Cr Barry Hughes, NWQROC Chair

With recent weather events my contribution theme this week is most timely.

We’re encouraged at this time in our region to be seeing our hard work advocating for and securing investment to build resilience against disasters resulting in projects in the pipeline or underway.

This week, the North West Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils welcomed a new approach to building resilience in our communities with Federal Minister for Emergency Management Jenny McAllister confirming successful projects for resilience project funding on 14 February.

Cr Barry Hughes, NWQROC Chair

As Chair of the North West Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils (NWQROC), I am proud to represent a region that is both rich in resources and resilient in spirit. Our communities, spread across vast distances, are the backbone of industries critical to Australia’s economy, including mining, agriculture, and energy.

With the Federal Election campaigning clearly starting to ramp up, it is vital that the unique challenges and opportunities of North West Queensland are firmly on the national agenda.

Cr Barry Hughes, NWQROC Chair

The dust has well and truly settled on the 2024 State Election, with the Ministerial announcements and department reshuffles now complete.

It’s given our group of Mayors from across the 11 councils of the North West time to discuss the outcomes, appointments and the alignment across our priorities as we get our local and regional agendas set for the new year.

NWQROC led a delegation of Mayors and Deputy Mayors to Canberra on 5-6 June ready to advocate for support and investment in the newly released NWQ Enabling Infrastructure Masterplan.

More than $300 million worth of shovel-ready project funding will be sought from federal government ministers next week when a delegation of North West mayors unveil a long-awaited and unprecedented “back to basics” strategy.