integrity Commissioner's advice.

In an election bombshell, the premier on Friday revealed her partner Shaun Drabsch, who works for PriceWaterhouse Coopers, had worked on the application for a $1 billion loan under the Commonwealth's Northern Australia Infrastructure Fund.

She said she would exercise her ability to veto the loan to remove suspicion of a conflict of interest.

But on Sunday Ms Palaszczuk said she'd made the decision in order to meet a 2015 election commitment that not a single dollar of taxpayers' money would go towards the project.

In supporting the loan, the Queensland government must act as a middleman to channel the funds from the federal government to Adani.

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The premier denied withdrawing support defied Integrity Commissioner Dr Nikola Stepanov's advice that she exclude herself from all cabinet "deliberations or decision making" on NAIF.

"I accept the Integrity Commissioner's advice, however in relation to the loan in relation to Adani, I've made it very clear ... our previous commitment was that not one single dollar of taxpayers' money would go towards that project," she told reporters.

"I stand by my commitment and therefore we have put in place a veto.

"I will draft that letter on premier's letterhead, and if I am re-elected, on the first day of being re-elected I will send that letter to Malcolm Turnbull."

Ms Palaszczuk has insisted there had been nothing untoward and she had not known about her partner's involvement as part of PWC's work to secure the funding for the Carmichael coal mine in the Galilee Basin.

Opposition Leader Tim Nicholls said the decision was overkill designed to shore up Greens preferences.

"She just wants to make a problem that she has go away and that problem is coming from the left wing of the Labor party and the inner-city Greens who are threatening Labor and their vote," he said.

"It's not about jobs."


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