Opposition (Queensland)
The Opposition in the Australian state of Queensland comprises the largest party or coalition of parties not in Government. The Opposition's purpose is to hold the Government to account and constitute a "Government-in-waiting" should the existing Government fall. To that end, a Leader of the Opposition and Shadow Ministers for the various government departments question the Premier and Ministers on Government policy and administration, and formulate the policy the Opposition would pursue in Government. It is sometimes styled "Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition" to demonstrate that although it opposes the Government, it remains loyal to the Queen.
At times, the Opposition consisted of more than one party, notably when the Coalition parties were in Opposition. Those state parties entered Opposition in 1996 and merged to form the Liberal National Party of Queensland in 2008, National Leader Lawrence Springborg becoming Leader of the LNP and remaining Leader of the Opposition.
The current Leader of the Opposition is LNP Leader Deb Frecklington, and Tim Mander is the Deputy Leader. Their elections on 12 December 2017 came after the former Leader of the Opposition Tim Nicholls lost the November state election and resigned as party leader.The current shadow ministry was announced on 15 December 2017. It is led by Opposition Leader Deb Frecklington and deputy leader Tim Mander, who were appointed in the roles on 12 December 2017.
