Katter's concerned Designated Area Migration Agreement could be bad for NQ

Fears local workers could be underpaid, and that the housing market could be put under further pressure, have been flagged after a new migration agreement was signed for NQ.

FEARS local workers could be underpaid, and that the housing market could be put under further pressure, have been flagged after a new Designated Area Migration Agreement was signed for North Queensland.

Last week the federal government announced skilled migrants would have access to the new landmark agreement to help fill jobs in across 195 different occupations across nine local government areas between Townsville and Mount Isa.

Kennedy MP Bob Katter. Picture: Duncan Evans

The DAMA, which will be administered by Townsville Enterprise, is expected to help ease pressures on industries struggling to find workers.

However, Kennedy MP Bob Katter believes the agreement could be detrimental to the region.

“The labour hire companies will be licking their lips,” Mr Katter said.

“Our wages in the mines have been cut down from nearly $200,000 a year, to close to $100,000 a year. This will further undermine miners pay and conditions. I can’t help but think this is a deal for the Government to help their rich cronies.”

The Katter’s Australian Party MP said there were a lot of legitimate owner-operator businesses looking for workers, but many Australians were “sitting on their backsides” watching TV.

“We have able people on welfare or studying multiple university courses with no plan to get a job, or on disability payments,” Mr Katter said.

Clynton Hawks is the Katter's Australian Party candidate for Herbert. Picture: Shae Beplate.

KAP Herbert candidate Clynton Hawks said housing was already scarce in North Queensland, and the DAMA could have a negative effect on the region’s house prices and supply.

He is calling for an immediate ban on foreign nationals buying houses in Australia, and for the federal government to legislate that only citizens can buy residential properties.

Mr Hawks said he was unable to purchase property in most counties, but in Australia foreign nationals could snap up properties.

“We are leaving struggling Australians behind by allowing foreign nationals to flood our housing market,” he said.

“We currently have a rental crisis so we can’t get into one of them and we can’t look at buying a place of our own due to getting priced out of our own market.”

Mr Hawks said initiatives like the Labor party’s regional first home buyers scheme wouldn’t be necessary if Australia stopped foreign ownership.

“It is time to put Aussies first and get struggling Aussies into their own home sooner,” he said.

Skilled migrants to help fill NQ workforce

ALMOST 200 occupations in Townsville will be covered by a Designated Area Migration Agreement, targeting skilled overseas workers to fill the region’s talent-hungry workforce.

Focusing on areas like manufacturing, healthcare, social assistance, transport, postal, warehousing, professional, scientific and technical services, the Townsville Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA) will help businesses and industries fill vacancies to help the region grow.

The landmark signing of the agreement will strategically position the region through tailored visa concessions.

Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs Minister Alex Hawk said the government was committed to the success of North Queensland.

“Economic modelling provided to establish a DAMA, highlighted the strength and diversity within the region’s economy – no individual sector contributes more than a 15 per cent share of economic output,” Minister Hawke said.

“This poses significant challenges in filling critical skill shortages across such a vast range of occupations.

“The DAMA answers this challenge, by opening the door to attract and settle skilled overseas workers into the region.”

Phillip Thompson and Claudia Brumme-Smtih.

Herbert MP Phillip Thompson said with the DAMA now in place, the diverse range of industries covered would be able to grow more, making the city a key destination.

“Since unemployment has been so low recently, many businesses have raised with me the challenges of finding staff, whether it’s in hospitality, manufacturing or in other trades. The DAMA will help the fill those gaps.” Mr Thompson said.

“What’s important in all this is that no local will be overlooked for a job – employers will have to show that they’ve tried to hire a local, but haven’t been able to, to be able to access the DAMA.”

Townsville Enterprise will administer the process of accessing the Townsville DAMA, which will open to businesses operating in any of the nine local government areas covered by the agreement – Townsville, Hinchinbrook, Charters Towers, Burdekin, Mount Isa, Cloncurry, McKinlay, Richmond and Flinders.

