New Southern Downs Regional councillors on goals, starting term and first 100 days

The new Southern Downs council has been decided after weeks of counting votes, and it is shaping up to be one of the most diverse in the state. Find out what their biggest goals are here.

With the recent council election results confirmed, the Southern Downs is set to be one of Queensland’s most diverse.

With a new female mayor and five out of eight councillors being women it’s a new era for a council which was previously described as “a bit of a boy’s club”.

New mayor Melissa Hamilton said the previous council was an environment women would not want to be in.

“I spoke to a lot of women who would have been fantastic councillors asking them to stand, and overwhelmingly the women said to me they would not put themselves in the room, the way it (was),” she said last month.

The likely five new councillors for the Southern Downs are: Carla Pidgeon, Russell Wantling, Sarah Deane, Morwenna Harslett and Joel Richters. (Photo: Supplied/Various)

As it stands, the all new Southern Downs Regional Council will be made up of five women, including three newcomers, Morwenna Harslett, Sarah Deane and Carla Pidgeon.

It’s a result that showed that voters wanted a fresh, diverse perspective to get the job done.

The next crop of councillors for the next four years were confirmed over the long weekend after weeks of counting. They are:

• Melissa Hamilton (mayor)

• Sarah Deane (Stanthorpe)

• Sheryl Windle (Warwick)

• Carla Pidgeon (Allora)

• Morwenna Harslett (Stanthorpe)

• Cynthia McDonald (Rodgers Creek)

• Joel Richters (Warwick)

• Russell Wantling (Stanthorpe)

• Ross Bartley (Junabee)

Here’s what some of the new councillors have to say about their upcoming term, their goals and thoughts on their new council:

Morwenna Harslett

Morwenna Harslett is one of the five new councillors in the Southern Downs.

Former Stanthorpe business owner and new councillor Morwenna Harslett is keen on getting started on council for the next four years.

Ms Harslett said she was absolutely thrilled about her new role on council.

“It’s nice to hear we’re leading the state trend of diversity in council,” Ms Harslett said.

“A lot of the time in my life I have come across that sort of ‘old boys culture’, and there are so many kind and generous older men in this country, but there is certainly a few that block younger people from progressing whether it’s politics, community groups or businesses.

“I don’t believe it’s a female thing, I think it’s something about change, this new council has fresh faces like Joel (Richters) or Sarah (Deane) who are younger and can bring that change.

“Different demographics are being represented by younger people, I think it just so happens a lot of the candidates putting their hand up were women.”

Ms Harslett said communities across the state have clearly been voting for “younger, fresher ideas” and said she hopes a larger spectrum of people will put their hand up in the next election in 2028.

Former Cherry Lane Nursery owner Morwenna Harslett is ready for the job on council.

“What I think happens here is that we see the general younger population take an interest in their local politics. I noticed at some of the meet and greets I did is that there was an older demographic, and I didn’t know if the youth just didn’t feel welcomed, or simply weren’t interested,” she said.

“I’ll be honest there might not be much done in the first three months, because of so many new councillors there’s such a steep learning curve, but one of the things I’d like to achieve is resolve the divide between the Granite Belt and the Downs.

“It’s still too strong and it’s detrimental, I will work hard through the whole of the four years to represent the entire region.”

Ms Harslett said she also wants to work on the imbalance in funding and infrastructure within the arts locally, and aims to see the council be more encouraging of community arts groups.

Joel Richters

New councillor Joel Richters is excited about the new council, and said he felt like “like a new council with a different demographic will bring some new ideas to the table”.

The healthcare worker, who is no stranger to politics, is excited that almost half the region voted for him and said that it was telling.

New Southern Downs mayor Melissa Hamilton (right) with councillor Joel Richters at Glengallan

“A wise person once told me about elections that it’s not the incoming people that win an election, it’s the outgoing people that lose them,” Mr Richter said.

“What that tells me is that the outgoing council weren’t representing the community the way they wanted to be represented.”

