Queensland will be required give back more GST revenue than any other state, in order to have the ‘privilege’ of Kevin Rudd’s health reforms. Queensland will be forced to hand over 42 per cent of its GST revenue, amounting to $11.8 billion out of a total of $27.3 billion, with no guarantee that we will receive any overall improvement to health services in return.

At 42%, Queensland’s GST hand-over will be nearly twice as large as Victoria’s 24% hand-over, and more than NSW’s 30% hand-over.

This additional cost, which Anna Bligh has not been honest about with Queenslanders, will result in less teachers, police and emergency services workers – when Queensland is already struggling financially to keep pace with the demand in these areas.

And what will Queensland gain from a federal health take over?

Ms Simpson believes that Queensland will not see any considerable improvement to the health system, “the plan that Kevin Rudd has proposed will not see any significant additional funding go into Queensland health, and now it is also robbing Queensland of funding allocated to other areas of the state.”

LNP spokesperson for Health, Mark McArdle said, “I have no confidence at all that the huge amounts of dollars for health in this budget will see any real improvements in the health of Queenslanders.”