Local businesses will be able to apply to access the DAMA from July 1 this year.

TEL CEO Claudia Brumme-Smith said it had heard “loud and clear” from the business communities that one of the biggest issues faced was workforce availability.

“Right now there are 3,000 unfilled vacancies in North Queensland, so if we can help fill some of those with the DAMA, then that is a win for the business community,” Ms Brumme-Smith said.

Burdekin Mayor and North Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils chairwoman said it was not just business, but entire communities that would be rejuvenated by the agreement.

“The DAMA does more than just bring more extra workers to take the pressure of business owners in our region,” Cr McLaughlin said.

“The structure of the DAMA agreement means that when workers come here they can look at bringing their immediate families, and they will have avenues to permanent residency.

“Their kids will go to schools, they’ll join community and sporting clubs, and participate in the social fabric of the region.”

Regional Development Australia Townsville and Northwest chairman and Charters Towers Mayor Frank Beveridge said the skills shortages were a key impediment to growth in the Townsville to Mount Isa corridor.

“It is vitally important there is an effective strategy in place to ensure we have the right skills and experience at the right time to bring these projects to fruition,” Cr Beveridge said.

More detail needed on NQ budget perks

THE federal budget has been described as disappointing and underwhelming for Townsville, with little targeted funding for the seat of Herbert and more information on projects announced needed.

Acting Mayor Mark Molachino said there was positive news for Charters Towers with additional funding for Big Rocks Weir, and the Hells Gates Dam commitment, but very little in the way of funding for Townsville.

“Nothing jumped out at me,” Mr Molachino said.

He said the cost of living announcements, which include a 50 per cent cut to the fuel excise, and tax offsets, were positive for people, the city’s big ticket items were not committed to.

Townsville City Council has been hoping to receive funding for projects like NQ Spark and the Lansdown Eco-Industrial Precinct, but the federal government did not make a budgetary commitment to either.

However, it is understood there are still further funding announcements to come as part of the election campaign.

READ ALL ABOUT HOW TOWNSVILLE FARED IN THE BUDGET

Cr Molachino the road funding for Townsville to Roma and Townsville to Tennant Creek was positive, but fleeting.

“It’s a short-term job … sugar-hit kind of work,” he said.

Acting Mayor Mark Molachino. Picture: Alix Sweeney

Townsville Enterprise CEO Claudia Brumme-Smith said it would be looking for detail in the coming days on priority projects from the Unlock the North Budget Submission.

“There is also additional money for Regional Accelerator Programs, $500m for regional

manufacturers and $1.7bn for agricultural and industry development in North Queensland. The devil however will be in the detail of what those packages can provide to our region,” Ms Brumme-Smith said.

“We also welcome the increase in NAIF funding by $2bn which is the government’s critical

infrastructure loan facility for developing the North. We are hoping that Copperstring will get its fair share of funding in coming weeks out of the NAIF”.

“Further detail is also required to understand the hydrogen funding announced in (the) budget, for example what the $1.2bn over 10 years to create a co-investment facility that supports the development of regional Hydrogen hubs can mean for North Queensland.”

Labor Senator Murray Watt described the budget as a “big bribe”.

“If Scott Morrison and the LNP really cared about cost of living pressures for regional Queenslanders they would have done something well before now. Instead, they’re just bringing out the cheque book a few weeks before an election,” Mr Watt said.

He added that there was a “big cloud” over Infrastructure commitments in North Queensland.

“The budget documents don’t tell us when any of the money promised will arrive,” Mr Watt said.

“How many years will it be before North Queensland sees the projects that have been promised?”

What NQ can expect from federal budget

THE cost of living is primed to dominate tonight’s federal budget, with funding for North Queensland likely tapped out.

In the past week, the federal government has dropped numerous pre-budget announcements, including $5.4bn for Hells Gates Dam and $232m for road upgrades in the North.

