Queensland councils have issued a call to all sides of politics to back local communities by supporting grassroots initiatives to address cost of living, improve infrastructure and place community needs at the centre of the transition to a clean energy future - or risk losing their vital support on polling day at this year’s State Election.
The Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ), the peak body for Queensland councils, has launched its 2024 State Election platform alongside a warning to the major and minor parties that local communities would be watching to ensure their priorities were not only acknowledged but met with commitments.
LGAQ CEO Alison Smith said the booming population, soaring living costs, a housing crisis, community safety concerns and a transitioning economy loomed large in the minds of voters on a daily basis.
As the most grass roots level of government, Queensland councils are on the frontline of these challenges, in local communities right across the state – from Brisbane to Bedourie and the Cape to Coolangatta.
Through their local council and the LGAQ, communities are asking candidates in the upcoming state election to commit to a range of critical policy and funding asks, under eight key themes:
- Reducing the cost of living
- Energy and community transformation
- Better local infrastructure
- Addressing the housing crisis
- Building safe, resilient and liveable communities
- Empowering First Nations peoples
- Protecting the environment
- Supporting stronger councils
Critical to these funding asks will be ensuring that State Government policy and funding is tailored to meet with needs of local councils and the communities they represent, because any cuts to council funding and support means cuts to community liveability.
Ms Smith said local councils wanted to partner with the State Government to enhance the liveability of every Queensland community.
“Let’s work together to give every Queenslander a fair go by supporting stronger councils," she said.
“As our research shows, better funded councils make for more liveable communities.
“Local councils continue to go above and beyond for the sake of maintaining their communities’ liveability – with an estimated cost of filling gaps left by other levels of government having risen by 378% over the last two decades.
“This comes at a time when the number of Queenslanders rating the liveability of their local area as excellent or good is decreasing.
“We know from our research that issues like housing and community safety continue to impact Queenslanders perspective of their community as a good place to live.”
“Local councils can’t do it alone; they need a strong partnership with State leaders to ensure their local communities have the infrastructure and services local residents deserve.”
Ms Smith said political parties had also been put on notice that the Association would be releasing report cards to ensure local communities knew exactly where they stood on critical priorities.
Once the reports cards are released, voters will be able to type in their postcode and see how they stack up.
Political candidates and voters can engage further, at www.voteforlocal.com.au
For more information, please contact:
Dan Knowles, Media Advisor