Mr Robb said the government had "no plans" to introduce the change before the next federal election in 2016. Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten meets with Chinese community leader Lewis Lee at Haoke Chinese restaurant in Sunnybank Hills. Credit:Tony Moore In Brisbane on Sunday, Mr Shorten, speaking at Sunnybank Hills Shopping Centre, seized on the comments and said Mr Abbott now planned to extend the GST. "Tony Abbott - you might hide from Queenslanders - but you can't hide the GST policies," he said. Mr Shorten denied his hard-hitting speech was a scare campaign.

He said Mr Abbott had proposed a "structured campaign" of "selected speeches and leaks" over summer to consider extending the GST to fresh food. Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk, with federal counterpart Bill Shorten and Stretton candidate Duncan Pegg, delivers the first official baby cuddle of the Labor campaign to 12-month-old Larissa Soter of Sunnybank Hills. Credit:Tony Moore "And now we have Andrew Robb, the federal Minister for Trade, coming out and supporting a GST on fresh food," he said. Mr Shorten challenged Tony Abbott to come to Queensland and explain his plans for extending the GST. "He needs to come out of witness protection and tell Queenslanders about the real problems they are confronting," he said.

Mr Shorten tried to tie Mr Newman to Mr Abbott's broken election promises. "Let's not forget that Tony Abbott, in chasing the votes of Queenslanders, said to people no new taxes, no increased taxes, no cuts to the pension, no cuts to health and no cuts to the ABC and to SBS," he said. "Every one of those promises he has broken." He denied he was deliberately muddying the waters of the Queensland election campaign with federal issues. "Not at all, this is a state election and there will be many state issues," Mr Shorten said.

"But I think that it will be an act of hope over experience to think that if you are voting for Campbell Newman, Tony Abbott won't have something to say and won't be rubbing his hands with glee. "They're from the same political party." Meanwhile, Annastacia Palaszczuk said she had not met with leaders of the Palmer United Party or Katter's Australian Party to discuss forming a minority government. "I have had no discussions. My focus is on Queenslanders sending Campbell Newman and Tony Abbott a message and voting Labor," she said. "I am focused on winning government for Labor, full stop."

Polls suggest that a minority government, where Labor or the LNP could win office with the support of minor parties, was one possible outcome given the close margin between the ALP and the LNP. "I am focused on winning this election," she said. "Only a vote for Labor will stop the LNP cuts and will stop the job losses." Mr Shorten said Mr Abbott was following cuts to the public service, to health and to education services. "You can call them different names, but they are from the same political party and share the same extreme views," he said.

He agreed it would be hard for Labor to win the 2015 state election, boosting its seats from nine to 45 to win office in its own right. But he said Ms Palaszczuk had the strength to oppose Mr Abbott's plans. "The test for any state leader is are they capable of standing up to Tony Abbott on behalf of the citizens of Queensland," he said. "Or will they simply be a rubber stamp for Tony Abbott. "Campbell Newman may have put Tony Abbott into witness protection and not have him come out and meet ordinary Queenslanders, but Queenslanders know that only Annastacia Palaszczuk has the strength to stand up against Tony Abbott's GST on fresh fruit and many other essentials of life."