January 7, 2013

South Burnett Deputy Mayor Keith Campbell will head up a committee to select the members for the new South Burnett Directions Steering Committee.

South Burnett Regional Council has unanimously supported the formation of the peak business committee following community meetings in Nanango and Murgon before Christmas.

“The feedback from businesses in the community has been that they strongly support the development of South Burnett Directions, which will be a project-based committee to steer economic development throughout the South Burnett,” Mayor Wayne Kratzmann said.

“This is an opportunity for all organisations throughout the South Burnett to come together and lobby the State and Federal Government sas one group.

“The next step will be to establish a committee led by the Deputy Mayor Keith Campbell to select suitably qualified people to form the South Burnett Directions Steering Committee.”

Cr Campbell said council had consulted with the business community.

“There was strong support to establish and develop the organisation and start a ‘Think Local First’ campaign,” he said.

“The feedback from the community was that the selection of the steering committee members be based upon skills rather than location.

“We will be calling for interested people to apply by January 21 to be part of this very important committee.”

Mayor Kratzmann said he had originally supported the idea that the committee be formed from people spread throughout the Burnett.

“(But) after listening to the feedback from business owners we will choose the committee based on skills that would assist the chosen projects rather than geographic location,” he said.

“The ‘Think Local First’ campaign would be one of the first projects that South Burnett Directions would steer. The rest of the projects would be prioritised by South Burnett Directions.

“We collected ideas from the community consultation sessions. The committee will be responsible for prioritising projects and decide upon which they believe will best support economic development in the region.”