Positioned directly behind her, but still in the camera shot, Crisafulli frowned sympathetically and shook his head as she told her story.

Crisafulli served sausage sandwiches at the makeshift “crime forum”, attended by Cairns LNP candidate Yolonde Entsch – the wife of federal member Warren – and Currumbin MP Laura Gerber.Ĭradling a baby in her arms, the woman spoke of her husband being attacked while she hid in the bedroom with her four children. That morning, opposition leader David Crisafulli invited the media to breakfast at the home of a woman who claimed she was the victim of a home invasion. On Wednesday, MPs cried and hugged as they passed the path to treaty bill but the historic legislation was still largely overshadowed by the Liberal National party and protesters circling back to youth crime. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

On Tuesday the police minister, Mark Ryan, announced a massive $90m recruitment drive for officers but had his press conference hijacked by an anti-crime campaigner who invited him to a protest and asked a series of rambling questions. Kicking off the week with a press conference to announce $16m in funding to expand the Great Barrier Reef International Marine College, Palaszczuk said she’d answer questions about “local issues” first – a wink and a nod to the Cairns journalists the government wined and dined this week.īut instead of responding to the government’s talking points, most reporters grilled her about crime, asking about plans to build a youth detention centre in Cairns and an incident involving vigilante behaviour in Rockhampton.

The charm offensive a novel