Four of the eight councillors will be millennials, Mr Richters said - a far cry from the previous council which had its youngest member in their 50s.

“It’s hard to look past the fact we have four millennial councillors when previously we had none, and we have a majority women-lead council when previously we had majority male council - it is hard to look past those stereotypes,” he said.

Mr Richters said he had spoken to almost every councillor and talked over things they had wanted to achieve and thinks they will work together nicely.

Joel Richters.

“One of the things I want to do is regarding Camp Leslie Dam (as a solution to the housing crisis) and vote for a freeze the general minimum rate, because it’s the right thing to do,” he said.

“The things we talk about in council should reflect a growing and prospering community that is no longer stagnant, and is moving forward in leaps and bounds, and after four years if that’s the place we’re in then we’ve been successful.”

Russell Wantling

Mr Wantling, a devoted Stanthorpe community figure, said he was honoured and grateful to announce that he was one of the region’s eight choices.

“I’m deeply humbled by the trust and support you’ve placed in me. My campaign was built on a simple promise: to listen, to advocate, and to bring passion and action to every decision made on behalf of our amazing community,” Mr Wantling wrote.

“To my incredible family, especially my wife, three daughters, and their families, your unwavering support has been my rock. I couldn’t have done it without you.”

Russell Wantling.

“A heartfelt thank you to everyone who helped spread the word about my campaign, whether by handing out flyers, putting up my corflutes or sharing words of encouragement. Your dedication is truly inspiring, and I’m grateful to have you in my corner.”

Mr Wantling reiterated he was honoured to represent the region, and that he cannot wait to get started.

“To the wonderful people of the Southern Downs, I am deeply honoured to represent you.

“Your trust means everything to me, and I am committed to living up to your expectations. I look forward to the next four years of serving you, strengthening existing bonds, and forging new connections.

“Together, let’s continue to make the Southern Downs the incredible place that it is.”

Before being elected, Mr Wantling told News Corp focusing on tourism and collaboration would be a major pressing point he would like to focus on.

Mr Wantling said the recent success of the Apple and Grape Harvest Festival at Stanthorpe showed how popular the region was, attracting visitors from across the region and state who spent big.

“For example, for events Stanthorpe gets booked out so travellers will stay at Warwick or Wallangarra, it’s a good way to get people to stay in the area, but we’ve got to get better at showing what the Southern Downs has to offer,” Mr Wantling said in March.

“We need to look at how our economic development looks at tourism, and how we promote it and look at the statistics and figure out how we can improve it, and what are people coming here for.”

Sheryl Windle

After eight years on council, Ms Windle is ready for another four years focusing on representing the community and advocating for the region.

Warwick councillor Sheryl Windle has won council again, and is ready for another 4 years.

“I’m prepared to continue my strong commitment to represent the community as a whole and to continue to collaborate with state and federal governments, and their service agencies to find a suitable solution for the lack of affordable housing in this region,” she said in February.

Alongside her bid to lobby for affordable housing, Mrs Windle said tourism and water security were also high priorities.

“(I will) continue to advocate to the state government to prioritise funding to repair the five rail bridges between Stanthorpe and Wallangarra, which were destroyed in the bushfires,” she said.

Mrs Windle said in the past eight years council managed to significantly decrease their debt and she was confident it would continue to do so into the future.

Sarah Deane

A young mum from Stanthorpe is keen to crack into council in the coming weeks after a big few months of campaigning.

Stanthorpe councillor Sarah Deane is ready to work

Ms Deane said in March, if elected she would ensure honesty and transparency remain reflected in all aspects of council.

“As a public representative I think we should model behaviour we expect from our community, at the end of the day we are only human and we will also make mistakes, but we should do our diligence to rectify the situation,” she said.

A lot of feedback from the community has given Mrs Deane a sense there’s still a number of people who don’t feel heard by council, and feel as though they remain unaware of what’s happening in their own backyard.

Originally published as New Southern Downs Regional councillors on goals, starting term and first 100 days