Costello report not pretty: Qld premier

QUEENSLAND'S premier is strongly against selling state assets that are monopolies, despite recommendations in the Costello report.

The much-awaited 1000-page report into the state's finances, headed by former federal treasurer Tim Costello, will be tabled in parliament next week along with the government's response.

"It's not a pretty picture," Premier Campbell Newman told ABC radio.

The executive summary recommends selling the state's electricity and port assets to raise more than $25 billion and pay down debt.

Mr Newman said state-owned power firms Energex, Ergon, Powerlink and the Gladstone Port shouldn't be privatised.

"I am, like most Queenslanders in the main, quite strongly against it," he said.

"I think they should be owned by the people."

The alternative, to raise taxes and decrease spending, will be something that Queenslanders will have to choose between at the next election.

"What I'm appealing to Queenslanders to think about is that we have a problem and we want to fix it, together we must fix it," Mr Newman said.

"Do we want to see some asset sales that are acceptable and others won't be.

"Do we want a combination of things."

Mr Newman wants Queensland to be known in six years as the best performing state in the nation, especially when it comes to efficiency and trustworthiness.

Western Australia holds the title now and the other states are well behind.

"We want to really catch up and do a better job," Mr Newman said.

Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk says the premier has been in power for 14 months and it is time the economic blame game ends.

"Being premier of this state means taking responsibility," she said.

"Obviously the pressure is starting to get to him."

Although the government promised not to sell assets without a mandate, Ms Palaszczuk said that pledge was broken last week when government-owned high rises in the CBD were sold for half a billion dollars.

"If this is not an asset sale, then I don't know what is.

"There are people in his own treasury department who are laughing at the fact that the premier thinks it is not an asset sale."

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