BYRNE’S CONCERNS ON QUEENSLAND PLAN

Media Release.

It has been disappointing to see so little detail in the Queensland Plan discussions so far on how the state will provide the services for a population that is expected to double in the coming 30 years says Member for Rockhampton, Bill Byrne. “By 2043 the population of Queensland will be 7.7 million at current projections and there will be big challenges to provide all those people with the hospitals, education and transport they will need." “This is something I have been talking about for 10 years and we need specific plans to plot our state’s future to ensure the infrastructure is in place to cope with such growth,” Mr Byrne said. “Where will these additional people go? I believe there are opportunities here for places like Rockhampton to grow and prosper, within a broader decentralised population construct, but initially the government has got to start to encourage people to move from the south east corner to the regions." “I was a little disappointed that population, the services needed to support the projections, and the inevitable structural problems for government revenue and capacity, failed to receive the emphasis that I would have hoped for."

“There has to be recognition too that each region is different and we must start to see the fine detail planning sooner rather than later." “There was general agreement at the Queensland Plan summit that planning new infrastructure should be a priority, but the Newman Government has so far been very slow on infrastructure."
“Major infrastructure like the new hospitals the former Labor Government started and which are now being delivered can take almost a decade to go from idea to completion." “The Opposition has held concerns from day one that the Queensland Plan exercise may be more about building the Newman Government’s image than building a better Queensland over the next 30 years." “For almost $5 million we need to get more than motherhood statements and image-building at taxpayers’ expense." “I have also been disappointed to see so little emphasis on innovation. I think innovation will be a driver of economic progress and I would certainly like to see initiatives to support small business start-ups and encourage the new ideas that will be vital on this 30-year journey." “So we can’t afford to waste time on glossy TV ads and generic statements that everyone can agree on but which don’t progress the hard-nosed planning we need to see."

“For regional Queensland it is important we know where our regions are heading in the coming decades and specifically what they can expect in terms of infrastructure to meet their needs." “The jobless figures released today are also a reminder that any future planning needs to address skills training to ensure we have a work force flexible enough to meet the challenges of a growing population and the demands of expanding or tential new industries.” “The military has a saying that suggests that any plan is simply a basis of common understanding at the start, then stuff happens." “Despite some of the positive aspects of this enterprise, I doubt that the material generated to date even satisfies that limited definition.”

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