Direct cash for people earning under $126,000 and a cut to petrol prices for six months are expected in tonight’s budget.

Economist Colin Dwyer said the budget would include ”commendable public investment initiatives” and renewed his call for any household cost of living relief to include regions in regular Consumer Price index Reporting.

The CPI is currently based on Brisbane, and then compared to other capital cities.

“I have been advocating for better regional inflation information for over a decade and this is the best chance so far regions have of CPI recognition,” Mr Dwyer said.

The Adjunct Professor at James Cook University added a cut to the fuel excise was concerning.

“Any temporary reduction in fuel excise that draws billions away from road maintenance and construction will only put a small amount back in drivers pockets,” Mr Dwyer said.

“I have concerns about this initiative and as an advocate for a better northern Bruce Highway it makes sense the money be committed to make the northern Bruce a safer road.”

Townsville Enterprise CEO Claudia Brumme-Smith said the budget already seemed to have a focus on infrastructure.

“We know that cost of living has been going up against real wages for a while now and the current global conditions are creating a real pinch at the bowser and the supermarket, so we are looking forward to seeing some relief for our communities across North Queensland,” Ms Brumme-Smith said.

“Beyond that, we are expecting this to be a big infrastructure budget, and we are hopeful we can get some of the projects off the ground that will become integral to our economy in the years to come.”

“North Queensland is uniquely positioned to establish globally significant green hydrogen production, hi-tech green manufacturing, and metals processing industries, provided the necessary water, power and transport infrastructure is in place.”

Townsville and surrounds to get massive NBN boosts by 2023

MAJOR improvements are on the cards for the NBN on Palm and Magnetic islands, as part of a federal government investment in connectivity.

The improvements come as part of a $480m investment in the NBN, which Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said would give people connected to the Sky Muster Satellite access to unmetered data for 16 hours a day by mid this year.

Communities currently connected to the NBN via the Sky Muster satellite, which includes Palm Island and Magnetic Island, only get access to unmetered data from 1am to 7am.

Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts Paul Fletcher during Question Time in the House of Representatives at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

Average monthly data allowance will also increase from 55GB to 90GB once an upgrade to other technology frees up bandwidth on the satellite system in around two-and-a-half years’ time.

Herbert MP Phillip Thompson said the investment would allow businesses on the islands to grow and residents to be able to download more.

“Access to the internet is absolutely critical wherever you live in Australia, but the challenges with connectivity on Magnetic and Palm Islands is something that has been raised with me regularly,” Mr Thompson said.

“With these improvements, locals won’t have to worry as much about how much they’re downloading and when – which means it’ll be easier to do business, easier to connect with family and friends, and allow more access to things like streaming services.”

Regional Communications Minister Bridget McKenzie said the investment would help bridge the digital divide.

“The NBN is a critical part of our national infrastructure and economy, enabling employment, connecting families, and supporting business,” Ms McKenzie said.

The federal government’s announcement also includes upgrades to the fixed wireless network – which services homes in Alice River, Bohle Plains, Kelso, Condon, Rasmussen, Wulguru and Northern Beaches.

Residents will now have access to faster download speeds due to advances in 5G technology. After the upgrades, due to be completed by the end of 2024, typical wholesale downloads in busy hours will be 50 Mbps, compared to the current 6 Mbps.

“By using the latest 4G and 5G wireless technology, this upgrade will extend the coverage range from a tower, and allow higher speed services to everyone served by the tower,” Minister Fletcher said.

“This means more people can be served by NBN fixed wireless; it means higher speed services on the NBN fixed wireless network; and it means higher amounts of data can be used by households and business customers.

Residents in Annandale, Idalia, Mount Louisa, Deeragun, Douglas and Bushland Beach will also be able to upgrade to direct fibre connection to the home by the end of 2023, enabling faster download speeds of close to 1000 megabits per second. 

Originally published as Katter's concerned Designated Area Migration Agreement could be bad for NQ