‘Get your s**t together and give us the money’: Councillor’s crass call for TC Jasper and flood recovery funding

Vulgar language has been used to punctuate Cairns Regional Council’s petitioning for a further $31m in disaster recovery to rebuild public assets following the Far North’s record December flood.

Division Seven councillor Anna Middleton has hit out at the state government over a lack of disaster funding. Picture: Brendan Radke

Vulgar language has been used to punctuate Cairns Regional Council’s petitioning for a further $31m in disaster recovery to rebuild public assets following the Far North’s record December flood.

Councillors moved a motion earlier this week to receive “Category D Funding” from the state government to restore beaches, foreshores, playgrounds, walking tracks and pay for flood mitigation projects in the region.

Ms Middleton says communal areas across Cairns Regional Council have been left to ruin since the flood. Picture: Brendan Radke

Division 7 councillor Anna Middleton hoped a four-letter-word may prompt seven-figure funding by whomever is swept into power following the state election.

“We live in the tropics,” Ms Middleton said.

“When we have a tropical disaster, we expect, we shouldn’t have to ask that this sort of funding will come and restore these areas that are really important to us.

“So, enough is enough. Get your s**t together and give us the money.”

Cairns Regional Council deputy mayor Brett Olds says the region hasn’t received enough state government funding. Picture: Brendan Radke

Deputy Mayor Brett Olds said the lack of funding had been “pissing me off for ages” at a press conference on Thursday.

“This government has been absolutely useless when it comes to taking care of Cairns residents,” Mr Olds said.

“We haven’t got that Category D funding. We’re staring down a hole for our ratepayers of $25-31m right now that’s not going to be given to us from state and federal governments.

That’s on top of what other regions get, on top of the resilience pools that other regions get as well.

“We’ve had a former treasurer and speaker (Curtis Pitt), we’ve got a current minister (Michael Healy), a former dual minister (Craig Crawford) … we have been shafted.

“They’ve been absolutely useless.”

Further, Mr Olds argued the Cairns region was underfunded more broadly when compared to other regions outside southeast Queensland.

Premier Steven Miles on the campaign trail with Labor MP Michael Healy at the Cairns Showgrounds. Pics Adam Head

But Member for Cairns Michael Healy said the Miles government had delivered key infrastructure while promising further investment, if re-elected, next week.

“A returned Miles Labor government has returned over $215m worth of election commitments to the people of the Far North,” he said.

“We’ve had less than $28m (committed) from the LNP. We’re putting $57m into schools up here. We’re putting tens of millions of dollars into our roads, and primary healthcare.

“$70m into our mental health facility, over 96 new beds going into our hospital, $26m upgrade into our emergency department. We’re investing in our future.”

The LNP’s candidate for Cairns Yolonde Entsch has focused on advocating for solutions to youth crime during her campaign.

Ms Entsch was contacted for comment.

Originally published as ‘Get your s**t together and give us the money’: Councillor’s crass call for TC Jasper and flood recovery funding