Cairns Chamber of Commerce hosts Leichhardt candidates’ forum
From possible divestment of insurance companies to expanding international relationships, candidates vying for the seat of Leichhardt debated their take on the region’s key issues.
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From possible divestment of insurance companies to expanding international relationships, candidates vying for the seat of Leichhardt have debated their take on the region’s key issues.
Four or the candidates for the must win seat in the federal election attended the Cairns Chamber of Commerce meet the candidates forum on Tuesday.
During an inspiring conclusion, Tropical Tourism North Queensland chief executive Mark Olsen reminded the candidates of their northern priorities and what it would take to achieve success for the electorate if elected the federal member.
He urged them to build international relationships and not toe “the party line” to achieve Commonwealth investments for the region.
Mr Olsen also emphasised the Far North’s position in geopolitical ties with Asian and Pacific nations and how strong relationships with those countries would affect the operation of the airport and influence tourism, as well as infrastructure spend from roads to housing.
Communications professional Wendy Hughes quizzed the candidates on a wide range of topics from road infrastructure spend to housing plans, how they’d fix the reinsurance pool, and asked how the region would be impacted by geopolitical issues, as well their visions on tourism and the local economy.
In response, the candidates played it safe, sticking to party ideas rather than debating individual issues at a hyperlocal manner.
The forum was attended by Greens candidate Phillip Musumeci, LNP candidate Jeremy Neal, Family First candidate Les Searle and Labor candidate Matt Smith. One Nation’s Robert Hicks was reportedly ill.
What plans do you have for new or upgraded rail or road connections between Cairns the surrounding regions?
Mr Neal spoke of the LNP’s policy to exclude the CFMEU on its $7.2bn bipartisan Bruce Hwy build, claiming it would save 30 per cent in costs, before acknowledging the importance of the Captain Cook Hwy and the Kuranda Range Rd.
But he fell short of firm pledges.
“Obviously with the change of state government we’re still chasing our tail trying to get some prices for these roads,” he said.
Mr Smith began by also acknowledging Labor’s $7.2bn pledge for the Bruce Hwy, and a $93m commitment towards the Kennedy Developmental Rd, before stating the “rail industry is very interested in getting dangerous goods off our roads”.
“That’s a conversation that needs to happen with the state government as well.”
Mr Musumeci said the Greens’ active defence policy called for Australia to become more self-reliant and with “changing world powers” it would regard the Peninsula Development Rd as integral to defence initiatives.
How do you plan to ensure insurers reduce their premiums?
Mr Musumeci said the Greens would push increased regulatory compliance for transparency on how companies calculated their premiums as well as expanding the pool so it covered all forms of natural disasters including bushfires.
Mr Searle labelled the Far North’s insurance as “market failure” and said “that’s exactly where the government should be stepping in”.
Mr Smith said part of the solution was to look at resilience grants towards disaster proofing homes, as well as increasing data.
He backed $2.8m in funding he said had been provided to Cairns Regional Council to undertake flood mapping studies of the Barron Delta.
Mr Neal said there was a potential issue with international reinsurers not factoring in the reinsurance pool into premiums and he wanted to “make sure” they did so.
He also said following recent mergers of insurance companies, the LNP was “very open” to look at divestiture of insurers.
How do you think the US tariffs will impact our region?
Mr Searle said it was a reminder we needed a wide range of trading partners and reduce our dependence on China “and the raw materials we’re sending them”.
“I’m talking to a room of business people, you don’t put your eggs in one basket,” he said.
Mr Neal criticised the Prime Minister’s response arguing he “should be on a plane to visit the President of the United States” while stating the solution was in the “infrastructure side of things” to ensure produce from the Tablelands could be brought down the range and marketed to places like Indonesia’s growing middle class.
Mr Smith said “there was not a lot of negotiating going on” with the US, while urging the crowd to “go and have a steak tonight to support a farmer”.
Mr Smith acknowledged growing relationships in the Pacific, before launching an attack on Opposition Leader Peter Dutton for making jokes about the inundation of South Pacific islands and criticised the previous federal LNP government for losing Chinese trade connections on lobsters and wines.
How will you support international tourism?
Mr Smith argued there were three reasons tourists visited Australia – the Opera House, Uluru and the Great Barrier Reef before declaring the latter was “in danger reputationally and existentially”.
“The Reef’s reputation and health is the reason people come to Cairns … the thing we need to do the most in terms of tourism is protect the Reef.”
Mr Neal said his view was to support the state government’s attracting aviation fund and to value-add for visitors entering Australia, by using that fund to the keep them moving domestically.
What else?
On cost of doing business Mr Smith spoke of Labor’s plans to “reduce costs for everyone” through tax cuts so there was “more money to spend” in businesses, while Mr Neal spoke of the 25c fuel excise reduction stating it impacted “every product that comes into Cairns”.
On Cairns Regional Council’s push for $150m towards master planning and trunk infrastructure at Mount Peter to increase housing, Mr Smith said in conversations with mayor Amy Eden he had been made aware the council wasn’t seeking the entire sum in one hit, allowing for flexible payment.
Mr Neal said he had already asked the shadow treasurer Angus Taylor to meet with the council and discuss the LNP’s $5bn housing trunk infrastructure fund to “get the ball rolling”.
Mr Musumeci spruiked the Greens’ ideology of public developers, stating “the government should be little more directly involved” to solve this problem.
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Originally published as Cairns Chamber of Commerce hosts Leichhardt candidates’ forum
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