“I think that voters would rightly feel cheated if they voted for a candidate who they subsequently found to be subject to an adverse finding [in the inquiry report].” The Premier, insisting she did not know what would be in the report, said the logical decision was to push the state election date back from her original intented date of March 3 to March 24. However, this had ramifications for local government elections, which had a fixed date statewide for March 31. The Electoral Commission of Queensland has previously expressed preference for a period of several weeks between the two polls for logistical reasons. Ms Bligh said this morning the local government elections would be held on a date to be decided in late April or early May. State parliament will sit, as usual, on February 14, 15 and 16 before being dissolved for an election campaign starting February 19.

While the state election could have been held at any time as late as June, Ms Bligh said she didn't believe it was right for a government to go beyond its three-year term unless there were extreme circumstances. She said while the current situation was unusual, she didn't think it warranted extending her government beyond three years from when she was elected on March 21, 2009, a scenario that "didn't sit right" with her. The Premier denied the decision was made in the political interests of her Labor government. “Clearly this [the flood inquiry report] will be a very controversial thing to land in the middle of an election campaign,” she said. ‘‘I am acting here in the interests of Queensland, not in the interests of myself or the government.

“These are not easy calls, it’s a call that required the exercise of judgment.” However, the claims received short shrift from Brisbane's LNP Lord Mayor Graham Quirk, who labelled it a "disgraceful decision". Ms Bligh had in 2010 ruled out moving the date of the 2012 council elections, saying at the time it was "not open or appropriate for the state government to extend the term of an elected government". In recent months she has also dismissed suggestions she would shift the date, including during parliamentary question time last year. However, Ms Bligh said today the delay to council elections would allow “sufficient and reasonable time” for local government leaders and candidates to campaign independently of a distracting state election campaign. She said the council election delay would cause some “inconvenience” but it was important that voters could consider the flood inquiry report and judge the responses of candidates.

Addressing concerns the postponement of local government elections would disrupt the annual budget process, Ms Bligh said the deadline for council budgets would be extended by the same length of time as the election. Asked why she did not simply head to Government House to formally call the state election now and kick off the formal campaign, Ms Bligh said her government would be governing and would lead legislative debate in Parliament in mid-February. “I don’t believe it’s in the interests of Queensland for a government to be in caretaker [mode] for almost 10 weeks,” she said. “What we have is a set of circumstances that frankly could not have been predicted.” Ms Bligh, who is lagging badly in the polls, said the election would a “very fierce contest” she knew she was in the fight of her life to win the support of voters but she would make the case Liberal National Party leader Campbell Newman was not the right person to lead the state.

Flood inquiry to reconvene The Queensland flood inquiry yesterday decided it would hold six more days of public hearings, following new questions over the management of Wivenhoe Dam during last year’s downpour. A series of stories in The Australian this week questioned whether the flood inquiry had adequately tested evidence about Wivenhoe Dam release strategies used in the lead up to the Brisbane flood last January. The newspaper referred to internal emails and documents to cast doubt over Seqwater’s official line about when "W3" release strategy was activated in the days before thousands of Brisbane and Ipswich homes were inundated. Seqwater told the inquiry this release strategy was activated on Saturday, January 8, at 8am, an argument accepted by the flood commission in the interim report released on August 1 last year, but The Australian said numerous internal documents indicated it was actually implemented 48 hours later.

Release strategies during flood events range from W1 to the most serious level, W4. The higher the number, the less importance is given to protecting bridges and the focus moves towards protection of urban areas like Brisbane. The inquiry's interim report called for better record-keeping procedures so engineers maintained accurate details of which release strategies were activated and when. Seqwater on Monday dismissed the new criticism, but the flood commission yesterday afternoon announced the extra round of Brisbane hearings, beginning on February 2 and ending on February 10. “The hearings follow stories published this week in The Australian newspaper and the commission’s own review of evidence,” the commission said in a statement. “Further hearings may be scheduled if necessary.”

The new hearings would be used to review “aspects of the operation of Wivenhoe Dam during the January 2011 flood event”. Ms Bligh said on Monday all requested documents had been provided to the inquiry, which was set up with a $15 million budget with royal-commission-style powers to find answers on all aspects of the flood. Today, Ms Bligh said the extra flood hearings were called to “thoroughly test the evidence” surrounding Wivenhoe Dam management. “What the commission has indicated is that they believe there is a need to put this question beyond doubt,” she said. LNP parliamentary leader Jeff Seeney last night said Ms Bligh’s claim that the extra hearings would have implications for election timing did not stand up to scrutiny.

“Premier Bligh shouldn’t be using the excuse of the independent inquiry to run away from an election,” he said, calling on Ms Bligh to “end the political games” and set the state election date. Loading “Whoever wins the election will have to deal with the outcome of the inquiry – and deliver on its recommendations.” LNP leader Campbell Newman on Monday said the new claims should be examined by the inquiry, but he did not mind if the election was held before the final report.