Give our locals a fair go
I WANT to say thank you to the Federal Government for their support of all businesses during this COVID-19 pandemic.
Their stimulus was targeted at small and medium business and mine is one of those which has benefited. As we see Queensland loosening the grip of isolation around this curse, we are watching the Federal Government announce infrastructure projects aimed at assisting the construction industries. It is here where I need the Government to be careful and ensure the maximum benefit is felt in regional Australia.
My comments are directed most intently at Defence, with the Singapore joint venture starting to take shape, and this week’s announcement of an additional $270 billion Defence spend. Our city is perfectly positioned to become the home of an integrated Defence hub. If we get more Defence personnel, the city benefits. But that is only half of the proposition.
“Who will build the new facilities?” is the question which our local federal representatives need to answer. If we follow the path of recent Defence decisions, we will not be promoting local economic growth, we will be part of Sydney’s recovery from the pandemic.
Defence is a major player in our community and they hold a very special place in the heart of just about all Townsville residents. We are not only home to a very large Army base; we are also home to a massive veteran cohort who have served with distinction and have chosen our city to live their postADF lives. However, it is not the personnel on the ground who make the decisions on how things are built. It is the bureaucrats in Canberra who make the decisions on what the tender will look like and just how accessible this is for the local construction and construction services industries. They need to understand just how different Townsville is to the rest of Australia.
Too often we are seeing Defence work go to southernbased firms which have little or no stake in Townsville’s future, beyond getting the money for that particular job. Townsville deserves better, and our local elected representatives must raise this with Defence now!
Defence and politicians hide behind the phrase “80 per cent of jobs will be locally sourced”. This is an accounting trick. I would like to see Defence and our local MPS and senator change that to 80 per cent of the hours worked, or 80 per cent of the overall budget will be locally sourced, and have our reps hold them to it. It is completely upon them whether we are successful in driving our economy or we continue to see the work siphoned off to Sydney and Brisbane, leaving our city poorer for the effort.
This is serious and critical to
Townsville’s economic future. We are a great city with a great future, but only if we are prepared to stand up and be counted. I do zero work for Defence, but I am a beneficiary of the downstream spend from Defence when we are successful.
As my father told me, a rising tide lifts all boats.
If our Government truly believes in the development of Northern Australia, they have to care about this. I do and I am prepared to fight for it.
MARK BOGIATZIS,
Townsville.