Convoy makes bright start in capital effort
AGENTS of orange have donned their lurid scarfs and neckties for the first day of intense political speed dating aboard the Cairns TNQ Convoy to Capital Q.
About 50 business leaders buckled in for quickfire tagteam meetings with a revolving cast of MPs under the watchful eye of portraits hanging on the walls of Parliament House in Brisbane.
The Cairns Post was there as they hammered home the importance of about $1 billion worth of infrastructure and policy priorities.
Convoy leader Advance Cairns executive director Nick Trompf explained the Taipans-orange fashion crimes hanging around their necks were meant to make the cavalcade’s members as conspicuous as possible.
“They’ll find it very hard to pat us on the head and tell us to go away,” he told the group before the first onslaught of meetings began.
The group brought with it an exhaustive manifesto of projects and policies but a second list – titled the “Big 6” – of the most critical projects had been compiled.
The Cairns University Hospital topped the list, alongside destination marketing – through a 2.5 per cent visitor levy or recurrent $10 million funding boost – and water security projects including Nullinga Dam.
Road projects, particularly the $365.5 million Cairns Western Arterial Rd (CWAR) upgrade, defence and marine precinct investment and key
TALKS: Transport Minister Mark Bailey hears from the Cairns TNQ Convoy to Capital Q roads and transport delegation at Parliament House in Brisbane. education out the list.
Mr Trompf also introduced a cheeky seventh wildcard issue to the mix – payroll tax relief for regional Queensland businesses.
Barron River MP Craig Crawford said the Far North delegation had left no doubt how crucial the massive CWAR upgrades were as the projects rounded final stretch of the Cairns ring road.
He liked its chances ahead of the upcoming budget.
“Fairly shortly we should have some detailed designs and costings,” he said.
“I’d like to think we’re in a position to be able to start moving on that.
“Especially since the Smithfield bypass, when it comes online in early 2021, will most likely funnel a lot of extra traffic onto the Western Arterial …
“We need to have a plan for that, we need to be ready to go with that so we don’t just send people into another carpark.”
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