Recently I have spoken in the Jimboomba Times about the Australian Rail Track Corporation’s announcement to spend money to up-grade the Brisbane-Sydney-Melbourne rail line.

A specific amount of money was given to the Queensland State Government for dual gauge rail lines to be installed from Bromelton to Acacia Ridge. Work was meant to start in June 2009 but nothing has eventuated.

Dual gauging would allow for passenger rail to service our communities. We currently have no public transport even though our communities are quickly growing and rapidly transforming into residential living as a result of determinations by the State Government’s SEQ Regional Plan.

Why hasn’t work started on dual gauging our rail line? The answer is that the State and Federal Government are still fighting over who should control the rail line.

Wasn’t it Kevin Rudd at the last election who promised a new era in State-Federal relations? I mean Kevin couldn’t help but to remind us he was special advisor to Wayne Goss for State-Federal relations before being elected in 1998.

The scary reality of Rudd’s stimulus package is that blank cheques are being written to bankrupt State Governments who are bungling the implementation of spending and putting jobs at risk rather then creating employment.

I have long held the belief that State Governments should be abolished and no better example why this would be advantageous is the great bungle of Federal Government stimulus debt spending.

Councils would gladly spend the money allocated on this rail project and without delay implement a number of job creating projects. Local councils can better deliver projects and manage their bureaucracies better then unwieldy State Governments.

I will write soon about how Logan Council missed out on significant stimulus money to create local jobs while a bucket load was spent on NSW government projects in marginal seats. I don’t know about you, but I expected more from a Queensland Prime Minister.