State Update - Jonty Bush - Member for Cooper

State Update Jonty Bush MP Member for Cooper

Queensland Housing Summit

Queensland is currently facing enormous housing pressures. The Property Council of Australia’s recent report indicated that Queensland’s population grew by almost 750,000 between 2011 and 2021, with close to 90 per cent settling in the south-east. This increase in domestic migration, coupled with a reduction in skilled labour, supply shortages and multiple weather events are all contributing to the problem of housing shortages across the State. The Premier has announced she will personally host the upcoming Housing Summit on Thursday 20 October. Stakeholders and community groups who would like to share their ideas leading into the Summit should write to housingsummit@premiers.qld.gov.au

The Passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

We woke on September 8, to the news that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II had passed away. True to her word, she remained in service to the public every day of her life and will be missed by many. As a mark of respect, the Premier cancelled our next September Parliamentary sitting week, to allow for a period of mourning, in line with the Australian Parliament. To make up for those days, an extra day will be added to our next three sitting weeks. In the upcoming session of Parliament, along with some of my colleagues, I will be speaking to the condolence motion for the Queen. I would love to hear from those in our community who have personal stories of the Queen, perhaps from when she visited Government House in 1954. And if anyone would like to leave a message of condolence you can do so on the Queensland Parliament website: https:// www.parliament.qld.gov.au/

Review into Queensland’s Blue Card System

– Working with Children (Indigenous Communities) Amendment Bill 2021

As a member of the Legal Affairs and Safety Committee, I recently travelled to Mt Isa, Palm Island and Yarrabah, to attend Public Hearings and hear directly from Indigenous community members, their thoughts on the Bill. The objectives of the Bill are to provide a new Blue Card framework that empowers Indigenous communities to make decisions which best serve their interests in relation to child protection and employment of community members. These proposals represent significant changes to the Bill and require detailed, careful consideration. Our Committee is due to table its report on 31 October 2022. Transcripts of the proceedings are published on the Parliamentary website for anyone who is interested in finding out more: https://www. parliament.qld.gov.au/

Getting Storm Ready

The Bureau of Meteorology has declared that we are now entering our third La Nina season in a row. I know this information makes us all nervous, particularly those living in accommodation that has flooded before. If you have made an application to the Queensland Government Resilient Homes program and would like my help in following this up, please contact our office. Now is the time to get flood ready. There are some great resources on www.getready.qld. gov.au which cover areas like carrying out home maintenance; checking insurance policies and knowing what a potential evacuation plan would mean for your household. You can register for severe weather alerts at www.ewa.brisbane. qld.gov.au and for those impacted by Enoggera reservoir releases you can register for notifications of this via www.seqwater.com.au

Shop 2/230 Waterworks Road, Ashgrove Q 4060 t 3554 9100 e cooper@parliament.qld.gov.au f www.facebook.com/jontyforcooper Jonty Bush - working hard for us