Qld: Govt defends ambulance plans in ad

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Qld: Govt defends ambulance plans in ad

BRISBANE, Dec 22 AAP - The Queensland government has taken out a full page newspaperadvertisement defending its controversial plans to hit property owners with an $85-a-yearambulance levy.

The levy has been criticised as being unfair to people who own more than one property,particularly pensioners who could have to pay the levy after previously getting a freeservice.

Queensland's Local Government Association (LGAQ) has said it would boycott the levywhich the government had proposed would be collected with rates.

The LGAQ has also claimed the levy would raise $126 million - $10 million more thanthe government said it would raise.

In its advertisement in today's Sunday Mail newspaper, the government said the levymeant that for 23 cents a day, Queenslanders would have the guaranteed protection of alife-saving, professional paramedic service when they needed it.

The advertisement said that the 412,000 families who currently pay the $98 voluntarysubscription to the ambulance service would be able to save money.

A spokeswoman for Premier Peter Beattie said he would not be commenting on the advertisement.

But yesterday Mr Beattie vowed to push on with the levy.

Mr Beattie said alternative ways to fund the service were being explored if the levy,to be collected by local councils, was determined to be the best way it would proceed.

"We are going to fund the ambulance service properly and I will not compromise on that,"

Mr Beattie told AAP.

Queensland independent MP Peter Wellington today called for the levy to be collectedthrough electricity accounts.

"This would be a much fairer process and pensioners could still be exempt," Mr Wellington said.

"The Beattie proposal discriminates against people who may have several blocks of landand in particular farmers whose land is divided into several blocks," he said in a statement.

AAP jfs

KEYWORD: AMBULANCE