New state bid ramps up
RESIDENTS pushing for North Queensland to become a separate state say they are fed up with no water, high unemployment and a lack of political representation.
The NQ State group plans to recruit 500 members to enable them to be recognised as a political party.
They held their first public meeting on Saturday, where water security, high bankruptcy levels and unemployment were hot topics.
President Peter Raffles said there had been a long- held desire for North Queensland to become a separate state dating back to federation.
“The ultimate objective is to win the balance of power in parliament so that we get a referendum,” he said.
“That way we’re the ones making the decisions that affect us. It’s not OK that we have ended up with Level 3 water restrictions, it’s not OK that we have ended up with some of the worst unemployment figures in the country, the worst bankruptcy figures in the country and so we want to change that.”
The State Government has previously ruled out allowing North Queenslanders to have a referendum on secession.
Of the country’s 76 senators, only four are in Northern Australia and only two are north of Gladstone.
Last year Mount Isa MP Robbie Katter moved a motion for a separate state of North Queensland but it failed.
NQ State, incorporated earlier this year, aims to improve the quality of life of North Queenslanders through better representation.
The members hope to help grow the economy and to make the country more democratic by keeping politicians more accountable.
Mr Raffles, a former Innisfail resident and industrial lawyer, said North Queensland would continue to be held back without fair representation.
“We’ve got an imbalance here in representation,” he said.
“The seventh state is the legacy we want to leave.”
See www. nqstate. com. au