Archives: Government Relations

From a global perspective, Australia has fared very well in its management of the health and economic impacts associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. And while the Australian economy is recovering faster than originally forecast, and we feel somewhat protected simply by virtue of being an “island”, as a trading economy, our continued recovery will be… Read More

Queenslanders will go to the polls on Saturday 31 October in one of the most interesting state elections in recent memory, in the midst of the first economic recession in nearly 30 years and a global pandemic. With the successful party taking power for the state’s first fixed four-year term in which to implement their… Read More

At last weekend’s local government elections, the LNP comprehensively won a fifth term in Brisbane City Council, repeating its stranglehold on the wards – keeping Labor to five out of 26 seats. The LNP strategy of replacing long-term councillors in the last year of their term was a political masterstroke. Labor faces a long, hard… Read More

For the political armchair critic, 2019 has served up more than its fair share of twists and turns, and with two elections due within the next 12 months, it is likely there will be more unexpected developments in the lead-up to the local and state elections. Here is a quick recap of recent developments, and what… Read More

November 2017 is locked in as the date for the next Queensland election. Lock in 31 October 2020 as the date for the following election too, as the 2017 election will be the last time a sitting Premier has the ability to choose the poll date. Before we get started, let us quickly recognise the… Read More

With an election to occur sometime in the next eight months, when it does, the government will enter ‘caretaker mode’ until the election result is clear or, if there is a change of government, until the new government is appointed. Caretaker mode recognises that, with the dissolution of Parliament, the Executive cannot be held accountable… Read More

Sliding Doors is a 1998 British-American romantic drama film starring Gwyneth Paltrow and John Hannah. Alternating between two parallel universes, the plot is based on the two paths the central character’s life could take depending on whether or not she catches a train, and causing different outcomes in her life. Which brings us to the… Read More

As harrowing and challenging as Cyclone Debbie has been for the communities of North Queensland, the collective response before, during and in the immediate aftermath cannot be faulted. Admittedly as I write, the post-Debbie deluge is still in full swing. But what is abundantly clear is that due to extreme weather variability, northern  Queensland is… Read More

2017 is a big year for urban planning in Queensland. New Acts, Regulations, Policies and Provisions, Planning Schemes, and Regional Plans will all emerge this year. But how much will stay the same and how much will change? How different will all of these plans really be? Planning is happening all around us, but how… Read More

In perhaps the most anticipated exercise of drawing lines on a map in recent Queensland history, the Queensland Redistribution Commission is finalising its Proposal for the Redistribution of Queensland’s State Electoral Boundaries.   Originally slated for December 2016, we can now expect its release by late February, 2017.   There will be an increase in… Read More