Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ) President, Mark Jamieson says critical on-the-ground improvements for Queensland communities have been left out of the State Government’s mineral royalties carve-up.
Mr Jamieson (pictured), who is also Mayor of Sunshine Coast Council, said while councils welcomed the State Budget spend on First Nations housing and grants, safe and reliable drinking water, biosecurity and funding to reform and improve their integrity framework, they will be disappointed to see that critical support for Works for Queensland, roads and other programs have been overlooked.
“In times like these when the cost of living is such a concern for communities, it is the Works for Queensland program that is helping improve liveability by delivering parks, playgrounds, swimming pools, airport upgrades, road improvements and arts and culture precincts,” Mayor Jamieson said.
“Works for Queensland is also creating thousands of jobs and thus providing employment to ease those cost of living pressures.
“Just 10 days’ worth of the State Government’s $5.7 billion extra progressive coal royalties earnings would have covered these community priorities but they have instead been ignored.
“Cost of living is critical, but so too is liveability. One does not have to come at the expense of the other.”
Mayor Jamieson said Works for Queensland has cemented itself as one of the most successful job-creation programs established by the State Government in partnership with local government, creating and supporting more than 21,000 jobs and enabling more than 2000 community projects.
“Without liveability, towns and regions will struggle to attract and hold workers and their families, including in the regions where these royalties were dug out of the ground in the first place,” he said.
“These jobs and projects have helped keep skilled and experienced workers and their families in the regions, something we need now more than ever.
“We will continue to argue for this funding because of the real difference it makes in our towns and regions – jobs for the people who live there and facilities that add to their quality of life – until it is properly and permanently funded.”
Mayor Jamieson said regional roads funding received a small top up – the first since 2015 – but was going backwards in real terms.
“TIDS – The Transport Infrastructure Development Scheme – is saving lives by helping build safer roads across regional Queensland,” he said.
“This year, like every other year, we’ve asked that this program be properly funded, topped up and indexed annually at $100 million to make an even stronger contribution to lowering the road trauma felt by too many families. Building roads is expensive, and $70 million a year does not buy as much bitumen as it did in 2015.”
He said the LGAQ would continue to pursue increases for Works for Queensland, TIDS and the SEQ Community Stimulus Program, as well as the need to re-establish funding for building a pipeline of works, like the previous Maturing Infrastructure Pipeline Program, that would help deliver project planning to drive the best possible value for money for councils and the State Government.
The Budget also contains youth crime measures and the LGAQ will be seeking more information for members, and with significant amounts of funding directed to the Olympics and Paralympics, the LGAQ will continue advocating for regional benefits from the event, as per a motion passed at the 2021 LGAQ Annual Conference, the Mayor said.
“Youth crime is impacting local communities right across Queensland. LGAQ will be seeking more detail about the youth crime announcements in the budget. We believe that increased support for diversionary programs, early intervention and rehabilitation are all critical in preventing crime and keeping Queenslanders safe,” he said.
