The Queensland State Government has announced that Deputy Premier, Jackie Trad, will be appointed Transport Minister with immediate priorities to fast-track the Strachan blueprint for Queensland Rail (QR) and progress the critical Cross River Rail project.
Trad, who was Minister for Transport in 2015, will take on the role on top of her existing responsibilities for Infrastructure and Planning.
Her predecessor, Stirling Hinchcliffe, had tendered his resignation earlier this week over a daming report into the QR train driver shortage.
“I have asked Jackie to return to the Transport portfolio, because I need her experience and her toughness to ensure the best possible service for the travelling public,” Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk explained regarding the move.
According to The Australian, Palaszczuk said Trad was “as tough as steel”, adding, “I know that no one will get in her way.”
The newspaper said Trad’s key task would be fixing the state’s “chaotic and overloaded train system” and negotiating with rail unions, describing her as “tough as steel”.