A Time of Change
17 April 2025
As we step into a change of weather and with Easter and ANZAC Day ahead of us, please take the opportunity to explore more of the Central Queensland Highlands, should you be fortunate enough to have some down time. Here’s a link to What’s On in the region to assist.
At this point I would like to acknowledge the ongoing flooding impacts that our friends in western Queensland continue to experience. I was particularly moved by the Member for Gregory Sean Dillon’s speech in parliament when he read a statement from Emily Green, an Adavale Resident.
Although heartbreaking, we know that visitation to these parts (when accessible) will be critical for the people and the economy. With a few cooler months ahead, I encourage all to enjoy the Central Highlands and then head west to take in the outback.
On the theme of change, we’ve recently had three key state government ministers in our region. Minister Tony Perrett (Primary Industries), Minister Brent Mickelberg (Transport and Main Roads) and Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie (State Development, Infrastructure, Planning and Industrial Relations).
The opportunity to engage directly with these ministers in our backyard has been vital. It allows them to eye-ball our places and people. It helps build context. Importantly, we start new relationships and/or build depth into existing ones.
In partnership with Central Highlands Regional Council, I was involved in a meeting with Deputy Premier Bleijie this week for a good period of time. The meeting centred on building context around the size and shape of the region, our communities, our economic drivers, opportunities we want to convert to realities and challenges faced. This was a thoughtful discussion with data, examples and priorities in the mix.
We look forward to progressing our advocacy and thank the Member for Gregory for organising all three ministerial engagements.
In addition, we engaged with Minister Andrew Powell (Environment and Tourism) via our regional tourism organisation Queensland Country Tourism on the government’s development of Destination 2045: Queensland’s Tourism Future.
Executive and senior leaders from the state government, notably the Director General for the Department of Primary Industry Graeme Bolton, have also been in the region and it was of great value to share CHDC’s strategic intent and current deliverables with all. Although many of these leaders either live in region or the broader Central Queensland, it’s always beneficial having in-person engagement.
I encourage those interested in gaining a perspective on global trends and regional impacts and opportunities to join us for a business lunch with Bernard Salt AM on Friday, 9 May. Purchase your ticket here. Bernard is a futurist who uses long-term datasets to interpret how society is changing. His insights are evidence-based and are engagingly delivered.
Take care!
