CAIRNS COUNCILLOR PICKED TO RUN AGAINST STATE FIRE MINISTER

LINDA Cooper is putting her career on the line to go up against Craig Crawford at next year’s state election after being preselected to run for the LNP in Barron River.

The Division 6 Cairns regional councillor will not stand at the next local government election in March 2020, leaving the position wide open for a newcomer to take the helm.

She will stay on as a councillor until that vote has been taken – then it will be a sevenmonth campaign to topple the incumbent Labor member when Queensland goes to the polls on October 31.

It is a risky move for the veteran councillor.

After 12 years in local government and her popularity showing no sign of waning, she would presumably be a shoo-in for a fourth term as a councillor.

To date, no contender has announced their candidacy to run in Division 6.

Last night’s vote will change all of that, and it will be open season for the area which encompasses Brinsmead, Redlynch, Kamerunga, Freshwater and Stratford – four of which also fall in the Barron River electorate.

Cr Cooper said she was well aware of the career danger she was exposing herself to, but she could not sit idly by.

“It is a huge thing for me to do, but I think it’s the right thing,” she said.

“I’ve had 12 years as a councillor, which I absolutely love and would have continued to love if that’s what I chose to do.

“But I’ve become increasingly frustrated at some of the decisions being made – and the lack of community involvement in some of those decisions at a state level.

“I’ve never been one to sit on the sideline.

“To me, it’s a matter of either putting up or shutting up, and I want to be part of the solution.”

Cr Cooper became a member of the LNP when she was considering the possibility of running. She was a member of the Young Liberals in her late teens when she was first able to vote, so there is a long-term association with the party.

Among her chief concerns was the state of Queensland’s finances and what that meant for infrastructure and services.

“Frankly, I think the people of Barron River deserve more,” she said.

“If our fiscal systems are not more robust, how the hell are we ever going to get better road systems, better health systems and more schools?

“How are we going to do that with $82 billion debt down the tube?”