Signs of action at long last

TODAY there is a glimmer of hope that we won’t have to wait until the next state election for some projects in Queensland to get off the ground.

Just a day after the Bulletin put out a front page questioning why the Labor State Government was delaying dam projects, Natural Resources Minister Dr Anthony Lynham announced the Hells Gate Dam proposal would be progressed.

Representatives from Townsville Enterprise, our leading economic development body, were in Brisbane last week undoubtedly pushing for support from the State Government on the project.

And there’s no doubt that after the Bulletin’s front page yesterday morning, our three under-fire local members would have been on the phone to their southern counterparts screaming for action.

For if there is one thing any local knows, water is the number one priority for North Queenslanders.

Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Matt Canavan is correct to point out just how much federal cash is waiting to be spent in Queensland on water projects. The state needs to grab that cash and get on with the job.

In this instance, Mr Lynham has said his Government has listened to North Queenslanders but if his party wants to be re-elected, they need to keep listening.

North Queenslanders want to see a Cabinet reshuffle and fairer representation in key positions, plus a minister for North Queensland appointed.

We want to see real action on youth crime, including our promised 53 police officers on the ground immediately.

We want the State Government to abandon its failed bailhouses, which the Bulletin has exposed time and time again as a complete flop.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk made a bold decision to bring her Parliament to Townsville in September and if it’s an additional attempt to allow North Queensland voices to be heard, she and her colleagues better be prepared to listen and to act on what we say.