OUR PARLIAMENTARY REPRESENTATIVES REBECCA AND AMANDA GETTING POSITIVE RESULTS FOR OUR ISLANDS!
Island residents will be pleased to know that their new parliamentary representatives have ‘hit the ground running’ since being elected to office in November last year.
Member for Redlands and the SMB Islands, Rebecca Young, and Member for Oodgeroo including North Stradbroke Island, Amanda Stoker, surprised with first term assistant ministries in the new Crisafulli LNP Government.
Rebecca has been appointed as an Assistant Minister to Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie covering the critical areas of State planning, Housing and Regulation; and Amanda is the Assistant Minister for Finance, Trade, Employment and Training.
Since taking office, the duo have wasted no time in getting our islands front and centre with the new Queensland Government.
There have been some significant outcomes already coming from both representatives.
For Rebecca Young two areas of early promise are the critical parking situation for island residents, particularly at Weinam Creek.
The other area of concern has been the cost of building on our islands, particularly in relation to expensive sewage treatment plants.
For some time the popular AES system has been in ‘limbo’, with the previous Miles ALP Government providing no permanent solution.
The AES system is much cheaper for island home building and has been used over many years, until recent Government uncertainty.
The new Government, thanks to Rebecca Young, has already indicated that the AES system will be granted full ‘status’ when final approvals have been completed lie the coming weeks.
In relation to the critical Weinam Creek parking, the new Crisafulli Government introduced interim short term 50c passenger ferry fare relief to ease the burden on islanders.
This will remain in place until a major evaluation of the car parking state of affairs at Weinam Creek is carried out.
“This has been a short term emergency relief measure,” Rebecca Young told The Friendly Bay Islander.
Rebecca Young, at the same time, has just announced significant funding to a number of island groups and organisation.
Meanwhile, Amanda Stoker has been hard a work getting the new LNP Government to support 50c passenger ferry fares to the mainland for North Stradbroke Island residents.
Because the passenger services are not part of the Translink network, Straddie islanders have been missing out.
Amanda Stoker told The Friendly Bay Islander: “While 50c bus travel has been available, it is an unfair discrimination against the residents of North Stradbroke Island that they have not been included in the 50c fare scheme to date in relation to their ferry travel. “The reason that State Labor gave for failing to include Straddie in the scheme was because it is run by private operators.
“But that barrier was overcome in relation to other private providers of public transport, including for the SMBI and Coochiemudlo Island as well.
“I am pushing hard to get a commercial arrangement in place that would extend the benefits of the scheme for Straddie residents.
“Watch this space,” Amanda Stoker said.
Amanda Stoker and Rebecca Young on the steps of the Queensland State Parliament.
Comments