The Palaszczuk Government's plans to force major change to the way Queenslanders elect their local councils is the target of a social media campaign called Hands Off My Council.
The campaign, launched by the Local Government Association of Queensland today, is aimed at raising public awareness of the impact of the Government proposals, which include public funding of election campaigns, compulsory preferential voting and introducing the proportional representation system into undivided councils.
The campaign follows comprehensive polling by Colmar Brunton which found that 70 percent of Queensland voters were happy with the current system governing council elections.
LGAQ chief executive Greg Hallam said the proposed changes would overturn a system that seven out of 10 people were happy with.
“Forcing people to put a number in every square on a ballot paper would be a boon for political parties but a big headache for voters,” Mr Hallam said.
“This change is all about making it easier for party politics to muscle its way into all 77 council chambers across Queensland, not just Brisbane.”
“Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk needs to give a detailed explanation to Queenslanders why she thinks this is a good idea. Otherwise the Government should keep its hands off local councils.”
The campaign will run across social media platforms with the hashtag #HandsOffMyCouncil. It will encourage people who do not support the Government’s proposals to contact the premier to voice their concerns.
View the website: https://www.handsoffmycouncil.com.au/