General News
26 September, 2024
Candidates in full campaign mode
LABOR’S Cynthia Lui, who is the incumbent MP for Cook, says the cost of living stands out as the “huge issue” for most people.
COOK ELECTORATE
Ms Lui says her government has reduced the cost of vehicle registration by 20% and provided a $1000 cost of living energy rebate.
“Road infrastructure is crucial, particularly in Mareeba, Douglas and Cape York, where road conditions and freight influence economic development, agriculture, tourism industries and affordability,” she said.
“Housing and health is universally important. In Mareeba, locals are telling me our health infrastructure can be better, which is why I’m fighting for upgrades to Mareeba Hospital Emergency Department.
“Our communities are different and so are their needs. In Douglas, transition following the Mossman Mill closure is a huge issue, which is why we have provided $12.1 million for crushing and transition in addition to the $22 million since 2019.”
For LNP candidate David Kempton, the region’s road network is a standout.
“The most concerning issue on the minds of the numerous people I have spoken to is the region’s failed road network and particularly the Barron River Bridge at Kuranda which closes and opens so often people have lost confidence that it will ever be repaired,” he said.
“Law and order are clearly the next most pressing issues followed by cost of living.”
Katter’s Australian Party’s Duane Amos says he has clocked up 6191km driving through the Cape engaging directly with communities in recent months.
“The diversity of Cook with the varying issues is why an Engagement Priority Strategy is required to deliver for each community, and local government is a well-positioned starting point to ensure a focussed response delivers specific needs that hit key issues immediately,” he said.
“The current Government approach of spending aimlessly on Cassowary Bridge crossings instead of investing in the Kuranda bridge and range road indicates a lack of planning and investment into economic priorities and these type of examples are across all of Cook.
“Several key issues have resonated for priorities including youth crime, cost of living, lack of employment for remote communities, road networks and insufficient funding for Local Government to deliver long-term water security for their respective areas.”
One Nation’s Peter Campion believes the two major parties have failed the region on many fronts.
“The electoral district of Cook has a vast range of issues which vary significantly by location. Many of these issues have been made considerably worse than they should be by more than a century of neglect by the state and federal Labor-Liberal UNiparty, whose focus is always on the sardine-tin electorates in the south-east corner.,” he said.
“The cost of living, the housing crisis, the price of fuel and electricity, government waste, inefficiency, and incompetence, crumbling bridges and infrastructure, and transferring our right to make decisions about our land to the faceless and unelected bureaucrats at the UN through World Heritage Listing have all been mentioned.
“They are all issues that have been made worse than they need to by the conscious decisions taken by the state and federal Labor-Liberal UNiparty.”
Greens candidate for Cook Troy Miller says too many people are suffering with cost-of-living pressures.
“I’ve seen how many people are struggling with the cost of living here all over - rents and mortgages are going up and the big banks are making record profits,” he said.
“This is a community of hard workers who get on with the job, pay their taxes and provide for their families. They’re doing it tough while the supermarket duopoly gets away with ripping off farmers and one in three big corporations pay no tax, zero, zilch.
“Labor and Liberal take millions in donations from big corporations. That’s why the major parties always put their corporate mates ahead of you.”
