January 11, 2016
Abigail Andersson is the latest candidate to put up their hand to contest the South Burnett Regional Council election in March.
Mrs Andersson is running in Division 3 – currently held by Cr Damien Tessmann – but if she had the chance, she would like to be able to get rid of divisions so councillors would represent the whole South Burnett.
“I’m anti-division. We should start saying ‘the South Burnett’, that ‘I’m from the South Burnett’ and then mention the area,” she said.
“We should approach it as a united region.”
Mrs Andersson is a true local. She was born in Nanango Hospital and attended Taabinga State School and Kingaroy State High School.
She traces her interest in community issues back to her time at Taabinga.
“I was elected a peer mediator, talking to people, resolving issues and that has been a stepping stone for what I have done later in life,” she said.
“I feel I can bring peoples’ concerns to Council.”
Mrs Andersson has three children, who are now all at school, and works part-time at Rockmans in Kingaroy Shoppingworld.
She also assists with the book-keeping at Andersson’s Fruit Market, which is run by her husband and father-in-law.
She has also been involved in many community groups, serving as president of the Kumbia Kindergarten committee for 2½ years and president of the Kingaroy Kindergarten committee for 12 months.
Mrs Andersson has also assisted community groups with grant applications, including the South Burnett Show Society.
Her involvement with the Show Society goes back several years. She was the 2013 Kingaroy Show Queen and the 2014 Kingaroy Rural Ambassador.
She is also a volunteer at the Kingaroy Visitor Information Centre, president of South Burnett Toastmasters and a volunteer for the Kingaroy RSPCA and Kingaroy Meals On Wheels.
She has also volunteered at the Red Cross store and the South Burnett Community Store in Kingaroy.
“I feel we are ready for change,” Mrs Andersson said.
“I am a new voice. The voice of a mother with three children who has been here my whole life.”
She hopes to bring a more business-like approach to Council.
“People want to see their rates more efficiently spent. The Council really needs to look at it more like a business,” she said.
“There are tough decisions you have to make and you will make enemies but you can’t keep doing things the same way and expect a different outcome.
“Budgeting is important. And who knows budgeting better than a mum?”
She said roads were also a “huge issue”.
“We don’t have a proper guarantee that when work is done it will last. We need to have longevity in the work we pay for,” she said.
“The Lockyer Valley has their own road crews that they contract out for a profit; in contrast, we contract in services.”
Mrs Andersson said she was encouraged by the number of people who had already stepped forward as candidates, and she hoped she could encourage more people to take an interest in politics.
She sees the future as bright for the region but also has ideas about things that could be improved for the community.
On Friday (January 15), Mrs Andersson will be cooking bacon and egg burgers at Anderssons Fruit Market in Markwell Street from 9:00am and says she will be available to talk to anyone in the community about any issues.
She has also invited people to text her on 0490-252-158 or message her on Facebook
