January 22, 2015
by Deb Frecklington
Happy New Year!
As you know, the Premier announced that the Queensland Election will be held on Saturday, January 31.
It has been an honour to serve you in the electorate of Nanango for the past three years.
I’m extremely proud of what I have been able to achieve for our region so far – things like putting regional areas and agriculture back on the agenda, millions of dollars in investment in our road network, improving health services and securing many major infrastructure projects.
Here’s a list of some of the major infrastructure announcements we’ve secured for the region:
- $8.3 million for a brand new Kingaroy Police Station, plus another $1 million to upgrade the Nanango Police Station
- $3.5 million for a brand new Kingaroy Ambulance Station
- $2.5 million to refurbish the Kingaroy Courthouse and $900,000 to refurbish Nanango Courthouse
- $10 million through the Royalties for the Regions fund to upgrade the Kingaroy Water Treatment Plant
- $1 million for new traffic lights for Kingaroy and Nanango
- $2 million in works at the Kingaroy Hospital
- $4.79 million to build new classrooms at Kingaroy State High School for the Year 7 transition
- $50,000 for a new SES Shed at Nanango, plus $83,000 for a new SES Flood boat
- $500,000 in upgrades for our local kindergartens
- $2 million in Betterment Funding for flood-damaged roads
- $7 million for three overtaking lanes between Kingaroy and Nanango, Nanango and Yarraman, and north of Wooroolin
- $1.5 million to upgrade Kingaroy-Barkers Creek Road at the intersection of Clark and Swendson Road.
- $6 million for our schools to continue clearing their maintenance backlogs
- Flashing school zone lights for Kumbia and Taabinga SS plus more planned for Kingaroy SS
Importantly, there have also been real improvements in front-line services for the South Burnett, things like:
- Agriculture – Our government reinstated a dedicated Department of Agriculture and we now have new, common sense self-assessable Vegetation Management laws which give farmers back their rights to manage their own vegetation, plus, new rolling leases for leaseholders giving greater security of tenure for graziers. We also have a new Crop Protection Officer based in Kingaroy.
- Education – More than $4 million in extra funding for literacy and numeracy programs in our schools, extra prep teachers and more e-tablets for children with special needs.
- Health – A new rural generalist surgeon at Kingaroy Hospital, which means people don’t have the stress of having to travel away for general operations. The Kingaroy Dental Hospital waiting times have been reduced through the introduction of dental vouchers to clear lists even further. There’s also been a blitz on eye and orthopaedic surgery waiting lists and we’ve doubled the Patient Transport Subsidy Scheme.
- Small Business – Reductions in Workcover premiums of up to 17 per cent for small business owners
- Community Groups – More than $10 million injected into local community groups like the Kingaroy Junior Speedway, South Burnett Little Athletics, Kingaroy Netball and Kumbia CWA
- Community Services – $400,000 in funding for disability housing in Nanango, plus the land for the project gifted by the State Government
One of my major goals, if re-elected, is to secure funding for a South Burnett Clubhouse to provide people struggling with mental illness with a chance to reconnect with the community.
This is a passion of mine – to provide better mental health services for people in regional communities. And the Kingaroy Clubhouse will do just that – this model of care has a proven track record providing a clinical intervention service that assists people who experience mental ill health.
Unfortunately, many people in the South Burnett need this type of service.
In fact, mental health support is one of the most common inquiries made at my Electorate Office.
Along with Cheryl Dalton of SB Care, community member Graham Archdall, Luke Terry of Toowoomba Clubhouse, Louise Judge of Centacare and Tim Saal of Rural and Remote Mental Health, our Advisory Group has assessed the needs of the South Burnett and has revealed that this proposed service would not duplicate any current services in Kingaroy and the wider South Burnett Region.
In fact, most local service providers report caseloads at capacity and large waiting lists for patients.
There is so much more I want to do, and I’ve really enjoyed the last few weeks, travelling right around the electorate to speak with the community about what we have achieved so far and our plans for a Stronger Queensland.
I will be going to this election seeking to serve you again for another three years.
