Ruddy will be a huge boost for Queensland at the expense of the...

Ruddy will be a huge boost for Queensland at the expense of the rust belt it seems.

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Kevin Rudd woos home state
Clinton Porteous and Dennis Atkins
November 18, 2007 11:00pm

KEVIN Rudd plans for Queensland to become a financial hub for the Asian region if Labor wins Saturday's federal election.

In an exclusive interview with The Courier-Mail, the Opposition Leader also launched a scathing attack on John Howard, accusing the Prime Minister of being Sydney-centric and taking his Queensland powerbase for granted.

"The great thing about coming from Queensland is that you understand the nation is very big and does go beyond its two largest centres," Mr Rudd said.

At the start of a furious final week of campaigning to be marked by scare tactics from both sides, Mr Rudd spoke of his dreams for a world-class broadband network to overcome the tyranny of distance and open economic opportunities for his home state.

He also played the Queensland card in arguing Australia would benefit from a prime minister and treasurer who both hail from the Sunshine State, saying a big state with vast resources provided them a better insight into the nation and the economy.

Labor holds only six of the 29 federal Queensland seats and needs to pick up a swag of them to force a change of government. Marginal seat polling suggesting the party is positioned to scrape over the line.

Mr Howard meanwhile signalled his final week's theme by yesterday campaigning in front of the banner: "Don't risk the economy with Labor."

He said one of the consequences of Labor's industrial relations policies would be an end to the mining boom.

On his plans to transform Queensland – and specifically Brisbane – into an international financial hub, Mr Rudd described the opportunities to win lucrative contracts to manage huge pension funds in Asia.

"Right now it is not core business but with the liberating technology and a bit of national vision it can become a growth platform for Queensland," Mr Rudd said.

Treasurer Peter Costello said Mr Rudd's plan for Australian companies to manage Asian pension funds and invest in a third country was Labor's new version of "banana republicanism".

Labor has promised to invest up to $4.7 billion in a high-speed network.

The Coalition is offering a $958 million broadband plan for rural and regional Australia using new wireless technology.

Mr Rudd said it was "disgraceful" that many parts of the state had been ignored by the Coalition's plan.

"How could you have 21 out of 28 seats in Queensland and not have delivered decent modern telecommunications through a high-speed broadband network in such a decentralised state?"

The Courier-Mail is also seeking an interview with Mr Howard before election day.
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