Rockhampton vs Livingstone: How many people have responded to boundary change survey

Rockhampton vs Livingstone: We can reveal how many people have participated in the survey sent to the residents. It comes after one councillor raised concerns that many people did not receive the surveys.

Authorities have revealed how many people have responded to the official boundary change survey sent to residents in Rockhampton and Livingstone - and the numbers may surprise you.

Survey submissions closed at 5pm on July 4, 2022, and this publication asked the Electoral Commission Queensland a number of questions around what the public’s response had been like and also in relation to the process which had come under question from some quarters.

For those not familiar with the issue, Livingstone Shire is fighting desperately to stop three crucial suburbs - Glenlee, Glendale and Rockyview - from being lost to Rockhampton Regional Council.

A spokesperson for the Local Government Change Commission (Change Commission) responded to our questions.

The spokesperson said the voluntary, non-binding survey was mailed to about 85,500 voters – all those on the electoral roll in the two council areas as of May 31, 2022.

The Change Commission spokesperson said people were given the option of submitting a response online or by post and they were advised that anyone – including residents who are not enrolled in the two council areas – could provide a written submission.

“More than 17,600 people have commented so far, including nearly 10,000 responses to the online survey, around 7,500 postal responses returned to date and more than 140 written submissions,” the Change Commission spokesperson said.

“Final participation numbers will be published after the deadline for return of postal responses on 14 July 2022.”

In the week leading up to the submissions deadline of July 4, Livingstone Shire councillor Rhodes Watson raised concerns about the survey process.

On his councillor Facebook page, Mr Watson asked the community: “Have you received your voting letter for the proposed boundary change?”

Livingstone Shire councillor Rhodes Watson.

Mr Watson said he had received “many calls” from Livingstone residents who “have not received their voting letter in the mail”.

Mr Watson further added he had also noticed many people saying the same thing on social media.

In a bid to help these people, Mr Watson provided details in his Facebook post about how they could “vote” if they had not received the letter and also a reminder about the closure date.

Mr Watson told this publication he had contacted the Electoral Commission Queensland (prior to the deadline) in relation to his concerns that some people had not received the survey.

This publication also put the matters raised by Mr Watson to the ECQ, and the spokesperson for the Local Government Change Commission responded.

“The Local Government Change Commission (Change Commission) values public feedback and has provided a number of ways for people to comment on the proposed boundary change,” the spokesperson said.

“Consultation options were publicised on the ECQ website, via social media posts, advertisements and media interviews.

“The ECQ’s phone services were also expanded to cater for calls on the issue.”

Part of a 'Leave Livingstone Alone' campaign image used by Livingstone Shire Council in 2022, urging people to vote “no” to boundary change.

The Change Commission spokesperson also provided some more details around the boundary review process.

“The survey result is one the many factors being considered by the Change Commission as part of the boundary review.

“This also includes financial assessments and planning and development considerations before a final report is provided to the Minister responsible for Local Government and the public later this year.

“The survey results and public submissions will be progressively published on the ECQ’s website.”

Recently, the fight for the three suburbs turned nasty when Livingstone councillor Glenda Mather wrote an “open letter” to the residents of Rockhampton with some explosive claims and that forced Rockhampton Mayor Tony Williams to respond.